Destructoid’s Retro Runback I – Weird wonderful world of Pokémon N64
Hey Destructoid, and welcome to a new series I'm trying to set up revolving around all things retro gaming. I haven't quite decided on an overarching theme for this quite yet, instead looking at different topics from across the retro spectrum. Maybe sometimes I'll discuss beloved games from my childhood that I wish had gotten more love over the years, maybe look back at retro gaming history for the new generation, or maybe I'll just waffle about modern retro devices that don't hold up to playing a game on a CRT. But for now, and to make things simple, I wanted to focus on one aspect that I remember quite fondly—Pokémon. Or rather, what started as a love and turned into an obsession with Pokémon retro spin-off games. And I think the N64 spin-off games were where it all began. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDh1tPOxFm0&ab_channel=LochSNESMonster There were five Pokémon games on the N64, if you can believe it. Pokémon Stadium 1 and 2, Pokémon Snap, Pokémon Puzzle League, and Hey You, Pikachu! each with their gimmicks and wild gameplay. These don't even include the Japanese exclusive N64 game, the first Pocket Monsters Stadium, which had a handful of playable Pokémon over the full 151 at the time. As a spoiled kid, I had all of these, and they were some of the games I remember playing the most, outside the classic games on Game Boy and Game Boy Color. I remember pestering my parents, saving up change, doing odd jobs around the neighborhood, to be able to save to afford them, especially the Pokémon Stadium games which were so hard to find at the time in any local store, (though I wasn't fortunate enough to get the Pikachu N64 console.) I've had a chance to replay a lot of the games lately after dusting off my old consoles to set up a Pokémon collection in my office, and I have to say, I have no idea how Hey You, Pikachu! and Pokémon Puzzle League got greenlit! Not only are they weird spinoffs, but I'm convinced Hey You, Pikachu! doesn't work back then and even now, and I found myself screaming at Pikachu to listen, only to spend hours being ignored before giving up. Puzzle League also feels like a bad puzzle game during a time when it felt like everyone was trying to make one, as they were simple and cheap to get out. It feels like they could have stuck any IP on it and it would have been the same game and experience, but they decided, of all things, to do the Pokémon anime series!? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pKCqklzBcAU&ab_channel=NintendoMovies Moving from the weird to the wonderful, though, it's hard to really have the same experience with Pokémon Snap and the Pokémon Stadium games now, like you would in the past. I remember the first time I played Pokémon Snap as a kid and went through the Tunnel, unsure how to unlock the next level. There were no online guides to follow, and I detested strategy guides. So, cut to a young kid hitting an Electrode at the end of the Tunnel to unlock the Volcano stage for the first time as his eyes widen and a sheer sense of joy runs across his face from working it out, and you can see where I'm getting at. Those eureka moments don't really exist in modern-day gaming. Not to mention the Pokémon Stadium games, with their abundance of mini-games, campaigns, and content. It was also the first time we ever got to play with Pokémon on a console to battle each other instead of the pixelated screens on the Game Boy. It was a game-changer at the time and a really cool experience that really can't be replicated. Of course, we could mention the ability to play Pokémon Game Boy games on the TV through both Stadium games, and how that connection of handheld and home console has been a core theme for most of Nintendo's history up until the Nintendo Switch 2. But I think I'll save that for a future Retro Rundown! Each game, both good or bad, really left a lasting impact on me that enhanced my love for the series, and while nowadays Pokémon spinoffs on all platforms are an expectation instead of a novelty, the N64's games will always have a lasting impact on me. The post Destructoid’s Retro Runback I – Weird wonderful world of Pokémon N64 appeared first on Destructoid.
Hey Destructoid, and welcome to a new series I'm trying to set up revolving around all things retro gaming. I haven't quite decided on an overarching theme for this quite yet, instead looking at different topics from across the retro spectrum.
Maybe sometimes I'll discuss beloved games from my childhood that I wish had gotten more love over the years, maybe look back at retro gaming history for the new generation, or maybe I'll just waffle about modern retro devices that don't hold up to playing a game on a CRT.
But for now, and to make things simple, I wanted to focus on one aspect that I remember quite fondly—Pokémon. Or rather, what started as a love and turned into an obsession with Pokémon retro spin-off games. And I think the N64 spin-off games were where it all began.
There were five Pokémon games on the N64, if you can believe it. Pokémon Stadium 1 and 2, Pokémon Snap, Pokémon Puzzle League, and Hey You, Pikachu! each with their gimmicks and wild gameplay. These don't even include the Japanese exclusive N64 game, the first Pocket Monsters Stadium, which had a handful of playable Pokémon over the full 151 at the time.
As a spoiled kid, I had all of these, and they were some of the games I remember playing the most, outside the classic games on Game Boy and Game Boy Color. I remember pestering my parents, saving up change, doing odd jobs around the neighborhood, to be able to save to afford them, especially the Pokémon Stadium games which were so hard to find at the time in any local store, (though I wasn't fortunate enough to get the Pikachu N64 console.)
I've had a chance to replay a lot of the games lately after dusting off my old consoles to set up a Pokémon collection in my office, and I have to say, I have no idea how Hey You, Pikachu! and Pokémon Puzzle League got greenlit! Not only are they weird spinoffs, but I'm convinced Hey You, Pikachu! doesn't work back then and even now, and I found myself screaming at Pikachu to listen, only to spend hours being ignored before giving up.
Puzzle League also feels like a bad puzzle game during a time when it felt like everyone was trying to make one, as they were simple and cheap to get out. It feels like they could have stuck any IP on it and it would have been the same game and experience, but they decided, of all things, to do the Pokémon anime series!?
Moving from the weird to the wonderful, though, it's hard to really have the same experience with Pokémon Snap and the Pokémon Stadium games now, like you would in the past. I remember the first time I played Pokémon Snap as a kid and went through the Tunnel, unsure how to unlock the next level. There were no online guides to follow, and I detested strategy guides.
So, cut to a young kid hitting an Electrode at the end of the Tunnel to unlock the Volcano stage for the first time as his eyes widen and a sheer sense of joy runs across his face from working it out, and you can see where I'm getting at. Those eureka moments don't really exist in modern-day gaming.
Not to mention the Pokémon Stadium games, with their abundance of mini-games, campaigns, and content. It was also the first time we ever got to play with Pokémon on a console to battle each other instead of the pixelated screens on the Game Boy. It was a game-changer at the time and a really cool experience that really can't be replicated.
Of course, we could mention the ability to play Pokémon Game Boy games on the TV through both Stadium games, and how that connection of handheld and home console has been a core theme for most of Nintendo's history up until the Nintendo Switch 2. But I think I'll save that for a future Retro Rundown!
Each game, both good or bad, really left a lasting impact on me that enhanced my love for the series, and while nowadays Pokémon spinoffs on all platforms are an expectation instead of a novelty, the N64's games will always have a lasting impact on me.
The post Destructoid’s Retro Runback I – Weird wonderful world of Pokémon N64 appeared first on Destructoid.
