Whenever I think back to my early childhood, I am always reminded how "Pokemon" played a big part in my times of leisure. I remember the first time I ever played a handheld game: "Pokemon: Gold Version" on the Game Boy Color. My cousin quickly showed me the ropes and from then on I was hooked on what would become my all-time favorite series of handheld games. I always had a ton of fun, but I have since come to a reassuring revelation: the games have become much better as the years have progressed.
Now, certainly some of you may be thinking, “Well no duh. It’s 2016. They’d better be getting better.” Try telling that to fans of the "Call of Duty," "Battlefield" or even the "Halo" series. There are many emotionally-driven online discussions claiming certain video game series have declined with recent entries. However, as far as I have seen, the "Pokemon" series has remained relatively lacking in criticism in this area — and in this gamer’s personal opinion, I find myself enjoying these games with every subsequent release. Here’s how the series has improved based on my own personal observations.
Generation I: Kanto Region
Ah, the region that started it all. I’m already thinking about my childhood Saturday morning routine of watching the original season of the "Pokemon" anime. But when it comes to the games, they had their fair share of glitches and ridiculous rules.
For instance, multi-turn moves, such as Bind and Fire Spin, actually prevented the target from moving for two to five turns in addition to dealing damage with every turn. Luckily, this was readjusted in Generation II, where the target was actually given a chance to fight back. For multi-hit moves, like Double Kick, if the user scored a critical hit, it applied to every single hit. Have fun keeping your Normal-types alive after five critical Double Kicks.
And finally – arguably the most aggravating rule of the game – Psychic-types were ridiculously overpowered, as they were super effective against the only three Ghost-type Pokemon in the game. The only other type that was super effective against Psychics was Bug, and the type’s strongest move, Twineedle, was impotent, to say the least. Generation II also fixed this by adding a new Ghost-type, stronger Bug-type moves, and the new and undeniably epic Dark-type, which proved mind over matter is not always the best plan of attack.
Generation II: Johto Region
As I mentioned earlier, this was the first generation I jumped into when it came to the video games, so I was pretty much unaware of the upgrades at the time. But I learned in addition to the improvements mentioned above, this was also the generation that saw the introduction of two new types, Steel and Dark, in addition to natural upgrades such as a larger and more convenient storage bag for the player character. And of course, I cannot mention Generation II without bringing up the well-received breeding mechanic, which has been helping Trainers build the perfect all-star teams ever since.
Generation III: Hoenn Region
The graphical upgrades for this generation were impressive enough, but it also included a number of new ways to play the game. Most of us who played this generation remember the debut of Contest Battles, but the major innovation that I always loved was the introduction to Double Battles. The mechanic worked seamlessly, and it made you think about your teams in a lot of different ways. Not only did you have to think about which of your Pokemon worked well offensively, but you also had to be mindful of the moves that could potentially harm your teammates.
Generation IV: Sinnoh Region
I have to admit that I did not experience too many innovations in this transition; however there were a slew of new Pokemon and moves to utilize in this new region. This was also the first generation to be featured on the first Nintendo DS, giving the player touch controls that have been a staple of the series ever since. Generation IV is one of my personal favorites, as it contains some of my favorite legendary beasts, such as Dialga and Giratina, in addition to the remakes of my first ever "Pokemon" game, "HeartGold."
Generation V: Unova Region
I unfortunately skipped this region for the most ridiculous of reasons (I was obsessed with "Platinum" —just ask my friends). But the Unova region brought a lot of upgrades and improvements that I simply could not ignore. My favorite upgrade was that Technical Machines (specialized discs that taught your Pokemon otherwise impossible moves) were no longer a one-time use. I was incredibly frustrated when I learned that I wasted a perfectly good TM on a lackluster Pokemon. Thankfully, this was no longer the case starting in Generation V. You could teach all the Thunderbolts and Earthquakes you wanted thanks to this upgrade. In addition, Triple Battles and Rotation Battles make their debut here. It is also interesting to note that this region is based on the New York City area, a first for the series in terms of locale.
Generation VI: Kalos Region
Forgoing the traditional Japanese-based locale once again, "Pokemon" takes a trip to France for this generation, and it brought plenty of additions to fit the bill. Character customization has been implemented in "Pokemon X & Y," providing a variety of styles to make your character even more your own than before.
In terms of gameplay, Generation VI also introduced the ever popular Fairy-type for dealing with those pesky Dragon-types. Not only did they add a number of new Pokemon for the new type, but they also blessed an unprecedented number of older Pokemon with the new status as well, including Clefairy, Snubbull, Jigglypuff and Marill. Contrary to what its name may suggest, Fairy-types have been notoriously powerful, but ironically enough, this has inspired me to put together a Dragon team just to knock the adorably frustrating horde down a peg. You will be avenged, Mega Charizard...
So in short, the "Pokemon"games are a great series to get into, and they only seem to be getting better. I understand that there is no such thing as a perfect game, and sadly these games are no exception. But I have yet to see new Pokemon games that are not at least moderately welcome improvements over their predecessors. Let us hope that the next generation will be even better than the last.