Pokemon vs Temtem
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VOICE OVER: Dave Thibault
WRITTEN BY: Ty Richardson
With Temtem emerging as the biggest competitor to the Pokemon franchise, we're taking an in-depth look at both franchises. Today we're pitting Temtem and Pokemon against each other to see which franchise comes out on top. What do you think about Temtem? Let us know in the comments!
Pokémon vs. Temtem
Both want you to catch them all, but there’s just not enough time! Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re pitting Nintendo and Game Freak’s pocket monster series against Humble Bundle and Crema’s new MMO - it’s “Pokémon” versus “Temtem”!
Round 1: World
Over the last couple of decades, “Pokémon” has taken us to some beautiful environments. These areas aren’t just a bunch of PokeMarts and random buildings jumbled about either. Game Freak adds a sense of realism to “Pokémon” by basing regions off of real world locations. Kalos, for example, was inspired by Metropolitan France whereas the recent Galar region featured various locations designed after the United Kingdom. This isn’t to say that “Pokémon” hasn’t featured its own share of original landmarks, though. Who else was astonished when travelling to the Distortion World to capture Giratina? In retrospect, “Pokémon” has entranced us with its environments, and the regions are part of the reason why so many people get hyped for the newest instalment.
While still new, “Temtem” has managed to capture our attention with its world in a different way. Players can expect to traverse tropical landscapes, explore treacherous caves, and even climb up colossal mountains! “Temtem” also has an upper-hand against “Pokémon” thanks to its battlegrounds. As “Pokémon” continues to use empty fields and generic skyboxes to decorate the battlefield, “Temtem” showcases its fights with an actual environment, setting up the ground with trees, bushes, rocks, and more. “Temtem’s” towns also bring a fantastical element to the game’s setting by featuring locations hovering in the clouds or featuring strange materials stuck in the ground.
We can appreciate the new flair that “Temtem” brings to the table, but Round One goes to “Pokémon”. “Pokémon” has had plenty of time to establish itself and ingrain locations into our heads. Its battlefields may not be decorated as well as “Temtem’s”, but the realism flourishes in every game.
WINNER: Pokémon
SCORE: Pokémon 1 / Temtem 0
Round 2: Soundtrack
Thanks to its lengthy history, “Pokémon” has accrued a massive library of fantastic music, and many songs can be recognized by even casual fans. Show of hands - how many people find themselves humming along to the PokeCenters’ music? How many times have you left a town only to re-enter just so you can listen to the music again? Of course, it isn’t enough to have good music when running around “Pokémon’s” vibrant worlds - you need great battle music, too, and “Pokémon” has plenty of that. The way the battle music is composed can really get your blood pumping, especially when you’re on your umpteenth attempt to take down a Gym Leader. In other words, the music makes it feel like the stakes are high and helps add tension to epic fights.
Unfortunately, this is where “Temtem” kind of suffers. Don’t get us wrong - “Temtem” has a solid soundtrack, too, but some of it isn’t as strong as it could be. The piece used for Tamer Battles provides more of a sense of “exciting adventure” rather than “epic battle”. Some of the instruments used also detract a bit of the tension. As nice as the xylophones and lighter piano notes sound, they can’t hold much of a candle to “Pokémon’s” harsh pianos and booming orchestra.
The winner here is clear. While “Temtem” boasts enjoyable music it can call its own, its missing a feeling that “Pokémon has managed to invoke in every game - the feeling that this battle could be the end...or just send you back to the last PokeCenter you used.
WINNER: Pokémon
SCORE: Pokémon 2 / Temtem 0
Round 3: Battle System
“Pokémon’s” battle system boils down to type-matching. Use certain moves to deal massive damage to a Pokémon of the opposite type. Water beats Fire, Fire beats Grass and Grass beats Water. The only time Types get difficult to understand is when you start getting into Pokémon with dual types. That’s where you have to study and remember who is weak to what. However, “Pokémon” can be a really easy game to cheese. If you simply keep playing the stronger type, you can spam whatever moves are dealing the most damage until your Pokémon runs out of Power Points for that move. In other words, there is absolutely no way to come back from a disadvantage unless your Pokémon is at a significantly higher level. Nintendo’s RPG giant also follows the traditional RPG formula - take turns attacking/defending, XP is awarded at the end, and evolutions will happen after battle. It is easy to understand and doesn’t deviate too much from the typical progression system you can find in other RPGs.
