pokemon fans eagerly await the release of Scarlet and purple in November, the start of Generation 9. A few of the series’ ongoing mobile games have events to keep them busy in the meantime, such as Niantic’s Pokemon GO preparing for the launch of Season of Light on September 1. DeNAs Pokemon Masters EX has just started its three-year anniversary celebration, with a handful of unique Sync Pairs with accompanying story events.
The anniversary units added this year are arguably DeNA’s biggest draw, with the game currently granting access to anime star Ash Ketchum with Pikachu (in a tie-in for the ongoing Pokemon Travel World Coronation Series), Champion Cynthia with Mega Lucario and Champion Red with his own Pikachu. They all use a new Buddy Move mechanic, which opens powerful attacks after meeting specific criteria, such as getting hit a number of times. However, another big selling point for Pokemon Masters EXIts birthday is the Trainer Lodge, who acts as a pseudo-dating sim to unlock more dialogue and Pokemon for a handful of beloved characters.
How Pokemon Masters EX’s Trainer Lodge Works
Pokemon Masters players can unlock the Trainer Lodge once they complete Chapter 1 of the main story and team up with Black 2/White 2 main character Rosa – the first character invited to the lodge. At the time of writing, there are eight additional characters about the pokemon canon are on the guest list: Blue, Silver, May, Cynthia, N, Professor Sycamore, Lillie and Marnie. However, not all of them can be invited right away; players must have scouted them to gain entry, with DeNA scheduling a monthly rotating Poke Fair with one each. Even then, only five can visit the Trainer Lodge at a time.
Players can have an informal conversation with any trainer in the lodge, which offers a unique dialogue compared to selecting a trainer on the home screen, but the main reason for inviting characters is for the “Interact” feature. Up to three interactions can be started each day, and DeNA encourages players to do so by making it one of their daily missions to collect a few gems (Pokemon Masters‘ microtransaction currency). The daily Interact options can be split between three trainers, or they can all be used to get extra points for one person.
All trainers have the same Interact mini-game, which is quite simple and somewhat reminiscent of Tea Parties in Fire Emblem: Three Houses. Players are given three conversation topics and must decide what appeals to the character in question best – although each conversation also has a hidden bonus topic that is worth extra. The more questions that are asked without exhausting a trainer’s interest meter, the more their friendship level rises. Rewards are awarded approximately every five levels, ranging from power-ups for the main game to unique story segments and photos displayed in a scrapbook.
The fun is in the details
Ultimately, the Trainer Lodge Interact minigame falls a bit flat. While it’s interesting to see which topics interest a trainer like Marnie versus N, none of them offer a unique dialogue. It’s the big prizes that really stand out, and the most important thing for many fans is a new Sync Pair mate that unlocks at friendship level 100. For example, Blue will pair with Exeggutor and Cynthia with Gastrodon. There’s also merit to casual conversations at the lodge, which offer little character-building moments, like Silver adamantly denying he’s there to make friends or N complaining about the lack of a Ferris wheel on Pasio.
Unlike the characters in Intelligent Systems’ Fire Emblem Heroeseach of which comes from their original games, but are summoned to a new world where they can interact, Pokemon Masters EX is structured to imply that it is a sequel to every main game. DeNA celebrates the history of the franchise by bringing a variety of characters under one roof, but there is more continuity as they can build on their own adventures and stories told in the rest of the world.
Conversation snippets and new Pokemon available through the Trainer Lodge are a great extension of this philosophy, even if it fails as a true ‘dating sim’. While N already has a few alts, including both Reshiram and Zekrom, it’s just as interesting to see him with a lesser-used Pokemon like Sigilyph (which he originally uses for one battle in black and White). There are plenty of gamified elements to speed up the bonding process, with Expeditions unlocking items to trade for various gifts, but it’s probably worth enjoying the ride as DeNA introduces new characters and costumes, such as Cynthia’s Aura suit for the third anniversary.
Pokemon Masters EX is now available on Android and iOS devices.
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