Pokémon Memories: How Red/Blue/Yellow Fare Almost 20 Years Later

While this past weekend’s Pokémon 20th Anniversary is relevant to those living in Japan, it wasn’t until almost three years later in 1999 that the Pokémon franchise became the juggernaut it is today with western releases. Those who grew up with the game are now adults. Some have moved on to other games and franchises, while others such as myself were quite content with riding the Pokémon train for many years since.

To celebrate this special anniversary, Nintendo have re-released the three games that started it all on the Nintendo 3DS Virtual Console. Dom, Jim, and I took one version each under our wing and had a weekend to get all nostalgic.

Dom – Pokémon Red

I’ve stuck with Pokémon since the very beginning. I clearly remember picking up Pokémon Blue from Game in Loughborough on a very rainy day – obviously that really helps to narrow it down – and then proceeding to go through packs of batteries at an alarming rate on my original Gameboy. I built my team and its devastating leader Blastoise for hours, and I can’t imagine the number of times I worked my way through the Elite Four tournament.

From that point on, I played an entry every single generation, with the jump to 3D in X and Y finally making those pocket monsters look how I always imagined they did. What’s amazing about taking a step back to Pokémon Red is just how much of the template was set in place twenty years ago, and how well it stands up today.

The art-style was simple, but as with so many titles, that fact has helped it weather the passage of time incredibly well, and the Pokémon artwork itself remains iconic – albeit with a slightly tubbier Pikachu than we may be used to these days. Those original 150 – or 151 for Mew fans – Pokémon are the progenitors of what was to come, and though classic designs have arrived with every iteration, I’d readily argue that the first generation has a consistency that later titles have occasionally lacked. Every time I entered the long grass and a battle began, it was like welcoming an old friend home, and I can honestly see myself trying to catch them all, all over again.

The gameplay hooks of exploration, collection, level grinding, and competition are just as utterly compelling today, and I was amazed at how quickly I was caught back up in it. There are moments where you might crave the refinement of some of the later titles – whether it’s the little indicator telling you that you’ve already captured a Pokémon, to your characters faster walking speed – but the strength of the gameplay is why it’s remained largely unchanged in twenty years.

The fact that you’ll be able to transfer your Pokémon from this edition to the forthcoming Pokémon Sun and Moon – on whatever platform that turns out to be for – gives you a wholly modern reason to return to what is a crucial game in the history of gaming. The pleasing thing is that, unlike a lot of ‘retro’ gaming, you’ll likely be dragged back in, exactly as you were the first time.

Dave – Pokémon Blue

Some might say I’m a bit of a Pokémon nerd, not only being one of the first in my school to start playing the series, but also being the bringer of Pokémon cards to break times a few short weeks later. I remember that fateful afternoon at my friend Nick’s house where we had picked up a magazine all about Nintendo stuff and were enthralled by the colourful pictures of this hot new thing from Japan.

A week later, we had bought Pokémon Red and in my case Pokémon Blue. The thrill of encountering our first Pikachu was one I’ll never forget. My brother soon joined in the fun and we’ve both had that discussion of which version we will get each generation since.

Fast forward 20 years and I’m still obsessed with the franchise, though to a much lesser extent. Pokémon cards were always a fad at our school and the few who picked up Pokémon Gold/Silver upon their eventual release had to play at home thanks to a clamp down on electronic gadgets. I’ve dabbled with some of the more interesting side-games since, but for me it’s always been about the core games and remakes. To this day I still hold the second generation as my favourite of the bunch, with Heart Gold/Soul Silver remakes exceeding expectations.

With the re-release on the 3DS, I picked up Pokémon Blue: the same game that first began my adventure almost 20 years ago, beginning with the starter I chose all those years ago: Squirtle. Something about that little turtle guy always struck a chord that was more potent than Bulbasaur and Charmander, but there it is. Taking my Squirtle into Route 1 brought back a lot of memories of those old days.

