Pokemon LeafGreen

A few hours into the game the truth began to seep through.

The intro to LeafGreen brings back memories of 1998.  You pick one of three Pokemon: Bulbasaur, Squirtle or Charmander, each packing their own magical element.  Your rival picks second, and he will always choose whichever Pokemon is most effective against yours.  Nothing new, nothing too exciting.

Pokemon has a way of growing on you though.  Slowly it begins to hook its claws into you, making you Pika for more chu.  In other words, the game is like Pringles – once you pop the game into your GBA you won't be able to stop playing it.

Eight badges need to be won in order to explore the world in its entirety, which is the only way you can catch all 150+ Pokemon.  The "+" signifies the new Pokemon that have been added to this remade world.  Pokemon can be transferred from Ruby and Sapphire.  For perfectionists and anyone who loves to trade, this is just the thing to ensure that LeafGreen is one of the games that helps wear out your battery.  (Something tells me I'll need to buy another SP in a year or two.)

Pokemon is still Pokemon, but it isn't the exact same world you conquered with Ash Ketchum.  Most everything looks familiar – some less than others thanks to the improved graphics (this time the Pokemon are in color and have slightly improved body detail).  Not too far into the game you'll encounter expanded areas, or areas that have been revamped to match the massive size of Ruby and Sapphire.  Casual fans may not notice a difference, but it's unlikely that they're going to be the ones buying it.  The hardcore fans will surely spot the differences, even those that are subtle.

Catching and battling – the banana and cereal of every Pokemon game – is just as fun in LeafGreen.  I've caught a million Sandshrews before and crossed paths with plenty of Snorlaxes, but that didn't make it any less entertaining.  I still got excited, cheering loud enough for other people to hear me.  Now they don't talk to me because they think I'm crazy, but I still have the companionship of Charmander.  He'll always be my friend.

"Char, char!"

Some Pokemon are harder to catch, others are harder to beat, and still others are less powerful under your command.  The new level-up meter indicates how close you are to strengthening your Pokemon, eliminating the need to click through menus just to see how many more battles are needed.  That didn't make the first gym battle any easier.  I suppose if I had leveled up more I would've had an easier time, but I wanted to move on and see the world, not spend my time battling 3-level Weedles.  Struggling to win proved to be a wise choice.  In the woodsy areas that follow, many new challengers are looking for someone to battle with.  Some of the challengers' cheesy dialogue you'll recognize from the original.  My favorite comes from a guard: "Gee, I'm thirsty."  It's lame, but it's something a Pokemon player will never forget.  Gives us something to laugh at 10 years from now.

As mentioned before, Pokemon LeafGreen has received GBA plastic surgery.  The new graphics would have been more impressive had we gotten to experience them before playing Ruby and Sapphire, but that shouldn't take away from the upgraded battle animations.  The monsters look bigger and a tad more ferocious (not ferocious like you might be thinking; ferocious for a Pokemon game).  The graphics are almost on the level of The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past.  Most of the worlds look bigger even if they're not.  Faces can be seen reflecting on the lake's surface, a little touch Nintendo added to Ruby and Sapphire.  You're not going to be blown away by these visuals, but that's true of all the Pokemon games.  I didn't buy the previous games for their graphics and I'm not about to start making that an issue.

New to Pokemon LeafGreen is the berry and "item hold" feature that debuted with Ruby and Sapphire.  Also new is the soundtrack, which no longer sounds like Pokemon music.  Why they changed it is beyond me.  The music is good though.  It's reminiscent of other Game Boy Advance RPGs, featuring sounds that are a bit more mainstream than the other Pokemon games.  This should appeal to new players who are not stuck in the series' roots.

I was fearful, I was skeptical, but in the end I was happily hooked.  Hooked on its inability to let me stop playing.  Pokemon LeafGreen is costly for a remake: you'll pay $35-$40 if you can't find it on sale.  But the game includes the all-new wireless link cable, and the hours of replay value just can't be beat.  I wouldn't recommend it to casual players who have all the other Pokemon games, but for the hardcore fans like myself, this is a must-buy.

Gameplay: 8.5
If you had told me that someone was going to make an RPG for all ages -- one with a weak story and kid-friendly monsters -- I would have probably laughed.  Kid-friendly games just aren't fun.

What we forget is that a game doesn't have to be childish to be kid-friendly.  My 12-year-old cousin will not go near Pokemon.  He was once a huge fan, but now he thinks they're designed for kids.  My friends (who are in their early 20s) all love the game.  Not just the original, but all of them.

The reason: we just gotta catch 'em all.  There's something about the simple (but unobvious) puzzles, the simple battles and the attack limitations that make it impossible to put down.  Every time I review a Pokemon game I walk away with the same feelings: tired from the lack of sleep but satisfied by the unrelenting gameplay.

Graphics: 7
LeafGreen looks good for a Pokemon game, but there's still a lot more that can be done.  Imagine how incredible the game would look if it had the visuals of Final Fantasy VI.

Sound: 7.5
Good music, but I liked the original soundtrack better.  I associate the original music with Pokemon, and when I'm playing Pokemon I expect to hear the classic music.

Difficulty: Easy/Medium
Pokemon has never been a mind-boggling, scream-at-the-screen kind of game, and that doesn't change with this remake.

Concept: 7.9
New monsters, new locales, new items.  Count me in!

Multiplayer: 7
The trade feature is great, but for me, Pokemon has always been about the massive single-player quest, not the two-player battles.

Overall: 8.4
Got a family trip coming up or a business meeting you wish to sleep through?  Don't have the secretary bring you a pillow, send for Pokemon LeafGreen.  While the boss is rambling about statistics, product sales and other hyperbole, you can nod your head and look like a smart employee.  The managers will think you're hanging on the boss's every word, when in actuality you're just nodding your head so you can see the screen concealed under the table.