Pokemon Red and Blue were like no one ever was | Pokemon Blue (& red) review | jason graves

[@DoubleDragonGaming]

LMFAOOOO @ 1:52. Naming your squad after the Chicago bulls 99 lineup has me dying right now

[@TheDeathmail]

I like that you mentioned that the games not being competitively balanced isn't a bad thing. They weren't meant to be competitively balanced... it wasn't meant to be competitive.. Yah, some Pokemon were better than others... so what??? And as kids, most of us LOVED the glitches... but people forget that.... And yah, Lance didn't have enough dragon types... but he was so freaking cool... And Psychic was broken.... but it made Mewtwo feel so much better.... There was a magic that the series had that newer games just don't... maybe because it's just more polished. And frankly, a lot of the "flaws" are more due to the system just being less refined than later games...

[@pksprite6401]

Pokémon has definitely lost its magic. Gen 1 Pokémon are just such special games (but not to say they’re the only ones with magic)

[@PostMesmeric]

This was a pretty eye-opening video, because like you said, Gen 1 is a punching bag. Everyone really likes grinding it down and saying how it's unbalanced or primitive or whatever. It's nice to see some appreciation for the roots of the series, especially in a style that balances humor and critique like yours. Great video, man. I'll be checking out more of your content very soon.

[@Okla_Soft]

Totally agree, Gen 1 is obviously the Goat, even to this day, and it does get trashed by many a KZbinr, but people who weren’t playing video games when it came out just don’t understand how huge this game and Pokémon as a result really were. Gen 1 was EVERYWHERE

[@IamMeHere2See]

A few years on, I want to add that it's almost refreshing how different it is from current titles. The fact that RBY are the best way to play certain Pokemon that are not viable anymore is reason enough to give it a try.

[@joshthefunkdoc]

i think this is the difference between being a hardcore fan of a particular series and caring more about the entries as "iterations" (to use Jason's term in this video), and being more interested in wider gaming history and a game's impact on it

[@sebastiankulche]

​​@@Okla_SoftWhich surprises me since in my case i dont even had nostalgia for the Pokemon games and while i aprecciate old games, some are a bit to clunky or frustrating for my liking. Gen 1 not only impress me for being accessible for 90s standards but also is one of the games that gave me the most fun in the entire series due to its tight design, unique mechanics and not getting overboard with gimmicks or padding (Gen 2 cough cough).

[@wyvern0m3g42]

Such a shame I only found this 3 years later. I'm horribly exhausted and burnt out from other Pokemon videos that prefer to nitpick or complain about the same issues regarding Generation 1 over and over again. As you put it best, even with all these flaws working against these games, "I don't care." So imagine my delight and relief when I finished listening along to this video here. I feel like I've finally found my people at long last. Like, I wholeheartedly agree with *everything* brought up here. Thank you so much for putting this into words in a way that I couldn't.

[@generfeld]

Red/Blue has all amazing memories for me. smash hit. the music, sounds, graphics, all incredibly detailed. the Gen 1 monochrome LCD also has a certain appeal to it. In 1998 we were well into 3D era, and PC gaming was become more in the homes of kids.....but Red/Blue came out just at the right time towards the end of when us kids were enjoying Gen 1 gameboy. Something about Red/Blue back in 1998 just felt incredible. So much detail in that game. That and Links Awakening were def some of the highest quality Gameboy Gen 1 content. great video

[@sebastiankulche]

"Gen 1 monochrome appeal" I definitely agree with this, you nail it. Thats why i prefer to play this games on black and white. It isnt a problem the black and white aesthetic or limitation if you use it properly, thats something more people should understand. Thats why i dont like playing these games in the Game Boy Color just because the choice of colours is flat and ugly.

[@skitswithextramayo6371]

It still blows my mind that they popularized a turn-based RPG to young kids; I was ten when it came out. I've never seen a franchise nail an IP as much as this did: the video games, the show and the card game. It was an absolute 1 2 3 punch KO. Unreal

[@nonanimeprofilepic]

I like how you named your party after the 90s bulls lmao

[@oliverleonard7730]

We didn't get them in the UK until 1999 - the Game Boy came out here in 1990 - that would be like them releasing an Cube game in 2011 - that's bonkers when you think about it.

