Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Blue Rescue Team Preview (DS)

Nintendo's Pokemon games for its DS system haven't been stellar. The launch title Pokemon Dash! was short on substance and just plain boring, an excuse to showcase the touch screen and nothing more. And the puzzle game Pokemon Trozei, while enjoyable to a degree, feels a bit too similar to the aged yet fantastic Zoo Keeper. It just hasn't been fun being a Pokemon fan as of late, but that will hopefully change this September with the release of Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Blue Rescue Team, an action RPG with a unique twist. However, if you're in need of some classic Pokemon action, this game may leave you wanting more.

Much like the aforementioned DS titles, Blue Rescue Team isn't a full-fledged Pokemon adventure, but rather a standalone game in which you play as a human that's been transformed into a Pokemon. And to make matters even worse (providing you don't think being Pikachu is really sweet), the world is being torn apart by natural disasters and your fellow Pokemon are in danger, so you create a rescue team dedicated to saving the cute little guys from harm's way.

Although Nintendo brought the game to last week's Comic Con in San Diego, much of it remains shrouded behind the company's iron curtain. We don't know how many Pokemon there are in the game, what the top screen is used for (it appears to contain the world map), and furthermore, how this game interacts with the upcoming GBA title Red Rescue Team, assuming that they can actually communicate. There could even be a multiplayer component, but again, and for whatever reason, Nintendo of America isn't talking despite Blue Rescue Team being released in Japan some time ago.

Here's what we do know. When you first begin playing the game asks you a series of questions, and how you answer will determine which Pokemon you transform into. It's a great concept, but we're a bit skeptical as to how many different battle monsters there are. If the developers were really ambitious they could've tossed in 30 or more, thus giving Blue Rescue Team a lot of variety, but we suspect that there are only a small handful of creatures, and that answering some of the questions differently will yield the same result.

We also know that you'll be able to take on a partner and you'll work together to solve the game's challenges, and all of the battles are turn based. Pokemon carry their signature attacks, but you can also maneuver them about the playfield to do long-ranged strikes or simply run away from a fight. However, as reported by IGN, the bottom screen quickly becomes cluttered by all sorts of menus. If that's still the case when the final version ships it will definitely impact GameDaily's final score.

None of the major websites and magazines have tackled the import version of Blue Rescue Team, so for now, all I can really do is cross my fingers and hope that it doesn't turn out to be a huge disaster. But for now, it's another highly anticipated Nintendo DS title, and we'll post our review shortly after its September 18 release.