Pokémon FireRed & LeafGreen happened to me (Thanks Nintendo...)

[@Tama-Hero]

I thought I would clarify that the points made about the way the modern mechanics change the game (Cubone in Lavender Town, the status abilities, Metal Claw on Charmander, etc) were NOT criticisms of those specific changes necessarily but the overall point that the fact that these things WERE different at all meant that the dex restrictions did not accomplish maintaining the exact experience of the original games, pointing to them being mostly there in order to necessitate trading only between FireRed and LeafGreen. I don't have a problem with some parts of the game being more difficult, less difficult, or even different from the original games. The point is just that because they're different at all, the dex restrictions weren't about maintaining the experience of the originals, so they must exist for a different reason. I don't think that Pokemon Tower is even difficult in the original games, it's more of a neutral thing that there were these changes. The problem I'm critiquing are the trading restrictions being arbitrary and dumb. Also my bad, Pidgey doesn't learn flying type moves until level 28 in Gen 1. Spearow does however, and is available on Route 22 right outside Viridian Forest.

[@dawakat08]

Tbh I hated the Red and Green remakes because it was the same game with new mechanics but I couldn't get my favorite pokemon Crobat until I got the Ruby and Sapphire plates despite the fact the game takes place in a different universe as the OG RBY, GSC games, it made things simpler for new folks and a chore to folks who never left It's why I couldn't finish Let's Go Eevee because it brought nothing new to table except combine Pokemon Go with Kanto for the third time

[@danielcm4237]

I got it now. I was confused while watching the video. Thanks, Tama!

[@oldsoldier4209]

Even without this clarifying comment, I learned a lot from this video. You have a real talent for sharing background information, in a way that enhances my love of the series. Before I stumbled across your channel, I never really thought about everything that went into making the games. Now, I have a greater appreciation for the people and circumstances that have brought me so much joy over the years. Thank you. 😁👍

[@Dtr146]

I actually agree with some of the points you made. When I played them they just seemed really stiff. Almost like they made them to make a quick buck. To be honest as I grow up I believe that they just made them the hold off the raging community until Ruby and Sapphire

[@mintyerb]

@@Dtr146 ruby and sapphire came out first tho

[@NoMoreLegBrace]

One little feature of FR/LG that I really appreciate so much more nowadays is that little black and white recap of the last things you did before you stopped playing. I used to think it was kind of annoying back when I was a kid, but now that kinda stuff is a life-saver. Sometimes I'll take long breaks between playing these sort of time-consuming RPGs while focusing on school, so its good to get a refresher.

[@abarette_]

It was so good for let's plays to be honest.

[@CosmicGaijin]

It’s the one thing I kind of wish they would’ve kept. They truly made that feature that you wish everyone had taken notes on.

[@gamerguy425]

It's great if you want it, but extremely annoying you can't skip it using it day to day.

[@KingpinCarlito]

@@gamerguy425 except you can. You press B on the first slide and it skips all of them immediately

[@gamerguy425]

@@KingpinCarlito oh thank god. IIRC correctly I got stuck flipping the journal in D/P sometimes pressing A forever instead of start.

[@BlargTheDestroyer]

I remember being obsessed with this game. Playing gen 1 and 2 on repeat for years and then this dropped. It breathed new life into games i loved. I replay the originals and remake games for the same reason now that i did when they came out. It was to see the new sprite art. It was a new step in technology too and familiar was nice. I enjoyed fire red leaf grean more than emerald ruby saphire. The original games and remakes are both great in their own right. I played pokemon to role play teams and look at pretty sprites and it delivered for me. Gen 2 will always be my fav gen and fr/lg to me was more like being able to continue my silver/gold playthroughs in a roleplay sense. It was the FEEL that made them great to me. Just a good blend of familiar with new design.

[@TheWTFMatt]

I also love gen 2 brother

[@KrymsonScale]

"Pokemon is about trading!" FireRed-LeafGreen: "NO!"

[@Gafafsg]

If we didn’t get FRLG, we wouldn’t have HGSS. I think that’s reason enough to appreciate their existence. They brought to us God 😌

[@nidohime6233]

HGSS had issues too, like how they had to rid off the casino for the western versions because of new laws agaisnt gambling in videogames aimed to children so they substitute with that terrible Voltorb minigame. Minesweeper, really!? Of all the games they could choose they put minesweeper? That's bullshit!

[@benjaminchi1989]

@@nidohime6233 Isn't it more like minesweeper + picross? I enjoy picross, so I didn't mind it

[@peterkorman77]

@@nidohime6233: not an issue. What they were replaced with is better.

[@nidohime6233]

@NesMeister They already did in Let´s Go. They change it into an arcade corner. Is a shame they didn´t add minigames on them. Is kinda the problem with recent games, there is nothing else to do outside of battling and breeding.

[@nidohime6233]

@@benjaminchi1989 Still don´t like it, specially when there is no way to buy coins. For some reason they removed that feature to make it even more jarring.

[@veemiyagimusic3892]

Honestly, these are some of the best remakes in the series. Despite loving many Pokemon games afterwards, I still come back to these every few years.

[@BruhMoment-mn9kn]

Maybe it's my bias talking but I was introduced to the entire series with R/S/E when I was 6. I vastly prefer Gen 3's battle mechanic over Gen 1. I went to Gen 1 after playing FR/LG and honestly? They were a downgrade. Sure, I love those games because nothing else in Pokémon would have existed without them. But if I ever want to replay Kanto, I would choose FR/LG in a heartbeat over no abilities, no held items, Psychic immune to Ghost Gen 1.

[@makesomething4093]

I think she had more positive to say about D/P

[@cubedmelons876]

D/P may have its flaws, but it brought so much to the series that both old and new players could enjoy. Stuff like the Physical/Special split, wifi, and various QoL features that made the gen 3 mechanics like natures and IVs much more accessible made D/P the first Pokemon games I really wanted to get good at. Before D/P, Pokemon games were fun RPGs that I enjoyed as a kid, but D/P opened up the possibility that it could be something deeper that I could play for years to come.

[@crowmaster9652]

@@cubedmelons876 then gen 5 happened that paved way for edgier themes to substitute for actual good gameplay

[@KipTM]

@@crowmaster9652 ????????????????????????????????????

[@crowmaster9652]

@@KipTM ?????????????????????????? gen 5 was bad

[@Rybread52]

@@crowmaster9652 Even if you don't personally like it, you can't deny that Gen 5 was the most well-made and polished of all the generations.

[@yeepsleep]

Seeing the title / first 1.5 minutes: "wtf what, I disagree" Seeing the video length: "... okay they feel strongly about this, I'll watch" Great vid

[@inasuma8180]

Tama, you touch on something near the end of the video that I've long suspected being a problem at Game Freak, which is that they always "experiment" in their games with ideas before implementing those ideas more fully in subsequent titles. In fact, it feels like every generation/game has had this problem, and so none of the Pokemon games have ever really gotten a fully thought out experience that serves to benefit just a singular game. I don't think that's inherently bad either of course, but it's interesting just to note how a lot of the "cool" extras and features of each game tend to have been added half-heartedly. Super bummer, tbh.

[@Danbo22987]

They also “one and done” a lot of aspects. A good example is being able to track your Pokémon’s day care status on the bottom screen in Sinnoh. This seems like an obvious quality of like, but nope, gone the next game. Same with seasons

[@Wildclaw07]

"I wish I was in Hoenn right now" really encapsulates how I felt playing this game as a kid

[@emmiranda2]

I doubt you will read this but I’m very impressed by all you said. I’ve watched random videos of you throughout the years (the most recent stand out was the R/S video) and this one says so much that I (and many) didn’t consider at the time. I’m 33 and like many I was (and still am in a way) a Pokémon fan, even playing TCG with my brothers and friends at the time. I put hundreds of hours up to Emerald but started to be less and less with every new iteration, Black/White being the last ones I played. Then I started to realize how new games were more business decisions rather than being games that made you feel something like back then. Yes maybe is because you grew up and all of that, but watching this was an excellent take to showcase what a mature point of view can say about what the Pokémon Company is now, starting with this first remake it seems. When I first played FR I remember I loved it, I was between a hardcore fan and a casual one since I mostly played because I truly enjoyed it, so I didn’t know of many of the problems you mention, and is disappointing to see many negative tropes (or maybe, not fully fleshed) started here. In the other hand, I can see how executives at the company have a problem in their hands now, with hundreds of creatures under their belt, decades of different approaches of WHAT a Pokémon is or should be, with the pressure or a multi BILLION dollar franchise where now they have to answer to investors and such. It’s not an easy position, and the players keep getting older and instead of evolving (yes) with them, create barriers and nuances that I feel leave behind the loyal fan for many years. Pokémon Unite and this brushing thing seem like a good way to attract new players, because we know that’s what the company really needs so I don’t have any problem with that. The problem is that I feel (and many I’m sure) the company is just pushing new games as annual releases regardless of the quality, message or experience just to keep them relevant for licensing purposes. How a company this big can’t make Sword/Shield feel like a next gen game with all the budget they have? (Yes, rumors say they started as 3DS games but still). Reason is, they don’t have to prove anything anymore, and that’s sad. Whereas Mario Odyssey and BotW showed those franchises can lead the industry forward, Pokémon is in a comfortable position that they know they don’t have to even try this, again, back to the executives point I mentioned. Thanks for this content, please make more, many of us really appreciate it.

