Originals or Remakes?

Originals or Remakes?

  • Originals

    Votes: 5 13.2%
  • Remakes

    Votes: 33 86.8%

  • Total voters
    38

Celever

i am town
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Disclaimer: No pc++ etc. etc.

Which do you prefer? Generally the answer to this question is "Remakes take the original games and make them better, remakes!" but is that always true? Do you actually prefer playing through Gold and Silver rather than playing through HeartGold or SoulSilver? What about generation 1 - if you play FireRed you don't get to experience the fun mechanics and bugs which Red has. While as games technologically remakes take huge advances in terms of game play and graphics, does it take the magic out of the games you play? This is all entirely opinion, so no flaming etc.

Enjoy! ^_^
 

Hulavuta

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I'm gonna have to go with remakes on this one. It's somewhat ironic because nostalgia, which I consider a big reason why people would pick originals, is actually the reason I'd pick the remakes D:

First of all, on the subject of bugs being an appeal, unfortunately most of that is an accident. Obviously, no respectable game company is going to purposely put bugs in their game, and the way Game Freak saved memory space in the generation 1 games made the bugs do cool things like spawn Missingno.s and Mews and give you infinite items. These just happened to be fun, I mean, I don't think anyone was pleased with the Lumiose City bug in the release version of X and Y. Although, this is a bit of a genetic fallacy, just because they weren't intended (or were they? conspiracy time) doesn't mean the bugs weren't a fun experience. They certainly weren't a fun experience for me though, since I was never around to exploit them!

But anyway, I like the remakes more. My very first Pokemon game was FireRed, and I love it to death, but really my favorite game is SoulSilver (I'd imagine HeartGold is just as good, but I just never played it). I honestly believe that game is truly a masterpiece! Like you said in your first post, part of it is taking the original game and improving on the graphics and and bringing the mechanics up to the standard of technology of the day, and perhaps adding some more extra content like Pokeathlon and the Battle Frontier. However, the really important thing was that they managed to do all of that without taking away any of the magic and feel of the original game. And it introduced Lyra who is like my favorite character ever!!!!111!1!

Generally, I tend to have a purist attitude when it comes to stuff like this (I don't like most movie remakes, for example), but the Pokemon remakes just manage to so brilliantly capture the magic of the original games, while improving on the technical aspects, that I can't help but adore them.

Playing SoulSilver in the summer of 2012 felt just like when I played the original Silver in 2007 (yes, I know I got into these games way too late -___-). It got me back into Pokemon after I had stopped playing it since Diamond. It got me interested in competitive battling and led me to join Smogon just a few months later.

P.S. boo Celever, you should've made it so that we could see who voted for each option :'(
 
The remakes are better IMO. While playing the original games certainly has its charms, I'll take better graphics, improved mechanics and extra content any day. Fire Red and Leaf Green fixed the numerous problems (good list) that Red and Blue had, and added Johto Pokemon and new areas. Heartgold and Soulsilver added one of the best features ever with Pokemon following you around! Not to mention a Battle Frontier, and helping to fix the awful level curve in the original games.

Remakes were necessary to let you trade Pokemon as gen 2 couldn't connect to gen 3, but after that I think they decided to keep doing it to make money with less work than creating a new game. It sort of feels like Gamefreak is selling out, but even when I say that I'll buy whatever game they make lol. I would like to see RSE remakes in full 3D like X and Y, but I feel that the games after that don't really need updates. They are close enough that the current mechanics wouldn't improve them that much.
 
I have to say remakes on this one. While I've been playing since I was 4, and the originals will always have a special place, the remakes just made it even better for me. I logged in 100+ hours on my original silver version, but playing Soul Silver, I had close to 400. And maybe it's just me, but the little stuff like grinding and catching wild pokemon, is just more fun the newer the game. Black 2 made me want to complete the Dex, whereas I never really had an interest in it before. And I want them to remake RSE and RBY in 3D. Just so all the main games are up to DS standards, and because I think it would reignite interest in the series. Plus, the smaller screens of the GBA titles really messes with me since XY on my 3DS XL. Dunno why.
 

Age of Kings

of the Ash Legion
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^ X & Y are the top selling 3DS games in both speed and quantity, I don't know how there isn't interest???