[@lordtullus9942]

"Quest waste removal company" That one got me

[@salmonn9222]

Mascot definitely should have been Tangela. Just look at that thing. Pikachu wouldn't stand a chance.

[@goldenphonautogram6141]

Tangela is my all-time favorite Pokémon. I wish he was the mascot. As much as I love the pikachu line, I totally agree with you.

[@petergilveet6666]

Eevee is super mascot material

[@zidkins]

Tangela is too lewd

[@vaelYT]

@@petergilveet6666 it already is a mascot for a pokemon game.

[@goldenphonautogram6141]

I totally agree with you. Red and Blue are my favorite games in the series too. They’re so much fun, they’re very flexible and replayable, influential, and don’t take themselves too seriously.

[@sebastiankulche]

Im a bit sick that people mostly compare negatively Red And Blue with newer games in the series only because it lacks things or because the designs dont look like the anime.... like if it was a flaw of the developers... Red And Blue despite some flaws (that are mostly for technical limitations) is objectively by far one of the best games in the series along with Emerald, and no one would change my mind.

[@cabesonportillo8555]

My guy naming his pokemon after the Bulls players of 96 and on

[@megamike15]

it's funny as they originally wanted calefairy to be the mascot.

[@BLourenco96]

Also shout-out to the people who decided to put the time in to give each Pokemon their own Cry sfx, and also for deciding to double their workload by choosing to make also make back-sprites so that you can feel like a Trainer standing behind your Pokemon and giving them commands in battle.

[@JasonGravesPoser]

For sure, on the gameboy that's huge. Most games wouldn't dream of having half the amount of sound effects

[@HippieMafia813]

To this day, i wont ride a bike in the house

[@jimllc]

"Game Freak has never made a better game after this" I suppose if we're talking about building from the ground up and starting from scratch from a design standpoint and a conceptual standpoint, yeah, you'd be right.

[@FuriousACTIONGamer]

Excellent timing. Right when I had to take a dump. To stress about the numbers and formulae and mechanics is to miss the entire point of pokemon which is a sentiment that feels lost. Red and Blue is the only game in the series that set out to be an RPG rather than setting out to be a pokemon game and that's a strong distinction. The effort put forth the justify things that exist in the pokemon world were never attempted again. I just wish a real gamer had made a video like this instead.

[@JasonGravesPoser]

real gamers are too busy playing games to make videos

[@josephthomas8318]

You get a sub just for having your pokemon roster named after the 90s Bulls

[@teadrinkerfication9160]

10:29 this whole thing made me laugh way more than it should have 😂

[@TheRumpletiltskin]

Quest 64... that's a name i haven't heard in a long time.

[@andyp2004]

this makes me want to play my copy of yellow again once i beat all the kanto gym leaders in pokemon silver

[@Heat3955]

This was so good my first game I'll never forget lavender town. I tried lets go but it's not the same

[@sebastiankulche]

Yeah, the same happens to me with Firered and Leafgreen remakes. I dont know why, but i found myself returning to the original monocromatic release.

[@FullaEels]

i started with gen 3/4, but i like to go back to gen 1 because they just feel cozy to play

[@shewolfcub3]

Gen 1-6 are tthe onyl games I respect and enjoy

[@TheBoredJord]

You make great points in why these games stand so tall in their own series. Loved the Pokemon Stadium music. Loved the Quest rundown. And how bout that sweet Squirtle nickname? xP I'm happy we live in the timeline where Pikachu is the mascot. Fun video that celebrates Pokemons origins!

[@sicdav1d0ff]

Enemy VULPIX used "tail whip" RODMAN's defence fell! LMAO

[@cerulis1]

Saying Chrono Trigger isn't balanced is a complete understatement. What was the point of them even adding dual skills when 99% of them are worthless while the remaining 1% is just as good as using two separate skills by themselves. Though I agree with Quest 65*, all you need for that game is Rock.

[@JasonGravesPoser]

ikr, and it only takes 15 hours to beat, what a fake game

[@ghfhgfuuu]

Great review. Thanks man!

