Why Black 2 & White 2 is the BEST Pokémon Game of All Time!

"They didn't have to, but they did..." When the sequel is better than the original Unova game, and the best Pokemon that ever came out!
GIREUM BLUE - / @gireumblue
TWITTER - / gireumnewtown
DISCORD - / discord
TWITCH - / gireumnewtown
INSTAGRAM - / gireumsta
Reviews of other games:
Pokémon Black and White - • Does Pokémon Black and...
Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire - • Why Pokémon Omega Ruby...
Pokémon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon - • Why Pokémon Ultra Sun ...
Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl - • The Failure of Pokémon...
Pokémon Legends Arceus - • Pokémon Legends Arceus...
Kirby and the Forgotten Land - • How Kirby and the Forg...
Lego Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga - • Building on a Legacy: ...
Gireum Persona art by: Gizmo Hey, Strormbringer22
0:00 Intro
2:42 Part 1: Playing It Safe
6:29 Part 2: The Perks of a Sequel
11:31 Part 3: Expanding Boring Unova
15:35 Part 4: Fuck 151
17:43 Part 5: The Pokestar Studios is Great And You Should All Embrace It
22:26 Interlude
24:17 Part 6: Pokemon World Tournament: Better Than the Battle Frontier
29:44 Part 7: No Wormholes
31:27 Part 8: Pokemon Roguelike
33:51 Part 9: Masudaism
36:14 Part 10: Minor Details
40:24 Conclusion

[@GireumRed]

TWITTER - twitter.com/GireumNewTown DISCORD - discord.com/invite/YqRFCneGSZ If you missed my Pokemon Black and White 1's review: kzbin.info/www/bejne/g4OwoZxsiLypapo "They didn't have to, but they did." the game! 0:00 Intro 2:42 Part 1: Playing It Safe 6:29 Part 2: The Perks of a Sequel 11:31 Part 3: Expanding Boring Unova 15:35 Part 4: Fuck 151 17:43 Part 5: The Pokestar Studios is Great And You Should All Embrace It 22:26 Interlude 24:17 Part 6: Pokemon World Tournament: Better Than the Battle Frontier 29:44 Part 7: No Wormholes 31:27 Part 8: Pokemon Roguelike 33:51 Part 9: Masudaism 36:14 Part 10: Minor Details 40:24 Conclusion

[@piyushmenon4987]

Hi Jerry Can Man!

[@MysticAceXYZ]

Ok, personal opinion here. I agree that B2W2 is the best Pokemon game, but i don't think Pokemon Legends deserves to be in the trash in the intro because it really isn't that bad of a game, it's the most essential Pokemon game since B2W2, or maybe even XY because XY was the first 3D game and Legends is an essential part of a game for the franchise. Also i don't think XY are bad games, they just needed a third version like Pokemon Z or an expanded storyline, surprisingly enough it's just my opinion.

[@thomasedwardharrison2879]

I want to love Black 2 and the older Pokémon games. But it doesn't have my favourite Pokémon Geninja and Sylveon and my favourite type, Fairy.

[@MysticAceXYZ]

@@thomasedwardharrison2879 Maybe the remakes will include that?

[@Username-mc2xb]

@@MysticAceXYZ Nah they will probably be FAITHFUL and only include gen 1-5 Pokémon honestly

[@aqualucasYT]

Old Pokemon: They didn't have to, but they did Modern Pokemon: They had to, but they didn't

[@Lechgang]

Nah.

[@fredward_3713]

@@Lechgang Yeah

[@bernardoveloso1520]

​@@Lechgang yeah.

[@Lechgang]

@@bernardoveloso1520 Nope.

[@bernardoveloso1520]

@@Lechgang yeah.

[@iceneko9170]

I'm surprised nobody mentioned it in the comments, that the reason the bw1 protagonist is missing is they left in search of N. Ironically N came back for his own reasons but there is an event where the bw1 player's mom mistakes the bw2 protagonist for him for a moment. It's honestly a bit sad. apparently, they did get to reunite in an event in masters though.

[@leargamma4912]

The worst part is, there was a planned reunion with hilda/hilbert through battle and events, a la gsc red fight, but they scrapped it altogether. For some reason.

[@darknessknows1235]

@@leargamma4912 I think what happened was that they didn't have the time to program it in. They probably intended on doing the same thing as Cheren/Bianca and let the player of 2 face the last team they used in the first games on top of whatever team the gameplay designers made, which would explain why the Protags have dialogue in the scripts but no battle.

[@PGerman.]

Also the the BW1 Protags were supposed to be in the PWT since they had left over lines in the code. so they were cut for some reason, either for not fitting or for a deadline

[@yuujoupop]

not an event

[@Xenomorph-hb4zf]

@@darknessknows1235 If I'm correct you can face the teams of Bianca and Cheren from BW1 if you connect BW1 games to BW2. That's the only part you can do though. Also the protags house in Nuvema town will change to your players name from BW1.

[@oscarzxn4067]

I remember that after Black and White 2 came out and seeing how much it had to offer, I said to myself that it was easily the best Pokémon game, but it seems that I was the only one with that opinion because nobody shared it, it was always either gen 1 or 2 for the older players or HGSS or Emerald for the newer ones. I'm glad that now More and more people are seeing how great this game Is, even if it took years for that.

[@xBox360BENUTZER]

I would agree if B&W 1 didnt exist. Exploring a region isn´t so fun if you already know the region and pokemons.

[@projectmessiah]

@@xBox360BENUTZER I'm not saying you specifically said this so you might not share these common opinions but then in that case why do so many Pokémon fans praise the gold and silver post game and constantly beg for remakes if exploring the same old region is that fun?

