The Videogame Corner: Pokemon FireRed Rocket Edition

Game: Pokemon FireRed Rocket Edition
Developer: colonelsalt
Genre: Role-Playing Game
Releases: 2020 (PC)

I do not talk about Nintendo-owned franchises often, but that is not because I hate them or something but rather comes down to me changing from being a console player to almost exclusively doing things on my PC, a platform that Nintendo does not cater to. I grew up owning a Game Boy Pocket, a Game Boy Color, and eventually a Game Boy Advance SP, and the one Nintendo franchise I basically always came back to was “Pokemon”. To relive my nostalgia, I play the old Pokemon games on an emulator from time to time, and I enjoy seeing that there are tons of talented people making their own versions of existing Pokemon games. I will probably talk about some more of the so-called ROM hacks I have played so far, but before I can write about the nice ones I wanted to get the really good one done. So, let us talk about “Pokemon FireRed Rocket Edition”, the pinnacle of Pokemon ROM hacks.

The Videogame Corner: Pokemon Red & Blue

Game: Pokemon Red & Blue
Developer: Game Freak
Genre: Role-Playing Game
Releases: 1996 (Gameboy)

As a 90’s kid it was inevitable for me to talk about the biggest monster breeding/training/fighting franchise on the market: Pokemon. In fact, I am old enough to have played the first games back when they came out all those years ago (even though I was pretty late to the party during the first gen). I can vividly remember asking my classmates how to solve the puzzle in the old laboratory on Cinnabar Island, which I now know consisted of pressing exactly one button to open the door leading down the only logical path. I have fond memories of opening the Pokemon picture book I had back in the day and dividing the Pokemon in groups with my friends to determine which Pokemon we liked the best. And I can also remember my incredibly over-leveled Venosaur being torn to shreds by Lorelei’s Lapras, which unfortunately managed to freeze my flowery friend with an Ice Beam; rather unfortunate, since I had no other Pokemon to use after it due to not knowing how to switch the active Pokemon and therefore not training any others. It was early days, and whether it was not explained that well in the game or I simply was a dumb kid that did not think about playing the game correctly, I have to admit that the game itself was fun. So, in order to re-live the start of the Pokemon franchise, I played through the old Pokemon games (a.k.a. the “First Gen”) for the Gameboy via emulator and want to share some of my experiences with you.

The Videogame Corner: Pokemon Unite

Game: Pokemon Unite
Developer: The Pokemon Company
Genre: MOBA (Multiplayer Online Battle Arena)
Releases: 2021 (Nintendo Switch)

Here we are, the first “Pokemon” game that I feature on my blog. “Pokemon” as a franchise is very nostalgic to me and many other people in my age range since we grew up playing those games, collecting the coolest looking critters and not even understanding the details of how the game was actually supposed to be played. I mean, I was unable to level any other Pokemon in “Pokemon Red” back in the day when I played it for the first time since I did not understand that the “Trade” command is not meant for trading with other players but instead switching Pokemon in my party; and I was informed that I am not the only one that fell on that hurdle back in the day. Long story short, “Pokemon” is an amazing franchise, my friends and I still buy the new main series games whenever one comes out, and I will definitely feature lots of their games in the future. However, this is not an article in which I will talk about a nostalgia-tinted glasses look onto a major video game franchise, but instead, we will talk about the newest spawn of the GameFreak studios: “Pokemon Unite”.