The second generation of Pokémon, consisting of both Pokémon Gold and Silver, is considered by many fans to be the pinnacle of the franchise. This generation would become the benchmark for all future games in the series, with more monsters, a certain depth to it and, most notably, its sense of alluring magnetism. Internationally, adults and children alike felt obliged to join the digital sensation, all with a single goal in view – to catch ‘em all (cheese) and to become the ultimate Pokémon Master. When titles such as these grow to heights without a visible end, time may slightly corrode it. So behold, Pokémon HeartGold and Pokémon SoulSilver, the final evolutionary stage of these classic games.
I’ll be the first to admit it: after chugging obediently through several dozen hours of Pokémon Platinum, I felt satisfied in the knowledge that my time in the world of Pokémon RPGs was coming to an overdue end. There’s only so much “gotta catch ‘em all” one can take. It was also no secret that since Gold & Silver the series has steadily become more of a recurring echo. After playing through this darling of a series for more than a decade, I felt maybe it might be time to put the acclaimed series back into its poke-ball… for the last time.
But then, Nintendo and Game Freak did something not all that surprising – they announced yet another addition to the already teetering series. Only this time, the concern that rushed over me when playing through Platinum was gone – they had announced it as a Pokémon Gold & Silver remake. Hope had resurfaced.
One of my fondest moments of Pokemon Yellow was knowing you've always got a fuzzy friend in your wake.
On the surface, the past and present versions are virtually identical to each other when it comes to storytelling and layout. All the things that made the original praiseworthy have been brought over faithfully, while maintaining enough variation to warrant this ten year old game worth another purchase. Game Freak did more than give the experience a new coat of paint with the 3D engine from Diamond, Pearl and Platinum; the main new feature being the PokéWalker, a pedometer device that allows players to transfer a Pokémon to it and earn experience outside of the game. A good idea in theory, but it seemed too much work in practice. Despite being a fun little accessory, the chore of lengthy transfers for little reward becomes old quickly. Each step recorded on the pedometer is converted into “Watts.” These Watts can then be spent on minigames to find items or wild Pokémon. The most practical use I found was to train newly caught Pokémon which you are too ashamed to train manually, like Metapod. However, is it more embarrassing than openly wearing a PokéWalker to work everyday?
Visually there are a few changes, both minor and significant. The one you are likely to notice first is that your first-slot Pokémon follows your character around Johto, much like in Pokémon Yellow with Pikachu. It’s worth mentioning that players can switch any Pokémon to that slot and they’ll appear in the game, alongside Ash. While the world looks pretty much the same, there are a few differences. Long time fans will immediately notice that tall grass looks significantly different, actually looking like, well, tall grass. There is a bit more visual flair in the towns too, like the rotating lamppost sign outside of every Pokémart, or the wisp of leaves caught in the breeze.
If you’re familiar with the original Silver and Gold games (or, really, any of the Pokémon titles), then the backbone of the gameplay remains the same. As a budding young Pokémon trainer, your job is to traverse the Johto Region, collect Gym Badges, defeat Team Rocket and catch ‘em all in your bid to become the world’s greatest Pokémon master. Nothing you haven’t seen before – yet, it still feels fresh and full of innocent discovery, in the way that only a Pokémon game can.
This time you have 16 GYM badges to keep you occupied.
Everything else about the design, from the local trading to the online battling, remains completely intact. HeartGold and SoulSilver also boasts successful Wi-Fi connectivity. You are now fully equipped with the facilities to battle friends locally or go online. You now also have access a brand new area, the Wi-Fi Plaza. At the Plaza, players around the world can now safely and, above all, anonymously interact with each other, play a variety of touch-screen minigames, or power up something called “Tap Toy,” which is essentially an instrument that is played in the Plaza by tapping the touch screen. Again, this is totally ancillary and could be easily overlooked, if not entirely undiscovered. However, it’s yet another cute little touch that adds that extra layer of charm for returning fans, as well as younger children who are new to video games.
My main gripe with the game thus far is that they’ve taken away the Pokétech. For those who don’t remember, this was the little device that appeared on the bottom DS screen in Diamond/Pearl. It would do simple things such as tell the time, to more helpful things such as show the progress of your unhatched egg, which could be useful in game when introduced to breeding. HeartGold/SoulSilver also marks the return of the Cell-Phones, which can be used to call your Mom or have random trainers persistently call you to tell you they knocked out a Weedle which was, in all honesty, irritating!
For the long time Pokémon fans, Gold and Silver was a pretty revolutionary entry. It introduced a lot of new features that became staples of the series, and was a significant boost in both graphics and size. I’m not sure that HeartGold and SoulSilver will be able to mirror the impact that Gold & Silver brought to the table, and neither do I think that was the intention – Heart-Gold & Soul-Silver serves its purpose of taking Pokémon from the Gameboy-era and re-telling the tale of Johto in the next generation. In that sense, it seems they do more than justice.