In order to make the game feel more like discovering the franchise all over again, I decided I was going to Nuzlocke my adventure. This is a popular challenge that quite a few people undertake to make the game more intense and all the more rewarding. As such, I was ecstatic when my first encounter in the Viridian Forest was a Pikachu. Both me and Nick spent hours searching for the electric mouse Pokémon and here I was almost 20 years later finding it on my first encounter.

Playing Pokémon Blue after all this time made me see just how far the series has come. What we once did with link cables that would end the fun when someone rage quit by yanking the cord out of their Gameboy, can now be done online. Advancements in technology have evolved the series from playground antics to a worldwide phenomenon.

There are also things that were broken, such as the power of Psychic types and how they just couldn’t be beaten way back then. These re-releases don’t fix problems, such as the move Focus Energy having the exact opposite effect of what it’s supposed to do.

Nintendo announced recently that the monsters that I raise in Blue this time around will be able to finally leave the confines of the Gameboy versions, meaning that those who know the trick will be able to catch Mew and train him legitimately. There’s something cathartic about being able to finally take these creatures out of the original game. Here’s to another (almost) 20 years of Pokémon. My brother and I are already in talks about which version we’re going to get.

Jim – Pokémon Yellow

Coming back to Pokémon Yellow after all these years was a fun albeit reflective experience. Where Pokémon has been constant in the lives of many gamers, for me it simply faded from consciousness and, rather sadly, never returned. What’s strange about all of this is that I can’t put a finger on exactly why. Maybe it had something to do with my transition away from the Gameboy of maybe it was simply a casualty of stepping from early childhood and into my teenage years.

Either way, my memories of Pokémon Yellow are as vivid as they ever were. In truth, this wasn’t my first foray into Nintendo’s power-selling series, with my brother and I having been given matching copies of Red and Blue soon after their release. However, it wasn’t until a particularly long holiday in Greece one summer that I found myself truly immersed in this timeless world of adventure. When the sun was too hot to play outside, I’d grab my Gameboy Colour with Pokémon Yellow and whittle away the hours lost in Kanto.

Loading the game up now on my snazzy “New” Nintendo 3DS, these memories suddenly came flooding back. From the long nights spent huddled beneath a desk lamp to trading with friends in the park, Pokémon had a much bigger impact on childhood than I had originally thought.

What’s even more remarkable is just how solid those three original games continue to be today, 20 years after the series debut. In that time the JRPG genre has branched out in a multitude of directions, yet however winding they may be, these roads have all led back to that same core pillar. It’s this raw essence that Pokémon series managed to capture so well, giving players a huge world to explore without the narrative trappings that weigh most JRPGs down.

When approached to write something on Nintendo’s first generation re-release, I was expecting a short trip down memory lane but that’s not how it works with Pokémon. A few hours later, slumped on the sofa and with my first gym badge down, those same hooks from two decades past had somehow managed to tether me once more.

What I also find particularly attractive about Pokémon Yellow is how it’s often viewed as an anomaly. Unlike Red and Blue, it had updated front sprites for each of the Pokémon you battled against, as well as slight variations to where they’d appear. Finally, having Pikachu follow you in-game was the perfect novelty, tying Pokémon Yellow to the popular TV show that dominated my childhood viewing schedule at that time.

If anything, this updated version has soothed me. For years, I’ve felt as though it’s too late to get back into Pokémon, having skipped out on several generations. However, my time with Pokémon Yellow has confirmed that being a fan doesn’t necessarily mean buying into each and every instalment. Even now, twenty years after the fact, I’m still exciting about reaching the Elite Four and being reunited with Gengar, Graveler, and all my Pokemon favourites.

Now it’s over to you! What are your Pokémon memories? Did you play the first generation when it was all the craze in the 90’s? Have you stuck with it since? Have you gone back to the Gameboy games this weekend? Let us know in the comments below!