“Temtem” features its own system of types, but with different names. “Pokémon’s” Psychic and Fighting is “Temtem’s” Mental and Melee, and then you have unique types like Digital and Crystal. While both games focus on type-matching, there is one crucial difference between them - “Temtem” replaces Power Points with a stamina bar. Temtems have their own stamina bars that get drained after performing certain moves. If you overexert a Temtem’s stamina, they will lose some health, and so, you may have to skip a turn by resting in order to restore stamina. This prevents players from spamming the same move and has allowed “Temtem’s” competitive scene to rely more on strategy rather than entirely on match-ups. Another facet of “Temtem’s” combat lies within its 2v2 structure; some Temtem will acquire moves that can be enhanced if a partner Temtem is a certain type. “Temtem” also features a slightly different progression system, awarding XP whenever an enemy is defeated and allows Temtem to evolve mid-battle. With this system, players can create different playstyles and come up with new ways to turn the tides of battle.
As much as we enjoy the simplistic nature of “Pokémon”, “Temtem” wins this one. There’s more to think about than just type-matching; you have to think of when you should use a move, when to rest, how to make your turn effective. “Pokémon” just relies too heavily on type-matching, and it can be ruined when playing competitively.
WINNER: Temtem
SCORE: Pokémon 2 / Temtem 1
Round 4: Visuals
Just to give a quick clarification, this is not the same round as World. Here, we are judging the games on artstyle and technical prowess.
...And sadly, “Pokémon” has really dropped the ball on this one more than a few times. When it was a primarily handheld game, belting out titles on the Game Boy and DS systems, “Pokémon” had some strong visuals. Characters were well-designed, Pokemon had slowly started to become animated, and visual effects were getting more vibrant and colorful. It may have had a few hiccups with occasional console releases like “Battle Revolution'', but they were forgivable. As of late, time has not been kind to the “Pokémon'' franchise, and part of that has stemmed from its inability to evolve with the gaming industry. So far, the artstyle has gone through very little changes, and character animations have become alarmingly lazy.
As it stands, “Temtem” has become a much-needed breath of fresh air for burned-out “Pokémon” veterans. As if a bright artstyle wasn’t enough, “Temtem” boasts more effort in its animations by showing attacks as they happen. There aren’t glaring shortcuts being made, and you can enjoy the game at a smooth sixty frames per second.
“Temtem” steals this round with ease. “Pokémon’s” inability to improve its visuals has caused many fans to become flustered to the point where many are abandoning the franchise. “Temtem” is clearly making its visuals a priority and is putting effort into animating its characters well.
WINNER: Temtem
SCORE: Pokémon 2 / Temtem 2
Round 5: Monsters
“Temtem” is at a real disadvantage in this round. Because it is still a new IP, not a lot of people know about the different Temtem you can encounter. Although, just like “Pokémon”, you’re definitely going to find one to call your favourite. Credit where credit is due, many of the game’s monsters are uniquely designed. Still, there are some times where we can’t shake the feeling that we’re playing a fan game.
Of course, “Pokémon” has been around for so long that it's really hard to find someone who DOESN’T know Pikachu, Jigglypuff, or even Meowth. Part of the reason why people can remember the names of nearly 1000 Pokémon is also because their names match their visual design and personalities. Oh, its name is Koffing because he spits poison gas. Its name is Seedot because it is a living seed. Honestly, we could be here all day dissecting Pokémon names, but that’s for another day.
Once again, an extensive history has allowed “Pokémon” to come out on top, and thus winning this Versus. “Temtem” has some catching up to do.
WINNER: Pokémon
SCORE: Pokémon 3 / Temtem 2
It wasn’t easy choosing a winner, especially when considering the recent controversies with “Pokémon”. As you can see, “Pokémon” managed to squeeze the victory primarily because of its history. “Temtem” is still in early access and isn’t planned for a full launch until 2021. So, if “Pokémon” doesn’t make a course correction soon, “Temtem” may steal more fans away. But for now, did we choose the right victor? Debate about it like civilized folk in the comments below and subscribe to WatchMojo for more thoughtful Versus battles!
