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Curious about what the Pokewalker does for your Pokemon play experience? Check inside for the full scoop from Jason R.

So you've been playing Pokemon since Red and Blue, you've watched the shows, have a complete Base Set of the trading cards, mastered Jigglypuff in the original Super Smash Bros. 64, and even decorated notebooks with stickers printed from Pokemon Snap!

And now, you're beginning to wonder what's in the new Pokemon HeartGold or Pokemon SoulSilver to convince you to pick it up. Aside from the enticing offer Nintendo has given to play even more Pokemon, there's the Pokewalker, a new device in vein of the Pokemon Pikachu and Pokemon Pikachu 2 virtual pet/pedometer devices released several years ago. Typically, the device's use is to take and train a single Pokemon, at a rate of one experience point per step, until the Pokemon gains a level.

And this is where the PokeWalker seems to fall short: When returning a Pokemon to its original cartridge, at maximum, only one level may be gained. Whether 100 or 100,000 steps are taken, your Pokemon will only gain a single level. Furthermore, upon return from the Pokewalker back to either HeartGold or SoulSilver, any evolution meant to occur or moves scheduled to be learned are simply bypassed, and if the player wants to make the evolution or teach the move meant for that level, an in-game level-up or a visit to the move relearner is, sadly, necessary. Early in the game, this means the Pokewalker is rather ineffective, though for later levels, taking a Pokemon in the Pokewalker for a lengthy trip might not even gain enough experience for a single level-up.

The Pokewalker does have a few other notable features, perhaps even more notable than being able to level whatever Pokemon is sent to it. Immediately before transmitting a Pokemon to the Walker, the player is asked to choose a location from a list for his or her walk. Each location comes with a list of six Pokemon and several items, and players can spend "Watts" to try their hands at catching up to two more Pokemon from the six on the course, or find up to three items per trip. The drawbacks? Only three of the six Pokemon per course are available to find in a single trip, some Pokemon and items will be unavailable to find unless you've taken enough steps in the current day, and to unlock new courses, one must save watts, rather than spend them, for transfer back to HeartGold or SoulSilver.

Additionally, the Pokewalker's form-factor comes into play. The device comes with a flat back attached, and requires the user to unscrew a small screw to replace the back with the alternate packed in, so he or she can use it with a belt hook to attach it to something while walking. Alternatively, players can opt to keep the Pokewalker in their pockets, but unfortunately, there's no "lock" button, and I've found that I often tap a button or a sequence of buttons, causing me to unintentionally spend watts in attempts to capture Pokemon or find items.

Still, the Pokewalker is a device, that like the Pokemon titles themselves, will offer months of use. Bulbapedia estimates to unlock all the routes available would take about 1000 miles of walking, given a stride a little larger than two feet a step. Likewise, Nintendo will have promotions scheduled to unlock bonus courses, with the first scheduled for WiFi in April. In this respect, the Pokewalker is probably best served as a side-device, meant to enhance gameplay, but truthfully isn't an enjoyable stand-alone toy, considering there's no real games like the ones featured in Pocket Pikachu toys.