Here is something that will make you feel old: 20 years ago Pokémon was released in Japan on February 27, 1996. It is hard to believe that something a lot of us grew up on is now celebrating it’s platinum anniversary. After all this was a huge part in almost any kid’s life in the 90’s. What type of Pokémon you had made the difference between being a somebody or a nobody. You could be a loner kid one day and the next day the most popular kid in the yard after getting a Charizard Pokémon card or beating that one tough kid in a link cable battle. What about those who didn’t grow up in the Pokémon age?

For those who are unfamiliar, the concept is quite simple. You start off as a young kid (you can pick any name you want, even your own) who wants to be the very best like no one ever was. You are given your first Pokémon and a task to become league champion. Throughout your journey, you will come up against many trainers, stop an evil organization bent on destroying the world, and try to catch (as of this publish) all 722 Pokémon.

Many people back in the late 90’s would never of thought that this fad would go on this long. Pokémon has been around so long, the kids that grew up with it are now passing it down to their kids. The question still remains, how could a simple catch them all game become the multi billion dollar franchise that it is today? Here is some insight on how Pokémon became the ultimate handheld gaming experience.

Rated E for Everyone

Pokémon is one of those few video games that bridged the generational gap. While most games are put into either adult or children brackets, Pokémon has never had a permanent place. The reason for this is due to how easy the game is to pick up and play for kids and how complex the games mechanics are for adults.

Pokémon has an easy to understand rock, paper, scissor combat. Simply put, fire Pokémon beats grass Pokémon, electric Pokémon beats water Pokémon, and so forth. This type of gameplay is easy enough for kids to enjoy and understand. Apart from combat there are also other types of activities that a player can do. You can even dress your Pokémon up in costumes and then put them into a contest against other dressed up Pokémon or even pet and feed them to gain affection of your virtual pet.

For the adults, the combat is the main bread and butter of Pokémon that keeps them coming back. The advanced mechanics of the game are how you level up your Pokémon and what stats it has. The complex stats of EVs and IVs and the math that goes into it might be better suited for teenagers and adults. Besides the stats, there is also the choice of what moves your Pokémon should learn (they can only learn four moves) that very from offences, defensives, and stats boosters. Once your dream team has been assembled, it is on to the online portion where players duke it out to see who is the best trainer. The more intense players join competitions that host sold out venues that have big cash prizes that top up to $10,000.

Pokémon Monopoly

Nintendo knew how to capitalize on profitable assets, and Pokémon is no exception. The series has grown from being an ordinary video game franchise into a brand name phenomenon that is universally recognizable. Take for example the Pokémon Trading Card Game – or “PTCG” for short. This is the same card game that most kids grew up with in the 90’s, but has grown from the original 151 Pokémon to now include 722 Pokémon creatures. Even with the increase to the roster PTCG is still as simple as kids remember. The game has even gone digital allowing those who gave their cards away to younger cousins or friends a chance to start fresh and play off their smart phones or a computer.

With something this popular there has to be a tie in cartoon show for kids.

To the surprise of many, the same 90’s Pokémon show is still up and running new episodes on a season basis. The series is about to premiere its 900th episode and is preparing its new season of Ash (still the main protagonist) venturing into the X, Y, and Z region of the Pokémon universe. The cartoon has even produced movies that has Ash going up against almost every legendary Pokémon in the series. The movies have gone on to make a total of 18 movies with more on the way.

Nintendo really didn’t miss a thing when it came to anything Pokémon merchandise related. Nintendo has even gone out and built a store called the Pokémon Center (based off an actual building in the game) that sells anything a hardcore fan desires. These stores are well known within Japan, but are slowly coming into the U.S. with one located in New York.

Handheld Innovators

While it is true that the Pokémon core game hasn’t changed at all from when it started, one can’t deny the drastic changes Pokémon has brought to the handheld market. Before Pokémon was released, there wasn’t much of a use for the Game Boy link cable. The cable was made to allow gamers a chance to play together or against each other, but sadly only a small amount of titles used this feature. Pokémon made the cable not only a feature, but a requirement if you wanted to catch all 151 Pokémon due to Pokémon Red and Blue versions having some exclusive Pokémon only found in that particular version. The cable was also needed to battle against other players. From then on it was a hit. Cables were found in backpacks of school kids all over the 90’s trying to get that last Pokémon or challenging other players to see who was king or queen of the school yard.

While it was amazing to see Game Boys connected together to play a game together, most would agree that the cable wasn’t the most sturdiest connection ever. The cable was so sensitive that even the slightly movement could unplug the cable. Just getting the cable set up was at least a five minutes process then became a game of freeze tag just to allow the games to trade without a connection error. Battles were a battle in there own, leaving most kids with hand cramps just trying to hold the system in place without moving for at least 15 minutes.

As time moved on and technology advanced, the cable had to go and it was time for Pokémon to lead by example again. The re release of Pokémon Fire Red and Leaf Green came bundled with a wireless adapter. This adapter was the first of its kind for Nintendo and Pokémon was the guinea pig of the experiment. Needless to say, the experiment was a huge success as players were now able to trade and battle with the freedom to move about.

The game also had a mode built into the game that offered a small chat feature that allowed gamers to chat with each other. Despite what controversies arose about kids talking to complete strangers, the adapter was only strong enough to reach about 30 feet and had trouble in dealing with walls. This was a huge impact on Pokémon and once again they set the bar for any handheld game to strive for.

With the Nintendo DS out for about a year, not many games were using the built in internet capabilities for fear of scaring off the younger crowd that weren’t tech savvy. Once again Pokémon had to come in and show people that online features don’t need to be complex or difficult, but rather fun and enjoyable to play. Pokémon was the first to build up an online connectivity area where players can interact with each other and have fun. The game offered up an online trading auction house where players can place a Pokémon that isn’t needed anymore up for grabs online. There is an online arena for players to play against for fun or competitions. The most unique feature is an online website that ties into your game that allows you to play mini games with your Pokémon to then earn items you can transfer back into your game all through your computer.

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…Like No One Ever Was

Pokémon has gone on to prove to everyone that this isn’t just a fad that will go away like how parents kept reminding players in the past when we played just a bit longer then we were told to. Pokémon has us drawn into the game that makes us feel like we are apart of the universe. Each time we flick the switch of our handheld on, we get sucked up into the magic.

The Pokémon we catch and train with on a daily basis, those are our virtual friends that we share challenges and struggles with. We share victories and overcome impossible odds with. The game draws players in and make them forget about all the stress in the world. In the case of Pokémon, it is safe to say that this game series will not only continue to stay, but grow even more as time goes on. Add in the fact that this year will be the release of the next installment of Pokémon called Sun and Moon and the upcoming mobile game Pokémon Go, the series is on it’s way to another 20 years.

Enjoy your anniversary Pokémon and thank you for the giving me some of the best moments that my fiancé and I ever had.