[@ketchy0932]

My favorite game will always be emerald but I do enjoy black and white 1 and 2 and gen 3-4

[@projectmessiah]

@@ketchy0932 Emerald is gen 3 you know

[@linkfan6555]

Meh, I still haven’t been able to bring myself to finish BW2

[@juyeevang]

One thing he didn't mention that I thought was pretty cool was Join Avenue. You didn't even need to connect online to build it up. You could build it up just by talking to the NPCs. It felt unique to be able to become a business tycoon making executive decisions, setting up shops which were actually useful, having personal assistants, being called the boss, just so cool overall, not to mention the music theme was a banger. It was another "They didn't have to but they did" moment. Easily my favorite Pokemon game of all time.

[@Galavantworks]

I loved Join Avenue, it was actually the first time I connected with other players outside of battling and building Join Avenue business were great for breeding, grooming, and leveling up Pokémon outside of battle.

[@NekoNekonoTabiTabi]

Wait really I thought you need to connect to a network to build it up I ignored it cause I played it when internet got cut off from the ds

[@sayospecter6731]

I remember getting actual Master Balls from the raffle shop and nearly had a heart attack.

[@kuronitsuj]

grinded that join avenue back in the day.. black and white 2 had too much content .. it was fun and aged well.. its a pokemon game that you can come back to... you cant finish it easily..

[@oslenamartinez8673]

Pokémon games are so stale nowadays. Like tell me one “they didn’t have to but they did” moment in the latest games. No, Dynamax battles and Tera Raid battles don’t count. Like, I’m talking features that were there for literally no reason but you spend HOURS in it.

[@boodstain]

Colres wasn’t a twist villain though…he straight up tells you he’s a member of team Plasma in the beginning, but he disagrees with how they think the potential of Pokémon should be brought out and that’s why he takes an interest in the player, as they are proof of his theory of love and friendship being the superior method. If you seriously think he’s a bad twist villain you weren’t paying attention as he just isn’t a twist villiam.

[@jamjars1971]

Ganondorf in ocarina of time is more of a twist villain, and that ain't saying much.

[@radioactivebeverage]

agree, i love colres' character. He is like a great transition/grey area between "black" and "white" instead of being just a hero or villain.

[@superlombax1561]

That's strange. I honestly don't remember him mentioning that he was a part of Team Plasma even at the beginning, and I played through it recently. Or I guess he just doesn't state it outright. Maybe next time I make it that far in a Nuzlocke, I'll keep an eye out.

[@yangwenlifangirl]

@@superlombax1561 I also saw his quotes on Bulbapedia recently and he just said that he's a member of the team plasma at the Plasma Frigate at the climax of the story not in the beginning.

[@leargamma4912]

Wait.... HE TELLS YOU HE IS PART OF TEAM PLASMA!?

[@AJtheDestroyer]

“Hold on babe, new Gireum video just dropped”

[@elijahsuero9632]

LMAO for real

[@fplocs6457]

Could be me 😂😂😂

[@IndellableHatesHandles]

Yeah, who needs S3X when you can watch the best creator on KZbin?

[@staticshock4239]

Black and White 2 felt like a swan song to the series up to that point. It felt like a celebration of the series.

[@thelegacyofgaming2928]

Yup, the peak of Pokemon. All downhill from there.

[@priscycojocaru9138]

​@@thelegacyofgaming2928Downhill probably also cause the commercial performance of BW and BW2 was a disaster, these games weren't appreciated enough by the public at the time (general and not) and Game Freak stepped back with XY, returning to the "Classic formula" (and starting to give us 49204586 forms of Charizard and company). Maybe if these games were appreciated enough at the time, today we would be talking about a whole different story of the franchise

[@Hellman31]

*Swanna

[@krissjames7276]

The Pokemon World Tournament is like the coolest thing in a Pokemon game ever. All those iconic Gym leaders and Champions returning with competitive teams, and with all the awesome music associated with them getting these great remixes, it was insanely cool! The Pokemon World Tournament actually inspired me to get into Pokemon breeding for a bit, just so I could have a competitive team of my own to challenge it with.

[@burhan.k.r.n1164]

yes bro

[@steampunkvgc6319]

I love everything about this game. -Story -The route -Characters (While I prefer Gen 7 though) -Got me into VGC -And most importantly the Pokestar studio. I love it and you can’t change my mind.

[@bernardoveloso1520]

i really dont get the pokestar studios hate tbh, like its so fun

[@thelegacyofgaming2928]

I don't like pokestar studios, but only because you're forced to do it around the beginning of the game. I would've liked it more if it was like gen 3 contest where it was completely optional

[@fornamessake]

@@thelegacyofgaming2928I mean yea it’s a hassle, but it becomes optional after you’re done.

[@jaretco6423]

​@thelegacyofgaming2928 I prefer Pokestudio over Contest. Seriously, Contest is so boring and does nothing to help out.

[@retnemmoc101]

Arguably, some of the elements that make up a Battle Frontier are already there- Battle Subway is Battle Tower, PWT is Battle Dome but cooler, Pokestar Studios brings part of the rental aspects of factory + the restricted/special rules battle aspect of other Frontier facilities, especially if you bring your own pokemon and aim for special endings and Black City/White Forest bring the exploration/rogue-like aspects of Battle Pyramid/Pike, albeit not in BF format.

[@kbgman01]

The PWT also has rental tournaments, so there's that as well.

[@powerfulberry237]

PWT had rental with gym leaders no less

[@bernardoveloso1520]

pwt was peak side content IMO

[@thelegacyofgaming2928]

PWT was better than Battle Frontier

[@oslenamartinez8673]

Don’t forget Pokémon Dream Radar, you can catch legendaries from previous titles if you have their respective game card inserted into the DS. I think you can also catch the Forces of Nature in their Therian Formes.

[@vesuvius8537]

one of the best things about Gen 5 is that the influence of the evil team ACTUALLY REVERBERATES THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE REGION, unlike the earlier games where only a select few of NPC population are affected by them. most of them just live on with their happy NPC lives. whereas, Team Plasma actually had people in almost every town and city contemplating if their ideals are indeed true or not. LIKE DAMN, TEAM PLASMA LITERALLY GAVE THE NPCs EXISTENTIAL CRISIS LMAO

[@kuronitsuj]

like hell.. there was a moment where the past team plasma and new team plasma are fighting with their own ideals

[@hassomusic]

How could you forget about the medals system! It's the trophy/achievement system I always wanted in a Pokémon game! Great review otherwise. It's the best game period indeed. I have around 790hours in my save. Feels kinda sad...

