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Pokémon FireRed/LeafGreen

Very few franchises have the magnitude of that of Pokémon. Although the fad has severely died out over the years, what with all the kiddies gobbling up Yu-Gi-Oh or what have you, the Pokémon games have still not lost their steam. What began on with the original Game Boy Red and Blue titles back in their US release in 1998 kick started a phenomenon. The series then slowly evolved with more complex creatures and features in Pokemon Gold and Silver for the Game Boy Color, and then more recently Pokemon Ruby and Sapphire for the Game Boy Advance which only debuted a little over a year ago.

Well here we are, almost six years since the first release of the games, and Nintendo has decided to go back to its roots and re-release the original Pokemon Red and Blue titles with all new graphics, features, and Pokemon under the names of Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen. Yet there have been doubts about the future coming of the Pokémon series. With little to no gameplay changes over the years, and Nintendo continually milking the series for all its worth, Pokémon FireRed and Lea Green have simply been pushed away by the public as another ploy to make some quick bucks.

In case you've been living on an isolated island for all these years and don't know the concept behind the Pokémon series, it's simple. You are a rookie trainer who is called upon by the local Professor Oak to go throughout the land of Kanto and catch and train a team of monsters to battle against other trainers and eventually become the Greatest Pokémon Master of all time. Along the way you also complete a virtual encyclopedia to get the data of all 150 Pokémon that live there. The story alone could land you a good 20 hours of gameplay, and the fun and addicting ability to build new teams only adds on top of it all. In no means has Pokemon ever been recognized as a short game; in fact it's the opposite. If you want to complete the game 100% and take part in all the side quests that are available you'll have your hands full, possibly taking up to 100+ hours. Yes, the world of Pokemon is really that big.

Enough of the hoo-hah, this is a remake - do you really want to lay down $34.95 on a game you played five years ago? Unlike the usual graphical upgrade most remakes go through the process of, Nintendo has blessed Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen with a variety of new features. But why the need for an upgrade? As most who played the original would know, Red and Blue were heavily flawed; the game a nest full of glitches and bugs. The battle system didn't even work properly. Remember how damage calculations didn't account for duel types? Or how there wasn't even a Special Attack and Special Defense stat category? The game had its errors, and although it didn't prevent the game from being fun, it held back its potential. That is exactly why FireRed and LeafGreen were made.

Pokémon Red and Blue was one of the first games to use the connectivity mumbo jumbo with the release of Pokemon Stadium on the Nintendo 64. And with the recent release of Pokemon Colosseum for the GameCube, you can duke your critters out in full blown 3D all over again. With the use of the GameCube to Game Boy connector cord you can take on Stadium matches with your own FireRed and LeafGreen Pokémon.

The Pokémon Colosseum connection is only grazing the surface of the huge world of Pokémon. Sure it may be a marketing ploy, but hey, it's a great one. If you want to get the most out of everything Pokémon, and more specifically FireRed and LeafGreen, you can link up to not only Pokémon Colosseum, but also to Pokemon Ruby, Sapphire and Pokémon Box as well. With a year of waiting, we can finally now mix the worlds of Hoenn and Kanto to create the ultimate teams and Pokédex's. Not only that but you can also transfer your Pokémon Colosseum "shadow" characters from the RPG to reach a grand total of 386 obtainable Pokémon to use at your disposal. The possibilities are endless.

Want more? Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen are packed full of new goodies that are enough to keep the game fresh and new. I won't have the ability to touch base on everything new with the games, because truly, Nintendo added a lot into them to make sure these weren't some half assed remakes. You'd be suprised on how much you will discover within the game. Not only do the games feature the large library of 151 of the original Pokémon, but it also includes more then half of the Pokémon that were only obtainable in Gold and Silver. They also feature an exclusive nine secret islands which feature hidden items, moves, characters and Pokémon.

To make it even better, Nintendo has gone and included a Wireless Adapter, one of the biggest new features to not only FireRed and LeafGreen but the Pokémon francheise in general. The Wireless Adapter allows gamers to link up with fellow players within a 100 feet radius to trade, battle, and even chat! Sadly, it only works with Fire Red and Leaf Green and not Ruby and Sapphire, but the future is bright as it will be featured in the upcoming Pokémon Emerald.

Funny thing is, there isn't exactly anything I didn't like about the game. The graphics and audio were all top notch and bring back fond memories of my younger years. Sadly the gameplay suffers; Nintendo just can't seem to get it right. Nothing improves, and where Pokémon Colosseum had too much two-on-two battling, FireRed and LeafGreen include little to none, much like Ruby and Sapphire. If you can get past it all, you will find a fantastic game that will have you busy for months on end.

This game gets an N-Philes score of A-.

From the big things to the little things like Move Tutors, new moves, and the ability to mix and match through literally hundreds of creatures, makes creating teams an endless task. Whether you're new to the series or been there from the beginning, Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen will surely not disappoint. Regardless of how you may feel about how the Pokémon series and how it has become, and if it will ever reach the capacity it once was, these "new" games bring some fresh air to a dying franchise. Pokémon hits the sweet spot yet again, so get out there and enjoy it.

Posted in: Reviews