[@YukeWeiss]

The salt is real and I am HERE for it. I have a pretty different experience. I was the same age as you when I played it, but I had never played Red/Blue/Yellow outside of a few goes on my friends games. So my first experience of Kanto was really in Gold/Silver. Further, I actually didn't play Ruby/Sapphire until after I got this around October 2004, so I went from Gold to Leaf Green. Thus, this was my first Gen III game and exposed me to natures and abilities and confused the heck out of me as they're not really well communicated. Hell, I think the handy instructions actually told me what types were physical and what were special. I finished the game with a pretty badly put together party and unfortunately my original copy either went missing or got stolen years ago, but I enjoyed being able to play the originals. I do agree that it's a game that's really confused in how faithful it wants to be and the trading restrictions are extremely arbitrary. With Gen III, it feels like getting the Pokedex would have been such a daunting task given how you can't do it online and require so much hardware. I think that alone justifies the existence of these games given it also updates Kanto and how Red/Blue are held together with gluesticks and hope. That said, it definitely benefitted me as someone who never played the originals, nor was familiar with the innovations from Ruby/Sapphire. So while I think these games definitely took their existing audience for granted they were some of the best for teaching people how Pokemon worked at that point in time. It's also great to see you come back to these games after watching your original reviews. I also appreciate the extremely concise and super insightful history of Pokemon's corporate structure at the beginning. That kind of context just isn't really talked about enough in Pokemon KZbin and I think it's vitally important. Happy New Year, Tama

[@Sorakeyboy247]

Wonderful and enlightening video. I never took the time to think what a nightmare Game Freak created for completionists in Gen 3. I was never one for Pokédex completion so it was never an issue for me. The limitations they set for Pokémon you can use early on was frustrating but not a complete deal breaker. For me, FR/LG was my first true journey through Kanto. I was 4 when Red and Blue came out and I barely remembered playing them. It was exciting to me that I could experience the original journey remade on new hardware. But you know what? Even then, I haven’t returned to those games in years. I agree completely, Kanto just isn’t an interesting region and they have never done much to improve upon it even in Lets Go Pikachu/Eevee, a game that came out over 20 years after the originals. The salt in this video was a joy to listen to and I hope it felt good letting it all out. 😂

[@Jayyemi]

Great video! The points are all very well made and presented and your writing is as great as ever. I'm just gonna be upfront and say I don't agree with a lot of it because I think the way people play pokemon differs so much, and a lot of the problems you described can only really apply to a certain subsection of that audience. The completionist aspects of the dex and the mutiplayer minigames were never a concern to me, though the way they handled trading was still very frustating- I remember it being especially annoying when I was playing with friends. I'll raise another point in favour of the games- they bring Kanto up to the modern standards of the time. Speaking as someone who started with these games and is therefore extremely biased, Gen 1 is *so* rough to go back to. The mechanics and implementations differ so much from everything from gen 3 onwards that playing it these days, as someone who has no nostalgia for it, honestly isn't even fun. I suppose this ties into your point around the games being made for younger players as a way to get into the series, but I also see it as a game being updated with better mechanics. A lot of this is stuff I can't relate to because I wasn't already a fan of the series, and I was very, very young when I first played these games and couldn't really comprehend the issues that I can see now as an adult. Even still, I still like these games and I'll still play through them because I don't see the issues as a reason not to. Also nostalgia is a powerful drug. And that's fine. Like I said, everyone has different ways of playing pokemon and that's one of the things that make it great.

[@destinychilds5572]

I really like your docs/video essays! They are super interesting, very detailed and comprehensive.

[@raykces25]

Im not the biggest fan of FR and LG, but tbh this video even tho has some very good points, feels like she has a lot of anger and frustration over not having pokemon pals as a kid and just wrote a script around that 😅 thats hitmonlee example was a good but very exagerated point. At the end she seems to be driven for her personal dislike for the game and researched reasons to hate it more. This is not a critic to Tama and her videos, i really enjoy them

[@Pantherblack]

Having grown up with the incredibly buggy gen 1 (in hindsight), FR/LG was refreshing--a relatively complete game with mechanics behaving as intended. Being one of those people that didn't have anyone to play with, I legit had no idea of all the restrictions to trading that existed and were I aware, they almost certainly would have put me off the games. Tbh as refreshing as I found it on initial playthrough... there wasn't much reason to revisit. But I think FR/LG's biggest and most lasting effect is the nostalgia pacifier--genwunners got their remake, and it seemed everyone after that demanded the get a turn too (particularly after HG/SS which really didn't exist for any reason except to push product). Now I feels like the train's at full speed and everyone is too invested in their turn even though we all know we ought to be getting off.

[@donaldbarrett4073]

I never thought about any of these valid criticisms you bring up! I'm very biased and will admit I'm Gen 3's strongest (and probably dumbest) fan boy, so I have no problem telling you I agree Ruby & Sapphire are among the best in the series. I welcomed the QOL additions to FireRed & LeafGreen in the form of enhanced graphics, abilities, running shoes, and the Sevii Islands post-game. But you're right; walling pokemon trades behind that post-game is a serious bummer. I have come around to recognizing Gen 3 being the turning point where GameFreak started milking us with all the add-ons in the form of the E-Reader, the Colosseum bonus disc, and various other pseudo-DLC vectors of pokemon distribution. It's sad, because I really love the music and aesthetic of these games, but they're poised as the proto-gacha Pokemon games.

[@hucz]

Love the new channel direction, new content and familiar face! Thank you for providing these videos for us! 😊

[@fred2995]

I haven’t watched you in a while but as usual you have quality videos 😌 although I still love these games cause they were my first and my brother gave them to me, every single point you make is valid 😂I imagine if I replayed them now as an older player I’d sympathize to all of em.

[@justinchannel128]

let's just hope the sinnoh remakes,brilliant diamond and shining pearl, don't fall into the same hole as firered and leafgreen (Even though they're my first pokmeon game and were my favourites)

[@Sarixis]

I can definitely see why you have such frustration towards these games. I definitely have become more cynical towards these two even though they were my first exposure to Kanto outside of Stadium since my family was too poor to afford a GameBoy. Firered and Leafgreen are definitely the 1st wave of Pokemon maintaining its brand and securing a new audience over actual innovations. It's probably why after gen 4 my passion for the franchise falls off rather hard since they avoided experimentation in order to be a safe, highly consumable brand with mass appeal. And becoming toothless as a result imo.

[@generalgibby]

“FR/LG was a punishment for veteran fans.” Me: “Have you heard of sword and shield!?” Edit: Have to edit my own comment, so this don’t blow up. 😅 I’m not trying to crap on the sword and shield I’m saying it’s aimed at a different demographic. SWSh where aimed at keeping long term casual players happy, and pulling in newer players like from Let’s go P/E, and Pokémon Go. Most veteran players agree SWSH where not aimed for or at them, so a lot of them are a bit 🧂salty from it. From: - not having all the Pokémon codes into the game. - to not adding a something like challenging battle frontier. - to the easiness of the game. - to lack of story. - to permanently locking ON your EXP. - to shiny locking a lot of Pokémon, just for them to giving them away as events. -to breaking shiny hunting. - to not adding new ribbons, for the ribbon collectors. This is all the stuff Veteran players liked about how they got to play Pokemon, but GF took that away from them, to tend to the casual players and the new players. So, you can see how veteran players feel the 🐝 sting. So, what I’m saying is FireRed and LeafGreen was for new fans too, but it can’t even hold a candle to shutting out veteran fans like Sword and Shield did. That was the joke.... 🤡

[@590488]

SwSh added so many quality of life features that its hard to go back and play the older games. (Also they sold more then any other pokemon game released between gens 3- 7)

[@generalgibby]

@@590488 They add quality of life improvements with every new game.

