Poll: Favorite Pokemon Game

[MetaKnight19]

My favourites in order are

Black/White
Emerald
Soul Silver

 

[Onyx Oblivion]

1. Black and White
2. Ruby/Sapphire/Emerald
3. Diamond/Pearl/Platinum
4. Heart Gold/Soul Silver
5. Gold/Silver/Crystal
6. Fire Red/Leaf Green
7. Red/Blue/Yellow

Yeah...Not a big fan of the first gen.

 

[Wolfenbarg]

Gold and Silver seemed to refine the formula to a level I considered near perfection. It had a completely different feel from the first game somehow, the aesthetic combined with the overall technical differences really added up. However, despite how the TC may think saying they're all the same makes you look like an "idiot", it really has to be said. The games following Gold and Silver were obviously refined even further, but the fact that it was the same plot and the Pokemon started showing signs of complete unoriginality is why I could never call one of the new games better. Nintendo does love to reinvent their franchises, but they never remake the exact same game wholesale. They almost always have new and interesting mechanics behind each game.

Yeah, because Gold and Silver were full to the brim with originality.
A pinecone, a cow, a giraffe, a reskinned dog, a spider, a bigger spider, a ladybug, and a deformed reindeer are all super original. Those are just the few I can think of off the top of my head, but the Pokemon aren't getting unoriginal.
Face it, the Pokemon have always been unoriginal.

You're completely missing the point. They were original in their own universe. Being based on something in our world or being a creation that would seem incredibly obvious to us isn't unoriginal, if that's the case, then the only creatures they could create would be based on creatures you could only see in an acid trip. The problem is that after a certain point, they started looking back on their own creations and copying from them. When you get to the point that you have to start ripping yourself off, and that is the sole source of your innovation in a title, your game is beyond stale and trite.

 

[nuba km]

B/W, the gameplay is the most refined it has been so far, best good to bad pokemon design ratio of any generation (don't agree I will take you on), feels very different from the previous generations, added 2 great battle systems and fixed some balance issues and gameplay issues that have been in the games since gen 1.

 

[DelphiSantano]

Blue's my favourite, then White and then Heart Gold.
Although Yellow is by far the worst yet.

 

[Uncreative]

While I could probably say SS/HG...I'm gonna go with Snap.

GoGo Dancing Jigglypuff Trio!

 

[Xcelsior]

Gold/Silver/Crystal. Though I haven't had the chance to pick up Black and White or HeartGold and SoulSilver yet so my opinion may change in the future.

 

[Radeonx]

Gold and Silver seemed to refine the formula to a level I considered near perfection. It had a completely different feel from the first game somehow, the aesthetic combined with the overall technical differences really added up. However, despite how the TC may think saying they're all the same makes you look like an "idiot", it really has to be said. The games following Gold and Silver were obviously refined even further, but the fact that it was the same plot and the Pokemon started showing signs of complete unoriginality is why I could never call one of the new games better. Nintendo does love to reinvent their franchises, but they never remake the exact same game wholesale. They almost always have new and interesting mechanics behind each game.

Yeah, because Gold and Silver were full to the brim with originality.
A pinecone, a cow, a giraffe, a reskinned dog, a spider, a bigger spider, a ladybug, and a deformed reindeer are all super original. Those are just the few I can think of off the top of my head, but the Pokemon aren't getting unoriginal.
Face it, the Pokemon have always been unoriginal.

You're completely missing the point. They were original in their own universe. Being based on something in our world or being a creation that would seem incredibly obvious to us isn't unoriginal, if that's the case, then the only creatures they could create would be based on creatures you could only see in an acid trip. The problem is that after a certain point, they started looking back on their own creations and copying from them. When you get to the point that you have to start ripping yourself off, and that is the sole source of your innovation in a title, your game is beyond stale and trite.

Except none of that happened, save 1-2 Pokemon in each generation. Go through the list of generations, and tell me how many copies of Pokemon there are. Especially in Gens 4/5, where there are maximun 5 Pokemon that are rehashes of old ones.

 

[TheEvilCheese]

Black and white have taken tried and tested mechanics, and fixed them.
They have the most engaging story (IMO) and some of the Pokémon designs are quite good.
Nice sized city, better characters, Infinite Tm use.

So yeah, progress beats nostalgia any day.

Also, Vicinti. Is. Awesome.

 

[Trivun]

This is interesting, as I'm currently playing through the series again. Well, not the entire series, I finished Heart Gold a few days ago, am now at Mahogany Town in Crystal, and will soon start Emerald, and then Platinum, before I go out and buy either Black or White (haven't decided which yet) .

To be honest, out of those, I'd say the D/P/Pl trio is my favourite, next would be R/S/E, then HG/SS, and finally FR/LG, though all the games (even Gen. I) are awesome . The only reason B/W doesn't feature into it is because I haven't played it yet.

Also, am I the only person who still enjoys the anime, even the newer episodes? I'm rewatching the entire series from scratch (halfway through the Orange Islands arc right now) as a bit of nostalgia, and having seen episodes from the Diamond/Pearl arcs a while back I can't say there's anything bad about them, really. Why do the later episodes get so much hate when really they're just as good as the early ones?

