A New Generation of Pokemon Gaming

From the Release of Pokemon Red and Green to the near current release of Pokemon X and Y Pokemon games have progressed through the ages with ever increasing popularity.

Pokemon Red and Green… I mean Blue!

The first release of Pokemon Red and Green (or pocket monsters as it was known in Japan) in Japan left players stunned with what was at the time state of the art graphics, gameplay and story line. Pokemon Red and Green featured the classic starter Pokemon that those old enough to have experienced will remember; Bulbasaur, Squirtle and Charmander. Although it was unknown at the time this started the Pokemon craze that continues even today. Pokemon Red and Green was later released to the world in the same year (1996) as Pokemon games Red and Blue.

Pokemon Yellow

As the year 1998 came to an end Nintendo released the 3rd Pokemon game to go global known as Pokémon Yellow: Special Pikachu Edition. This special version of Pokemon was based more on the anime then that of the typical Pokemon game. The player starts off in Pallet Town forced to take on the training of the Pokemon, Pikachu. As the Player progressed through the story line and journeys through the region of Kanto the player acquires the original starter Pokemon of Bulbasaur, Squirtle and Charmander , much like In the anime. Again based on the anime the Players rival starts with the Pokemon Eevee.The original intention of releasing Pokemon Yellow was to give Nintendo more time to work on the Pokemon games Gold and Silver

Pokemon Gold and Silver

The Release of Pokemon Games , Pokemon Gold and Pokemon Silver brought with them the dawn of a new age of Pokemon and Characters. By this time in the world Pokemon had become an international phenomenon and with the creation of new Pokemon, fans around the world went crazy. Pokemon Gold and Silver take place  not in the Kanto region but instead in the Johto region. The player receives their starting Pokemon from a Pokemon Professor known as Professor Elm, not all too different from Professor Oak from the Kanto region. Instead of the classic Bulbasaur, Squirtle and Charmander the Player chooses from three new Pokemon starters , Chikorita, Cyndaquil, or Totodile. Again unlike the previous Pokemon games , the player’s rival isn’t given a Pokemon but instead steals one. Pokemon Gold and Pokemon Silver also brought with them a new kind of rarity, Shiny Pokemon. These types of Pokemon differ from that of others in the way that they are different colors to their original counterparts and generally have higher stats. The chance of encountering a shiny Pokemon was set by the game developers as a 1 in 8192 chance and as such increased the value of these rare Pokemon. These two new Pokemon games also brought with them the ability to Breed Pokemon, the PokeGear, Apricorns and the Pokemon virus, Pokerus.

Pokemon Crystal

One year after the initial release of Pokemon Gold and Silver Nintendo released another Pokemon game called Pokemon Crystal. Pokemon Crystal was released as a sister game to Pokemon Gold and Silver with minor bug fixes and some added content. With the addition of a new female character, Kris, players now had the choice to play as either a male or female character broadening Pokemon’s fan base even more. .

Another minor change in Pokemon Crystal was the Animation of Pokemon sprites

Pokemon Ruby and Sapphire

Following one year after the release of Pokemon Crystal, Nintendo , not wanting to break their train of releasing a Pokemon game every year produced Pokemon Ruby and Sapphire. The games Pokemon Ruby and Pokemon Sapphire starred in another new region known as the Hoenn region. Again Nintendo produced another 3 Pokemon starters , Treecko, Torchic, and Mudkip and once again a new Professor, Professor Birch. The player is given a Pokemon after having helped the Professor, similar to  previous versions of Pokemon.  Pokemon Ruby and Sapphire feature new Pokeballs at the players disposal and introduces the Pokenav, the equivalent to the Pokegear in previous versions.

Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen

In 2004 Nintendo released Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen as remakes of the original Pokemon games but with drastic changes and additions  As LeafGreen and FireRed are remakes of Red and Blue the feature the same story line, characters , locations and challenges. Featured in these new games is a massive improvement to the Pokemon system with all Pokemon now having Abilities, Natures, and being Gender defined with the exception of the Legendary Pokemon. When LeafGreen and FireRed were initially released they included  a wireless adapter to remove the need for Link Cables but were later sold separately.

Pokemon Emerald

Much like Pokemon Crystal, Pokemon Emerald was released as a sister game to Pokemon Ruby and Pokemon Sapphire. Pokemon Emerald was released one year after the release of Pokemon games FireRed and LeafGreen. Again much like Pokemon crystal it was released with many new features not included in Pokemon Ruby and Sapphire. Despite having more and new features Pokemon Emerald had less game sales and ranked in 3rd behind Pokemon LeafGreen and FireRed in second place and Pokemon Ruby and Sapphire in first. Pokemon Emerald was the last of its kind ending the third generation Pokemon games and the last of the Pokemon games to be played on GameBoy Advanced. Pokemon Emerald allowed the Player to instead of first catching ether Groudon or Kyogre as it was in Pokemon Ruby and Sapphire the Player was able to catch Rayquaza before encountering and defeating the Elite Four. After doing so the Player was then able to catch the two legendaries at various locations through Hoenn at higher levels then in the previous games. The Player was also able to experience both the Team Magma and Team Aqua story lines in one game

