Pokémon Black & White features streamlined gameplay mechanics

Why bother playing a game when you can just obsessively collect every piece of information about it ahead of time? In this spirit we bring you further details of Pokémon Black & White's veteran-friendly streamlined game mechanics, including wilderness Poké-centres, earlier introduction of advanced features, and an item for finding items. That's meta, that is.

The latest entry in Siliconera's Pokémon Diary series details the latest outings efforts to smooth out the Poké-experience, including the Dowsing Machine and C-Gear.

The Dowsing Machine is a simple tool which acts as a compass, pointing the player in the direction of those easily-missed items.

Acquired early in the game, the C-Gear handles wireless and infrared communications, and is by default set to scan automatically for connections.

Managing remote connections utilises a lot of screen real estate, but functions previously accessed on the DS's lower screen can be relegated to a hot key menu.

To make things even easier on the player, wandering nurses and doctors can be found in various wilderness locations. After defeat, these NPCs will heal your team for free, saving a trek back to town while hunting elusive 'mons or grinding.

In the same wise, the game's Breeding Centre is located outside the second city, so experienced players can get on with building their team much earlier than in previous outings.

Thanks, GoNintendo.