[@MiyaoMeow588]

FR/LG are considerably more irritating. At least the line-up of Pokémon you're given at the start of SW/SS is more interesting than "all Kanto Pokémon again".

[@plasmaaxis356]

Yeah I’d take these games over Sword and Shield any damn day.

[@590488]

@@plasmaaxis356 what a hipster

[@robertm5110]

Fire Red and Leaf Green was so exciting to me. I get to play the original games with the Gen 3 graphics after being disappointed by Ruby and Sapphire’s isolation from the first two regions? Heck yeah!!

[@sadib100]

I rewatched the video just to hear your Tyrogue tirade again. It makes even less sense than I remember it. You did all that because you just didn't want to trade your Hitmonlee away, even though you admitted you already transferred all your other decent Pokémon. You didn't even need to transfer back a usable team to level grind your Tyrogue 15 levels. You chose the most cumbersome option for no reason. You could have just caught a new team, and used the post-game areas to grind Tyrogue up. You could have also just trained Tyrogue at Route 1, and even that would be easier.

[@shadowlife15]

I don't care what anyone says, gen 3 has the most charm and feels the most "pokemon" to me. I prefer the hoenn games, but firered/leafgreen are some amazing games.

[@aurafox1]

I'm playing Leaf Green right now in my personal project of trying to play every single Pokemon game (or at least as many as realistically possible), and I think playing them all back to back has really opened my eyes to how empty Fire Red and Leaf Green feel compared to Ruby and Sapphire. It's a huge shame because I do love these games as mindless pokemon adventures. Up until Gen 5, if I ever wanted to play a random pokemon game, it'd usually be Fire Red. Back then, I had a simple mindset of "It has more content and better graphics, so it's obviously a better game!" But this whole project, I've been having a blast exploring each region and discovering new things I never noticed before, even when playing multiple versions of each game. I was expecting my current playthrough of Leaf Green to feel like a fun revisit to my childhood but instead, I've found myself comparing it to Ruby and Sapphire and realizing how disappointing it is. Ruby and Sapphire felt like a grand adventure. There was a desert, a volcano, a jungle, a vast sea, deepsea trenches! But what does Kanto have? Grass, trees, rocks, and water. Where Ruby and Sapphire felt like they were taking advantage of every bit of the new hardware, it felt like Fire Red and Leaf Green were too afraid to stray from what was familiar. What new and interesting environments they *did* add, they were too afraid to add to Kanto and they just stuffed into these arbitrary boxes they called the Sevii Islands. When you compare Fire Red and Leaf Green to Red and Blue, yes, there are all sorts of improvements. The world is much more colorful, lots of detail was added to make areas look more natural and less man-made, patches of dirt were added into tunnels to help keep you from getting disoriented and they reduced the vast size of many areas so that you no longer had that issue where the screen was entirely filled with ground tiles and you had no idea how far away the next wall would be if you kept going straight (This was especially bad in water routes when trying to battle every trainer). These are all points in favor of playing Fire Red and Leaf Green over the original Red and Blue, but coming right off the heels of Ruby and Sapphire, I'm left with a lot of questions as to why they stopped where they did. Why is Mt. Ember in the Sevii Islands? One of the most confusing things about Gold and Silver was that there was a volcanic eruption on Cinnabar Island where there was no volcano in Red and Blue. So, if you told me they added a new volcano area in FRLG that was the new home of Moltres, where do you think I would assume you'd find it? Oh, yes, of course, in a completely isolated island miles away from Kanto leaving Cinnabar, a supposedly volcanic island, still without a volcano to erupt. It's so bizarre. At the end of the day, I'm just left wondering who the heck these games were made for? I'd always thought these additions might have been made to make the games feel as close to the originals as possible in order to attract old fans who lost interest with Ruby and Sapphire and possibly introduce them to new mechanics that would bring them back into modern pokemon. But if that was the case, then why would they restrict new pokemon from being accessible entirely? Instead, as mentioned in this video, it feels like this game was designed less to capture Red and Blue as they were meant to be seen and more to be "baby's first RPG" with heavy (thankfully optional) tutorials and easy way outs to problems that originally took a lot of creative thinking to solve. But if it's meant to introduce new people to RPGs, then why the heck did they go out of their way to adhere so strictly to the original games?? I would personally say I like Fire Red and Leaf Green more than Red and Blue, sure, but I think FRLG held themselves back too much because it seemed to have some sort of identity crisis about what it even wanted to be. It just feels like the very definition of missed potential. I would love to see the original Kanto reimagined with vast canyons, a volcano, an open sea with islands to explore, more variety in its forested areas, maybe Articuno could be at a snowy mountain peak instead of deep inside the island? That's only the tip of the iceberg, there is so much they could have added to make Kanto really feel as alive as Hoenn! I suppose FRLG was probably a lower-budget title, so maybe lots of those ideas wouldn't work out as nicely as many of the environments in Hoenn, but they definitely could have done things differently to make the world feel more alive.

[@igorstark9514]

20:53 - Spot on! I've always thought Cubone/Marowak's signature moves should have been able to hit Flying types and Levitate users and you've pointed out one more reason for that. I mean, despite Ground type, Bone Rush and Bonemerang are technically as physical moves as Wing Attack or Body Slam, without any restriction that prevents them to attack something that does not touch the ground. Especially Bonemerang... I would go even further and make Bonemerang capable of inflicting damage during a Fly turn, since this move requires a long shot. It gives Cubone a special niche among Ground types for this particular area. Even for lore's sake, it makes sense because it explains how Cubone is able to survive in Lavender Tower, once it has a powerful tool to defend itself against poisonous ghosts which surrounds that place.

[@AuraLeafstorm]

LeafGreen was my first Pokemon game, with Silver and Emerald closely after, and although I would play and enjoy all subsequent Gens, those three games were my quintessential Pokemon experience growing up. From the perspective of a completionist your criticisms are valid, especially with the rebalancing quirks and trading restrictions, but I still think FR/LG are the best way to experience Kanto, and I have a real soft spot for the Gen 3 game engine in general

[@John-sr8hy]

This analysis gave me a whole new perspective. I could benefit from considering other perspectives when it comes to video games. Leafgreen was my first game & shaped my love for Pokémon. Maybe it’s a cash grab but it brought joy to a pretty lonely childhood!

[@dreamareakoso3791]

tbh, i think FR/LG are pretty damn amazing, i strongly disagree that these are bad games in any way, and yes, before i played this i played Red and Blue and Let’s Go Pikachu, that being said, i had (and am still having) a great time with Fire Red

[@systemrestart120]

God it is wonderful to hear someone put so much thought into their perspectives on these games. From a design standpoint, a business standpoint, a consumer standpoint, a dedicate fan standpoint.......... there was a lot of care given to the strengths and weaknesses from all angles, it's refreshing to hear. Love videos like this, thank you Tama

[@ExHappyFace]

FireRed was my first video game ever, so this remake was like a new adventure to me. I assumed this was the game the pokemania was connected to this. I knew Hoenn existed and got Emereld when it came out, but FireRed was my entry point into the franchise full stop. HeartGold SoulSilver release 5 year later was a brand new experience to me so the statment at the 17 min mark is the camp I am in. Kanto will always be in color, with Metal Claw on Charmander to beat Brock, a Dark type Bite on Gyrados, and all the other stuff.

[@Gh0stOpera]

The slowpoke comment tho? I felt that in my soul.

[@sleepysadpoet]

The thing Abt pokemon not chasing kids into adulthood is so funny to me bc I and many of my other friends are now in our mid to late 20s playing the games lol

[@maxtojicic7877]

Counterargument: Another potential reason that firered/leafgreen might have appealed to returning is BECAUSE it probides the player with an opportunity to play through kanto with the mechanics of gen 3 (dark and steel type moves (and magnemite/magneton I guess), abilities, adjusted type chart and power levels of moves, etc). While this doesn't change the fact that it would have made sense to at least include some johto/hoenn mons in the main game to create a new experience of kanto for the player, to my understanding the original kanto games had some MAJOR issues with balance (psychic and normal mons being overpowered for example) and janky AI (although I'm sure there was some janky AI in the remakes as well). By making the games feature kanto mons only, it encourages the player to try and fight through the kanto reigon in a new way with the same 151, allowing the player to gain a different perspective on how the kanto mons function in the new mechanics, which could be considered a plus depending on what you value. In any event, I really enjoyed the video! It was well researched, the arguments were coherent and it had good flow. Thanks for making it :)

[@repentantsky8285]

Imma say something controversial, but I honestly think if you dislike a Pokemon game, you're taking the series too seriously. It's okay to not be happy with certain elements, but the complaints Tama puts up here, are basically worthless because the majority of them are similar to the same problems every game has. They are basically remakes of the original game, with similar stories, and slightly updated mechanics from gen to gen. A lot of her other complaints have to do with the limited file size of GBA cartridge which had to remake the original games, with color and various other details, as well as have room for the Sevii Islands. Also, having less content in the post game, who really wants that?

