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The Mini sitting next
to one of his big brothers. As you can see, the Mini could easily fit
inside a Gameboy SP.
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Nintendo's Pokemon Game Boy?
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Released in US by Nintendo
November 16, 2001. |
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Pokemon Mini Review
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If you dislike Pokemon then stop reading now and go back to the main
page. The Pokemon Mini was released in 2002 in the United States to the
Pokemon Center in New York City and was available to the Pokemon Center
in Japan the year before. It is said that it was also available through
the Pokemon online store. Pokemon is what this little system is all
about. They came in purple, pink, and green. The price was $39 USD.
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The thing is really a
Gameboy mini and it is the smallest gaming unit that I have seen. It is
just too bad that this system was limited to just using Pokemon
characters and not open to other ideas. I do know that there is a
homebrew crowd that has put out some mini games for this unit.
The unit seems to be available on line
periodically from difference sources such as ebay and Amazon online.
The unit seems to be of the same quality of
construction as all portable gaming systems that come from Nintendo,
seems very solid. You hold it in your fingers not your hands, if you
have adult like hands. Smaller child like hands would probably be more
comfortable. I am happy to have such a neat little gaming machine in my
portable collection.
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Pros:
Nice little mini games for that spare moment.
Pokemon for that Pokemon fan
Cons:
Very limited game library.
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The GBA cart on
the left as reference and the tiny Pokemon Mini cart on the right.
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Games:
I think 11 games are available for this
system. They are hard to find. They are all mini games and all are
dominated with Pokemon characters. This must be the only gaming system
dedicated to the world of Pokemon. And the games are fun little mini
games, like guess where the ball will land, dribbling a ball down a
lane and beating your own score. There is even a pinball and a card
game available. My favorite is "Chansey's Dribble" which is on the
"Pokemon Party mini" cart, which has a small collection of mini games.
Mini games make a quick little time waster for that quick little minute
gaming need.
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Controls:
It has the traditional cross shaped directional button along with the
"A" and "B," a start button with a reset button that is recessed right
below. A "C" button resides at the top right hand corner of the unit.
On the top back of the unit, where the cart is inserted, is a switch
that locks the game cart in place. It even has an infrared
communications port able to connect with other Pokemon Minis for
multiplayer game play (up to six players), a motion sensor used for
certain games that require you to shake the unit, and also a built in
rumble feature.
Power:
The system is powered by one AAA battery.
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A nice
resolution on such a small highly visible screen.
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Screen:
The screen is a very bright,
non-lit, LCD that is black and white. (4 shades of gray) It has a
surprising high visibility for a non-lit screen. The screen sort-of
reminds me of the Gameboy Pocket only the size is a 1 3/8 inch
diagonal, or 96x64 pixel resolution. Nice resolution for a screen on
something this size. No headphone jack. Screen brightness and sound is
controlled in software. There is only a slight recessing of the screen.
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The
lock for the game cart on the Pokemon Mini can be seen in the picture
on the left.
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Final
Thoughts: The pokemon Mini doesn't seem to have been taken
seriously as a gaming platform by Nintendo. It seems to me that it was
only a marketing gimmick for the Pokemon franchise. Sad, it looks like
it could have had a lot of potential. Only when you hold it in your
hands and play with it do you see the potential of puzzle games,
platforms, and shumups. Great tiny little system that was not given a
chance to be all it could have been.
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