Lately I get a game to review, play through it, and then move on to the next game. This year that’s kind of been busted with Pokémon Pokopia. I didn’t even review the thing and I have over 130 hours in it. I know, rookie numbers, but it’s been a busy year. So for me to want to go back to Pokopia and spend some more time in that world again, it’s gotta be pretty good, right?
Well, good news, they got me again. I have the Bubbly Basin to fix this time.
Before we continue, The Bubbly Basin is just one of three parts of the Pokémon Pokopia Expansion Pass, and this review covers just that. We know a little bit more about the second expansion, which will add some more items and features to the game, like accessories, while the last part will again add another town. So to buy into Bubbly Basin, you have to go all in, and we won’t know what the entire Expansion Pass is until next year at least. So just keep that in mind.
Bubbly Basin is another town added to the game, this time the location previously known as Cerulean City, and it’s all underwater, submerged by the catastrophic events that preceded the main game. That’s right, now you can Dive underwater, although that ability is added in the free update to the game that came out the same day. So if you just want a little bit of a diving fix, you don’t need this, but the move excels here and is one of the more fun ways to get around.
Bubbly Basin isn’t just another town, though. There’s a whole new little story to tell, and again, Pokopia does environmental storytelling so well that even though the main storyline is there, you’ll find all these little alcoves and hidden rooms that also tell a story.
Moving around with Dive is a breeze, and that’s good because Bubbly Basin is as deep as it is wide. You can explore what used to be the town, but there’s also a fair amount of it submerged and hidden away. The main story won’t take too long to smash through, but again, you’ve got so many new Pokémon to meet, little stories to hear and requests to fulfil that there are many hours of content here. And that’s not even including all the new items, fruit and recipes.
You’ll have to be a fan of Water-type Pokémon, though, because that’s basically all there is. It is underwater, after all. But there’s a wide range of Water-type Pokémon to meet. There is just one big nitpick: the water physics have been changed in the latest update. If you build a wall around it all and expect to be able to drain it out, you can’t. Because some guy I knew did that, a friend.
If Bubbly Basin is the standard for at least what the third part of the Expansion Pass is set to be (the second, again, just seems like accessories), then it’s certainly time to take the plunge and get some more Pokopia into you.
Rating: 4.5/5
This rating is for just the Bubbly Basin part of the Expansion Pass, since the other two parts aren’t out yet.