[@TXFDA]

Makes me wonder why they didn't just...make a new game that happened to be SET in Kanto. As opposed to making a remake. Like, they could have easily set it after Gen 2. Take the changes they started to Kanto in gen 2's post-game, and just...keep going. Make an even more modernized Kanto. They could have kept Kanto as a base, added a lot of modern changes, and even add completely new locations. And since it wasn't a remake, they could have easily included gen 2 and 3 Pokemon without ever worrying about being 'faithful' to the original Red and Blue. And, also because it wasn't a remake, they could have changed the story around to open the map up a bit, more like gen 2's map. Adding new routes and a train and things, to allow you to get to places in a different order than the original gen 1 games. You'd also be playing as someone entirely new, and it'd be fun to be able to visit Pallet Town. Even do the whole "Red is the final boss" thing again, but include Gold too.

[@alexlowe5826]

when it comes to game remakes ive played several among multiple franchises and I enjoyed Fire red and leaf green well enough. I do however think you have very valid critisisms especially with the aspects you brought up. I even look at future remakes and wonder why the misssteps were made to begin with. When you expanded on evolution lines and then lock players out till a full 100% of post game content it's quite the slap in the face. When you use updated mechanics like ability and move types for the steel and dark types but then the only pokemon of those lines you have access to in the main story is Magnimite / magneton it almost makes you need that pokemon for resistances and forget having a dark type for sabrina or for helping with pokemon tower as you can't umbreon till post postgame when you get that access. I do agree it almost makes the R/B/Y versions so much more of alluring. Heartgold / soulsilver in my opinion would have had similar problems except they allowed trading they even put in some fresh content. And ORAS hell they included megas and gave you 2 freebie megas that you could use after beating Norman. One of which was for your hoenn starter which was a neat bit of fresh content they even updated post game with Deoxys vs Rayquaza which was a neet easter egg to the movie showdown those 2 pokemon had. Tho in gen 3 days i was thankful to still have my mother around but i guess that's what makes me even saltier is I HAD someone i could trade with and complete the pokedex with and was still powerless to do so without putting in that effort and 2004 was during a time that School was taking a huge priority with me due to the classes i was taking i just wanted to relax for a few hours not slog in my gaming life too. Something im thankful wasn't repeated in future remakes.

[@dpy]

Don't know Tama, I get what you mean by it being a mostly business decision but, I also know that an entire generation of kids would have most likely missed out on Kanto if it weren't for these remakes. For me the 3rd gen will always be the dearest to me as when I was a kid, ruby and sapphire just came out and I loved them. After completing Ruby, leaf green for me was a more chill experience to see what all the fuss was about with Kanto and I enjoyed it. (later on I went to play the originals as well) Now if you ask me about let's go Eevee / Pikachu, now there is a waste of resources imo LMAO

[@conservativedestroyer4056]

Pretty much everything you said about this game is the same problem for BDSP remakes. Very strict with Pokémon home. Limited content, nothing new added and the horrible game design

[@yukisnow1943]

Not gonna lie i didn't even know the jumprole mini game existed xD back on the day I went to school/and didn't know some connection adopter thing existed xD I thought it was some weird hacking tool

[@ArtisChronicles]

I don't go back to the pokecenter for paralysis, I only go back for poison, no exceptions. Unless I have antidotes of course. I just push through until I'm almost defeated or I make it to my destination, works fine for me.

[@AshwinLB]

this hurts since firered/leafgreen was what introduced me to the series but I can see how this game could be negative to those who had an adventure in Kanto before

[@pacoramon9468]

Almost every "beating pokémon... with just..." video is a 3rd gen game.

[@xbaber5342]

One of the reasons this games exists is because there was no Transfer feature Gen 2 and 3 at the time. In theory the transfer feature could have been put into a gamecube game called Pokémon Box RS this was basically the Pokémon Bank/Home we have today how it would work is by Putting you G, S, C, R, B, Y, G. Into a Game boy then use a GBA Link cable for the transfer Pokémon from those games.

[@eddieb.klighton9398]

Gotta love how she warns about the salt at the beginning. LeafGreen was my first experience with Kanto. But I must say I do agree with your critiques. Love your content!

[@MegumiMary]

I actually Skipped Gen 2 the first time around simply because I was unable to play those games at the time and as a result lost interest in the series for a bit until Pokemon Sapphire. I got Leaf Green to catch up on the pokemon I had missed in Gen 2 but the incredibly restrictive nature of the pokedex post game was something that always stuck out to me as a horrid experience- I would have probably given up on the series if I hadn't played Sapphire first... I would like to say that the 6th gen with the gen 3 remakes is actually the generation I find myself coming back to the most because (Alpha) Sapphire is my favorite game in the series and the gameplay felt most refined in gen 6 despite how much criticism I hear around it (yeah there wasn't any innovation but they refined what was there and I feel like that stood out way more to me)

[@MegumiMary]

Also Leaf's trainer design is by far my favorite to play as and it is a shame that the only games you can play as her are so awful

[@XandersArcaneStudy]

The trading restrictions suck. Good thing I always used Gameshark to capture the Pokemon (at lvl 3) that I wanted to train in any given playthrough. :)

[@pk_madrigal]

Don’t forget how they changed the requirements to get into Cerulean Cave/catch Mewtwo from beat the Elite Four to the whole Ruby/Sapphire side quest

[@herpdiederper]

Such an interesting video because I have never heard a perspective like this. Leafgreen was my first Pokemon game and from then on I was hooked. I honestly don't even consider it a remake because that was my kanto experience. I can understand why you dislike them for what they did though. I also really dislike when Pokemon restricts pokemon to post game or even just really late game. Gen 4 does that a lot and drove me insane. Very well put together video.

[@ohnoitsthenoooo]

The main reason why I’ve never bothered with FR/LG is because there’s no point playing a crobatless game that was developed in a post gen 2 world.

[@virgil2219]

I watched this video after a blind Nuzlocke into FireRed and....I realize that the terrible, awful experience I had was truly because of some of these changes you mentioned, Tama. Agatha's Pokémon having Levitate, for example, completely derailed my Nidoking strategy of sweeping her more dangerous Mons with Earthquake. I ended up outright losing my Nuzlocke run because of that, even after I'd spent 6+ hours leveling my team on the Seviii Islands I had access to just to be on par with the Elite Four. That, combined with the fact that I couldn't use ANY dark type Pokémon since they didn't put any new Pokémon into FRLG meant that Agatha was a brick wall. I couldn't even use Crobat, one of my favorite "Gen 1" Mons. (even though he's gen 2 I consider him Gen 1 cuz he evolves from Zubat). Yeah...I felt like this whole game was a slap in the face, and when I started an Emerald run, I found myself having way more fun putting together teams and using Pokémon because there were frankly more to pick from and strategize with. FRLG left a bad taste in my mouth. It felt like the game was actively working against me and ultimately, even when I did decide to give up the Nuzlocke and jsut power through, the victory felt hollow.

[@PANICBLADE]

Sorry for your Nuzlocke loss, but a better strat would have been to just have a mon ready with Psychic to sweep Agatha. The TM is still free in Saffron in FR/LG and it has a pretty wide pool of mons to give it to, including the Lapras which is given to you in Silph co, which can also learn Surf to sweep Blane and Giovanni after you get it, and Ice Beam to sweep Lance later on. Nuzlockes are self imposed challenges, so the game throwing you a curveball in the final gauntlet is pretty fair. Nuzlockes require a lot of planning, and you gotta go into those fights knowing more than just the types you're going up against; that includes their move pools and abilities.

[@literalcreativity2639]

I love how, whenever I listen or watch one of Tama's videos, I can't help but reply to her as I listen. Like when she said Pokemon FR/LG was a smart choice on part of everyone involved, business and development wise, I literally said, "Yeah, I agree." and so on, and it's because she makes her videos really engaging and organized. Good on you, Tama.

[@Tama-Hero]

Oh thank god, I totally do this when I watch KZbin videos too, I thought I was strange lmao

[@literalcreativity2639]

​@@Tama-Hero lol, didn't expect a reply, but it's nice to see i'm not alone.