[@bernardoveloso1520]

OMGGG YESSSSS! i just kinda wish the rewards for reaching medal milestones were a bit more impactful so it wouldnt be purely for collection purposes, but other than that, the medals are really cool and extremely underrated.

[@rockguy5847]

Every time i heard 'black and white 2 are the best pokemon games' or 'platinum is one of the best pokemon games' I always thought that people were just nostalgic for these games, but after emulating platinum I can say I was wrong. And after i saw this video i emulated black 2. Never knew there were so many areas

[@UnwantedGhost1]

I'm glad your perspective changed.

[@dave3508]

Glad you emulated. These games are expensive af.

[@zjzr08]

@@jaretco6423 Is New Unova really isn't as same as Sinnoh, I mean there were notable cities, pretty good caves, I mean I'm playing HGSS and while great, for some reason I feel Johto is a bit duller.

[@zjzr08]

@@jaretco6423 OK, I dunno, I much prefer Pokemon with complex exploration than not, plus the issue with HMs is the occupation of moveslot rather than the mechanism IMO - even then in games with limited TMs many of them were actually pretty helpful especially Cut, Surf, Fly and Strength with high BP early in the game.

[@AsianRailgun]

@@jaretco6423 I agree with you, and it was the main reason I didn't bother with BDSP. I didn't like the pacing of Platinum when I played it. The difficulty compared to other Pokemon games was pretty decent at least, although all things considered it was still not very hard. I suppose the Battle Frontier is nice for replayability, but it was copypasted into Heart Gold and Soul Silver anyways, so it's not like Platinum is your only option for this.

[@ZimVerse]

It's Genuinely Upsetting That BW2 Sold Horribly(For Pokemon's Standards At Least" And Was Bombed On Release. I Know Every Other Game Was Hated On Release But At Least They Sold Well Enough.

[@Lechgang]

Genwunners and Gen 4 stans really fucked it over.

[@lukas2.036]

I think it sold poorly bc it was released in the very end of DS life, back in 2012 Nintendo was focusing the marketing into the 3DS

[@RayoMcQueen95990]

@@lukas2.036well yeah, that was one of the reasons, yet a really small one, we also had to consider this: - People were begging for a pokemon 3DS game, which didn’t happen until the later year - People hated Gen 5 back then, either because you couldn’t use your dumbzard in BW1, or that trash/ice cream Pokémon is bad or that the anime sucks

[@TimmyDaTurtle]

Theres also one feature that you forgot to mention that adds to the "didn't have to" category. There is an entire section in the game that is entirely dedicated to being a retail tycoon, where you quite literally see the shops grow and change to your hearts content. These shops also feel incredibly unique and interesting, as they provide a wide range of functions.

[@dexterious102]

I just wish other gym leaders than Elesa plus the Elite 4 had gotten redesigns as well. Another nitpick is there was no alternative day-care center to replace the one that got locked ways until the post-game.

[@amesstarline5482]

While it fits for Elesa, Iris, Team Plasma, and the ex-rivals to have redesigns (Elesa's a model, Iris has "evolved"), I do agree how some could've changed, past Lenora's cape-apron. The day-care issue reminds me of the similar "Ice Rock Moss Rock" issue, a thing I commend Gen 8 for streamlining, but feel could've been helped with stones earlier (but keep some of the regional forms).

[@EnzoZambrotti]

This was the first Pokemon Game I’ve ever played at the age of 9. I played it right before XY, and even back then I knew that BW2 was incredible, and even until this day is my favorite RPG of all time. Also Iris is my favorite Champion.

[@v_aviles_]

Same for me Pokemon White 2 was my first mainline pokemon game and I easily dumped 320 hours into it. My most played game and one of my favorite pokemon game

[@finwah]

this was my first Pokémon game when I was 7 and even to this day it's my favourite to replay

[@v1nce254]

My first Pokémon game was omega ruby I got it like two years after it came out, the game died but I’ll probably get another one soon

[@cartertaylor8257]

while i am very nostalgic for cynthia i have to agree iris is such an awesome champion and her theme is near perfect. not to mention the character development from black/white 1 to 2 and her new style. honestly the last good champion we have had

[@uragan4072]

B&W2 really show what pokemon should be. Like u said there's so much stuff they didn't have to put in but still did. The pokemon selection (especially in early game) is great, it's full of nice and challenging dungeons, it has a great soundtrack (okay tbf even the garbage pokemon games usually have a good soundtrack) and it's just filled with content. One of my favorite sidequests is one i feel like nobody ever mentiones. The lost item one where u find one of these smartwatches and have to give it back to the NPCs that it belongs to. The NPC has a custom sprite and model despite the fact that most people never progressed far enough to even see the NPC. The NPC even trades u some great Pokémon like Snorlax, Spiritomb and Togepi

[@gamedominatorxennongdm7956]

The lost item one essentially becames a dating minigame of sorts, which is funny to think about.

[@mysterroniouscherry326]

"...locked behind a wall that requires friends, which pokemon players don't have!" Damnnn this is so trueee😭😭😭

[@M3rtyville]

The reason why the difficulty is locked behind keys is because of Masuda. I can't find the interview sadly where he mentioned that an older sibling will beat the game first and unlock easy mode for the younger brother or some bullshit. Wish I could find it.

[@Zogged]

Idk why they have to be so weird man, always some cryptic reasoning to explain none-sensible stuff 💀

[@sreenaths6829]

Lmao this is such a joke of a reasoning from Masuda! Like, here's a better idea: why not fucking let the younger brother access the easy mode from the BEGINNING!

