Game Review: Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen

 

After playing the latest entry in the Pokémon franchise just recently, I had a motivation to go back to the original titles from my youth. You could argue nostalgia was a big factor in that and while I’d agree it’s also down to the level of challenge the older games still have behind them. It’s a consistent observation from many fans in the series that the difficulty and challenge the game presents is not as prevalent in the new iterations as it was in the older versions. After playing Brilliant Diamond, I realised I really wanted to invoke that challenge once more. To pick up an old cartridge and play it with my own spin to give it an even more memorable difficulty. So that’s why I picked up Pokémon FireRed for the Game Boy Advance and decided to do my very first nuzlocke run on it.

Just for context, a nuzlocke challenge is a self-imposed set of rules you play through a Pokémon game with. The main set of rules revolve around only being able to catch one Pokémon from each location, nicknaming and then removing them from your team if they die. Just for an extra layer of challenge I also imposed a no item rule in battles and had the battle style turned to Set so I couldn’t switch out Pokémon beforehand. These rules help make your experience feel truly memorable by making you adapt to the Pokémon you find as opposed to the Pokémon you want and then train and use them in a smart fashion to ensure they don’t die. It’s a very popular set of rules used widely across the fanbase so I figured I may as well give it a proper go.

Pokemon FireRed and its version counterpart; LeafGreen were Game Boy Advance remakes of the original Pokémon games released in 1996. The main idea behind these titles were to fully remake the original games from the ground up for newer hardware so that the other Generation 3 games like Ruby, Sapphire and Emerald would be able to trade and get access to Gen 1 and Gen 2 Pokémon. While being a complete remake, these titles also benefitted from the new battle system and a litany of other improvements Generation 3 provided to make this what I consider one of the strongest remake titles out there. I appreciate this statement may make me look like a hypocrite considering I just ragged on Brilliant Diamond for being nothing BUT a remake but there are differences here. FireRed and LeafGreen remade their original titles but innovated and improved the design and the scope of the game and its narrative rather than simply rehashing it, this is why it stands out as a much more notable remake in the series.

The story behind FireRed and Leafgreen is a lot tamer in comparison to the other titles in the series. There is no legendary mascot of these games and the story Is focused predominantly on you building up a strong team and winning gym badges. There is a side plot with Team Rocket, a criminal organisation in the Kanto region who are kidnapping Pokémon for their own means but this plot line is not weaved into the ongoing narrative nearly as much as in other games. No the main plot really is about your feud with your lifelong rival. As you progress through the game your rival is always a step ahead of you, having a stronger team and having the gym badges before you. He doesn’t just act tough either, one of the best aspects of the rival system in this game is your rival actually trash talks you and rubs his achievements in your face to make you feel bitter. One of the things I always find annoying about later Pokémon releases is the rivals are too nice and don’t invoke much of a rivalry. This original rival is the perfect representation of what a Pokémon rival should be, confident, cocky and consistently challenging; it makes the relationship you have with them way more memorable in light of this.

 

In terms of gameplay, this is the pinnacle formula of which all future Pokémon games worked off. With over 151 Pokémon available to catch across both FireRed and LeafGreen, you have a substantial number of options to work with when it comes to building your team. Though admittingly I don’t find the Generation 1 Pokémon designs nearly as captivating as everyone else seems to I will admit there is a very nice spread of types littered across these games. Type variety is an integral part of any game because it gives you substantial options on how you wish to work through the game and that’s always a positive.  With Generation 3 you also have the added benefit of abilities, natures and held items your Pokémon can all have. There is a huge list of each of them and they can impact the way your Pokémon’s stats can be affected and influence the tide of battle to win or lose. I love the added depth these concepts add to training your Pokémon and how it really makes you think about how you wish to set up your team.  In terms of battling too I enjoyed how reliable the battle system actually is. For such an old iteration in the franchise I feel Generation 3 had a strong foundation for battling with the implementation of the Special Attack and Défense split and the added array of stat-affecting moves.

Where FireRed and LeafGreen lose points with me though is the dated environmental design. In terms of the map, I don’t have much issue with how Kanto wraps around itself constantly. I think when it comes to navigation you can’t fault the way you can loop around rather easily. What I take issue with is the overabundance of HM gateways though. HM (Hidden Moves) are specific moves you need to teach your Pokémon in order to get past certain obstacles in the terrain like trees or boulders.  There are a few issues that these obstacles cause; one of which is the weak and restrictive nature HM moves apply onto your Pokémon compared to other much stronger moves. It also requires you to carry around an extra Poekmon in your slot you may not want in order to accommodate all your HM requirements. I wouldn’t care as much if HM obstacles only apply to hidden items and areas that aren’t necessary to navigate and treated as an optional route, but these obstacles are embedded into the main storyline and it makes navigation and move consolidation such a chore.

While FireRed and LeafGreen aren’t perfect games I can’t sit here and say they aren’t great. After all this time I still think these remakes stand the test of time for offering a very traditional Pokémon experience from start to finish. It incorporates all the best updates that the new generation provides while still offering the very same experience from the original games all the way back in 1996. It both evolves while staying true to the traditions and aesthetics that made it so popular all the way back then. If you’re looking for a fun and original Pokémon experience, FireRed and LeafGreen will always offer you this in a very strong form.