Why does no one seem to care about FireRed and LeafGreen?

[Blast]

Along with RSE, FRLG are my favorite Pokémon games of them all. However, from my experience not very many people appear to share my love for the Kanto remakes.

The music was great, the sprites looked good, it introduced a brand new playable character in the form of Leaf and it had all the updated locations from the ultra popular RBY game, as well as new features. The Kanto region's detail and atmosphere was expanded upon. On top of that, it had, in my opinion, one of the most exciting post-games of any Pokémon game in the Sevii Islands. The Sevii Islands gave backstory to characters such as Lorelei, contained side stories, new characters and interesting and mysterous areas to explore. It really felt like an adventure. Finally, there was the option to challenge your rival as Champion again who would use a stronger team with Johto Pokémon.

Summing it up, FRLG has many good points in my eyes while I don't see any obvious flaws. So why are these games not as prominent in discussions or among the favorites of many fans? Is it because it is overshadowed by RBY and RSE? Do a lot of people love them and I just haven't noticed it? Does the game have any weak points I'm not seeing? Is there something else? Let's discuss :3

 

[BigBadButterfree]

I don’t think anyone dislikes them or anything, I just think they’re not super relevant anymore. They’re not exactly current. And RSE got a remake, but since FRLG ARE a remake, it’s currently questionable whether or not they’ll get a remake.

I do agree though, great games. FR was my very first Pokémon game that I got to own and play just for myself. So I have fond memories of it.

Really though, any reason regarding a lack of discussion is simply due to age.

 

[Nicolas721]

I've seen it too. FRLG's version of Red and Profesor Oak's joke about not identifying boys or girls are everywhere in fanart and memes, but the games themselves are not discussed much. They are overshadowed by Emerald's Battle Frontier and HGSS's sheer epicness. They are seen as very safe games, even for its time, that were made just to make Kanto & Johto Pokemon catchable again.

As for me, I also think they are underrated. The postgame is awesome and features like the memory thing, the tutorial guides and the flashbacks feel very unique.

 

[Bolt Strike]

I've seen it too. FRLG's version of Red and Profesor Oak's joke about not identifying boys or girls are everywhere in fanart and memes, but the games themselves are not discussed much. They are overshadowed by Emerald's Battle Frontier and HGSS's sheer epicness. They are seen as very safe games, even for its time, that were made just to make Kanto & Johto Pokemon catchable again.

I think you're spot on with this. Being an old game in and of itself isn't enough for people to not be interested in or discuss them. FRLG is seen as fairly safe compared to both other games in its time and other remakes. Sure it had the Sevii Islands in post game, but you had to get through the main campaign to get to it and the main campaign was pretty much a copy/paste job with almost no changes whatsoever. No new areas, no new Pokemon, no new characters, no new storyline events, very few new mechanics or activities. It's just not a standout game in the series.

 

[Silktree]

I enjoyed playing LeafGreen (it helped that I didn't have a lot of expectations), but I am much more nostalgic towards Yellow. I felt that FRLG did a disservice to the soundtrack, too.

Being an old game in and of itself isn't enough for people to not be interested in or discuss them.

If this forum is any indication, it is.

 

[IncineROAR]

There is so much Kanto pandering elsewhere that these games are just overlooked. I actually enjoy FR and LG way more than the original R/B/Y games. FR and LG are also much more player friendly than Gen 1 games.

 

[Boss1708]

I like many things in FRLG, mainly the art style and vivid colours of the game. Sevii Islands is also a very good extra to distinguish itself from the originals. However, at least for my taste, there are 3 severe flaws that make FRLG unexciting compared to other remakes and follow up games:

1) No Gym Leader rematches and no Battle Frontier, which Emerald, a game that came out later that same year, introduced
2) The game didnt even have your typical vanilla Battle Tower, having the Trainer Tower instead. Trainer Tower is ok in itself, but only as a bonus facility. You still need your regular Battle Facility, and FRLG disappoints by not having it.
3) No side acttivity is a huge blow. FRLG is sandwiched between RS and Emerald, two games that had Contests AND Secret Bases! So FRLG just feels less feature rich by default.

 

[PinkIceFox]

*raises hand* I adore Fire Red and Leaf Green and I have nuzlocked them more than once. Plus they gave me my first two shinies ever (Rattata in FR, Caterpie in LG).

That said... Misty is always the worst gym for me because the only area I can grind in at first is the grass beside the town between it and Mt. Moon unless I think I can easily beat the rival and everyone on nugget bridge (which... never happens. I always gotta grind for rival and the bridge and THEN grind for Misty).