[@thelegacyofgaming2928]

Pokemon company has never made the smartest decisions 😂This is just a prime example. How does ones brain trick them into thinking that makes any sense 😂

[@dino15682]

From what I've seen on the wiki, there are hilda and hilbert's scripts in PWT existing as dummy data. Perhaps the appearance was canceled for some reason.

[@ExtremeAce]

Emerald was my first Pokemon game and I have massive nostalgia towards it. But even then, Black2/White2 is my favorite Pokemon game and one of my favorite games in general.

[@carlospacce593]

Same, Ruby was my first pkmn game but this is just a masterpiece

[@jacobgale4792]

Though I still think Platinum is my favourite Pokémon game, B2W2 is legit right up there along side it. Fantastic game that still doesn't get the praise it deserves

[@burhan.k.r.n1164]

@@jacobgale4792 Naa bro fans have finally realized what a masterpiece this game was and it's finally getting all the praise it deserves. It was truly the last game that gamefreak actually cared. They really got lazy afterwards. I hope they do justice to the gen 5 remakes.

[@ShyToast]

Same. Started with gen 3 but White 2 is my favourite Pokemon game

[@Fluorite-Fox]

I always thought the black tower/white tree hollow was a battle tower.. Thanks for telling me it isn't so when I replay my white 2 I will definitely go there!!

[@flamehunter001]

I swear that I had this odd feeling that you had already uploaded this straight up review months ago. I was looking for this just a few days ago! Always a great hear

[@aregularfan7506]

This was a very well constructed video that really highlights the genius of these games, especially compared to the rest of the series. One part I think you glossed over though that should’ve been a massive bonus to the “They didn’t have to” section is how the games have both minor and major differences between versions. So many areas are different depending on which game you play, of course Opelucid and Black Tower/White Forest being the main examples, but also other areas like route 4, Reversal Mountain and also tons of little details like puzzle variations, inverted victory road and so much more. These were truly games made with maximum effort and beyond, and that’s how what makes them so special.

[@kuronitsuj]

and how the seasons affect all of those routes and maps 🤣

[@garchompelago]

I am proud that I still have my Pokemon Black 2 copy.

[@thelegacyofgaming2928]

I have mine too, plus a White 2 copy because I always got both versions for Christmas

[@scroogemcduck8937]

Thanks for taking the time to put together these videos. You didn’t have to but you did.

[@Crit-Multiplier]

love the atention to detail in your vids. great stuff!

[@NOCKtxt]

I love Unova, when ever I play them I always find my self goofing around or just taking in each towns unique feeling. By the time I even finish the main campaign I have already racked up 35-45 hours in a save file. I can’t imagine how many hours I’ve put into gen 5. There’s just so much to do, especially in this game.

[@borgnut7243]

bro i have 70 hours and i haven't even attempted gym 6 yet

[@bernardoveloso1520]

I beat the game /w 97 hours lmaooo i cant

[@thelegacyofgaming2928]

Only game I never completed post game for because it's so much content

[@christopherballero866]

I do really miss when it seemed like Pokemon was really trying or at least wasn't seemingly incomplete. It's a shame that third versions don't sell that well but it's difficult to get a updated version of a game you just got due to differences. For a kid to convince his/her parents to buy a game they just bought must take a lot of effort. I like the improvements third versions make but it's difficult to justify buying it to oneself

[@oatstealer5075]

It's the limited 3d they used in this game, it's so charming

[@ossstep]

I haven't played B2W2 is a while but damn, I forgot how much love and effort was put into this game. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm gonna replay the game, thanks

[@gatz900]

You've inspired me to replay my copy of Black 2. I missed out on Black/White 1 and would love to try it via cart, but they are so expensive now. I either have to play BW1 via emulator or wait for the eventual remake

[@moonlightbutterflymiku7788]

Currently replaying White 2 and it really is a wonderful game ☺️

[@zacvitanzo4760]

Super stoked for this to come out. Best video essays out there 👌 🙌

[@DFuegoH]

9:40 completely agree. A big part of the lore in the Unova games was N's friendship with Hilbert and Hilda. I would think that they would have entered the story in Black and White 2 since Red was in the Johto games. N and Hilbert/Hilda could have shared what they learned from each other over the last 2 years and how that has influenced their philosophies towards pokemon as a whole. Great video!

[@danielgertler5976]

The irony is adding difficulty levels would save a lot of complaints of the last few gens which is the games being far too easy. If you want to make the game super easy for the little kids, great, but let others choose a harder difficulty if they want. Doesn't hurt anyone. Even something as simple as the trainers acutally choosing moves that super effective instead of just choosing moves at random would make a whole lot of difference.

[@manamaster6]

I loved quests to get legendaries, those were great, as it felt like part of the lore plus and the growth of one as a trainer, not just getting them just because.

[@ThatFateGuy69]

Giruem Red, thank you for this excellent review of my favorite games. It was great seeing someone appreciate the greatness that Pokemon Black and White 2

[@DBinitiate]

Pokéstar Studios was also my favorite minigame. It was just a lot of fun to go through the special battles and see it all get turned into a movie at the end. I never quite used my own pokémon to do them though... Because I know they have special dialogues and such when you manage to finish certain stories in other ways than the intended one, and they're not necessarily bad ends.

[@YuseiTheSynchroHero]

Damn. And I just watched JPR's video on these games. XD Is this the best timeline we're living in right now? I missed out on these games when they first released (I fell off for a bit with the competitive scene around that time) but in recent years... Picked up Black 2 for a good price and I'm glad I did. ❤️

[@wonderfulweavile5563]

My current Black2 save file is active since 2014. I still haven't erased it because I have not completed the whole post game yet and because I just want to enjoy the freedom of this amazing post game: there are so much things to do on a daily basis, the game feels alive and there's always something new to discover, even after all those years. I still play it currently.

