Game: Pokemon Stadium
Platform: Nintendo 64
Year Released: 2000



This may be a strange revelation to some, but I used to be a bit of a Pokemon fan. I may or may not have woken up and watched the cartoon every Saturday morning, played some of the related video games, and even had a beach towel featuring Ash and Pikachu. Hey, give me a break, I was only ten. (Or maybe fifteen. But whatever.)

Anyway, my fandom only extends to the short era when only 150 Pokemon existed, before they started running out of creature ideas and names to go with them. (Hey, there’s one that looks like a pinecone. We’ll call it Pineco! Brilliant!) While I never had an original Game Boy and therefore missed out on the true Pokemon gaming experience, I did later pick up Pokemon Stadium for the Nintendo 64. Today, after many Pokemon-free years, I picked up this game again to see how well it holds up.



I was surprised at how quickly and easily I got sucked in to the battles. Assuming you know anything about Pokemon, the concept is simple enough: select a team of Pokemon, preferably a well-balanced one with different attributes, which will compete in battles against different sets of Pokemon from opposing trainers. There is definitely a level of strategy involved, and knowing what each Pokemon does and what its strengths and weaknesses are play a large part in each battle. For example, flying Pokemon are weak against lightning, so exploiting this fact by playing a Raichu against a foe whose team is made up almost entirely of flyers will put you at a severe advantage.

This game would be entertaining enough if it merely had stadium battles, but a whole host of other features make it even better. Most notably, the option to connect your Game Boy and transfer the Pokemon you’ve captured from the Red, Blue, or Yellow games seems really awesome. Sadly, I don’t have a Game Boy or any of those games, so I was forced to pick generic ones from the stock list that comes with the game. They’re still fun to use and come packed with moves, but it’s not the same as catching them yourself.



There are also a bunch of mildly fun and extremely simple minigames which mainly serve as a distraction when you want to take a break from battles but aren’t ready to turn off your system. These are only amusing for a few minutes at best, but serve their purpose and admittedly are part of the “kid’s corner” of activities.

The graphics are pretty nice-looking, as far as Nintendo 64 titles go, and the controls are simple but effective. Pokemon and their attacks are attached to one of the 64 controller’s buttons, and while I was never a fan of that controller, there’s not enough blister-inducing use of the thumbstick to frustrate anyone.



Unfortunately, there is nothing here for non-fans of the Pokemon series. All of the fighting revolves around them and their abilities, so without any knowledge of these cuddly creatures, one would be at a severe disadvantage. Battles can sometimes seem brutally unfair, and when one of your attacks misses for no reason, you fall asleep for three turns, or you have to waste an entire turn switching Pokemon, it can almost be frustrating enough to make you turn off your N64. However, for those of us who actually like Pokemon and aren’t afraid to admit it, this game holds up surprisingly well. Though it lacks depth, the gameplay still manages to be a lot of fun.