[NOTE:: I posted this review on http://gamestop.com, it is my own work. I thought I'd post it here as well, as it's more than one paragraph complaining about Black.]
Alright, I did enjoy Black. When I first heard about it, I was going "YES! YES!" Then, after a little while, I was thinking it'd be roughly the same as any other Pokemon game, save for the Unova Region's quirks.
At long last, I got the game on the 14th, and I've enjoyed it since. I must say, the Global Link is a great idea, something that I'm glad they implemented this Generation. Use of WPA Wi-Fi[for us DSi-Users] means less dropped battles and trades, the GTS resemble the one introduced in HG/SS, and I love the Random Match-Up![yet another feature I've long-awaited!] The graphics look great, as are the movements, similar to the ones introduced in Stadium, and every other Home-Console spin-off. The Battle Subway is quite unique, in my opinion, and I love how much attention they devoted to the trains alone![I'm a fan of trains]
Alright, there are a few cons though, but nothing major.
-Not every Pokemon can be seen or captured until Nintendo releases an Event. Japan has had a bunch so far, mainly Dream World, but everywhere else lacks Events to introduce the remaining few Pokemon unavailable.[can you say Keldeo?]
-Pixelation. The idle-movements of Pokemon are awesome, but, it doesn't look to great on some, if they're on your team. For example, Rapidash looks awesome, as the pixels are moving fast with the fire-effect. However, Zapdos looks somewhat distorted from the back.
-Connection. I love how the C-Gear teases me whenever it finds a signal, but I'm still required to go to DSi Settings, and configure it to work. Not funny, C-Gear.
-Story Length. Nintendo seems to want to emphasize connectivity even more. The Single Player Adventure isn't as long as it was in Crystal, for instance. Granted, there's so much to do afterwards, but still, I'd have liked a little more conflict with Team Plasma.
-Lack of a Move Tutor. Why Nintendo, why? This could have made Sweet Hearts more useful, rather than just restoring 20hp! Think of the Shards system in D/P/Plt.
-Names. Alright, this i a low blow, but... Ducklett? REALLY? Nintendo, you failed on some of the names. Thank goodness we can still Nickname them. -.-
As for Pros...[in addition to everything stated earlier]
-Pokedex. The Pokedex now is more 'accurate', let's say. For example, if you catch or see a Shiny Patrat[why you would WANT a Patrat to begin with is beyond me], it will record it as shiny.
-Graphics. This ought to shut up those who say the Pokemon series has terrible graphics. The Pokemon Series has never been about graphics, but Nintendo updated them because that's all gamers think about these days.
-Music. Another definite win for Ninty, the music is greatly improved, as usual. There are so many memorable themes, with the hidden options in some areas to add sound.
-Connectivity. We're using Infrared again, which is great, because it means I don't have to fly or walk to a town, just to save and wait for it to connect. Swapping Friend Codes is much easier too.
-Version differences. This makes it more necessary to trade with White[since this is a Black review] than with the Counter-Versions in past Generation, than for just a few Pokemon. White has more Pokemon, while Black has more items. So, you'll be hoping to find someone to get you a few little Pokemon from White Forest in exchange for some Fire Stones from Black City.
-Seasons. Another update from Gen II, we now have Seasons. This affects the terrain, the Pokemon that appear, and makes an otherwise uninteresting Pokemon unique.
I actually really hate the movements.
They were obviously done by dragging/rotating parts of the sprite, which is perfectly fine, but they did absolutely NO touch-up at all. So there are all these random pixels floating around while the Pokemon moves. The only sprite I like is Woobat's, because it looks like they actually worked on his wings.
Speaking of Woobat, Ducklett's bad naming pales in comparison to Woobat's.
I'm not a fan of Pokemon. Even though, it sounds fun. But I think I'll wait. Nintendo will might make one for the 3DS. I really want to see if they will do that. I already seen a few trailers on my 3DS in full 3D. It was amazing. So I'm hoping for Pokemon to be on that. But anyway, great review!
Nice review. I should probably go and update my own Black/White review with some info on the Dream World and such, which hadn't released when I'd typed it.