[Import] My review in four words: I love this game!
I can't say I blame them. This is the most fun I've had with Pokemon since Red and Blue. Everything in the game feels so fresh, and there's never a dull moment. One of the bigger contributing factors to this is the fact that you don't even see one of the 493 pre existing Pokemon until you've beaten the Pokemon League, and with 156 new Pokemon, there's more than enough variety without the 'been there, done that' feeling. The game is constantly throwing something new at you; new areas, event battles, and Pokemon are always right around the corner, and the new Triple and Rotation battles are sprinkled sparingly throughout the adventure to keep things fresh. It doesn't hurt that the game is more story-driven than its predecessors either, beating N and team Plasma is the main focus here, becoming a Pokemon League Champion has only a supporting role in this story.
One thing you'll notice is that the game has been made far more linear than previous entries in the series. Players travel around the Isshu region in a straight line as opposed to darting around the map, with little in the way of alternate routes or expansive wilderness. This allows the game to remain focused throughout the entire adventure. The Pokemon series has never been known for its difficulty, but with the changes made to the experience system, (which rewards players with more experience for defeating higher leveled Pokemon and less for defeating weaker ones) creating a competent team is a higher priority than ever before.
Pokemon trainers have received some new toys in exchange for old ones. The C Gear is the most notable one and reflects the game's emphasis on Wifi and Wireless play. Players can use it to participate in High-Link missions with their friends, bestowing many in game bonuses like higher experience and faster hatching times as rewards, and also connect to the Dream World, Black and White's equivalent of the Pokewalker. Using the internet, the Dream World allows players to look for Pokemon and items while playing minigames. For the most part this is an improvement over the Pokewalker, but some of Platinum's better key items, like the VS Seeker and the PokeRadar, fail to make an appearance in any way.
For those wondering what version to get, the choice is harder than ever before. Asides from the exclusive Pokemon which basically go without saying, there are exclusive areas, changes to the music and appearance of some shared areas, and even an exclusive Gym Leader. Though available to both games for multiplayer, Triple Battles are featured predominantly in the White campaign while Rotation Battles are featured predominantly in the Black campaign.
Gamefreak has really stepped up to the plate as far as presentation is concerned, Pokemon Black and White look and sound great while actually taking advantage of the DS's horse power. Graphically this is absolutely the game that Diamond and Pearl should have been. The various routes in the game now change appearance depending on the season and are visually interesting and detailed. Sprites are finally animated and more detailed. However, backsprites seem to have been enlarged from smaller sprites and appear blockier than their frontal counterparts. This, I assume, is the price to be payed for new camera, which pans in and out during battle, showing the Pokemon at different angles and sizes while focusing on Pokemon as they take hits. The music manages to impress as well. The numerous battle themes are very energetic and fit the action beautifully. Environmental tunes seem much more intricate and even dramatic this time as well, which really adds a lot to the story and seems to complement the pace of the adventure.
Pokemon Black and White, like all games, aren't perfect. I can't drop the feeling that, as much content is in the game, they could have done more. Gym Leader Rematches and the Battle Frontier are well established in the Pokemon universe at this point, and their inclusion in "Pokemon Gray" is pretty much a given. Gamefreak should try and come up with new ways to impress us instead of holding obvious features back for future installments. For importers, the inability to upload Pokemon from an American cartridge is a disappointment and an inconvenience to say the least.
To fans who just can't wait, I say go for it. There's only one instance of backtracking in the entire game (If Team Plasma won't let you onto the next route, go back to the ancient castle in the desert, when you're done there go to Shippou city and walk around until you find Aloe) and items are represented with pictures, so the language barrier is not as bad as it initially appears. Attacks aren't too hard to figure out either as long as you keep the animations on and pay attention to the accuracy and power ratings. It won't be cheap, but I've gotten enough play time out of it to more than justify my purchase.
While I do miss some features from the previous games, Pokemon Black and White succeed in what they set out to do: Adding enough to make Pokemon feel fresh while retaining what made it great in the first place.