Pokemon
Reviewed by Shadow
Okay, when I heard about it, I thought it wasn't anything special,
and it was just another average RPG game. I didn't join any anti-Pokemon
groups or anything, I basically was neutral when it came to Pokemon.
I was much more interested in other RPGs. I was, however, vaguely
interested in seeing the Pokemon cartoon, because it was based on a
video game. I started watching it frequently and eventually was
watching it every day for quite a while. Not only did that spark my
interest of Pokemon as a whole, but, knowing Pokemon was anime,
got me to watch other Anime, which I used to absolutely hate. In
Christmas of '99, as a huge Zelda fan, I finally got a Game Boy Color
with the Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening (great game, BTW). That
changed everything. Since there wasn't a wide choice of great RPGs
on GB, I decided to get Pokemon as the next Game Boy game I have.
Graphics: 7 out of 10
The graphics are poor, but that's because of the simple graphics of
the Game Boy/Color. For it's system, though, they are actually quite
good. Each Pokemon has their fine own art, from 2 angles, and each
move has it's own effect as well. The characters are a bit small,
which limits their detail, but luckily their heads are big, so you can
still recognize the faces.
Music and Sound: 6 out of 10
Al right, most game boy games have annoying sounds and music.
Pokemon is no exception. Most of the tunes are the standard horrible
game boy tunes, but their are a few exceptions. The trainer battle
music, gym leader music, and intro theme are quite good, and rival
some of the songs in The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening. One great
feature is that each Pokemon has their own cry, and even each fighting
move has it's own sound effect.
Game Challenge: 5 out of 10
This is one of the easiest RPGs around. If you level up a lot like most
people, you can defeat any Pokemon in the game in 2 or 3 shots (1 shot
if it's weak against that particular attack). The first fight against
Gary is probably the hardest fight in the game (except for maybe vs.
Lance). Catching certain Pokemon can actually be pretty difficult.
However, if you decide to take the challenge and under level, it's
completely the opposite. Just try and fight Gary at THOSE levels! You'll
actually need quite a bit of strategy in that case! The multi player challenge
is obviously a different story. You no longer face stupid AI anymore,
and you need all the strategy and leveling up you can get.
Game Play-Fun: 8 out of 10
In each version of Pokemon, there are 139 species of Pokemon which you
can catch. You also start with one of these 3 Pokemon: Bulbasaur (grass
type), Charmander (fire types), or Squirtle (water type). I recommend you
start with Squirtle or Bulbasaur, since Brock, the 1st Gym leader, is
incredibly tough if you use Charmander. I don't know why, but this game
is actually more addicting to me than it is entertaining. It can get pretty
boring constantly running into the same enemies over and over again and
fight trainers in every area. I personally think it's funnier to do quick
leveling up of Pokemon against the Elite Four just to see what new
moves they'll learn. I think the funniest part of Pokemon is trading and
battling against friends. Since you walk pretty slow, I'm glad you can
get a bike to zoom around(too bad you can only access hyper speed mode
on Pokemon Stadium!). While it's story line can't compare to almost all
the RPGs, it DOES have a small story line dealing with the troubles of Team Rocket.
Frustration
Really, this game CAN be frustrating. It's not beating the trainers,
but it's just about everything else, like trying to catch tough Pokemon
or running into enemies every two seconds in gigantic caves when
you're not in the mood to battle.
Replayability: 10 out of 10
This is Pokemon's strongest point, and the reason it's worth buying.
It's not going through the game and beating it that makes it very
repayable, but once you beat the game, you can continue to work on
building up all your Pokemon, which is the real reason this game is
so addicting. Plus, you can trade and battle Pokemon with friends, to
give it even more replay value.
Game Value: 9 out of 10
Yes, this game is definitely worth the price, as long as you:
1. Find someone else who has Pokemon(preferably a different version)
2. Buy a game link that is compatible with both game boys you're using.
If you can't do those 2 things, it may not be worth it, since the one
player is only so-so.
Overall: 9 out of 10
All in all, this is a fantastic game, and this is an exceptional game
even for RPG collectors. Overall, I think this is a fantastic game and
that's all I have to say.