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System: Game Boy
Cheats Used: None
To prepare for the release of Pokemon Black, I decided to replay the original game, Pokemon Red. I confess that when I first discovered the game in 1999, I became a bit of an addict, buying up all the videos of the cartoon series (which I still watch occasionally) and collecting all kinds of merchandise. There were several nights I skipped sleep and stayed up all night playing the game and when I got to the end, there was a tremendous feeling of accomplishment. The fact that the creator of Pokemon, Satoshi Tajiri, is autistic is a great inspiration to me and he’s become one of my personal heroes.
So how does the game hold up after all these years? Not too bad, actually. It does seem rather primitive compared to the more recent installments, but then, the idea was in its infancy when the game was made and things like berries, abilities and online pokemon trading hadn’t been imagined yet. What we’re left with is a relatively straightforward game that’s easy enough for anyone to play, yet challenging enough for even the most hardcore players.
The story here is simple: You are a new pokemon trainer and your aim is to defeat the eight gym leaders and eventually battle the Elite 4 and the champion. Once that’s accomplished, the game is over. Along the way, you must stop the evil Team Rocket and their boss, Giovanni, but this subplot only takes up about a third of the game with the rest of it comprised of capturing, raising and battling pokemon. Like most RPGs, level grinding before fighting a gym leader can get very tedious, but the rewards for doing so more than make up for it. The game does an excellent job of drawing you into this world and making you care about the characters and the pokemon you raise. It’s not at all surprising that the series has done as well as it has
What’s interesting is that before the original game was released, Nintendo didn’t think it would sell and was prepared to write it off as a loss. No one was more surprised than they were when it became an international phenomenon. In fact, the anime was only supposed to last one season and was extended indefinitely when they realized what a massive hit they had on their hands. Since then, they’ve done a great job of providing the fans a steady stream of new games while still maintaining a consistent level of quality such that even a subpar entry (as many thought Diamond/Pearl to be) will outsell just about any other game out there. The series may no longer be in the public eye the way it used to be, but as long as the games are good I imagine it will continue for many years to come.
Cheats Used: None
To prepare for the release of Pokemon Black, I decided to replay the original game, Pokemon Red. I confess that when I first discovered the game in 1999, I became a bit of an addict, buying up all the videos of the cartoon series (which I still watch occasionally) and collecting all kinds of merchandise. There were several nights I skipped sleep and stayed up all night playing the game and when I got to the end, there was a tremendous feeling of accomplishment. The fact that the creator of Pokemon, Satoshi Tajiri, is autistic is a great inspiration to me and he’s become one of my personal heroes.
So how does the game hold up after all these years? Not too bad, actually. It does seem rather primitive compared to the more recent installments, but then, the idea was in its infancy when the game was made and things like berries, abilities and online pokemon trading hadn’t been imagined yet. What we’re left with is a relatively straightforward game that’s easy enough for anyone to play, yet challenging enough for even the most hardcore players.
The story here is simple: You are a new pokemon trainer and your aim is to defeat the eight gym leaders and eventually battle the Elite 4 and the champion. Once that’s accomplished, the game is over. Along the way, you must stop the evil Team Rocket and their boss, Giovanni, but this subplot only takes up about a third of the game with the rest of it comprised of capturing, raising and battling pokemon. Like most RPGs, level grinding before fighting a gym leader can get very tedious, but the rewards for doing so more than make up for it. The game does an excellent job of drawing you into this world and making you care about the characters and the pokemon you raise. It’s not at all surprising that the series has done as well as it has
What’s interesting is that before the original game was released, Nintendo didn’t think it would sell and was prepared to write it off as a loss. No one was more surprised than they were when it became an international phenomenon. In fact, the anime was only supposed to last one season and was extended indefinitely when they realized what a massive hit they had on their hands. Since then, they’ve done a great job of providing the fans a steady stream of new games while still maintaining a consistent level of quality such that even a subpar entry (as many thought Diamond/Pearl to be) will outsell just about any other game out there. The series may no longer be in the public eye the way it used to be, but as long as the games are good I imagine it will continue for many years to come.
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