Pokemon Diamond and Pearl

Following the release of Emerald ,in typical Nintendo style one year later Pokemon games Diamond and Pearl brought with them yet another stream of new Pokemon  to add the Generation list. Pokemon Diamond and Pearl brought with them the dawn of  Pokemon gaming to the new Nintendo device the Nintendo DS. A handheld device with an internal rechargeable battery , a touch screen and two new action button all in the unison with the classic but familiar buttons found on the Gameboy Advance. ThePlayer begins their journey in Twinleaf Town, the Sinnoh region equivalent to the all so familiar Pallet Town. As in all previous Pokemon games the Player is given a Pokemon after an event of extraordinary events occurs. In Pokemon Diamond and Pearl the Player and his/her companion, later to become your rival, are attacked by wild Pokemon and are forced to defend them selves with Pokemon contained in a near by suitcase. As per the norm the Pokemon you choose later becomes your own after having been given to you by Professor Rowan who, like the previous Professors, is named after a tree. The three Pokemon that the Player can choose  are known as Turtwig, Piplup and Chimchar, and with the Arrival of these new starter Pokemon comes with them a new line of Legendary Pokemon, the main of which include  Dialga and Palkia, each exclusive to their own game, Dialga to Pokemon Diamond and Palkia to Pokemon Pearl.

Pokemon Platinum

Not soon after , but in no less time then a year, Pokemon Platinum was released, the third game in the generation four series. Despite Pokemon Platinum being released after Pokemon games Diamond and Pearl, it is intended and considered to be the main game belonging to the forth generation of Pokemon. Minor changes where made in the creation of Platinum that vary slightly to that of Diamond and Pearl. Pokemon Platinum, much like that of Pokemon Crystal and Pokemon Emerald featured a different story line to that of Diamond and Pearl but still consisted of the same characters from Platinums sister games released one year earlier.

Pokemon Gold and Silver

Following Pokemon Platinum, Nintendo re-created Pokemon Gold and Silver and Released them with slight variations on the Names, Pokemon Gold was re-released as Pokemon HeartGold , Pokemon Silver as SoulSilver. Both games featured the same Legendary Pokemon as the original games and the same starter Pokemon. After ten years of Pokemon games the ability of walking around with your Pokemon trailing you resurfaced and was once more available to Pokemon trainers around the world. HeartGold and SoulSilver where released with a new device called the PokeWalker, this small Pokeball device allowed the Player to transfer Pokemon to the Pedometer and gain experience and find items for the Pokemon whilst continuing with their daily routine. This created a spark among Pokemon gamers and caused the sale rates of Pokemon HeartGold and SoulSilver to skyrocket. A defining feature in  the HeartGold and SoulSilver games that separated them from the rest was the ability to travel to all  regions that have appeared in previous Pokemon games, greatly expanding the range of Pokemon available to the Player.

The Pokewalker that comes with the purchase of Pokemon Heartgold or SoulSilver

Pokemon Black and White

The Team of Nintendo put their heads together to create yet another Region of the world of Pokemon for Pokemon fans to explore with the Release of Pokemon Black and White featuring all new Pokemon, characters, locations and PokeGear. With Black and White comes the opportunity for Poke Fans to explore the region of Unova and experience a whole new world alongside Pokemon of generation five. A first was released with the creation of these games with Nintendo giving the Player two Rivals ,nether of which turn bad, but instead remain close friends of the Player all through the experience of Unova. As expected with new Pokemon and a new Region come new starters with unusual names and physiques. These 3 starters are named, Snivy, Oshawott, and Tepig. Pokemon Black and White featured monumental improvement in 3D graphics , far greater than that of any previous Pokemon Games made by Nintendo.Pokemon Black and White had much more access and ability in terms of Multiplayer with the addition of items and features such as, The C-Gear, Pokemon Global Link, The Pokemon Dream World, and the addition of the Entralink allowing Players to travel to another Players world. Pokemon Black and White also introduces an interesting feature of seasons through the world of Pokemon adding what is felt to be a slightly bigger addition of reality.

Pokemon Black and White… again!

The Latest installment released by Nintendo, a sequel to Pokemon games Black and White, known as Pokemon Black2 ,and Pokemon White2 occur two years after the scenes of Pokemon Black and White. With Pokemon Black2 and White2 many things have changed in the region of Unova including new areas open for exploration, Gym leaders and a New League Champion. The Player now plays as a different character from the original Black and White games, instead of beginning in Nuvema Town the player now starts in Aspertia City and receives their Pokemon from Bianca not Professor Juniper.

Pokemon Generations!

Last but not least we come up to the main event of this article Pokemon Generations! Although this game is not endorsed or made by Nintendo it is by far the latest and best advancement in Pokemon games since the creation of Pokemon Black and White. Although this game is currently in an open Alpha, with very limited options, the gameplay goes beyond previous Pokemon games with full control over your Pokemon , including movement and when and how to use their moves. Despite the time and effort having been put into making the game , its rumored that it will be released as a Free To Play game to avoid copyright infringement relating to Nintendo and its products as expected. Pokemon Generations is still in production but is long awaited by many fans a like who cant wait to get their hands on it.