[@alexgonzalez2050]

I liked this game a lot when I played it, as you said, theres so much to do in it. Wasnt good at anything but still enjoyed filling up the dex to the point where I had many rare and fully evolved pokemon. I need to pass over the event pokemon though, like the shiny sinnoh legends and such, some of these event pokemon I had to time travel for, so Id want to keep them available to me in as many future games as possible

[@R_K_S2401]

Also you can go to the battle Subway and if you defeat the super single or the super doubles train you can get a trophy for each train that appears in your bedroom in the game. It's a pretty cool detail.

[@alureon25]

A year late but B2 was my first Pokemon game. From the time I received my first ever Pokemon partner oshawott (it was a tough choice between the cute oshawott and the cool snivy, but younger me chose cute) to the time where I wasted my masterball on Cobalion, I have treasured the game dearly. I believe that around the time of its release was the "peak of Pokemon" if you will. I know, I know, gen 4 is highly regarded as the best Pokemon gen, but I suppose my nostalgia will lead me to say otherwise. Thank you for making a video on my favorite Pokemon game! Edit: After experiencing what potential the series had after the release of B2W2, I was very disappointed with the games that followed. While I still bought and played them, I always came back to the older games (in particular my copy of B2) and replaying them. It was unfortunately always a better experience in regards to quality... However, I hope that gamefreak can respond to the public's backlash and release quality (now THIS is a Pokemon game vibes) games in the future!

[@shimozu92]

Ultra Sun and Moon were the ones that got me to stop playing pokemon games regularly. As someone who played every gen from the very beginning and will never fully grow out of it for nostalgia, that's pretty significant. When I look back at which games I do still want to play, since the new ones aren't good enough, It's Black 2 and White 2 for sure.

[@ArcherJLady]

I've been playing White 1 and I'm grinding for the E4 rn, so far this is my favorite Pokemon game in terms of the story and feel of the game. I'm excited to see if the sequel can keep that up. Once I beat White 2, I'ma come back and watch the video

[@Brysonkitchen06]

I miss this game so much, I still play it almost every day glad I saved mine

[@sebastiangruenfeld141]

What I find really disappointing is that I brought the Pokestar studios hundreds of millions of PokeDollars in revenue through my films but I didn't see a single cent.

[@chris_kyleartist279]

I definitely didn’t appreciate it as much as I do now back when it first came out probably because I just assumed the games would only get better and more detailed but I was wrong. But I do remember feeling how cool and detailed everything was for that particular gen. Probably one of the most satisfying play through of a mainline game Ive ever played.

[@synthwavesun2450]

Really great vid. One thing i have to say is: You can actually play this and all other ds games on 3ds due to the game cards being insertable into a 3ds (Idk if i said it correctly). Tbh i also love the Black Tower/White Tree Hollow, bc not only is it fun, but u can also grind pokemon to lv100 with it pretty fast. This is my favourite pokemon game for a reason.

[@chrisf.9595]

When he said "Let's talk about some real Pokemon games", I felt that

[@UncannyEXP]

I cringed when he threw halfway decent games in the trash.

[@haroldnecmann7040]

@@UncannyEXP what that?

[@zjzr08]

​​@@UncannyEXP You do you, but you have to up your standards, man, especially if we are talking about the Switch games.

[@Wolf-vy7et]

@@zjzr08 Ngl After 3DS i didn't liked any Pokémon games so kinda agreed, i still enjoyed gen 7, i just wish the USUM were sequels

[@mihaimercenarul7467]

@@UncannyEXP sad for you

[@lunar9342]

I honestly really enjoyed pokemon USUM. I don't fully understand why people hate it so. My top three games are probably HeartGold, Black 2, and Ultra Moon

[@espurrseyes42]

Blame SM. Aside from the alternate story, USUM is what Gen 7 should've been from the beginning. When you take that out of the equation, it's fine.

[@AuraStrikeAce]

Same here, I like USUM a lot

[@RebeccaBrunner]

I really liked USUM too but the problem people have with it is cutscenes every 5 steps.

[@MesmerizingEyesXOXO]

Omg speaking of mini games in Pokémon, my favorite is the underground! A lot of thing are really bad about dppt but one thing I’ve always loved was the underground. I love how you have to search for hidden treasures and you can even get evolutionary stones create your own secret base! 😍

[@vigilante9883]

I just wanna say how much I LOVE the names of your Pokemon! Vanilluxe particularly is soooo clever!

[@aibadenshi]

If i had to summarize BW/BW2 in one sentence in this current year. "Come back. We were wrong."

[@OshawottLuke]

