Pokémon Black 2 and Pokémon White 2 make a neatly matched set of entries into one of the most venerable (and most predictable) of game franchises. The pair are direct sequels to the Black and White of 2011. That's a good amount of time to make tweaks to a tried-and-true formula. But are the updates super effective?

It's four o'clock in the morning and I'm sitting outside my apartment chain-smoking cigarettes, mildly buzzed on cough syrup and decidedly not getting the rest I was supposed to be getting in order to alleviate the need for prescription medication in the first place. Instead I am grinding levels on my water and…

Catching them all gets a bit more personal later this year as Nintendo announces two 3DS eShop tie-ins for Pokémon Black and White 2: the pro version of its free 3D Pokédex, and Pokémon Dream Radar, a game that let's players capture monsters in real life and transfer them to the full games.