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Pokemon Primer

As Diamond and Pearl have officially brought Poke-fever back to North America, it seems like a perfect time to take a look back at the series as a whole. Think of it as "everything you ever wanted to know about Pokemon but were too embarrassed to ask."

...Continued From Page 1

Ruby, Sapphire & Emerald, FireRed & LeafGreen

Finally making the move to the Game Boy Advance in March of 2003, Pokemon Ruby and Sapphire started the third generation with a large graphical step forward but fewer gameplay upgrades than fans expected. The new region of Hoenn, somewhat based on the real island of Kyūshū, featured 135 new monsters and an entirely new storyline. Unfortunately, trainers could only catch about 200 of the now 386 total species available while battling the baddies of Team Aqua (or Magma, if you picked up the other game). This sad detail aside, the addition of abilities and natures deepened the already complex battling/training system, and the inclusion of 2v2 fighting added yet another facet as support Pokemon suddenly became far more useful. The other major upgrade came in the form of Pokemon contests, judged competitions where moves are used to impress rather than damage.

Released in September of 2004, FireRed and LeafGreen were based on the original generation of Pokemon games, finally allowing players to complete the third-gen national Pokedex (a feat previously impossible, as there was no way to trade between the Game Boy and GBA games). In an attempt to make the games more user-friendly, the storyline of Red/Blue was updated with help features, move tutors (NPCs that teach specific moves and explain the move being taught), and a tool that allowed you to remain in contact with certain trainers met during your travels. A wireless adapter was also packaged with the game, allowing trading and battling without the use of a link cable.

Emerald, the final GBA Pokemon, was released on May 1st, 2005. The expected update to Ruby/Sapphire, Emerald combined their storyline into one massive tale involving Team Aqua, Team Magma, and a new legendary, weather-controlling dragon called Rayquaza. Additionally, the battle animations made a return from Crystal, the safari zone was expanded, and many new areas were added. The post-storyline game was also drastically improved with the new Battle Frontier, essentially an area with seven different battle towers (one of which is based on the original tower).

Which brings us to 2007, and the end of this history lesson. The fourth generation games have been released and there are now 493 Pokemon in the national Pokedex. That's a lot of creatures to find, so it's time you stopped reading and got back to playing Diamond and Pearl, isn't it? Have fun!