Pokemon Silver Version

"Amazing"

Pokemon was the craze a few years back, so naturally i had to get its latest update, which was Pokemon Silver. It still amazes me today, because an idea that in theory is so simple, was fleshed out into some of the most popular games in recent times. I still even play this game on long car trips, which sometimes are very frequent.

Graphics: Fantastic. Awesome. Use any other positive adjectives you can think of, because they all apply here. While the field graphics appear to be average, amazing detail has gone into the buildings, characters faces, and even the wild Pokemon grass. Whats even better however, its the battle animations. They have been given a complete makeover, and they look fantastic. The Pokemon themselves have never looked better. In battle they look simply divine. A real step forward in the series.
10/10

Sound: This is really just decent. Many of the tunes simply do not have a good central melody, and fall flat on their faces. Sound quality however, seems to be a step forward from other Game Boy games released around the same period. This brings its score up some notchs, but the quality of some of the new tunes are simply not good enough. The highlights though include the Gym Leader battle music, and the childish, but strangely uplifting final song in the credits.
Basically good, but not great.
7/10

Game play: This is where the Pokemon games shine. Explination is really not needed, because its really just so simple. Pokemon is such an easy game to get the hang of, and in no time you would have caught many different Pokemon. The new item pocket is a great addition, and it doesn't have the messiness as the eariler games to. Breeding Pokemon is a fantastic part of the game, and of course the new Pokemon. Some of them are unbeatable, and some of them are useless. Choosing the best Pokemon for each situation is a skill you need to maser to finish the game, and making them learn the right moves is a necessity also. I still can't believe that a concept so simple, just catching and fighting monsters, could be set out so well.

Battling your friends is also a major part of the sucess of Pokemon, and it is again presented well. You can battle any version of the game released on Game Boy (Yellow, Red, Blue), so no one will miss out. Of course, you cant use any new Pokemon, or any new moves, but for those who didn't upgrade to the next game, can still enjoy beating your Pokemon to a inch of their life, or enjoy getting their Pokemon getting their butts kicked.
10/10

Really, nothing much else can be said. If you have never played a Pokemon game before, this is a great place to start. I would really love to give this a 10, but the only smallish gripe I had with the game is the sound, but you can also turn it down. An instant classic!

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 09/17/05