 

[AnthonyS]

While I do think there are multiple reasons for this dilemma, persay, I think the major factor that this problem derives from is that the people who played through Kanto, and thus fell in love with those games, are much older now. The original Pokémon games were realeased in 1996, 22 years ago. FR/LG was subsequently released in 2004. When you take into account that the target audience for the original games were younger kids, many of the people who played through Kanto and would subsequently love FR/LG are now well into college, have families of their own, and lead adult lives. For goodness sake, the avaerage 10 year old Pokémon player in 2004, when FR/LG was released, is now 26 years old. They’ve left the franchise, and with it, the passion and discussion for those games.

Now, of course, there are exceptions. Thousands of college-aged students and parents still play the games and keep up with the series, but it’s nothing when it’s compared to what it used to be. I remember trading Pokémon around the basketball courts at recess in elementary school. Nowadays, if you even admit to playing Pokémon in highschool, you’re labeled as weird. Again, there are exceptions, such the popularity of Pokémon Go, but majority wise, the people who played the original games have moved on.

Newer generations of Pokémon have been played by a different wave of kids. The children who play Pokémon currently remember Sinnoh and Unova from their early days, not Kanto. And while it’s always fun to play through older games, the magic isn’t there anymore. There isn’t thousands of people going through the same experience with you. Additionally, newer features exist in more modern games that didn’t in past ones. Online battling, trading, and connecting have never been easier, while as in FR/LG, the same way to connect with others is absent. It’s a sad idea, the nostalgia of Kanto isn’t competing with the technology of newer games.

 

[Bolt Strike]

If this forum is any indication, it is.

Eh, not really. Even when their regions aren't relevant, I've seen more discussions on games like Emerald, Platinum, HGSS, and BW/BW2 than FRLG and those games tend to show up in favorite game lists.

 

[Silktree]

Old games aren't discussed much here except for comparison purposes, like what you're doing now.

 

[Bolt Strike]

Old games aren't discussed much here except for comparison purposes, like what you're doing now.

And even in that context, FRLG still isn't discussed much. So there's definitely a problem with this game in particular.

 

[Stratelier]

Definitely agree with the argument that FRLG were probably too conservative as the concept of remakes go -- heck, even USM had more changes in comparison to their originals, and that was within the same generation.

One thing I remember suffering the most was that FRLG had the longest wait until you acquired the Running Shoes.

 

[Bolt Strike]

Definitely agree with the argument that FRLG were probably too conservative as the concept of remakes go -- heck, even USM had more changes in comparison to their originals, and that was within the same generation.

Now that's a low blow. I wouldn't quite go that far to say USUM is better, after all FRLG actually had new areas that took more than 5 seconds to explore, but it's pretty damn close to USUM in terms of conservatism.

 

[Dieter]

I never owned a copy of R/G/B/Y so for me FR/LG were new, and I loved them? I recently actually replayed LG and it was fun. It's just that they've gotten a little dated and the most relevant game in the entire generation seems to be Emerald. But FR/LG have some really nice spritework and colour schemes and I actually prefer them over the art style in R/S/E. Also the location previews were pretty cool and I kinda wish we'd get them again in newer games

 

[AnthonyS]

Also the location previews were pretty cool and I kinda wish we'd get them again in newer games

I 100% agree. It’s the little details like this that really push a game to the next level. It’s beyond me why it was removed, especially since the graphics have improved tenfold.

 

[Feign]

And even in that context, FRLG still isn't discussed much. So there's definitely a problem with this game in particular.

I don't know about that for sure. When mentioned replaying all the games, people pointed me to play the remakes, especially FRLG, because of how much they improved Kanto.

 

[Fairy Type Arceus]

Fire red was my first game, and I loved it, still own it to this day. But compared to emerald (my second game, and one I'm still trying to beat the bf on) it lacked alot of content, I feel like they could have put johto into the post game instead of seevi islands so we could have gotten the reverse of gsc and seen johoto 3 years prior, if the game boy color could do it so could the Gameboy advance.

 

[Blast]

I've seen a lot of people mention that the games aren't discussed simply because they are old. However, looking at all the posts here I think a more prevelant reason is the fact that they are no longer relevant. What I mean by this is that, while many people can agree they are good games, it didn't leave the long lasting impression or have the features that RSE did, such as a Battle Frontier. Being remakes, the surprises were already revealed to those who played the originals, which is a lot of Pokémon fans. RSE might have stayed relevant because of the running gag about the remakes and the actual remakes themselves, along with a beloved battle facility and characters such as May. FRLG apparently did not. It is unfortunate that such a beautiful game as FRLG has nowadays been mostly forgotten, or at least lost much of its prominence over time...

 

[Silktree]

If it makes you feel any better, they're the most popular games for hacking purposes.

Are RSE actually relevant? Just because some fans tend to talk about the Battle Frontier doesn't mean that they still play Emerald.