[@Nathan-rb3qp]

Clefairy was actually intended to be the original mascot of the series. It even carried over to one of the mangas.

[@travissinclair4063]

What a fantastic video! I couldn’t have said it better myself! Well done!

[@ericoftheotherworld1525]

Lol, “his loser rat,” made me laugh

[@felipecoelho8350]

Mmm Yes hair man video. This is a happy day

[@dadou193]

Fun to watch and makes us want to play again. As a kid this was mind blowing. Imagine being a kid and never knowing about this?

[@dopeintellect1]

To listen to this video you’d think it has millions a views & as many subscribers. You got it bro, I love what you’re putting out

[@theidiotchildren]

To be fair, the Donkey Kong Land games are their own games with all new levels, but mechanically they are definitely demakes of their Country counterparts. Even the stories are borrowed in Land 2 & 3, with Land 1's story being a sequel to Country 1 where Cranky simply bets DK and Diddy that they can't do that same gameplay on the Game Boy. They're a bit janky and practically unplayable on original hardware due to cluttered visuals, but otherwise they're not bad. But, yeah, the original Pokemon is a masterpiece of game design despite the flaws. The only game more impressive to me is the second generation, which is my personal favorite. To take essentially the same hardware that was already being pushed to its limits and stretch it twice as far is insane. The only thing later generations have on the second one is Bidoof. Bidoof is best Pokemon.

[@shidanslair]

Still the best, I played Pokemon Blue as a kid, but since I never had a Gameboy myself I couldn't play it much. Later I played Pokemon Diamond and SoulSilver and even though I didn't finish them, I played many hours. Last year I decided to play Pokemon Blue again and after finishing it (and having spent more than 50 hours on it), I have to say this is the Pokemon game I've enjoyed the most. After Blue I played Silver and I really like it, but I didn't enjoy it as much as Blue.

[@DrunkMoblin]

Golden Sun has a party vs party system.

[@GamingTranceSeer]

Super unbalanced lol

[@DustJem22]

This is the first game I ever beat!! It’s the game that got me into serious video gaming!!

[@afelinecasanoca]

The donkey kong land series is dope. Start with 2. Its the best

[@flameguy21]

That's the really bizarre thing about Red and Blue to me. In a vacuum, they're insanely good games but their sequels were so good at fixing it's flaws that the original only feels unplayable by comparison. If you forced me to play Red and Blue, I'd still have a good time, but I'd have a much better time playing Fire Red and Leaf Green instead (or insert best game here).

[@JasonGravesPoser]

It's the great debate. What's the "better" game, the original or the ones that refine the original. 9 times out of 10 I side with innovation over incrementation.

[@sebastiankulche]

Understandable. But some next games have other flaws that Red and Blue didnt, like all the padding in gen 2, or the slower that was gen 4 in battles (for giving random examples). Gen 1 is so simple to play that i can pick up and play any time. It was the game that i beated the most btw. PD: Call me crazy but i prefer the originals over the remake XD

[@jakeybarra4015]

Can you catch Marowak in pokemon tower?

[@donkeyparadise9276]

Say no to the great reset

[@sebastiankulche]

What was that?

[@peosea]

All these Quest title, and yet you forgot MapQuest. Such a missed opportunity 😄

[@JasonGravesPoser]

Doh!

[@Xzontyr]

Just got back into on my phone. Love how i can be my other friend by using the other gameboy simulator to trade those pokemon needed to so they can evolve. Amazing game. Yes, it's quite interesting how so many cry about these old gems, than theyl go play some sour corporate modern milk that was pushed out with nothing but bugs, but theyl say it's great because the company paid them to. Than when a competitors game comes out, they basically go on a witch hunt. I'm sure if that company spared a few shillings for the youtuber, he may habe a change of heart. Oh what a world, what a world, I'm melting. ....

[@KrabEnjoyer]

This Video was awesome!

[@Heat3955]

Eevee was my favorite still is you can always use it on your team.

[@acidforblood]

Will an unopened Pokemon Blue ever be worth $1M one day? I hear Red was worth more. After seeing stories in the news about Zelda and Super Mario 64 auctions.

