Lookin’ Back #29 – Pokémon Red & Blue

Brutal Gamer attempts to catch ‘em all.

Pokémon Red and Blue were released in what was supposed to be the twilight years of Nintendo’s Game Boy. The machine had had its heyday and was becoming more and more antiquated. 1996, however, unleashed the catch ‘em all craze onto the unsuspecting public; first in Japan, then to the US and finally here, in Europe. It is no exaggeration to say that no other franchise in gaming history ever produced a Lazarus effect quite like what was felt on the Game Boy.

There is very little need to spend too much time deliberating on the mechanics of Pokémon, they haven’t changed very much in the intervening years and while today, it is the most frequent criticism of the latest Pokémon titles, it is also a testament to the strength of the core game mechanics. It never was a series that relied on graphics or top tier presentation, instead allowing the open approach to team building and badge collecting to shine through its major assets. All well and good, but there was one element of the original Pokémon games that put it in a league of its own; multiplayer. Until Red and Blue, the link cable was a relatively maligned peripheral with very few games of note supporting it. The ability to trade and fight your Pokémon against a friend’s inspired school yard gatherings so large, they had parents and teachers on the radios complaining about how it was destroying children’s ability to interact together in more traditional ways (true story). Back in the day (old man hat firmly on head), the most unicorn of playground Pokémon was to be the first to get all 150 of the little blighters. It didn’t matter that all you got was a stupid certificate from a guy at the top of the tower, filling out the Pokédex remains one of the great achievements in gaming, one that few ever had the patience to see through to the end.

The main quest of gaining 8 badges was more than enough reason to head out into the world, accompanied by one of 3 beginner Pokémon (to this day I still can’t pick a favourite). Seeing the infamous Rival, always a thorn in the players side finally get his comeuppance made the massive journey worth it. The game didn’t look anything special, it barely moved beyond the old Zelda games in terms of style, but the sheer level of choice offered to the player with regard to team building meant that it was incredibly rare that two people would ever have the same team. It also allowed for vastly different play styles. Did you pick a team from the beginning and raise them to mighty levels with care and dedication? Or did you use as you captured, substituting in ever more exotic Pokémon as you moved through the game? Red and Blue allowed for either option, each with its own set of advantages and foils. Special mention must also be made of the music. Many of the town themes are now 8 bit classics, but the music for each of the Elite 4 fights really made the matches feel epic, despite being turn based black and white affairs.

Pokémon Red and Blue gave the Gameboy a new lease of life, inspired a cartoon series, movies, trading cards, spin off games, the list goes on. Although it’s sequels, Gold and Silver, rule supreme as the greatest in the series, as usual the nod goes to the pair that started it all.

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