[@thewanderinggamer1369]

'Yeah, I agree.' I'm all for free speech, _but that is the most basic thing you can say to a video._ I ain't watching 13 Reasons Why and saying, 'Yeah, she did.' or 'What?' Get some response skills, mate.

[@literalcreativity2639]

@@thewanderinggamer1369 Lol, didn't know we were in a seventh grade English class right now.

[@200jared]

I remember getting leaf green just cause it was green, I also remember watching the first few vids from this channel way back in like 2011/2012 so it’s funny af hearing her curse now 🤣🤣

[@shazilla4]

I love that I can hear your clear frustration lol --- do you do pokemon walkthroughs?

[@loloioi]

Leaf green was the first pokemon game I owned. I had a lot of mixed feelings of when I was a kid about this generation. I extremely hated the move pool of this generation... I remember looking online to figure out how my Charizard could learn flamethrower but finding out that it could only learn it when Charmander was at level 31. The whole grind to elite 4 was excrutiating despite constantly trying to get all my pokemon to the same levels. I remember just saying screw it and I just hydro cannoned everything with my blastoise... In addition to the frustration, the whole island grind was just so excrutiatingly painful. I remember being incredibly disappointed by the content even after finishing it. I felt even more frustrated. Yeah... Leaf Green / Fire Red wasn't that great of a experience....

[@michaelrud4351]

Gen 3 along with remakes are pretty much the pinnacle of pokemon, with gen 4 being just behind it or even the same. I still enjoy all the recent gens, but these were hands down the best experience

[@mylo-]

Hearing some of my favorite games get dragged in this video hurts but you've made some valid points. Great video!

[@SupremeDirt]

i think the main reason i so fondly remember leafgreen is it was the first pokemon game i was "allowed" by family to have, and also it's a fairly decent speedrun (including having a fairly unique category in E4R2). i never actually ran into the needing to trade with it until i was already an adult, which now seems like a fairly absurd restriction on a game in a series where the point is supposed to be connectivity with friends.

[@RidentGaming]

I loved fire red as a kid, and it was my first game after gold so I didn't really think or know about it at the time. But on a replay I was wondering why the hell my golbat wasn't evolving.

[@evanever]

I love the feel of gen 3 games and find Kanto to be the most fun region to play through. Those things really carry FRLG to being my personal favourites. But you make some great points here and it's true that FRLG could have been a lot more ambitious and creative than they were.

[@SaddieMoon]

23:55 I wouldn’t say buying the adapter was the reason. But that’s more so because I feel like there could still be another reason for this choice. And we don’t have a definitive answer as to why for this decision.

[@zalxder]

I loved leaf green! I hadn't touched a pokemon game other than Go since the original red blue and N64 other than X Y until downloading leaf green on emulator in 2022 and went into the experience blind knowing almost nothing about it. aside from all the nostalgia and charm from playing, my mind was totally blown when I got to the end and found out there was added content! Leaf green filled me with so many hours of joy and I got to play it on a hand held retro game emulator that was fun to have in my pocket again anywhere I went again AND I could use the speed hack and save states that let me enjoy pokemon games again!

[@nathantallon8742]

Love the Evangelion rebuild series references. Omg. Would you ever consider covering Eva? My life would be complete...

[@BagaJr]

Was there really a Dexit controversy back then? I legitimately don't know because I was a dumb kid who played Pokemon alone and didn't know much about the internet yet. I honestly don't see why there would be. Sure, Ruby and Sapphire didn't have access to all the Pokemon, but they give you a National Dex. That shows their intent to be able to trade them in with future games in the generation, which were a given at that point. That's drastically different from Sword/Shield, where National Dex #'s don't even appear at all, and we still don't know if the rest of the missing Pokemon will ever be allowed to be transferred in.

[@thesupremeking8715]

Honestly your little tangent about how it sucks that they keep bringing Kanto back to the way it was after Gold and Silver gave it some chance to advance just reminds me that lets go pikachu and eevee should have just been full on sequels. Had they just been straight up Red 2 and Blue 2 and had attempted to add more depth to Kanto and show how its changed since the original journey through it(basically what Gold and Silver did but to a much larger scale as its been a far longer timeskip this time around), that would have been really cool. You could have even kinda made it the opposite of gen 2 in the way that you travel into Johto in the post game and get to see how things changed there a bit too, maybe even see some returning characters like Silver who we haven't seen in a long time.

[@GoldenSunAlex]

Agreed. Tbh, my biggest issue of the let's go series is that they prevented another decent Kanto remake for another decade or so.

[@tlst94]

What if in an alternate timeline, Gens 1-8 came out worldwide between 1996 and 2004? With the first half on GB and the latter half on GBA(with both systems being compatible for trades). With the Pokemon World only having eight Regions; each based on one of the eight Japanese Regions. With Gen 2 only having Johto. Gen 5 being Hoenn and it having day/night cycles. Gen 8 being Sinnoh. All 1,000 Pokemon discovered. Mythicals always obtainable rewards for Regional Dex completions. With all 8 Gens together taking place in the Classic Timeline. After that, the series got rebooted. With the first set of remakes released 2006-2014 and took place in the Mega Timeline. Then the series got rebooted again from 2016-2024 and took place in the G-Max Timeline. So in conclusion, how'd the Pokemon franchise have been like? And how well would the games have been recieved?

[@ariz1516]

"Use a Psychic Type in Kanto" -Sun Tzu, The Art of War

[@ArtisChronicles]

Psychic gets its own tier in gen 1 as it's the defacto most powerful typing in that gen.

[@kareemcallender3799]

@@ArtisChronicles normal is right up there with psychic

[@azurnal7573]

@@kareemcallender3799 not even close

[@yungmuney5903]

@@azurnal7573 Yeah it is. Has some of the best Pokemon like Chansey, Snorlax and Tauros and some of the best moves like Body Slam, and Hyper Beam along with great coverage. It's weakness, Fighting type has been scared away from Psychic.

[@azurnal7573]

@@yungmuney5903 It's nowhere near as overpowered as psychic was.

[@chugga]

I feel you so much on these games rubbing it in how I was the only person I knew still playing. Tons of late nights spent trading with myself like a loser to accomplish anything. And that wireless adapter I paid for never got used even once.

[@enzoforgets9456]

Same tbh when i got that wireless adapter i got like 0 use cuz i had no second gba for trading and lack of friends who played mons’

[@oolacilesbotnet6564]

I still liked pokemon but none of my friends liked it anymore so I ended up dropping it as well as a result. It took until X/Y for me to buy another mainline title I played most of gen 3 on emulator years after the fact

[@Wackaz]

Hey Chugga!

[@nrlty1253]

sucks having no friends. i had friends with fire red and leaf green and the wireless adapter was dope

[@bigbadchupa9511]

@@oolacilesbotnet6564 same here. After I got to JR high school I quit playing Pokémon. I recently got back into a couple years ago when I ended buying platinum again. Then hunted down HG and SS again and really got back into it. I regret getting rid of those games because I didn’t realize how rare the authentic games were. Haven’t quit playing since. 😊

[@emilyadair8380]

One thing that really bugs me about all the Pokemon remakes is how conservative they are, particularly when it comes to the Pokemon line-ups. I feel like these games would be so much more fun if the gym leaders and other major NPCs had revamped teams. This is the main appeal of going back to Kanto in GSC for me - or Yellow for that matter - seeing these totally new line-ups that make the major battles feel fresh. Give Misty a Goldeen or a Horsea or something instead of just the Staryu line. Give Koga a Crobat or a Nidorino instead of his eight Koffings. HGSS really had this problem too, as much as I love those games overall. It would be a pretty minor change but would add so much.

[@markanthony7191]

The problem is that not everyone has played the originals to need all that for remakes.

[@No_Sleepee]

Play Pokémon Clover then.

[@mischievousjr.9299]

@@markanthony7191 Definitely would've been more replay value if the gyms had revamped Pokemon teams

[@markanthony7191]

@@mischievousjr.9299 for the post game or something yes. But if your like me and FrLg is your first play through of kanto than the times are fine

[@No_Sleepee]

@@markanthony7191 Yeah they do that in a game, it's called Pokémon Platinum

[@KugelBlitz0]

Beginning of 2021: Tama comes out swinging at 2004

[@fernandomarroquin8901]

Hangry mode lol

[@flyforce16]

Someone stole my Kerry/Edwards yard sign in 2004 and I'm still not over it

[@StudioBrock1337]

Hey 2004 deserves it!

[@36moshpit7]

@@StudioBrock1337 Hey now, 2004 did give us Danny Phantom, so it wasn't all bad.

