Pokemon FireRed Version

"Pomeon Fire Red! Sizziling Success? Or Badly Burned Remake?"

Pokemon Fire Red Review

Overall 8/10

Welcome to the wonderful world of Pokemon… again. Fire red and Leaf Green enter the video gaming industry as the newest Pokemon games. Starting with Red/Blue/Yellow (also Green) Pokemon was a hit. It was the “cool” thing. Then out came Silver/Gold/Crystal, and of course long before that people were considering Pokemon players kiddy and the series overdone. Then, out come The Game Boy Advance, and what would a Game boy system be without a Pokemon? And, Nintendo lived up to their reputation and released Pokemon Ruby and Sapphire, and the upcoming Emerald. Many people were yelling, “Stop! The first one was the best!” Well, Nintendo heard your cries, and out comes a remake of the first gems… Fire Red and Leaf Green. This will still have many people angry, but as companies have to learn, nothing will ever please everyone. And its certainly pleased me. I myself never found any of the Pokemon games boring or bad, but if you still preferred the first series, then this game is for you. It's a delightful remake of the first few that stole the hearts of gamers everywhere. Read on to find out why.

Story 6/10

Welcome to Pokemon… go catch all 150 for me because I'm lazy. Yes sir, mister creepy old man. Nothing spectacular, but the story never made Pokemon games good. You were never waiting for the next big plot twist, and if you were than you were probably sorely disappointed and sold the game in frustration. If you like twisting plots then go get another game, Pokemon is not for you, and hopefully will never be for you. It's about catching the Pokemon, leveling them, evolving them and beating random people you meet on your journeys. Don't like the premise? Well you may be surprised. Give it a shot, that's all I ask.

Gameplay 10/10

The gameplay shines so much in Pokemon it's almost blinding. When originally released, the Pokemon battle system was new and exciting, and they added more throughout the many games that made this series great. Also, it's a (pretty much) free roaming world where you could hang back for days and just train, or surge forward avoiding battles left and right. Neither are good ideas, Pokemon is pretty much engineered so that if you play a leisurely paced game, leveling when you need to and avoiding very few battles that you'll do just fine. Also, the game has enough in it to last for however long you want it to! Try finding another game like that, and they are very far and few between. Also, the L and R help buttons are very good for inexperienced/new Pokemon gamers. The new looks of the people and Pokemon and the addition of all sorts of moves and islands after your done the main story mode, this game is shaping up to be great! 10/10 almost seems to low for this category. Maybe an 11/10 would suffice better.

Graphics 8/10

2D graphics! Oh no! Not really, the graphics look very well and with the addition of color from the originals, this game is probably the best graphics wise of the entire series. Sadly, there is no night and day so we don't see how it would hold up in a darker climate. I play this on an SP so it may look better to me than to some of you normal GBA players, but even with no backlit screen, its still great. The Charmander looks cute, while the Charmeleon is bad looking. Such things you will notice when playing Fire Red and Leaf Green. Otherwise though, graphics won't carry this game to the bank, its many other qualities manage just fine for that. Not much else to say for graphics, their awesome, and that's all you need to know.

Controls 10/10

Their Nintendo simple! That's a compliment, not a Con. Not much else to say here. If you can't figure them out yourself then just flip to the manual, if you can't read, what are you even doing here?

Difficulty Easy

This game is easy most parts, hard some parts. Just do your best and I'm sure you can figure it out in no time!

Sound 7/10

The sound doesn't shine, period. It's kind of lame, mostly annoying. Those of you who don't enjoy wasting batteries probably won't have the sound on anyway, so it really doesn't matter. For a more in-depth look, the sound is simple, and sometimes enjoyable. Once again, this won't make the game a winner, or a loser. Just another average game. Something Pokemon Fire Red isn't, its far more.

Replay value 6/10

Once your tired of the game, you'll put it down, because if your not tired of it, you'll still be holding it, and if you are done with it once your happy with not playing for awhile, then do you ever really replay?

Final thoughts

This game is worth buying, whether big fan or newcomer, it's a must have. Enjoy your new game, or at least, the new game you should be buying.

FINAL OVERVIEW
Overall 8/10
Story 6/10
Gameplay 10/10 (11/10)
Graphics 8/10
Controls 10/10
Difficulty Easy
Sound 7/10
Replay 6/10

Thanks for reading my review on Pokemon Fire Red, it's a absolute must buy!

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 09/13/04