[@cr-nd8qh]

Nice video bro

[@razmeanie4519]

I have never played a pokemon game and have zero interest in the franchise. This video made me hype for it.

[@Josephryanbanks]

Jason Graves, your videos are good

[@DarrenWest-e7w]

Why do u only mention red and blue, what about yellow and green, I thought they were all basically the same game

[@thomasffrench3639]

I feel like Final Fantasy IV is pretty well balanced, and I’ve heard FFV is also pretty balanced, but this is a pretty good review of how well designed this game is even if the execution is pretty wonky. Although I’m not a fan of the combat at all in this game with only having one party member fight at a time, I completely understand how all of the other parts of the game that is easy to miss when you hear all about the poor balancing of the game. Also best Pokémon game is HeartGold and SoulSilver.

[@videostash413]

aging platform? all the best games come out at the end of the cycle bro

[@benpoettmann2110]

The pokemon you trade with people in game are nicknamed 🤷🏼‍♂️

[@pksprite6401]

Spittin facts

[@IamMeHere2See]

Hm. There is truth to this. Oak did choose you.

[@KMIent416]

Well put 👍

[@daarom3472]

8:45 until you get a Kadabra.

[@sebastiankulche]

You have way more Pokemon to choose if you want. The game isnt forcing you a specific choice like Gen 2.

[@videostash413]

wrong again, every npc pokemon trade comes with a nickname

[@heisocean344]

I love this video and I love and grew up on Gen 1, but I think you may be conflating the words "favorite" and "best" I love RBY despite their warts but they have some blatant game breaking design decisions and glitches (the Wrap exploit for instance) They were certainly the pioneers of the series, but i would strongly push back against using "best" in any objective context

[@JasonGravesPoser]

Art is subjective. They're the best because they're my favorites!

[@ectoplasm]

The problem with complaining about the jankiness of games, especially older ones, is that the jankiness is often part of what makes them fun. Figuring out on your own ways to abuse the system is exciting and satisfying. For years, decades, even, I would claim (even to myself) that Pokemon Gold/Silver were my favorites because they were bigger, more colorful, "objectively better", but it wasn't G/S I kept going back to play. It was R/B. It wasn't G/S I would play with self-imposed challenges, it was R/B. I had a good time in the year 2000 playing Gold/Silver, but I've had dozens upon dozens of good times playing Red/Blue over the past 20+ years. The difference between Pokemon R/B and other RPGs is like the difference between riding your bike as a kid vs driving your car an adult. You just got on your lime green bicycle with "Swamp Rider" emblazoned on it, and you rode; you didn't have to make sure you had gas or money for gas, you didn't need to check to make sure traffic wasn't going to be miserable, or worry that this might be the time your catalytic converter really decides to screw you. You just pick up and play and it's easy to understand but engrossing enough to keep you playing. It's janky and it's simple and that's a big part of what makes it still fun even to this day. And, unlike something like Digimon World (which I enjoy, also for its jankiness) its jankiness is never really to its detriment. It's a whole lot of fun. It may not be competitively balanced, but I'm not playing, nor do I ever intend to, play competitively, so who cares?

[@thohillesland]

The problem with Pokemon Red and Blues jankiness is that some of it does actually get in the way of the game. With probably the worst thing being how the game actively lies to you about type effectiveness. The game cannot display type effectiveness properly against duel type pokemon, if you don't know about this, the damage that you deal and recieve can feel almost random at times which can be really frustrating, and trying to learn the type chart becomes basically impossible because of this bug. You also have the fact that if you level up multiple times at a time, you can lose out on learning moves. For example if you level bulbasaur from level 12 to 14 you will lose out on whine whip, which means you won't be getting a new grass move untill level 30. Wrap and fire spin ect. while not broken, are an increadibly frustrating set of moves to fight against, since most of the time the only thing they do is waste a lot of time. On the other hand you also have the broken Ai with bad movesets which is incredbly easy to abuse. So if you know about i it the game becomes a bigger cakewalk then it already is I grew up in the early 2000s, so i didn't play the original red and blue until a couple of years ago, and from that viewpoint i found red and blue to be an alright but quite boring and somewhat tedious set of games to play.