[@StudioBrock1337]

@@36moshpit7 I don't know who that is but I do agree it wasn't all bad. :P

[@LewtwoYT]

some say that golbat still hasn't evolved to this day

[@castform7]

That poor lock jawed bat.

[@naturalharmoniagropius4486]

Well, people who want to use Crobat in FRLG got rekt

[@naturalharmoniagropius4486]

And you can't get Sludge Bomb to beat the story, which needs for a strong STAB for Golbat

[@superlombax1561]

I guess those people never beat the game then.

[@PokeDude011]

“You want crobat? No.” ~Junichi Masuda probably

[@Sorakeyboy247]

Masuda: “You want to evolve Eevee into Espeon? No.” Me: “But Espeon’s my favorite...” Masuda: “Sucks to be you. Go with Flareon.” Me: “Flareon sucks.” Masuda: “A perfect match for you.” Me: 🙁

[@tyler_keeble]

I wonder if she’ll bring up this same criticism assuming she eventually does a video on HG/SS: “Want to evolve your Magmar into Magmortar before the elite four? Too bad, the item is locked behind the post game.”

[@PokeDude011]

@@tyler_keeble Not quite the same argument since you can just trade over your Magmar into a Diamond, Pearl, Platinum, or another Heart Gold/Soul Silver game that already has the item and then trade back. I did that in one play through of Heart Gold where I wanted an early Scizor. And before you mention that in Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire you get the Dawn Stone after beating Wally in Victory Road to evolve a male Kirlia into Gallade or a female Snowrunt into Frosslass, you can still get one earlier by doing the Super Training mini-game. Fire Red and Leaf Green literally make it impossible for you to get Crobat and Blissey who evolve by max happiness before the post-game by just halting their evolutions all together.

[@superlombax1561]

"You want Crobat? Play through Kanto again first and try not to let it die a million times while you do that."

[@D-Havoc]

@@tyler_keeble I would say Probopass, Magnazone, Leafeon and Glaceon have it the worst. They are literally impossible to obtain unless you trade them over to DPPt to evolve them in their specific areas. I like unique evolution methods, but I thought it was dumb and just inconvenient that they couldn't add these areas to HGSS. They have fairly consistent areas to evolve them at too. Ice Rock in the Ice Path, Grass Rock in Ilex Forest and quite frankly any cave/rough terrain/etc. with Electric Pokemon can serve as the Mt. Coronet surrogate. Glad they just updated most of these Pokemon evolutions in Gen 8.

[@ExitScam]

I still believe that Fire Red & Lead Green are the best way to experience Kanto

[@quincy7258]

I believe G/S/C is the best way to experience Kanto, but maybe thats just me

[@sweis12]

@@quincy7258 the kanto in g s and c are so watered down. Missing many features and almost no story.

[@tricatmeows]

@@quincy7258 nah not just you. I wanna breeze through Kanto and get to the good Pokemon to take back to Johto.

[@AustinHartwig]

@@sweis12 true

[@scottchaison1001]

@@tricatmeows No.

[@mattm7220]

To this day, the "last time on your journey" feature is still the single best feature of FR/LG, and I wish they'd bring the feature back in current/future games. There's a lot of times where I get too busy to play for a good couple of weeks, and by that time, I've completely forgotten what I was about to do before shutting the game off last.

[@Poever]

They did bring it back, but inconsistently. There was the Journal in Diamond, Pearl, and Platinum and...nothing else later

[@amrutamogal149]

It should be optional, because it's a curse for soft-reset hunts.

[@mattm7220]

@@amrutamogal149 Good point - as a casual player, I didn't even consider this, but yea, the ability to turn the feature on and off is probably a must

[@natsume-hime2473]

@@mattm7220 Well even as a casual player, soft resetting FR/LG, the "Previously in your Quest..." section was a nightmare. Specifically when legendary hunting. Which is why I love how fast comparitavely it is to get into game in X/Y, OR/AS, S/M, US/UM, and SW/SH.

[@TXFDA]

Honestly, I think EVERY game ever should have that feature. I don't have a great attention span nowadays. So I need a break on pretty much every lengthy game I play. I've had to restart so many games that I never end up finishing, simply because I don't remember what was going on, or how to play. Having a 'previously on-' and an optional short gameplay refresher would be amazing.

[@CaptainPiika]

Really interesting perspective on these games I had never considered before. FRLG are actually my favourite Pokémon games to replay (besides BW2), mostly because I love how fast Gen III runs and how open/non linear Kanto is compared to other regions. As a kid, I had never beaten RBY or GSC by the time I got my hands on these, so I didn’t have the same been there, done that frustration. The national dex and evolution restrictions are so annoying, though. I’ve used every single Kanto Pokémon at this point and it’s ruined the replay value. I think a hack of FRLG with running shoes, nat dex, and physical/special split added in from the beginning would be my ideal game.

[@jbun730]

You’re in luck, there’s several hacks of FRLG with the exact thing you’re asking for, one even has mons up to gen 8 (it’s a difficult hack though, more for people who are into competitive)

[@ArtisChronicles]

Radical red has most of that, but it has many generations of pokemon in it. You could check that out if you'd like.

[@dwanedibly8129]

I can recommend two fan-games for you: Pokemon AlteRed and Pokemon Paradox. Pokemon AlteRed, in a sense, is an AU of Firered, like Deltarune to Undertale. In it, the first three generations of Pokemon are available, along with all evolutions Pokemon got later... kind of (they have an evolution for Farfatch'd, but not Corsola?) But the really cool part? Every Pokemon, and I mean EVERY POKEMON, has been redesigned, given a new name and new type, and there are a couple Fakekon too, but the focus is very much on reimagining the official Pokemon. The game has an updated moves list including all eight generations, along with the modern physical/special split. If the spark has gone out of Kanto, AlteRed is the perfect way to re-experience it. Then there's Pokemon Paradox. In it, you play as Blue, set two years after he lost he Champion title to Red. At this point Blue has given up being a Pokemon trainer, and just stays at home all day, reminiscing on what could've been. But, Professor Oak comes to him with some amazing news; he's built a time machine that can let Blue travel back in time, in order to alter history so he can become Champion instead of Red. Okay, so Paradox is radically different from Firered. Instead of collecting the eight badges,your goal in each new area is to find and defeat Red, altering the timeline, and giving you a Time Crystal that powers up the Time Machine and unlocks new areas to explore. In addition, Pokemon from the first five gens are in the game, and the game uses their gen 5 animated sprites in battle. In addition, there's a really interesting mechanic letting you get Legendaries from all the first five gens. Across your travels, you'll come across Time Chunks, which take you to the lair of a Legendary Pokemon you can catch. The game even has some Mythicals, like Darkrai and Shaymin! Thank you for coming to my TED talk, and I hope you try one or both of these games. If you line pokemon, these are great new ways to play through Kanto!

[@wangchung2157]

4 years late but Pokemon Ultra Violet is what your looking for. It even has trainers with stronger pokemon and actual good move sets its alot of fun its basically the Fire Red Tama wants

[@revolver2750]

AAHHHHH THAT'S WHY MY GOLBAT STOPPED EVOLVING EVERY DAMN TIME!!!!! thought it was freaking bugged years later i finally have an answer holy....

[@zinc2zinc2]

@revolver2750 yeah, i also was confused af. I was excited to play through old kanto with a (at the time) new evolution.

[@Vanillastump]

Pokemon won't follow kids into their teens and adult-hood.." I'm sitting here at 28 doing my third nuzlocke of HeartGold.

[@DieAlteistwiederda]

I let my nephew borrow a bunch of Pokémon games over the course of quarantine and shit last year and currently he still has White and White 2,he did give me back my 3DS and all the games for that system though My nephew is 18 now and I'm 28 and own all the main Pokémon games and most of the side games too. It definitely chased me into my adulthood successfully and it doesn't look like I will stop liking those games anytime soon.

[@enzoforgets9456]

@Pissed Off White Guy you guys are getting clowned on? Either i went to a friendly high school or just got lucky

[@annarenfold438]

Third? Boy, there are 4 other generations of Pokémon games.

[@enzoforgets9456]

@@annarenfold438 uhm, isnt there more than taht? Assuming only hgss was being played within that span Edit; counting all 8 but excluding 4 is what i meant

[@Vanillastump]

@@annarenfold438 Yeah, and after nuzlocking Ruby, FireRed, LeafGreen, and Pearl, I wanted to do HeartGold. And it's still my favorite Pokemon game

[@Mahihkan24]

“Those motherf***ers forgot slowpoke” I’ve never laughed so hard in my life.