I like the parallel that is that we both grew up playing Emerald (in my case first Sapphire then Emerald and haven't touched Sapphire since), but in my case Black 2 is indeed my favorite Pokémon game, and game in general. I still remember just how much it surprised and shook me while playing it back then in 2012/2013, I was enjoying every second of it and even more: I had to replay it many times due to losing the save data because emulators, yet I never got tired, this game is just pure joy for me, made even better by playing it randomized and being able to catch all the species and even better: witness their animated sprites which otherwise you won't ever see. And it wouldn't be my favorite game if it weren't as big as it is, because what truly makes me love them is how big it is with all its caves, routes, facilities, sidequests... It's like, I love these games, and knowing that they put all that effort and content into them makes me love them more, like, they truly cared about going all out on these games as a goodbye to the DS era, being the heaviest DS games I believe (as in, using as much as they can of the 512MB the cartridges have). It's hard to explain but maybe someone out there feels the same: thinking about just how great these games are and how many different things were put in each of these games' routes and areas makes my heart warm, makes me never get tired of appreciating them. Ok I'm starting to elaborate too much and I can see myself writing a whole thesis right here, I'll just stop and watch the video. They didn't have to do this much, they didn't even have to do half as much and it would still be one of if not the best Pokémon game. Medals, Pokéstar Studios my beloved, PWT, Join Avenue, Black Tower/White Treehollow, the whole Dropped Item sidequest, Hidden Grottoes, the N weather battles which hello??? cool as hell, Marine Tube my beloved, each gym getting a unique theme and redesign, Memory Link, the Habitat List (AMAZING, truly a great feature), the easy and challenge difficulties which sure implemented poorly but still, they're there. Oh and let me mention Join Avenue again because that place is truly chef's kiss. ALL of that is new for these games, and it's all on top of the already existing Battle Subway, Big Stadium and Small Court, Musicals, Entralink and Dream World, the Dive sidequest in Abyssal Ruins and more. It's just... The expansion was gigantic, the development for characters was monumental, all the past gym leaders and champions minus Elite 4 members (which feels a lil weird not having them tbh). Also the way you could personalize your C-Gear and PokéDex with downloadable designs??? Special, very cool downloadable PWT tournaments and Musicals??? It never stops, the game's content feels almost infinite. Oh and if anyone's wondering, because I want to spread the word and bring the joy that this brought to me when I discovered it, you CAN enjoy of all of these downloadable contents inserting them into your save files (on emulators and I think on console too but at least definitely on emulators), the Project Pokémon forums have a section with all the downloads and like the 2 or 3 tools to insert them (PKHeX inserts mystery gifts but another one inserts the Musicals and tournaments, C-Gear designs, activate Memory Link, another one is a medals modifier to give yourself medals that require wifi, though you can use MelonDS which is a DS emulator that runs wifi for Pokémon games just like how Citra runs it too, but you know there's no point in actually playing 100 Link battles with yourself just to get that medal, plus there's one related to Dream World that is truly unobtainable without giving it to yourself with this tool) you can also insert actual mystery gift files and basically experience the entire game minus Dream World (but you CAN get mons from the Entralink forest by inserting them). There are tools for that and it's just amazing what the community has created, if me saying this here helps at least 1 person in discovering this and being able to get those mystery gifts and play with that downladable content that can no longer be downloaded, and brings them as much joy as it brought me, then it's worth it. I could not feel thankful enough to that forum and its users for creating those tools and making those parts of the game accesible again in a way. And they've been around with this for some years and like, practically no one in the fandom knows about all of that when it's the absolute dream for someone who wants to experience as much of B2W2 as possible, including that downloadable stuff and receiving the mystery gifts just to have them on the save file. For years I had been wanting someone to create a tool that gives you unobtainable medals, and now it's right there :') I can truly complete a save file of this immense game on an emulator now, even trading/transferring mons from older generations with MelonDS and other games to complete it as "realistically" as possible (instead of randomizing wild encounters, which is still doable and fun, and I did that back in 2015/2016 to complete the dex in one save file). I do wish someone, maybe the current guy that's working on the randomizer tool (Ajarmar on Github), implemented that the Habitat List Pokémon changed when randomizing the wild encounters, that would be so awesome, but I can totally live without that ever being implemented, I'm grateful enough that people created all these tools to experience Black 2 and its contents as much as possible. This game, this piece of art and landmark of gaming, what a creation; Takao Unno you and your beautiful mind. Satoru Iwata and Takao Unno have my utmost respect and admiration. And you know what? This wouldn't be possible without Black and White, directed by Junichi Masuda. So I'll pour a glass of water for him creating Unova and enabling Black 2 and White 2 to exist, he deserves it for that and even though he's truly ruined the franchise in recent years (not him alone though, Tsunekazu Ishihara I'm looking at you), I can feel grateful to him for this. I didn't stop writing when I said I would.

[@zjzr08]

Maybe not my place to say this, but please don't be too much of a fanatic of an entertainment franchise, it's just kinda concerning, maybe just tone the emotional attachment just a bit.

[@OshawottLuke]

@@zjzr08 Appreciate the comment but don't need to worry about that in my case. Entertainment media can make you feel pure joy like this, some people have their favorite Disney movie that they grew up with and feel them with joy, I have B2W2 which I just can't get enough of. And definitely not that much of a fanatic of this franchise since in recent years they've released pure garbage that I don't feel is even worth emulating because it'd be a waste of my time, SwSh, BDSP. It's like with this show called ER, my favorite show of all time, because it is one of the best. I love appreciating it and knowing how much work went into it makes me love it even more, it's like not just enjoying the game/show but also the extra effort that went into making them so great. But thanks, though I doubt anyone that is truly a crazy fanatic like those who see SwSh like one of the best Pokémon games for some completely unexplainable reason would read a comment like yours and like, think about it. Those don't respond to reason.

[@zjzr08]

@@OshawottLuke I guess idolatry and the concept of that deep emotional attachment was just my issue (like how KZbinrs have the odd social relationship with strangers through viewers)...it seems like it's managed enough for you so I guess it's fine.

[@friendlyotaku9525]

no one's "ruined" the franchise

[@fingerlickinz8462]

The Pokémon world tournament NEEDS to come back it could be amazing. The PWT was one of the main reasons why Pokémon black & white 2 are the greatest, I’ve seriously poured so many hours into it just because it’s so fun

[@Toxamine]

bro i play pokemon black 2 when i was a kid in 2012 when it came out. man i have so many memories play this game on my DSi. it became my favorite pokemon game out of all the pokemon games that i play, i also go to poke star studio to and do all i want to play the end game content in this game. I should go back to play it again i have so many memories from it.

[@cynaxis4002]

Another dumb thing about the difficulty choice: having the easy mode locked behind... having to finish the white version. You have to finish the game to have access to an easier version. That's the dumbest thing ever. Still my favorite pokemon game. I had so much fun making mistakes in the movies just to see what dumb ending I would unlock and see the confused smileys in the crowd watching it. And of course, the PWT was awesome. And something you did not mention: completing the regional dex gave you access to a new island with a shiny haxorus, and I think it's the only game that gives you a real reward for this, instead of only the shiny charm.

[@GireumRed]

actually Emerald rewarded you with one of the Johto starters when completing the Hoenn dex

[@piyushmenon4987]

True. Emerald is my favourite, because of nostalgia. But objectively, yes, BW2 is the best.

