Starters
If you ask any veteran player of Pokemon Gold and Silver what their favorite part of the games are, one of the first things they would almost assuredly say is the pair’s offering of starters. Cementing the tradition that each main entry Pokemon game will feature a choice of grass, fire, and water starter from the outset, Gold and Silver’s Chikorita, Totodile, and Cyndaquil each make a compelling argument to be chosen. To this day, each’s final evolution remain a favorite among fans to use both casually and in competitive circles.
The three aforementioned monsters are just the start of what players soon discover to be a very colorful assortment of new additions to the Pokedex, including Tyranitar, Scizor, Kingdra, and Ampharos. Indeed, Gold and Silver set a precedent for how enthralling the challenge of catching them all could be and remains a staple to how new Pokemon introductions are made in the series.
Presentation
Capturing a unique eastern aesthetic, Gold and Silver’s Jhoto region relies on naturalistic elements to populate its many locales. Whereas in later games players will find cities and towns that rely on technology or large buildings to take up most of its space, each second-generation game seeks to tell you a story through the environment, as oftentimes signs and NPCs tell you tales of legendary Pokemon and other hidden mysteries of the region. This only encourages players to explore further and find out the truth for themselves, making the journey just as noteworthy as the destinations.
Pokemon Gold and Silver ushered in color for the franchise, too, further fleshing out these pocket monsters and making them more real. It’s a great study to witness how Pokemon have evolved in design over time (pun intended) and what features have changed to suit younger demographics. Yes, Pikachu was pretty chubby back in the day.
Gameplay
Pokemon Gold and Silver are great sequels in that they improve upon the original games in almost every way. In Red, Blue, Green, and Yellow, certain moves just didn’t work as intended (like focus energy) and certain types were just plain useless, like Ghosts. Gold and Silver balanced the franchise significantly, evening out the disparity between types and making psychics less powerful. Indeed, these two games sowed the seeds for the extremely popular competitive play Pokemon is adored for.
Gold and Silver also introduced Steel andDark-type Pokemon to the game, mixing up the formula further and challenging players to memorize what typings are most effective in battle. The games don’t hold your hand when they introduce you to Steelix for the first time, and rather wait for you to discover on your own that Normal-type moves don’t work so well on Steel.
Day and Week Cycles
The pair marked a changing point not only for the series but for the gaming industry as a whole. Day and night cycles, week cycles and having Pokemon appear only at precise times throughout the day using an internal clock marked a revolutionary, unique method for further immersing players, encouraging them to continuously play the game. The most famous case of this comes in the form of Lapras, as the Pokemon can only be caught during a certain time once per week.
As annoying as this may sound to modern audiences, these mechanics actually helped make the game come alive. Personally, it wasn’t too uncommon for kids in my elementary school to start a conversation on how to catch a Hoothoot or the aforementioned Lapras. It was a great way to get kids to talk with one another and ultimately make good friends.
Fan Service
Pokemon Gold and Silver know the audience they’re appealing towards. Guaranteeing players an encounter with a shiny Pokemon, letting them roam around Kanto after the main game is over, and giving them a really cool version of your character from Pokemon Red, Blue, Green, or Yellow to fight – complete with Pikachu, so as to serve as an homage to the manga and anime – all show that GameFreak loves the people who play its games and want them further immersed in the universe they’ve crafted.
The amount of hard work and dedication the developers put into Gold and Silver is what truly makes the pair stand the test of time. Though there have been plenty of great main entry games in the series after, each game is still worth plenty of your time, if only just to get to fight Red and his overpowered Pikachu again.
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