Pokémon Red, Blue, and Yellow

Pokémon Red and Blue
File:Pokemon red box.jpg File:BlueV.jpg
Developer(s)	Game Freak
Publisher(s)	Nintendo
Designer(s)	Satoshi Tajiri (director) Ken Sugimori (artist)
Series	Pokémon series
Platform(s)	Game Boy (with SGB support), Game Boy Advance (as Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen)
Genre(s)	Console role-playing game
Mode(s)	Single player, Multiplayer

Pokémon Red (ポケットモンスター 赤, Poketto Monsutā Aka, "Pocket Monsters Red") and Pokémon Blue (ポケットモンスター 青, Poketto Monsutā Ao, "Pocket Monsters Blue") are the first two installments of the Pokémon series of role-playing video games, first released for the Game Boy in Japan in 1996, later released to the rest of the world in 1998 (North America) and 1999 (Europe and Australia). Pokemon Yellow, an enhanced remake of Red and Blue, was released one year later in each region. The game is based on the anime. Set in the fantasy world of Kanto, the game's stories follow the progress of the central character in his quest to master Pokémon battling. Both games are independent of each other but feature largely the same plot and, while both can be played separately, it is necessary for the player to trade among the two in order to fully complete the game.

Pokémon Red and Blue have subsequently been remade for the Game Boy Advance into Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen. These, being advanced generation games, allow the player to obtain all of 386 then-available Pokémon species created by the franchise.

The original two games, along with Pokémon Yellow and Pokémon Stadium form the first generation of Pokémon, also called the "primary generation".

Story

Setting

Pokémon Red and Blue takes place in Kanto, one distinct region of many later shown in other games. The region features a total of twelve cities, with roads connecting most locations to one another. Some areas are only accessible once the player learns a special ability or gains a special item; for instance, the player must acquire the HM Surf, which allows the character to ride certain Pokémon across the sea, in order to reach Cinnabar Island.

Plot

The mute protagonist of Pokémon Red and Blue (called Red in Pokémon Gold, Silver and Crystal, but can be named what the player wants) is a young boy who lives in Pallet Town. At the beginning of the games, players can choose Bulbasaur, Charmander or Squirtle as their starter Pokémon from Professor Oak. They cannot catch any of the starters or their evolutions in the wild or by trading with in-game NPCs; therefore, to complete the Pokédex with all 151 Pokémon, the player must link games and trade with other players, as well as attending Nintendo Events. The basic point of the game is to become the best trainer in all of Kanto; this is done by raising Pokémon, defeating the eight Gym Leaders for Gym Badges, and eventually challenging the Elite Four and the Champion, the player's rival. Also, throughout the game, the player will have to battle against the forces of Team Rocket, a criminal organization that uses Pokémon for evil, and will eventually face off against their leader, Giovanni.

The protagonist has a childhood rival, who happens to be the grandson of Professor Oak. This character's default name is the opposite color of the version owned (i.e. in Red version, the character's default name is Blue). He will battle the player at certain points in the game to test the player's Pokémon. He will always choose for his starter a Pokémon that has a type advantage over the player's chosen one. For example, if the player chooses Charmander, a Fire-type Pokémon, he will choose Squirtle, a Water-type Pokémon, giving it an advantage over the Fire-type Charmander.

Gameplay

File:Raichugolbat.png

The player’s level 26 Raichu battles a level 25 Golbat in Red version.

Like many console role-playing games, Pokémon Red and Blue are in third-person perspective, with players directly navigating the protagonist around the fictional universe, interacting with objects and people. As the player explores this world they encounter different terrains, such as grassy fields, forests, caves, and seas, in which different Pokémon species reside. As the player randomly encounters one of these creatures, the field switches to a turn-based "battle scene", where Pokémon take turns attacking.

A major aspect of the game is developing and raising the player's Pokémon by battling other Pokémon, which can be found in the wild or owned by other Trainers. This system of accumulating experience points and leveling up, characteristic of all Pokémon video games and integral to these games, controls the physical properties of the Pokémon, such as battle statistics and attacks learned.

There are two main goals within the games: defeating the toughest trainers at the end of the game, the Elite Four, and completing the Pokédex by capturing, evolving or trading to obtain all 151 monsters.

The game features various glitches, including M and MissingNo., two glitched Pokémon that are encountered while surfing on the side of Cinnibar Island. If captured, they can cause the game to not function properly or scramble the graphics.

Link-up capabilities

Pokémon Red and Blue allow players to trade Pokémon between two cartridges via a Game Boy Link Cable. This has to be done in order to complete the game without cheating or using glitches, since each of the two games has version-specific Pokémon which cannot be obtained in the other version. The Link Cable also makes it possible to battle another player's Pokémon team, allowing experienced players to pit their Pokémon against equals, something not possible in the game world without cheating. However, no experience points are earned for link battles. When playing Red and Blue on a Gameboy Advance or SP, the standard GBA/SP link cable will not work; players must use the Nintendo Universal Game Link Cable.

As well as trading with each other, Pokémon Red and Blue can trade Pokémon with the second generation of Pokémon games (Pokémon Gold and Silver and Pokémon Crystal) released later. However, there are some limitations. Players cannot link to the first generation games if their party contains Pokémon introduced in the second generation games, or Pokémon with moves introduced in the second generation games. Glitch Pokémon like MissingNo. and 'M are unsupported as well; the games register them as abnormal and cancel any trade involving the glitches. Also, the English versions of the games are not compatible with their Japanese counterparts, and such trades resulted in corruption because they were unable to translate the Pokémon that were traded automatically.