[@carlospacce593]

Same, started with pokemon Ruby but this is a true masterpiece

[@proximaeon]

the generation 5 of Pokemon in general are overall my favorite of the franchise, because I have so many good memories about discovering something new from the generation, like Pokemon Conquest or 3D Pokedex. Playing through the Pokemon World Tournament was fun and awesome, and the events to find the legendaries are interesting and memorable. But I agree with your problem with B2&W2, I always wanted to see Hilbert/Hilda interact with the current Unova and their friends or even talk once more with N, because that was the reason that they were absent in B2&W2.

[@hectorpuente3040]

Everytime I walk past the Mareep Ranch in Blk2 I can't help but be amazed of how good and unique it feels for a starting area. I got my starter and I can find pokemon from a mix of earlier gens here that's crazy!

[@ryley4457]

Hilbert and Hilda where planed to be the final trainer in the world trainer thing. They had text in the files

[@DanteCrowlley]

Hilda is the most popular trainer by far, shes like top 2 waifu losing only to Gardevoir

[@mertoslav4606]

you meant rosa not hilda 🤓

[@mihaimercenarul7467]

@@mertoslav4606 he said what he said rosa fanboy, now cope harder 🤓

[@jewel_throne2950]

First 40 seconds of this video made me subscribe so fast. You're my hero seriously.

[@chavonjames8941]

27:54 that baseline and kick was going hard asf!!! I didn't even realize she had her theme redone twice with major variation

[@sanssmash9183]

I love you for mentioning how they DIDNT take risks, they added more pokemon, they fixed the boring navigation, and they didn’t just replicate the same games with minor differences. The new content they added were just fun new areas, that can’t really be criticised, and they added new mechanics or added to interesting characters.

[@dextra_24703]

Hilda and Hilbert were supposed to be in the game, in the championship world turney thingy.

[@UnwantedGhost1]

Really? 😲

[@dextra_24703]

@@UnwantedGhost1 this info is from a did you know gaming video about the game

[@rockno]

I thought they were supposed to appear via some plane thing when riding with Skyla. (Don't take that out of context...)

[@thelegacyofgaming2928]

@@rockno "Riding with" this doesn't sound bad lol, but now that you made it a point...

[@rockno]

@@thelegacyofgaming2928 I forgot I made this comment ngl

[@yb-zannerz6138]

Perfect timing I wanted to replay the games about a month ago got the games and started watching this during the postgame

[@UnwantedGhost1]

I only have two rants with this game: 1. The PWT doesn't have all Elite Four trainers included. Especially the ones in Unova with Champion Iris & former champion Alder. 2. The difficulty settings being shown after finishing story mode instead of being presented all unlocked before starting a new save file.

[@freeasabird30]

UNLOCKING easy mode AFTER beating the White 2 is also astonishingly stupid.

[@toughhusker]

DP were my first pokemon games. I played all of the Gen 4 games, but when BW came out, I was a bit disappointed and bored of the franchise. I skipped B2W2 and waited for XY and had fun with it. It was a breath of fresh air for the franchise I needed. It was only last year where I went back to played B2W2, and oh my, I was bummed out on missing its peak. It sits comfortably on top of my Pokemon game list now

[@GodSlayer330]

Skipping BW2 was probably the worst decision you could have made. That’s why more people should buy Third versions/Sequels/Prequels while it is still available instead of making the dumb decision to skip them. Most people who bought DP never experienced platinum because they made the dumb decision not to buy it.

[@jaretco6423]

Jonathan. Yeah. Though Platinum still has problems compared to Diamond & Pearl. But it was better in terms of the better; but still not good enough, dex & few technical improvements like the surf swim being faster than Diamond & Pearl.

[@GodSlayer330]

@@jaretco6423 it also has more content and a superior plot.

[@jaretco6423]

Jonathan. I don't find Platinum having an amazing plot ( found it pretty boring IMO ) nor has that much better content compared to BW2 or HGSS. But yeah. It was better than what Diamond & Pearl had.

[@GodSlayer330]

@@jaretco6423 idk, platinum bassically sort of fixed Cyrus as a character, improved a lot of flaws from DP like it’s pacing, they changed up the gym leader format. Platinum had the battle frontier and Villa alongside the stark mountain side quest, platinum bassically fixes the gym leaders team, added rematches in the fight area, platinum remodeled jubilife city and made jubilife city look a lot better, it included characters like Looker into the main story. Cyrus now uses two legendaries (dialga and palkia) instead of one. The main storyline of platinum made a lot more sense in platinum then it ever did in DP. A lot of areas were remodeled alongside the safari zone from DP(it was remodeled and made better in platinum). Platinum added snow patches in the grass to show case how cold the region is. Platinum bassically remodeled the fight area and turned into a tropical island. In platinum Cynthia gave you a Togepi egg. Charon gets added into the story. Platinum had alot more content and a really good story then people give it credit. Platinum also had alot of build up until the very end of the story unlike DP. But yes I agree that BW2 and HGSS has more content then platinum but I strongly disagree with your take regarding platinum’s story. They even incorporated the distortion world into the main story which is really cool. Platinum also manages to remodel the galactic headquarters. Platinum has a better story then HGSS but HGSS has more content. I think platinum is better then BW (especially in terms of content) but not as good as BW2(in both content and story). BW is better then DP.

[@orockzman8757]

I'm currently replaying my pokemon white 2 and I'll have to say even with it being 10 years old it's still great. I honestly love the art style and detail to both main characters and all the NPCs. And I think the story is way better then alot of the newest games that have come out.

[@Mimiyan_or_Pikapikafan]

To add to the Hilbert/Hilda part: Unova Link has a Memory Link feature (which I'm guessing youve covered in the video, as im typing this while reading it), it'd be perfect for a Hilbert/Hilda fight in BW2 to use your most recent Hall of Fame data, although im pretty sure you dont get into the Hall of Fame until fighting Alder in the post game. But Memory Link already only allows certiian cutscenes if you have specific progress on the save you linked with (being badge count to post Ghetsis in BW1), so there's that

[@lee2249]

This was a Nostalgia trip for me as this was my first Pokemon game.

