This was my first time playing a Pokemon game since I believe 2019? It sadly wasn't the best reintroduction, although to give LeafGreen credit, replaying this game reminded me why the Pokemon formula provided me with so much serotonin before.
It's quite simple, really. Putting together teams is just so satisfactory. Is it necessary? Absolutely not. But strategizing which Pokemon I'll use, what movesets they'll have, their synergy with each other, etc adds a layer of brainstorming I wouldn't receive in Pokemon otherwise. I felt bonded to my team in a way I wouldn't have felt if I just overleveled my starter and blown through everything.
But dear miku, this game is so uninteresting otherwise. Were there highlights? Of course. The snorlax battles, the hidden base under the casino, and searching for the legendary birds stood out to me. Otherwise, this game just feels like running through the same mundane motions over and over and over again. Nothing about Kanto's design intrigued me in the slightest (seriously, the dungeon design was on par with NES RPGs), most of the trainers used the same few Pokemon over and over again, and the difficulty was practically non existent aside from level spikes that came out of nowhere.
I know this was supposed to be a faithful remake of the original Red and Blue with GBA mechanics, but did they really need to lock the Pokemon selection to the original 151? I didn't even bother using any Pokemon besides Jon Mess the Venusaur until nearly halfway through the game because none of the other Pokemon available before then stood out to me. Apparently, you can't even evolve Pokemon that received Johto evolutions??? That's genuinely BS.
I'm glad LeafGreen at least rejuvenated my interest in the series (or at least when it comes to replaying the other Pokemon games from my childhood to see if they're worth playing anymore either), and I'm especially happy so many people seem to enjoy it. I can't say I'm one of those people, sadly.
It's quite simple, really. Putting together teams is just so satisfactory. Is it necessary? Absolutely not. But strategizing which Pokemon I'll use, what movesets they'll have, their synergy with each other, etc adds a layer of brainstorming I wouldn't receive in Pokemon otherwise. I felt bonded to my team in a way I wouldn't have felt if I just overleveled my starter and blown through everything.
But dear miku, this game is so uninteresting otherwise. Were there highlights? Of course. The snorlax battles, the hidden base under the casino, and searching for the legendary birds stood out to me. Otherwise, this game just feels like running through the same mundane motions over and over and over again. Nothing about Kanto's design intrigued me in the slightest (seriously, the dungeon design was on par with NES RPGs), most of the trainers used the same few Pokemon over and over again, and the difficulty was practically non existent aside from level spikes that came out of nowhere.
I know this was supposed to be a faithful remake of the original Red and Blue with GBA mechanics, but did they really need to lock the Pokemon selection to the original 151? I didn't even bother using any Pokemon besides Jon Mess the Venusaur until nearly halfway through the game because none of the other Pokemon available before then stood out to me. Apparently, you can't even evolve Pokemon that received Johto evolutions??? That's genuinely BS.
I'm glad LeafGreen at least rejuvenated my interest in the series (or at least when it comes to replaying the other Pokemon games from my childhood to see if they're worth playing anymore either), and I'm especially happy so many people seem to enjoy it. I can't say I'm one of those people, sadly.