Using the Transfer Pak for the Nintendo 64, data (such as Pokémon and items) from Pokémon Red and Blue can be used in the Nintendo 64 games Pokémon Stadium and Pokémon Stadium 2.

The games, however, are not compatible with the Pokémon games of the later "Advanced Generation" for the Game Boy Advance and GameCube.

Development

The concept of the Pokémon saga stems from the hobby of insect collecting, a popular pastime which game producer Satoshi Tajiri had enjoyed as a child. Tajiri thought the Game Boy was perfect for his concept, especially because of the link cable that allows players to trade or fight their Pokémon. Tajiri never expected that the game would be so popular, especially because of the declining popularity of the handheld.

The main characters were named after Tajiri himself (Satoshi) and his friend and fellow Nintendo developer, Shigeru Miyamoto (Shigeru).

All the drawings were made by artist Ken Sugimori, and the music was made by Junichi Masuda (most tunes were later used in the anime in rearranged orchestral versions).

The Pokémon never bleed or die in battle, only faint – this was a very touchy subject to Tajiri, as he didn't want to further fill the gaming world with "pointless violence."

In Japan, Pokémon Red and Pokémon Green were the first versions released. Several months later, Pokémon Blue was released with improved graphics and slight differences, such as Pokémon being encountered in different areas, and layout changes. Blue was initially only sold in Japan to CoroCoro subscribers. The Red and Blue versions were eventually released in the United States close to two years later.

Reception

Reviews

Publication	Score
IGN	10 of 10
GameSpot	8.8 of 10
EGM	8.5 of 10
Nintendo Power	7.2 of 10
Compilations of multiple reviews
Game Rankings	88 of 100 (based on 14 reviews)

The games set the precedent for what has become a blockbuster, multi-billion dollar franchise. In Japan, Pokémon Red, Blue, and Green combined have sold 10.23 million copies. In the United States, Pokémon Red has sold 4.83 million copies, while Pokémon Blue has sold 5.02 million copies.

Versions

Pokémon Green

File:Pocket Monsters Green Coverart.png

Pocket Monsters Midori boxart.

Pokémon Green (ポケットモンスター 緑, Poketto Monsutā Midori, "Pocket Monsters Green") is the original game released with the Red version in Japan. It was never released in the United States because of the release of the improved Pokémon Blue taking its place. The remake Pokémon LeafGreen later represents it rather than the Blue version.

Pokémon Yellow

File:Pokemon Yellow box.jpg

Pokémon Yellow's box art.

Pokémon Yellow: Special Pikachu Edition is the fourth game in the Pokémon video game series in Japan, and the third in North America and Europe. The game is a remake of the previous two versions, Pokémon Red and Blue, and was released in Japan on September 12, 1998 as Pocket Monsters Pikachu (ポケットモンスターピカチュウ, Poketto Monsutā Pikachū). It was released in North America on October 1, 1999 and in Europe on June 16, 2000 and was called Pokémon: Special Pikachu Edition by Nintendo. Along with the release of Pokémon Yellow, a special edition yellow Pokémon-themed Game Boy Color was also released. Pokemon Yellow was the last game released in the United States for the original Game Boy.

File:Pokemon gb pikachusad.png

Pikachu will display its level of happiness when talked to.

The plot and gameplay of Pokémon Yellow is largely the same as in Red and Blue, though it features changes to make the game more similar to the animated series. Like Ash Ketchum in the anime, the main character of the game receives Pikachu as their starter Pokémon. One of Pikachu's unique features is that, unlike other Pokémon the player encounters in the game, Pikachu walks behind the trainer and will display emotion. Pikachu will react when the player enters certain buildings and rooms. If the player faces Pikachu and talks to it, a box will appear showing Pikachu’s face, and it will say a heavily digitized Pikachu! with various inflections. This, along with its facial expression, tells the player about Pikachu’s current mood. Pikachu’s mood ranges from murderous to curious to bursting with love. Other minor gameplay changes include a different selection of Pokémon available to catch, all three Red and Blue starter Pokémon being available from NPCs, and the anime characters, Jessie, James and Meowth, making appearances.

Despite being an upgraded variant of Red and Blue, Yellow proved to be extremely popular. When it was released in North America in late 1999, it was available to consumers in a dual package containing a Game Boy Color, which debuted at #2 in sales and claimed the #1 spot a week later. It became the fastest selling handheld game of all time when it was released; the standard cartridge sold over 600,000 units in its first week and more than one million copies in its first fortnight, remaining the top selling handheld game for many weeks. The game entered the Guinness Book of Records in 2001 for selling one million copies within a span of one month. Overall, Yellow was well-received by critics. GameSpot gave it a "Great" rating, with an overall 8.9/10 score; IGN gave it a "masterful" 10/10, noting "The game is super easy to pick up and play, yet it's challenging in its own right. And it's addictive." It ranks among the top Game Boy games ever released.

Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen

Main article: Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen

External links

• Template:Nintendo.com-archive
• Template:Nintendo.com-archive
• IGN Guide to Pokémon: Blue and Red