[@cartercs1757]

I think most people really do appreciate Gen 1 for starting this series, most people do praise it for how innovative it was, but I don't think a game being innovative is enough of a reason to claim it to be the best. Just because a game is the first at doing something doesn't mean it's the best one. Praising it for what it's accomplished is fine, but nothing here was any point on what it does better than any other game. Great video and all, but the point of the video doesn't make much sense to me. (Coming from someone that just replayed Red & Yellow trying to find some reviews)

[@sebastiankulche]

There's aspects that arguably is the best though. I wouldnt give many examples but for giving just a few: the region design, the Pokemons, soundtrack, and is the only Pokemon game where they can dodge balls. I think the point of the video is not for convincing you that is the best, but that is an important game and not a bad one like everyone tends to say.

[@cartercs1757]

@@sebastiankulche I really just don't agree with this. I've seen plenty of people compliment the Region design but I don't think it's that great. Yes the non-linear element is cool (although not very compelling to me since there's almost no use in it and isn't balanced), but besides how it solidly wraps around it's incredibly boring. It's a bunch of grass routes and urban cities that mend all together, and has some of the most long and annoying area like Mt. Moon, Rock Tunnel, and the 2 Routes to Fuschia City. In particular the pacing between Vermillion and Celadon is very long and annoying. Definitely nowhere near the best imo, Hoenn, Johto, BW2 Unova, Alola and Kalos are all stronger in so many different ways. Although I think the soundtrack is good, a lot of the music mends together and it doesn't have too many tracks that I go back and listen to on my own. I extremely disagree with the idea that Gen 1 has one of the best Pokédexes. Gen 2 might have the worst Pokédex, but Gen 1 isn't too far behind. Their colors are less vibrant because of the limitations of the GameBoy and at this point they still were toying with the concept of what a Pokémon even is. It has a huge amount of Pokémon that are just bland, below average, or just terrible. (Also, I have no idea why you think dodging Poké Balls is a good idea? When I played the games all that meant is that it forced you to train up a Pokémon with a status move like sleep in order to even hit Poké Balls. It's just annoying.) I really don't think Gen 1 succeeds in any area enough to be called the "best" in any category. I think it's okay in all the things I mentioned above, but the best is really pushing it. The point of the video is absolutely about convincing the viewer that it's the best because of its innovation and how every future title is just "mowing its lawn". It's the title as well. There's no point to this video if it were about saying that these games are important, because everyone universally praises these games for their innovation and starting the series. It can be an important while also being bad.

[@sebastiankulche]

@@cartercs1757 I have to disagree with the region being bland, but well, more power to you. I feel Johto is by far the worst in design and Pokemons. Everything is too narrow and cramp and Kanto in Gen 2 feels like a prototype of a map. The OG Kanto is also way more balanced in its linear design than Johto. I can understand your preference for Hoenn though, is one of my fav regions as well. I like how Pokemon dodge balls because, well, is way more realistic, lol. Besides, it technically is only an extra effect when the Pokemon catch rate is very low, so it doesnt affect the gameplay. You can still catch a Pokemon that dodge balls without sleeping, eventually. Well, for me the less vibrant colours adds to the artstyle, especially in the OG black and white release. I find Gen 2 to be very bright and oversaturated that it feels like it lacks detail, especially in some of the redesigned battle sprites. And the amount of Pokemon of being terrible is only the case if you dont teach them tms. Is not like Gen 2 where even with tms their stats and accesibility arent just worth it. But the difference is that few people actually praises this games today. Gen 2 and Gen 5 seems to be the most praised even if they dont deserve it, but well, lol. There´s a comment that he give it a heart that says this: "Game Freak has never made a better game after this. I suppose if we're talking about building from the ground up and starting from scratch from a design standpoint and a conceptual standpoint, yeah, you'd be right.".