[@NerdStrikesBack]

The frustration of the way trading and the dex work in this game is so accurate. I keep a copy of LeafGreen completed and bought a copy of FireRed for replays just so I never have to do that bullshit of finding the Ruby and Sapphire again. That being said, as someone who didn’t grow up playing Gen 1 (Silver was my bread and butter) I still do prefer the remakes here. There’s some fun to be had with the limited mechanics of the older games, but I just adore the Gen 3 engine so much. My favorite part of Kanto is the way it emphasizes the player’s choice on their journey in terms of where they want to go and what they want to do. The whole game feels like a genuine preparation for the final battles against the Elite 4 and Blue. The limitations of trading and not being able to use newer Pokémon are a huge bummer, but even with them, the 149 original Pokémon are still diverse enough that I’m able to play through it with new teams ever couple of years. Even still, your take here is extremely valid and I can see how if you were playing this purely for the reasons you were, both growing up and now, that it would be very frustrating and not a positive or worthwhile experience.

[@Readingeye]

15:25 Gonna hard disagree on that one, Let’s Go Pikachu and Eevee were even more restrictive, with the evolutions and babies being flat out nonexistent, post game or otherwise. I do agree it was silly to not include the evolutions and to restrict trading in firered/leafgreen until post game though.

[@castform7]

Which is super weird cause they kept the Fairy type,Megas and Regional variants even though they weren't in Kanto. It was like they wanted to have their cake and eat it too when no, that's not how it works. Either you take out everything for "authenticity" or you don't. An inbetween just feels like you wanted to say this is the Kanto you grew up without fully commiting to it.

[@thetreyceratops]

At LEAST Let’s Go didn’t even code them, so they didn’t taunt you with those BS evo screens

[@KendylTV]

I liked every comment here because I agree with all 3 somehow lmao

[@Raderph]

@@castform7 i would argue that the regional variants were at least justified to balance the typechart a bit, as without them you’d have a small pile of fairies next to 0 dark types and 1 steel line (not including meltan) I haven’t played the games personally but assuming fairy type was staying in (which lbr they weren’t going to cut it) having an older type in dark with literally no members would look pretty odd (It also added an extra ghost which is nice)

[@ArtisChronicles]

@@castform7 there was code in the game for umbreon, but it looks like somewhere along the way they decided to change direction and let's go is what we ended up with. It was a very strange game in that way. Easy shiny hunts though.

[@mattheus6416]

I was expecting myself to be highly upset by this video as FR/LG are my childhood and by far my favorite way to experience Kanto, but all of your points made sense and were properly thought out. Great video!

[@lvl5charmander]

no they weren’t? df 😂

[@yellowtheyellow]

everything except for gen 1 being a better experience than fr/lg, at least. that's insane.

[@littiescorp4197]

I love your intelligent critiques of these games, and you always bring up facts and interesting tidbits that I, a lifelong Pokemon fan, never knew about the games. I hope you do a Black and White video, cause I feel like that game has a lot of hidden stuff too that's missed, especially since it's one of the more disliked generations (from my experience with people)

[@dinar471]

I actually enjoyed Black and White. I kinda liked that they forced me to only use Unova Pokémon instead of falling back on familiars.

[@gohanxftw]

“Finally, The Rock has come back...”

[@williamlavagna1096]

“...to Pewter City!”

[@MexNYG93]

@@williamlavagna1096 this is gold LOL 🤣🤣😂😂

[@KiddsWithClass]

@@MexNYG93 no, this is fire red/leaf green

[@acelegendarymyths2376]

@Purple Almost Blue u meant the brock

[@gohanxftw]

@@acelegendarymyths2376 lol that is a good one. But I meant Tama is back lol

[@Amber_xo_133]

The "definitive" experience is FRLG IMO. You have abilities, held items, breeding, more than 151 Pokemon, post-game quests, legendary hunts, and a relatively challenging maingame

[@Raethecommoner]

This is the best comment

[@ich3730]

wrong. mega Moemon fire red is the definitive version :P

[@lufa7886]

nah Crystal is the definitive experience

[@loveless9528]

I’ve actually never played this game legitimately, only having played it on emulators when I first discovered them back in... I wanna say 2010...? My experience with this game feels unique and definitely contributes to my positive feelings for it. This was the first time I played a Pokémon game on a big screen with a controller and I felt like I was some sort of computer genius to get this actually working on my cheap-ass computer which was crippled with Windows Vista (Remember *that?*) Of course, it’s very anecdotal and I could have picked any Pokémon game to download and play and probably would have loved any of them with the novelty of my scenario, but I picked FireRed because I had missed it when it came out, as Pokémon had fallen out of favour like you said, and no one was keeping up with it anymore, which unfortunately meant I didn’t either... I remember seeing a commercial for FRLG on tv one day after I hadn’t played for years and was shocked to see they had remade the game that defined my childhood. I wanted to play it back then but never pursued it because I would have no one to play with... Flash forward to when I was about to do so on the emulator. I had dropped out of school a few years prior, lost all my friends and just wanted to forget about my current life. I was excited to play the GBA version of the game I fell in love with at 7 years old. That was all I needed. Even though the music was bad and the game was a mediocre cutout of RBY using RSE cardboard, I still had a great time, with the Sevii Islands being a highlight somehow. The fact that I didn’t pay for this experience may have helped influence my opinion as well... 😒 Story time over 🙂 Your line delivery has gotten so good it’s crazy. You sound so confident and natural, like I’m just right there with you and you’re unleashing a passionate rant for the first time. 🙃 Happy new year~! 🥳

[@oromain]

That's a very good point. The fact that I didn't drop $40 - $80 on this game may also affect my positive experience with it.

[@dimensionninja4929]

that was deep

[@notsad0096]

Gen 1 was always so nostolgic and charmander will forever he my favorite pokemon, also i can heavily relate to this comment

[@garfreeek]

You've written everything I wanted to write! 😂😁

[@loveless9528]

Given the amount of support this comment has gotten... How many people played GBA Pokémon games illegally on emulators in the past decade...?! ‘_’ They’re really easy to run really well, even on the worst PCs : ) By the way, Tama, if you see this, I love the fact that you kept the take where you couldn’t help but laugh when you were talking about the wireless Game Corner 😄

[@angel_apricot]

Nintendo : "FireRed and LeafGreen" Tama : "Why though?"

[@SYMShutYoMouth]

I think Fire Red and Leaf Green are great introductions to Pokémon as a series. Should they have expanded and added more? Sure. But what we got wasn’t bad at all.

[@rydenhope3602]

We still got the sevii islands that the original game had plans for but never finished.

[@akane.sakurada]

I loved FireRed for simply 2 reasons. 1- It was my first pokémon game 2- It had what I saw on TV in the game, I was familiar with Team Rocket, I was familiar with the gen 1 starters and these pokemons and the only other alternative I had back then was original Red which looked way worse graphically. Still a force that pushes me away from newer and other pokemon games is the fact that I have no idea about most of them and I just return to FireRed because of the familiarity.

[@raphaelkgh218]

I agree with that! Gen 1's strenght seems to be familiarity, and i shows!!!

[@TheYoshiGamer]

Because I went into FireRed with a very different context than Tama Hero, I absolutely loved it, to the point where it's my favorite Pokemon game and within my top 10 games overall. It was my first Pokemon game, so I learned all of the main Pokemon lore and mechanics from this. The Sevii Islands took me by complete surprise and I had no idea they even existed until I encountered them myself. I also had a really great friend at the time who was into Pokemon like me, so we enjoyed the game a ton together. However, I totally respect your opinion, and while i strongly disagree with it, I understand we simply went into the game with different context. Great video as usual!

[@joseaguilera1609]

I had already passed my Blue version more times that I could count. I had Yellow, Gold, Ruby and Emerald too. I enjoyed FireRed alot. The new sprites and mechanics felt right at home by that time. My friend had LeafGreen. It was actually really fun. Although most of the battling happened with Gold even at that point in time.

[@SuperUnknownPerson]

time to breathe in all that 🧂 GREAT VIDEO TAMA

[@OurKindofEntertainment]

I remember the first time I used a Golbat on my FireRed team and after reaching leaving 37 it started to evolve. I was about to have a heart attack because I thought I would get a Crobat before facing Blaine, but I almost threw my damn GB Advance when it randomly stopped evolving! TALK ABOUT PISSED! I was boiling more than a Groudon about to use Eruption 😡😡😡

[@manguy01]

I caught a Zubat expressly to get and use Crobat for the first time ever when I first played LG. I was so pissed.

