[Review] Pokemon Unite

[Ale X Erfan]

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Pokémon Unite (stylized as Pokémon UNITE) is a free-to-play, multiplayer online battle arena video game developed by TiMi Studio Group and published by The Pokémon Company for Android and iOS and by Nintendo for the Nintendo Switch.[3][4] It was announced in a Pokémon Presents presentation on 24 June 2020.[4] The game was released for the Nintendo Switch on 21 July 2021, and was released for Android and iOS in 73 countries on 22 September 2021.[5]

Contents
1    Gameplay
1.1    Quick
1.1.1    Halloween in Mer Stadium
1.2    Ranked
2    Development
3    Reception
3.1    Pre-release
3.2    Post-release
4    Accolades
5    References
6    External links
Gameplay
Pokémon Unite is a multiplayer online battle arena game, with standard matches consisting of two teams of five players. Each match is time-limited, and the team with the highest total score by the end of each match wins.[6] A team can also win if the opposing team surrenders. If, however, there is a tie, the team that scored the tied score first wins (for instance, if both teams scored 729 points, the team that scored that number first wins). The game map, Aeos Island, is split into two halves, with multiple control points each. Players score points for their team by defeating non-player character "wild" Pokémon (referred to as catching in the game) and moving towards one of the control points. However, if the player gets hit by an attack while scoring, they will be interrupted, and must try again. Players can hold between 30 and 50 points depending on the stage of the game and their level. Each goal zone can hold a certain amount of these points, and once the limit is reached, it will be destroyed. When players try to go on the opposing team's side of the map, when a goal zone is active, there is a zone called a "speed flux zone", which slows down the movement speed of players entering it. Destroying a goal removes a respective section of the "speed flux zone". At certain times in each match, stronger wild Pokémon will appear. Defeating one of these will provide the team which defeated it a unique effect based on which Pokémon was defeated.[7]

Each player starts a match controlling relatively weak Pokémon. The Pokémon may become stronger and gain access to new combat skills by capturing wild Pokémon, hitting wild Pokémon that their teammate captures, knocking out an enemy player Pokémon, or from their team capturing Drednaw.[8] The "type" system common in previous Pokémon games, a system similar to rock paper scissors that determines each Pokémon's effectiveness against others, is absent from Pokémon Unite. However, the game includes a new mechanic to the series known as "Unite moves", which are combat skills unique to each Pokémon.[9] As of April 2021, over 20 playable Pokémon were officially revealed or found in the beta testing versions of the game.[10] As of November 2021 however, 7 new Pokémon have been added bringing the total to 27 playable Pokémon.

Aside from the gameplay, Pokémon Unite is unique from other MOBAs due to the fact that there is no in-game scoreboard. When asked about this, producer Masaaki Hoshino told Kotaku:[11]

The matches last 10 minutes and players have the possibility of making a comeback, so we wanted people to play without giving up to the very end.

Quick
A shorter game mode called 'Quick' is offered. It is similar to standard battles, but they are five minutes shorter. They also take place in different maps (Mer Stadium, Shivre City, and Auroma Park) with different NPCs and boss Pokemon. Each map has two to three goal zones, which is less than the standard Remoat Stadium map.

Halloween in Mer Stadium
For a limited time, to celebrate Halloween, Pokémon Unite introduced a new mode called Halloween in Mer Stadium. This is a Quick Battle that takes place in a Halloween-themed Mer Stadium. Pokémon cannot use their Held Items in battle; they are replaced by pumpkins, which, by pressing Y on the Switch or tapping it on mobile, will deploy a pumpkin that will stick onto the opposing Pokémon's head. The Pokémon with a pumpkin on its head will move slower, but its second move is replaced by an attack called Pumpkin Push, which pushes opposing Pokémon trying to attack. Playing this mode also rewards the player pumpkins, which can give the player items, fashion, more pumpkins, or the Unite License of the Pokémon Greedent. Other rewards include new Holowear skins for the Pokémon Lucario and Zeraora.

Ranked
Pokémon Unite offers a competitive mode known as 'Ranked.' Ranked Battles are unlocked at Trainer level 6. Ranked mode can be entered with at least 5 Pokémon Unite Licenses. They are 10 minute 5-on-5 matches that take place in Remoat Stadium.[12] Players may play solo or form in groups of two, three, or five. Team members must be within similar ranks to each other (2 ranks higher or lower).

In this ranked system, there are 6 Ranks. These include Beginner, Great, Expert, Veteran, Ultra and Master Rank, with the final rank using a rating system for the players.

Development
TiMi, a Chinese video game developer, began a closed beta test in January 2021. This test was limited to select players in China.

In February 2021, The Pokémon Company announced that another closed beta test would be scheduled for March 2021, this time specifically for Canadian Android smartphone users.[14][15]

The Nintendo Switch version of the game was officially released on 21 July 2021. The mobile versions for iOS and Android have been released as of 22 September 2021.[16] TiMi plans to continue development of the game after its official release, such as offering new playable Pokémon as downloadable content, the first of which became available for players on 28 July 2021.[17]
The reveal of Pokémon Unite received mixed opinions, with outlets discussing the game's potential to open a new competitive gaming scene to a fresh audience.[3] The YouTube video of the announcement[25] quickly became the most disliked video on The Pokémon Company's YouTube channel.[

Post-release
Pokémon Unite received "mixed or average" reviews, according to review aggregator Metacritic.[18] IGN gave the game a 6/10, criticizing some microtransactions as enabling pay-to-win gameplay.[19] The game's microtransactions have also been criticized for their price, specifically, one of the customizable options for one of the Pokémon, Alolan Ninetales, costing $40 USD.[28] This would also happen again with a Halloween-exclusive skin for the Pokémon Lucario. In response to discussions about the game on social media amongst fans, The Pokémon Company—through the official Pokémon Unite Twitter account—promoted a survey for feedback from fans to improve the game.[29]

By 16 September 2021, the game had been downloaded over 9 million times on the Switch,[30] with over 7.5 million mobile pre-registrations prior to the 22 September mobile release.[31] By 1 October, research company Sensor Tower reported that Unite has been downloaded 30 million times for mobile devices, while The Pokémon Company confirmed that the game has been downloaded over 25 million times on all platforms by 4 October.[32]

Accolades
Pokémon Unite won the award for Best Game of Google Play's Best of 2021