[@cartercs1757]

@@sebastiankulche Oh yeah, no, if you prefer Kanto to Johto that's fine with me. I only prefer Johto because there's more culture to it and less annoying areas. I still think it lacks in so many ways though. I've played RBY three times at this point and everytime I've caught the legendary Pokémon I've needed a status condition. I missed the 30 Ultra Balls I had on Zapdos at red and I just gave up on legendaries, which is what happened during my first playthrough. I think it's a department where even if they dialed it back more, wouldn't really add anything to the games, especially since the battle system itself isn't "realistic". Conceptually, black and white sprites could lead to more detail being used and such but that just wasn't the case. If the actual sprite quality was similar to GSC then I would understand, but I get what you mean in some way since I prefer playing Red & Blue to Yellow due to disliking the Yellow sprites. But overall I was mainly referring to the actual designs, I think a majority of them are just bland or terrible with very little redeeming value, but there are some amazing ones in there to be fair. As for your last point, again, people praise it for starting the series. What you're talking about is praise for the best game in the series. People did used to do that with Gen 1, then people revisited it and realized it just really doesn't hold up as much. It's not as broken as some say, but at many base levels if doesn't really succeed anywhere. Personally speaking, the only games I prefer RBY to is GSC, because their pokédex really really pissed me off. Calling Gen 1 the best means that it's better than something like Ruby/Sapphire & Emerald or Black 2 & White 2 to me, and I just really can't get behind that. I do think Game Freak has made multiple better games. Every game has its failures, but they succeed more than the originals. Innovation makes a game more impressive, but that doesn't make it the best. Glad you enjoyed Gen 1 though. I still enjoy them to a degree as a sort of grindy game to play while watching something. Even though I already agree that Gen 2 is worse (making most of those points already agreeable to me but not proving it's the best), at some I level, I can't quite say it's the worst.

[@sebastiankulche]

@@cartercs1757 I can agree with Johto having less "annoying areas" (although if you refer to main important events like Lavender Tower, Pokemon Mansion, Silph Tower, Rocket Casino, etc i would have to disagree since as annoyong as it can be for some players they have something unique and they can be interesting to explore imo), but i was mostly referring because it feels more forgettable to me. At least in GSC you dont expend too much time on caves something i actually like, but apart from Goldenrod City, if i dont replay Gen 2 for a time i dont remember any of its cities. I dont know man, imo the sprites in RBG have way more detail, minus some exceptions. Golbat has visible spit, Haunter and Mewtwo looks way more "terrific", i overall think the sprites looks more autentic, more like an actual RPG if you understand what im saying. Some Pokemons the added colours make them look very flat imo, like Charizard or Venusaur. But.... if you like more the sprites of GSC... thats totally fine, there's nothing wrong with it. I guess is bad luck. I captured the three legendary birds with just a stock of 10 great balls for each one without status, just low health. There would be a moment where your character would aim well and the Pokeball would instantly catch the Pokemon. Not only the legendaries can dodge balls though, i saw in my multiple playthroughs the following Pokemon: Chansey, Pidgeotto and Tauros. I dont know, i just think it makes more sense to me, like when you watch the anime. The Pokemons arent standing in one place without moving. Some Pokemon are just really fast, other ones just fly, etc... i know it isnt introduced perfectly but i just like it. I agree with Emerald being miles superior. Not a huge fan of Black And White though....

[@josephthomas8318]

Maybe im just getting old. I havent played a brand new pokemon game since Ruby and Sapphire. But the way the newer games look is just too far detached from the originals. The vibe is off

[@soulmourne2698]

Gen 1 is underrated thats for sure, from gen 2 to 5 they improved the formula by a lot and those gens are amazing games, but after that the games started to be rushed cutting corners and bad quality, though oras is decent and sun and moon is acceptable, every other main series pokemon games from gen 6-8 are trash, x and y is the best one of those and its still a mess of a game

[@gardevoirtrainer4526]

I grew up during pokemania in the late 90s and Red was my second game after Link's Awakening. I've been a player ever since. I have to say though, just because something's the first in a series doesn't mean it's the best. I feel FireRed is a way better Kanto experience with actual post game.

[@sebastiankulche]

I aprecciate the remake for giving these games neccesary quality of life features, but they miss all of the unique aspects that i love from the OGs. At least is way better than Lets Go though.