Times have changed. The kids of yesteryear have grown up, their Game Boys tossed aside in favour of My Chemical Romance, black eyeliner and extra-tight skinny jeans. Skinny jeans so tight that Nineties electronics cease to survive. Pikachu doesn't amuse them anymore; his rosy cheeks and loving gaze are but an embarrassing memory stored left of the brain segments marked 'morbid poetry' and 'I hate my Mum'. But some people still care about the little electric rodent. Some people still remember the nights they laid awake battling The Elite Four, finding that old man's golden dentures and ruining their game save with that dastardly Missingno cheat. Nintendo knows you're still addicted Pokémon, if only on the quiet, and like that dodgy man in Camden with the Magical Carrier Bag of Happiness, Nintendo's got what you need, albeit rated 'E' and slightly more legal…

Yes, ladies and gentlemen, Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Darkness & Time has finally arrived - and while that sounds like cause for celebration, it's unfortunate that little has changed since the franchise's inception way back in 2006, meaning that many of the game's foibles remain. Of course, the real problem here falls directly at the feet of the gameplay, which in today's gaming landscape sticks out like Posh Spice in Primark. It's an entirely workable concept of course - explore multi-tiered dungeons in search of items, all the while battling rogue Pokémon. What niggles here however, is the archaic execution. Cue poorly generated dungeons, an inventory that barely holds a snack-sized Mars Bar, and fewer save points than Paris Hilton has brain cells.

That's not to say that Explorers of Time doesn't have any merits of its own, though. In fact, Chunsoft's latest tweaks prove to be some of the most commendable in the game. For starters, the new guild system works a treat, not only serving as the central hub world of the game but nudging the story along at an unfaltering pace. Chunsoft's Wi-Fi efforts are also worthy of serious praise, offering the chance for another player to rescue you should you fall in one of the non-story-driven missions. And if they're not online? Just log into Nintendo Wi-Fi and send a message to their mobile phone or email account. Okay, so attempts to bring the game into the Twenty-First Century with updated stylus support still fall short of amazing due to the game's grid-based nature, but the face buttons more than hold their own. The game, outdated as it may be, has also been polished beyond recognition, boasting a more forgiving difficulty curve, a larger selection of Pokémon, a delightful soundtrack and an episodic approach to narrative that makes progressing through the often-tedious dungeons worthwhile.

In fact, those who picked up the original title will feel right at home with the tale that Explorers spins. Heck, the game even starts with the same personality test to determine your aura and - depending on how truthfully you answered each of the questions - the Pokémon that best suits your personality. Though this really only affects the sprite you'll be playing as for the duration of the game, it's a move that makes each game feel just that little bit more personal. The story itself is, of course, derivative guff. You play as an amnesiac human transformed, by some bizarre turn of events, into a Pokémon. And - you guessed it! - until you've worked out exactly who you are, you'll take comfort helping out the local Pokémon guild with various missions, all the while investigating the shady happenings in the world of Pokémon, which varies depending on which version (Time or Darkness) you buy. That said, the experience, bar a few different Pokémon and enemies, is nigh-on identical for the thirty or so hours of gameplay.

Missions are also episodic in their nature. Whilst most missions either involve tracking down lost items or nabbing wanted Pokémon, others see you rescuing stranded 'mon in a nod to 2006's Red & Blue Rescue Team. Regardless of the briefing however, missions always take place in one of the titular Mystery Dungeons, a collection of randomly generated dungeons that yield different items and goodies upon each entry. This also exposes one of the game's most crippling flaws - namely that randomised exit points end up placed in the same room as the entrance point, meaning that whole floors can be bypassed should you choose not to explore them.

And really why wouldn't you, given that the dungeons look as repulsive as Mr T in a frilly pink thong? Or should that be a grey thong, considering that the dungeons look as though programmed by an egotistical elephant? Big, soulless, and very, very grey. It's a crying shame considering that the rest of the game has been polished to a greater degree than Harry Hill's head; sandy coves, a bustling marketplace adorned with lively Pokémon, and a guild HQ shaped like a giant Wigglytuff... Explorers of Time certainly looks the part, so it's a shame that Chunsoft didn't pay as much care to the dungeons, especially as it'd go some way to alleviate the equally monotonous turn-based combat.

It's in the combat that the game most shows its age, offering some of the most punishing and archaic mechanics since the original Mystery Dungeon. Battles rarely involve more than mashing the attack button and while other attacks are available (there are even collectable battle items such as damage-heavy Blast Seeds and Geo Pebbles) there's very little incentive to use them, since the default attack is more than competent enough to suffice. In addition, Chunsoft's efforts to make the game accessible to casual gamers, however admirable, only serve to make things even easier for the traditionally hardcore MD audience - yet despite this, the game is still too slow, repetitive and monotonous in design to attract the Brain Training generation. And why bother adjusting the difficulty level when the game insists that should you fall, you lose half of your earnings and all of your items?

Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time isn't a lazy game, it's just that the template it's based upon is far too antiquated to meet the needs of today's gaming audience, yet not enough to satisfy dungeon hack enthusiasts. Those after a traditionally challenging dungeon crawler would be better served by Chunsoft's Siren, weighing in at ten notes lighter, while those who are new to all this Pokémon lark will find hours of delight in Pokémon Diamond & Pearl, an unadulterated slice of RPG-heaven. Everyone else would be best advised to save their pennies, hoping that the inevitable third offering clears up some of the game's shortcomings. It's safe to say there's a lot of Poké-love out there, it's just a shame that Explorers of Time doesn't quite cater to it…

Reviewed by Ricky Lee Staines for AceGamez (All Rights Reserved).