Both want you to catch them all, but there’s just not enough time! Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re pitting Nintendo and Game Freak’s pocket monster series against Humble Bundle and Crema’s new MMO - it’s “Pokémon” versus “Temtem”!
Round 1: World
Over the last couple of decades, “Pokémon” has taken us to some beautiful environments. These areas aren’t just a bunch of PokeMarts and random buildings jumbled about either. Game Freak adds a sense of realism to “Pokémon” by basing regions off of real world locations. Kalos, for example, was inspired by Metropolitan France whereas the recent Galar region featured various locations designed after the United Kingdom. This isn’t to say that “Pokémon” hasn’t featured its own share of original landmarks, though. Who else was astonished when travelling to the Distortion World to capture Giratina? In retrospect, “Pokémon” has entranced us with its environments, and the regions are part of the reason why so many people get hyped for the newest instalment.
While still new, “Temtem” has managed to capture our attention with its world in a different way. Players can expect to traverse tropical landscapes, explore treacherous caves, and even climb up colossal mountains! “Temtem” also has an upper-hand against “Pokémon” thanks to its battlegrounds. As “Pokémon” continues to use empty fields and generic skyboxes to decorate the battlefield, “Temtem” showcases its fights with an actual environment, setting up the ground with trees, bushes, rocks, and more. “Temtem’s” towns also bring a fantastical element to the game’s setting by featuring locations hovering in the clouds or featuring strange materials stuck in the ground.
We can appreciate the new flair that “Temtem” brings to the table, but Round One goes to “Pokémon”. “Pokémon” has had plenty of time to establish itself and ingrain locations into our heads. Its battlefields may not be decorated as well as “Temtem’s”, but the realism flourishes in every game.
WINNER: Pokémon
SCORE: Pokémon 1 / Temtem 0
Round 2: Soundtrack
Thanks to its lengthy history, “Pokémon” has accrued a massive library of fantastic music, and many songs can be recognized by even casual fans. Show of hands - how many people find themselves humming along to the PokeCenters’ music? How many times have you left a town only to re-enter just so you can listen to the music again? Of course, it isn’t enough to have good music when running around “Pokémon’s” vibrant worlds - you need great battle music, too, and “Pokémon” has plenty of that. The way the battle music is composed can really get your blood pumping, especially when you’re on your umpteenth attempt to take down a Gym Leader. In other words, the music makes it feel like the stakes are high and helps add tension to epic fights.
Unfortunately, this is where “Temtem” kind of suffers. Don’t get us wrong - “Temtem” has a solid soundtrack, too, but some of it isn’t as strong as it could be. The piece used for Tamer Battles provides more of a sense of “exciting adventure” rather than “epic battle”. Some of the instruments used also detract a bit of the tension. As nice as the xylophones and lighter piano notes sound, they can’t hold much of a candle to “Pokémon’s” harsh pianos and booming orchestra.
The winner here is clear. While “Temtem” boasts enjoyable music it can call its own, its missing a feeling that “Pokémon has managed to invoke in every game - the feeling that this battle could be the end...or just send you back to the last PokeCenter you used.
WINNER: Pokémon
SCORE: Pokémon 2 / Temtem 0
Round 3: Battle System
“Pokémon’s” battle system boils down to type-matching. Use certain moves to deal massive damage to a Pokémon of the opposite type. Water beats Fire, Fire beats Grass and Grass beats Water. The only time Types get difficult to understand is when you start getting into Pokémon with dual types. That’s where you have to study and remember who is weak to what. However, “Pokémon” can be a really easy game to cheese. If you simply keep playing the stronger type, you can spam whatever moves are dealing the most damage until your Pokémon runs out of Power Points for that move. In other words, there is absolutely no way to come back from a disadvantage unless your Pokémon is at a significantly higher level. Nintendo’s RPG giant also follows the traditional RPG formula - take turns attacking/defending, XP is awarded at the end, and evolutions will happen after battle. It is easy to understand and doesn’t deviate too much from the typical progression system you can find in other RPGs.