[@OurKindofEntertainment]

@@manguy01 damn :/

[@naturalharmoniagropius4486]

It does? I thought it doesn't allow you to get Gen 2 above til the postgamr

[@Stinkoman87]

@@naturalharmoniagropius4486 It restricts you from getting items needed to evolve until later, but for Crobat and Blissey (who don't need anything to evolve) it starts the evolution process, then automatically cancels it, every time they level up with high enough friendship.

[@yunogasai1338]

I didn't know this was a thing even though I've owned firered for years. That really sucks.

[@Greninjia]

Crobat: *exists* GameFreak in Fire Red and Leaf Green: And I took that personally

[@matguimond92]

Fire Red and Leaf Green Gen 1 remade Having a Crobat in FR/LG would be like trying to send back a Crobat through the time machine in Gold/Silver/Crystal.

[@GamersXnostalgia]

And then they did the exact same thing in Let's Go Pikachu and Eevee. 😂

[@MAMAJUGO]

The heck you on about? I got the kanto remakes because I wanted a kanto game without the mutant sprites and with more than 4 colors

[@MidniteAndBeyond]

In terms of why I got FireRed back in the day, I'm in the camp of "I've never played a Pokemon Game before." Technically, I had played XD: Gale of Darkness at a friend's house before, but FireRed was the first one I ever personally owned. It's probably the Pokemon game I've replayed the most amount of times and holds a lot of sentimental value to me for a variety of reasons. Despite how much I've replayed FireRed, I never really took the time to think about how poorly the National Dex and trading mechanics were implemented in that game. Like you, I never had anyone to trade with, growing up. However, I've never been a "catch em all" person, to be perfectly honest. I think a lot of why that is was because of me being introduced to the series through XD. In that game, you're not trying to catch em all, you're trying to save them all. There's a limited number of Pokemon and the situations in which you're obtaining them is so much more high stakes and it feels so much more personal when you catch and purify them. It makes each and every one of them feel like just as much of a character as their evil former trainers are. Because you're doing more than just building up a team for the sake of "being the very best, like no one ever was". From beginning to end in XD, you're trying to rescue creatures that are in need. So I guess I just always felt weird about collecting one of every creature in the mainline games, just for the sake of keeping them locked away in a storage box for all eternity. I definitely agree with all that you're saying, though. I feel like a lot of what you felt during the FireRed and LeafGreen era is what I'm feeling right now in the Sword and Shield era. I've just felt really... empty, when seeing and playing modern Pokemon. I had this exact feeling after the first SpongeBob movie. The franchise I once loved and that meant the world to me had become a corporate, soulless, moneymaking shell of its former self. It'd be nice if GameFreak would cater to both old and new fans alike, but it really feels like their mindset is a combination of "Catering to old fans means bringing back Kanto for the millionth time, just like how celebrating Mario means re-releasing Super Mario Bros. for the millionth time." and "Old fans are just like new fans, in which they'll buy anything with Pokemon attached to it, simply because it's Pokemon". I was worried I might've been at a point where I simply couldn't enjoy Pokemon, anymore. So a few weeks ago, I went back and played Pokemon Red.... and I had a wonderful time with it. Its simplicity was refreshing and the charm and personality of these creatures shined through, even after all these years. As for which game I would return to in the future if I ever wanted to return to Kanto.... it's a bit of a tossup, honestly. I think Red, Blue and Yellow and really interesting to return to, to remind myself of how much the series has evolved (or in some cases, devolved) and to enjoy a quick, simple and enjoyable experience. I'm able to get enjoyment out of the Let's Go games by simply walking around in them. Would I ever wanna replay them? Heck no. But now that I've finished it and can simply walk around an HD version of a world that holds a lot of memories for me, it can be a pretty nice time if I ever just wanna unwind or have some background noise. And as for FireRed and LeafGreen... I feel like since it's technically where I started my Pokemon journey, I'll always have a soft spot for it. Hearing their specific remixes and seeing those specific sprites always makes me feel at home.

[@friendlyninja5048]

I felt the same way when Sun & Moon launched. I was still riding the high from Gen VI, especially ORAS as Hoenn was a big part of my childhood. I think, because of this, I had preconceived notions about what a Pokémon game should be. As I played through Moon, I just didn't feel the same excitement I felt with the previous games -- almost like I was just going through the motions. Alola didn't seem to inspire the same passion in me as Kalos or the same nostalgia as Hoenn. Although, it being night in-game almost the entire time probably didn't help. I was worried that I was falling out with Pokémon. It was already a rough period in my life and I didn't want to lose the thing that had been a huge part of my life for as long as I could remember. So I forced myself to complete the game, hoping it would eventually inspire those same feelings. But it never did. Years later, however, I would eventually grow to appreciate Alola for what it was rather than what I thought it should be. I think the anime played a huge role in that. It truly conveyed that Alola was a laid-back, tropical paradise, in a way the games didn't. It was also didn't take itself as seriously as the XY arc, and was a lot more fun to watch as a result. When I returned to the games with this mindset, I found a lot more to like about them than I had previously. I had finally learned to love this region and its inhabitants. To put it another way, I feel like I went through similar character development as Gladion did over the course of the game. I feel Alola also has stronger lore than I initially gave it credit for with the Tapus and Ultra Beasts. Ever since B2W2, I've noticed it takes me a while to "warm up" to a new Pokémon game. It's pretty weird.

[@NowRacattackForce]

"Who the fuck cares about Pocket Card Jockey?" I'll have you know that there are a dozen of us. Anyway, FireRed ended up being the last Pokémon game I played before I fell off the series for nine years. Not through any fault of the game though: someone just stole my GBA SP and I fell out of gaming in general until high school, then didn't get a new handheld until a 3DS XL in college. I recall enjoying my time with the game as a kid, though not to the extent I did with Silver or Emerald, which I remember playing constantly. The Sevii Islands were a cool addition that I didn't expect, as I went in thinking it would just be a nicer version of the originals, which I didn't personally own. I recall up spending most of my game time running back-and-forth between the islands, as I found them more interesting than mainland Kanto. I didn't really have anyone to trade with back then, so that never really factored into my enjoyment of the games. The only other kid I knew who was still into Pokémon had a Game Shark, so he couldn't care less about trading. So my enjoyment came just playing through the story, then maybe restarting my game so I can try out a different team. On that level, FRLG were fun games for me, even if they didn't get the replay treatment as often as Silver or Emerald (or Black, when I got back into the series). I remembered the evolution restrictions, but I didn't remember trading being that restrictive. Sounds like an absolute nightmare and I'm glad I had no desire to complete my Pokédex at the time.

[@TheLostArts]

Oh boy, I'm excited to see people's reaction to this one! Also, Happy New Year everyone!

[@NerdStrikesBack]

Happy new year Jonna!

[@epicdarkraifournineone8006]

The worst example of the games being hurt by not accounting for the mechanics of gen 3 is the Diglett's Cave, since Diglett now has Arena Trap, so if you're not leading with a flying type you have to fight every wild Pokémon you find. To make matters worse, repels won't be able to save you from the overlevelled Dugtrio you can find here (which also have Arena Trap, of course).

[@rydenhope3602]

I never ran from encounters in this or other pokemon games, as they all have a massive exp problem and I'd always kill wild mons to make up for that. Also diglet cave is super short you wont even run into a dozen encounters from one side to the other

[@josephthomas8318]

Even in the original red/blue digletts high speed stat would keep you from escaping if you weren't leveled enough. Getting that level 26 dugtrio to spawn was a mini boss battle in the OG games. His speed is incredibly high for that point in the game and if you manage to catch him, that dugtrio will steamroll through Lt. Surge, Erika, Koga, pokemon tower, and most team rocket. encounters. Game freak was throwing you a bone with that dugtrio encounter and you didn't even realize it

[@fourthstrongest]

this game came out for me just in time for my reading comprehension to develop enough where i actually understood every word in the game, unlike the previous ones. it helped develop my love for charmander and a lot of other kanto pokemon, taught me how to actually build a well rounded team that works (not just use my overleveled swampert to win everything), and actually let me complete the kanto elite four, yet i agree with every word you've said. by the time i actually got to the end and wanted to build a whole pokedex, it really settled in what the game really was. i remember going to one island with a golbat, leveling it up, and getting stopped because i didn't complete the postgame. even at 9 years old i knew something was wrong and it lead to me developing a sharp eye for pokemon games to come. thank you for this video; it has been very validating lol

[@Luvutoo]

As a player who grew up with this version of gen 1, the real letdown was having the wireless adapter but no one in my school that played Pokemon

[@YawnBlue]

Didn't have anyone to trade with with the actual gen 1, didn't have anyone to trade with in generation 3's reinterpretation. So that wasn't a dealbreaker for me.