What developer ChunSoft forgot when they set to work on 'Pokemon Mystery Dungeon' is the reason why the Pokemon series has been popular with kids to begin with. In the assorted card and video games, kids can train, evolve and battle with the Pokemon they capture. The experience of building your own team doesn't exist in 'Mystery Dungeon' for the twist this time is that players take on the role of one, specific Pokemon; a wild Pokemon without a trainer.

As the story goes, you are a human who for some reason has woken up from a fitful slumber as a Pokemon. Man, that must've been some crazy party, eh? Note to self, next time keep your eye on the mischievous Professor Oak. He tends to spike the punch, if given the chance.

As you try to sort out your peculiar situation, you decide to pass the time by forming a rescue group to save trapped, hurt, lost or just generally dazed and confused Pokemon.

Although the above ground locations are diverse, all of the rescue "dungeons" are more or less the same with randomly generated monsters picking fights with you and varied items left around for you to collect. On the positive side, the battles are all turn-based and seem to employ the traditional Pokemon battle rules. With the exception of the occasional boss fight however, the unremarkable missions all blend together in a sort of Weezing-ish haze.

You can forget about capturing your own Pokemon in 'Mystery Dungeon' too. There are no Poke Balls to do that. As a substitute, the Pokemon you encounter will decide for themselves if they wish to join your rescue squad or not. Then, it will be up to you to accept their offer or politely kick them to the curb. The biggest disappointment of 'Mystery Dungeon' is that you cannot evolve any of your Pokemon until you complete the entire story. That sad reality is guaranteed to transform any Pokemon fan into a grouchy Charizard.

Not even Mew can get you out of this one, Pikachu.

As with other Pokemon releases, 'Rescue Dungeon' has some unique wireless communication options. Players can aid each other in rescues by sending SOS messages and trade items with one another. Also, if you happen to own both the DS Blue Rescue Team and the Game Boy Advance Red Rescue Team versions and have them in your DS at the same time using the dual slots, you will be able to call the Red Rescue Team for assistance or battle them.

None of this takes away from the simple fact that the game is a rapidly wearisome, dull dungeon crawling adventure with repetitive maps, dialogue and gameplay. All is not lost though; Pokemon fans still have the promising 'Pokemon Ranger' to look forward to in November.