[@metastase895]

I still hold that HGSS is superior to Black 2 even if by a very small margin (and both are miles above any other Pokemon game). Pokemon following you around, Voltorb Flip + Pokeathlon > Pokestar Studios, Battle Frontier had more modes and more fun to be had compared to PWT + Battle Subway + City/Tree but most importantly, Gen 4 was the last Gen that had good map design not meant for zero attention span people and of course all of the interlinked underground in Johto is magnificent with that. It's true that BW2 did a lot to improve on the map design (and the seasons add a lot to it) but ultimately every single dungeon from Gen V onwards is as short as the attention span of a little kid. No more convoluted huge caves hiding secrets in deep corners. So ultimately I can't say Black 2 is better than HGSS.

[@BananaPhone502]

"Lets talk about some REAL pokemon games" HELL YEA. I agree with this video!!!!!

[@0Everlast0]

I really enjoyed the shop minigame too. Not to mention the "environment" they created. The world felt vast and so different in every area. It felt "real". Something that a lot of new Pokemon game, really miss

[@NockLegacy]

Aww you added Nate, that’s so cool

[@prestonrcasey]

The fans fail to realize that the new games aren't lazy; the developers are pressed for development time to meet the demanding release schedule rather than taking time to release the next game.

[@TimmyDaTurtle]

As a fellow fan of pokestar studios, I agree, pokestar studios is great. Its kind of fun to follow up on all of the stories it sets, and just do something other than "battle"

[@ShadowAngelS2K]

You can fight the previous hero from B&W1. But it was a time limited thing, using the memory link you unlock more story and can battle your old team. If you have a game file of the first game

[@runningoncylinders3829]

20:25 That hits way different if you're genuinely into this. lmao

[@Cecilia-ky3uw]

the original unova wasn't that boring, and while the postgame isnt amazing per se, it was honestly pretty long-sure a grind, but a pretty good one that wasnt that bad. If anything having the other half of the map open up after youre done was pretty nice, and getting to enjoy the calmness of the other places. my one dislike is black city and white forest, due to the online requirements but whatnot. Undella town is always so peaceful and a nice place to go challenge Cynthia before enjoying the music every other season, while the village bridge is calming and the patrat event was a pretty nice storyline.

[@zjzr08]

Other than the start (which can be slow) BW was very narrative hence why it could feel there's something going on even if there's very few places to go to - that being said traveling can be bothersome if you want to backtrack to if Fly is not available.

[@LeamonPuppy]

You should talk about Pokémon mystery dungeon explorers of sky/ darkness/ time. Also good video I really like the gen 5 games personally.

[@unrevoked7137]

thank you for acknowledging the white treehollow and black tower, I absolutely loved my white 2 version for years and found the place all on my own, shit like this is rewarding and special because I discovered that I could receive a shiny dratini from doing this, I wish game freak did anything like this anymore

[@alexanderivory-brown118]

I started since Red and Blue but I tell you there has yet to be any game... and I mean any game that beats Pokemon Black 2. It is my favorite of all the games and I hope that for the sake of experiencing a better game that Violet will deliver lol. Black 2 is my favorite game and I still replay it constantly. I also like White then Soul Silver. Emerald is a good game too but nothing beats Black 2 :)

[@thelegacyofgaming2928]

Same. Except I started with Gold and Silver

[@dannykazari]

People just expected Pokemon games to get bigger and better back then. There were definitely hiccups and sidesteps pre-gen 5, but you could usually count on that being the case. I feel like the team new this would be their last hurrah for 2D Pokemon games, and they wanted to put their all into B2W2.

[@danashton5265]

that was the best intro I've seen all year, you have my attention...

[@TrueHeroAriel]

This is truly my favorite Pokémon game. The only game where I still have both versions and put so many hours into. The only game where I farmed eggs to get a shiny. The PWT was my favorite feature in any Pokémon game alongside Pokémon following you from HG/SS. I still remember what it was like seeing that you can get mareep and even riolu so early in the game!

[@puckthief0158]

Ah yes I still can't beat champions tournament

[@inconemay1441]

One thing I appreciate about B2W2 is not just the dex expansion but the distribution as well. Who would expect Riolu, Magnemite and Elekid to be catchable early?

[@carlospacce593]

Plus challenge mode, not the dumbassss xp share for every pkmn in the team back then pokemon games were actually good and challenging

[@yourbenevolentsaviorgill6300]

I agree with u,pokestar studios can just be the most underappreciated thing in the entirity of b2w2,so many cool new ocs,funny yet well written dialogues,a unique concept which u have to appreciate to understand its creativity,easily the most well thought ouy creative part of the game fitting the more mature aspects of the game

[@goodraking730]

Time to replay this game, wow the nostalgia! Which starter do I use?

[@zander6907]

After seeing what they did to gen 4 Im quite scared for how they are going to ruin gen5 remakes

[@cyndawu1940]

It saddens me that no Pokemon game can ever come close as being as good as Black and White 2. Pokemon games are so embarrassing now, with every switch pokemon game having shitty graphics and being repetitive. And it is clear that this is the last game where they actually put lots of effort even after 10 years. Legends Arceus was the closest Pokemon game that gave me a geniune amazing time. But I don't see myself playing Legends Arceus as much as Black and White 2. I can't believe it really has been 10 years since Black and White 2 released

[@mitchellwilson8820]

I love the intro that was awesome!

[@jackwood6234]

3:50 When I was younger I actually do remember being surprised by it. Lol. Then again I was pretty oblivious when I was younger.

[@bandicootsauce4569]

I despised this game back in the day for a number of admittedly petty reasons, but if I had known then what I know now, if I had known just how low the bar of quality would be set for Pokémon going forward, I would've held onto my copy of Black 2 and coveted it to this day.