The monster-catching genre of RPGs has long been dominated by the industry juggernaut Pokemon. There was almost a monopoly for several years, with very few games trying to do what Game Freak does so well. However, in recent years, there seems to be a surge of new competitors in the genre.
With the likes of Temtem, Coromon, and Nexomon, there seems to be healthy competition with the granddaddy of monster-catching games. All these games try to do something interesting to set themselves apart in some way, of course. With the sequel to Nexomon, Nexomon: Extinction, the genre gained another respectable title.
10 Capture Mechanics
Almost all monster-collection games are similar in their capture mechanics. First, you weaken the opposing wild monster, then give it status, and then throw a ball/capsule/trap or whatever it is. Nexomon: Extinction does a bit more to differentiate itself from its competitors. While current health and statuses still play into your chance of capture, there are more variables.
To begin with, you can feed a wild Nexomon ala the Safari Zone of Pokemon. Each Nexomon has a food preference; some will increase your chance more than others. Additionally, there are passive items called whistles that slightly increase the likelihood of capturing certain types of Nexomon. Finally, once you decide to throw your Nexomon Trap, you have to quickly push some buttons in a sort of quick time event, or your capture will fail right away. This is an interesting expansion to Pokemon's formula, without a doubt.
9 Story Structure
Pokemon games, especially early on, were very strictly structured and formulaic. You'd go through the Gym Leaders one by one, interact with the story and villains, and that would be it. However, due to not being tied to such a long tradition of formulaic games, Nexomon: Extinction has more freedom.
In Nexomon: Extinction, you are immediately thrust upon an exciting story and are hardly put on a set path. You become a guild member and are asked to help people around the world, completing their quests. But that's about it. The map is like an open world; you don't have a set journey from the get-go. Focusing on the locations and characters feels genuinely refreshing instead of waiting for the next gym to appear.
8 Stamina
Many monster battling games try to differentiate their battle mechanics in some way. Nexomon: Extinction does so by using a stamina system instead of Pokemon's PP for moves. Temtem, another monster collection game, also did this to a decent effect.
In Nexomon: Extinction, each creature has Stamina, and each move costs a certain amount to use. There are items to refresh Stamina, and obviously, stronger moves cost more Stamina to use. This opens the door to a different way of thinking about your Nexomon's longevity.
7 Types
There are nine total types in Nexomon: Extinction instead of Pokemon's sixteen. The types in Nexomon: Extinction are Normal, Water, Fire, Plant, Mineral, Wind, Electric, Ghost, and Psychic. Like Pokemon, these types all have weaknesses and strengths against each other.
Nexomon also have only one type, and dual types are not a thing in this game. This makes the rock-paper-scissors gameplay a little simpler, especially with many Nexomon only learning two types of moves in general. The type effectiveness is also weaker, with the modifiers being 1,25 and 0,65.
6 Writing
Pokemon games are rarely praised for their stories or memorable writing. They serve the purpose of moving the story along and not much more, and it says something about the games that the most iconic character never even speaks. However, in Nexomon: Extinction, the writing is lively and quite funny.
The writers infused the game with a tongue-in-cheek sort of humor, and it serves the game very well. With the occasional meta jab the game throws at you or the acknowledgment of weird situations, the dialogue and story are pretty well written for a game of this scope. The main story is also quite interesting, introducing enough mysteries and motivations to encourage the player to explore.
5 Difficulty And Level Scaling
Many Pokemon fans have longed for a difficulty option in the games or a slightly higher default difficulty. The games have become easier over the years, barring the occasional Ultra Necrozma fight, and many fans are eager for a true challenge. Well, Nexomon: Extinction has got you covered.
To begin with, Nexomon: Extinction has level scaling. That means as you get stronger, so will wild Nexomon and NPCs. This immediately prevents you from steamrolling the game with a few strong Nexomon. The fast travel and healing in Nexomon: Extinction is also rare, encouraging you to prepare before trying to clear a whole area.
4 The Monsters Themselves
In Pokemon, monsters are differentiated by typing, stats, abilities, move sets, and held items. Nexomon also has unique stats, move sets, and types, but it is much simpler. To begin with, Nexomon: Extinction has no abilities, which is a huge difference. They are also all single-typed, which takes many weakness/strength combinations out of the equation.
At their core, Nexomon are way less original than Pokemon. They all learn similar moves, are only one of nine types, and rarely have wildly varying stats. Imagine how different Klefki and Zacian from Pokemon are, despite being both Steel/Fairy types. That sort of variety is just not in Nexomon: Extinction. Sure, you can equip your Nexomon with cores to buff them slightly, but it rarely makes them stand out.
3 Game Releases
The way Nexomon has released their games so far and Game Freak does it is night and day. To begin with, Nexomon found its beginning in the mobile market, with a steam port to accompany it. The sequel Nexomon: Extinction was released as a multi-platform game, available on PC, PS4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch.
Pokemon always had a weird way of releasing games. For decades, there've been two versions in each generation with very subtle story and content differences. They would then get a *definitive* third version that would build upon both games. The series has also been on portable Nintendo devices almost exclusively, and only recently, venturing into the mobile market and other consoles.
2 Economy And Items
In Pokemon, especially in recent games, buying consumables and items feel pointless. Money is not a problem, you get easy access to healing regularly, and the only handy items are Pokeballs and their variants. This is, of course, excluding competitive items, but they are generally bought differently anyways.
In Nexomon: Extinction, however, you must keep an eye out for money and items. Healing items and status healers are essential to clearing areas. You also should stack up on different versions of Nexotraps as they all buff your capture chance for different types. Adding food items to the mix, Nexomon: Extinction gives the players a robust catalog throughout the game to consider.
1 Visuals
Looking at the Pokemon visuals throughout their history is like looking at gaming history. Beginning at a very primitive place with Pokemon Red & Blue, the franchise has come a long way. Once utilizing pixel art and simple 2D animations, Pokemon happens to be a 3D game nowadays. The best example is Pokemon Legends: Arceus so far.
Nexomon: Extinction fully commits to a 2D, cartoon-like aesthetic and makes the best of it. With gorgeous locations, shots, and smooth animations, it probably looks better than any 2D Pokemon game. The creatures are beautifully animated, attacks and conditions have a force to them, and the occasional art that fills your whole screen will make you question how Pokemon got away with so little visual flair for all these years.