EDIT: If I have to list every generation too, then here goes. Bear in mind aside from B/W, which I've not played, I do love every generation, but here are my preferences, from best to worst. And if you don't understand the abbreviations then get out now .

1. D/P/Pl
2. R/S/E
3. HG/SS
4. FR/LG
5. G/S/C
6. R/G/B/Y
7. B/W

 

[OceanRunner]

The Hoenn region games were the first Pokemon games that I played seriously, and Emerald was the first that I completed, with what is still my favourite Pokemon team. I love the locales and the Pokemon contests, and the soundtrack is my favorite of the lot. It's simply an absolute joy to explore, especialy in Emarald's expanded world.

Spoiler: My Emerald Team

Torchy-Blaziken: Named after my partner in PMD:BRT
Cobalt-Aggron
Bats-Crobat
Max-Azumarill
Atlas-Flygon
Madam-Gardevoir

 

[w@rew0lf]

Black & White. It's quite difficult to fix so many previous gripes without earning my favor.

What updates/changes have been made to "fix" the series exactly?

Note that many of these are personal preferences.

• 
  Weather conditions aren't repeated every single turn instead it shows it the first turn then it's a symbol on the bottom of the screen
  HM's move from 8 to 6
  The Key Items get a secondary quick-access menu
  Infinite TMs
  Audino makes grinding about 10x easier
  Pokemon names aren't ALL CAPS
  Pokemon Center and the PokeMart are in the same building
  Seasons
  No Contests
  Unova is beautiful and camera angles make the most of it
  The in-the-red never-ending beeping is replaced by a remix that makes the beeps part of the music
  Constant Pokemon animation
  Entralink allows you to visit the worlds of friends
  Team Plasma has a the first reasonable goal since Team Rocket
  The story is actually something worth noting
  

There's more but I think you have a reasonable idea of what I'm trying to convey.

 

[natster43]

Black and White. They are amazing and have the best story out of all of them. Before they came out though it was Soul Silver, because they were remakes of my original favorites, but better.

 

[LeonLethality]

Black/White are by far the best installments in the series.

 

[dancinginfernal]

It's a fight between the original Silver, and Ruby.

 

[halex]

Ruby, saphire and emerald.
Why?

Secret bases. nuff said.

Also, it's the only one in which the boy/girl you pick, dont look like oafs with hats the size of sombreros.

 

[Quazimofo]

yeah for me its a tie between pokemon colosseum and pokemon snap. while i do enjoy the other titles (i only played until ruby sapphire, then i got bored of handhelds in general), colosseum and snap were nice variations on the classic. and also i think that my 3d blaziken looked totally badass, and so won my favor instantly.
and pokemon snap is the only pokemon game my mother ever played and enjoyed to this day, and for some reason, all the n64 titles that my parents liked i also enjoyed quite alot. probably due to nostalgia of the good times playing video games with my parents. (oh how i miss those times. if only i could remember better as i was between 5 and 7 at the time)
and the only 2 non racing games i remember my parents playing were goldeneye (dad loved kicking our ass in multiplayer, but got his ass kicked on the racing games), and pokemon snap (not sure why my mom liked that one, but who cares, good old family fun time. and it was before my little brother was old enough to be a twat, so bonus nostalgia points there)
AND 15 year olds CAN HAVE NOSTALGIA, just not to the extent some of you older people do (And i dont mean to call you old, simply older than say 18, and therefore everyone i know who isnt a parent/aunt/uncle/teacher/godparent/instructor(instructors for extracirriculars)

 

[LeonLethality]

Black & White. It's quite difficult to fix so many previous gripes without earning my favor.

What updates/changes have been made to "fix" the series exactly?

Note that many of these are personal preferences.

• 
  Weather conditions aren't repeated every single turn instead it shows it the first turn then it's a symbol on the bottom of the screen
  HM's move from 8 to 6
  The Key Items get a secondary quick-access menu
  Infinite TMs
  Audino makes grinding about 10x easier
  Pokemon names aren't ALL CAPS
  Pokemon Center and the PokeMart are in the same building
  Seasons
  No Contests
  Unova is beautiful and camera angles make the most of it
  The in-the-red never-ending beeping is replaced by a remix that makes the beeps part of the music
  Constant Pokemon animation
  Entralink allows you to visit the worlds of friends
  Team Plasma has a the first reasonable goal since Team Rocket
  The story is actually something worth noting
  

There's more but I think you have a reasonable idea of what I'm trying to convey.

HMs are not a necessity and thus you do not need to always lug an HM slave around
Attack animations are faster so battles go by quick
HUUUUGE amount of aftergame content
Your money cap is much much higher

Edit: Just remembered a few more.
The EV system is reworked so even a level 100 pokemon can be EV trained
lower level pokemon get more experience making training easier.

Just a few more improvements to note.

 

[Quazimofo]

Ruby, saphire and emerald.
Why?

Secret bases. nuff said.

Also, it's the only one in which the boy/girl you pick, dont look like oafs with hats the size of sombreros.

OH SHIT i forgot about the secret bases. good times. good times indeed. you sir have brought a smile to my face via good memories. thanks you.

 

[Beryl77]

My mind is telling me it's Black and White but I'm blinded with nostalgia and so I voted for R/B/Y...good old times.