Pick A Pikachu Up & All Day Long You're Have Good Luck (Pokemon Yellow - Special Pikachu Edition (GB))

Member Name: GramiWay

Product:	Pokemon Yellow - Special Pikachu Edition (GB)
Date:	27/05/09 (83 review reads)
Rating:

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I'm a tad insane! I can't seem to shake off my love for Pokemon even now some 10 years after it first became a worldwide success and well me myself being 21 but still...

Whenever I find myself lost for something to do and work or studying isn't keeping me as occupied as it should, I turn to the world of Pokemon.

Pokemon Yellow - Pikachu Edition was originally released in 2000 and was based on the massive selling first generation games Red & Blue [or Green in Pokemon's homeland of Japan]. Because of this the land and general rules of the game are basically the same though the game was tweaked to fit in with the anime. Like Crystal and Emerald it is designed to be a third and final edition to a generation of Pokemon games and to include a few differences from the originals so to tempt new buyers. A bit corny really. However, you really do get a greater feel for the franchise when playing this game as players could choose to replicate Ash's entire party from the TV series if they so desired, something that would've been impossible before without using the trade function.

The graphics have been updated from Red and Blue which is no surprise as the game made the leap from the old brick sized Game Boy to the slimmer Game Boy Colour. However, the graphics and indeed the storyline and length of the game are still behind the later Pokemon releases but that doesn't stop this from being a terribly addictive, yet enjoyable game.

The basics of the game remain identical with you being a Pokemon trainer traveling the region of Kanto in a bid to become the ultimate Pokemon champion and add all 150 of the little critters to your Pokedex. This time you are given Pikachu by Professor Oak when the game starts and just like in the TV series, it refuses to stay in its Pokeball so follows you around instead. This brings up some rather enjoyable moments such as the ability to talk to Pikachu and see from its facial expressions what it thinks of you and also there is a mini surfing game that is now available later on in your quest.

Obviously if you can't stand Pikachu then the game isn't really for you but you could break the rules and dump it in your PC storage system...

Some of the Gym leaders have had minor readjustments to their teams to fit with their television counterparts and there's also the opportunity to capture all three original starter Pokemon within Yellow as well as being able to battle the hilarious Jessie and James of Team Rocket on three occasions.

The Pokemon sprites themselves look a lot better especially during a battle as they represent their televised versions more rather than some of them being very blurred and almost unrecognisable in Red and Blue. Gameplay moves at the player's own desired pace and the maps have a lot more colour to them than before probably due to the shift in console. Even when the game's battles have been completed, there's still the difficult task of capturing all 150 of the things! And let's face it - the first 150 were always the best.

I really enjoyed the game as it gave me the chance to have all three of the original starter Pokemon without all the insanity that comes with trading and the battles were a lot more difficult than before which made the game more challenging, especially to begin with.

Whilst everybody is in a flutter these days about the Wii, X-Box, PS3, Nintendo DS or whatever, this game shows that there will forever be classics that will only continue to mature with age. It's a must have for any Pokemon fan as the game can be made as challenging as the individual wishes, making it an ideal port of entertainment for kids and adults alike. If you're sad and still stuck in the past that is...

Summary: Game 3 in the long running Pokemon franchise