“Temtem” features its own system of types, but with different names. “Pokémon’s” Psychic and Fighting is “Temtem’s” Mental and Melee, and then you have unique types like Digital and Crystal. While both games focus on type-matching, there is one crucial difference between them - “Temtem” replaces Power Points with a stamina bar. Temtems have their own stamina bars that get drained after performing certain moves. If you overexert a Temtem’s stamina, they will lose some health, and so, you may have to skip a turn by resting in order to restore stamina. This prevents players from spamming the same move and has allowed “Temtem’s” competitive scene to rely more on strategy rather than entirely on match-ups. Another facet of “Temtem’s” combat lies within its 2v2 structure; some Temtem will acquire moves that can be enhanced if a partner Temtem is a certain type. “Temtem” also features a slightly different progression system, awarding XP whenever an enemy is defeated and allows Temtem to evolve mid-battle. With this system, players can create different playstyles and come up with new ways to turn the tides of battle.
As much as we enjoy the simplistic nature of “Pokémon”, “Temtem” wins this one. There’s more to think about than just type-matching; you have to think of when you should use a move, when to rest, how to make your turn effective. “Pokémon” just relies too heavily on type-matching, and it can be ruined when playing competitively.
WINNER: Temtem
SCORE: Pokémon 2 / Temtem 1
Round 4: Visuals
Just to give a quick clarification, this is not the same round as World. Here, we are judging the games on artstyle and technical prowess.
...And sadly, “Pokémon” has really dropped the ball on this one more than a few times. When it was a primarily handheld game, belting out titles on the Game Boy and DS systems, “Pokémon” had some strong visuals. Characters were well-designed, Pokemon had slowly started to become animated, and visual effects were getting more vibrant and colorful. It may have had a few hiccups with occasional console releases like “Battle Revolution'', but they were forgivable. As of late, time has not been kind to the “Pokémon'' franchise, and part of that has stemmed from its inability to evolve with the gaming industry. So far, the artstyle has gone through very little changes, and character animations have become alarmingly lazy.
As it stands, “Temtem” has become a much-needed breath of fresh air for burned-out “Pokémon” veterans. As if a bright artstyle wasn’t enough, “Temtem” boasts more effort in its animations by showing attacks as they happen. There aren’t glaring shortcuts being made, and you can enjoy the game at a smooth sixty frames per second.
“Temtem” steals this round with ease. “Pokémon’s” inability to improve its visuals has caused many fans to become flustered to the point where many are abandoning the franchise. “Temtem” is clearly making its visuals a priority and is putting effort into animating its characters well.
WINNER: Temtem
SCORE: Pokémon 2 / Temtem 2
Round 5: Monsters
“Temtem” is at a real disadvantage in this round. Because it is still a new IP, not a lot of people know about the different Temtem you can encounter. Although, just like “Pokémon”, you’re definitely going to find one to call your favourite. Credit where credit is due, many of the game’s monsters are uniquely designed. Still, there are some times where we can’t shake the feeling that we’re playing a fan game.
Of course, “Pokémon” has been around for so long that it's really hard to find someone who DOESN’T know Pikachu, Jigglypuff, or even Meowth. Part of the reason why people can remember the names of nearly 1000 Pokémon is also because their names match their visual design and personalities. Oh, its name is Koffing because he spits poison gas. Its name is Seedot because it is a living seed. Honestly, we could be here all day dissecting Pokémon names, but that’s for another day.
Once again, an extensive history has allowed “Pokémon” to come out on top, and thus winning this Versus. “Temtem” has some catching up to do.
WINNER: Pokémon
SCORE: Pokémon 3 / Temtem 2
It wasn’t easy choosing a winner, especially when considering the recent controversies with “Pokémon”. As you can see, “Pokémon” managed to squeeze the victory primarily because of its history. “Temtem” is still in early access and isn’t planned for a full launch until 2021. So, if “Pokémon” doesn’t make a course correction soon, “Temtem” may steal more fans away. But for now, did we choose the right victor? Debate about it like civilized folk in the comments below and subscribe to WatchMojo for more thoughtful Versus battles!
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