Many consider “Generation II” ofPokémonto be the highlight of the pocket monster series, and indeed it does represent the perfect point between depth and convolution, the moment beforePokémonbecame needlessly complicated and required fifteen spreadsheets in order to maximize its potential. Did you know thatSilverandGoldwere intended to be the last in the series, too?
“I worked with the assumption that after we put outGoldandSilver, my work as far asPokémonwas concerned would be done,” explains Pokémon Company president Tsunekazu Ishihara. “I didn’t intend to make any morePokémontitles. I even thought that once we entered the twenty-first century, it would be time for me to do something else entirely.
“I remember that whenGoldandSilverwere released, I felt like a burden had finally been lifted from my shoulders. We’d had our sights set on the finish line ofGoldandSilverfor so long, and now that we’d finally completed the major series running right through fromRedandBlue, I felt I could say to Tajiri-san: ‘I’ve fulfilled my duty!'”
Of course, Pokémon just kept making money, so GameFreak just kept making games, right?
HeartGoldandSoulSilver, the remakes of these classic games, are due in stores tomorrow. We’re playing it right now for a review, and I’ll get that written as soon as I stop building my shrine to Ekans.