Anyways, gotta concur that remakes > original for the Pokemon franchise. I agree with Hula as well; sometimes remakes are done like shit, sometimes it's done wonderfully. Gamefreak does a good job preserving as much as possible of the original game and ADDING features on top of that to bring it in line with the current generation. Who doesn't want new stuff for their favorite games? Also please bring back Pokemon following you from HGSS, that was the best.

At first, I opposed Hoenn remakes because they're compatible with current software but I think that bringing Hoenn into the 3DS era would be appropriate because of aging hardware (internal batteries running dry) and the fact that there is a growing part of the fanbase who have never played those games as a result. There are Pokemon fans now that are younger than D/P ffs; that's why it's important we should consider looking at the desires of the fanbase as a whole rather than just the first generation old hags like myself. Also Pokemon Contests over Wi-Fi, you guys know that would be the coolest shit ever.

(Also, Emerald tutors like Body Slam, Counter, Seismic Toss, and Softboiled are sorely missed. And the Emerald Battle Frontier. pls)
 
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Personally I don't feel like RSE need remakes because, as was said above, they don't have the trade incompatibility issues that the first two installments did. That said, as I believe I have mentioned in another thread, RSE also seems to have had something of a reappraisal in recent years, since it generally didn't get quite the same fanfare its ancestors had, mainly due to its unfortunate timing (after the late-nineties Poke-hype but before Wi-Fi and the GTS), so it might be nice to introduce a new audience to an arguably somewhat overlooked game.
 
I meant like some people who haven't picked up a pokemon game since the GBA. It took me 5 years to get back into pokemon after the GBA was done with. I know some people who still haven't gotten back into it.
 

Age of Kings

of the Ash Legion
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I would argue, though, that as much as a lot of teens and adults play Pokemon, there is still a sizable amount of children who simply aren't old enough to have played RSE. RS turn 11 years old next Wednesday; Pokemon's target (but obviously not actual) demographic are children from 8-12 years old. Add in the teens who are 13-15 years old, because I doubt that people would buy a GBA for a 4 year old, and I would say that a significant amount of people haven't played them. True, some of those teens probably pirated those games - but not everyone has. I lost my Sapphire and Emerald over the years, so only my Ruby and FR/LG remain
and they're misplaced somewhere in my messy as fuck room


It's really not fair to tell people "sucks for you, you missed the boat, better pirate or risk buying an expensive counterfeit off eBay". And as a huge Pokemon fan, I want as many people to experience all the generations as possible, and if it takes a remake to accomplish it, I'm in. And it'll probably be great at the same time.
 
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I used to own every single game gen 1-3...then they went missing. Now, if I want to pick up another copy of any of them, they cost more than the DS titles. I saw a copy of Pokemon Yellow for $50 at a store once.
 
Gen II cartridges are without doubt the worst for this problem, because they suffer from internal battery death if you don't use them for a few years. The cartridge has to run its internal battery to keep track of the time, which determines in-game events. Want to relive some happy childhood times? Well, tough shit, even if you kept your cartridges in pristine condition, they won't work.
 

Codraroll

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I'll go with the crowd and say remakes.

The thing with playing Pokémon over several generations, is that the mechanics (battle mechanics in particular) tend to be better and better for every generation. Not as notable since Gen. IV, but even playing D/P today feels a little limited. Each game expands the movepools of Pokémon, moves become more balanced, there are more abilities and generally more options for every Pokémon. As far as battling, breeding and team building goes, each generation feels more fresh than the last.

In general, old games have plenty of nostalgic value, and are really fun to replay. Seeing the good ol' places, hearing the good ol' music, experiencing the good ol' story. It's great.
However, replaying comes at the cost of downgrading the mechanics. For instance, I love Emerald, but after experiencing the Physical/Special split, the old system is kind of annoying. No Running Shoes indoors feels a little slow. Many Pokémon with extensive movepools were very limited back then. TMs are single use (and thus some of them remain in the Bag forever, out of fear that I'll waste them now and something better comes along in the future). And don't even get me started on the breeding. You have less options than you're used to, and some things feel a little clunky and rough after you've seen the more smoothed-out features of later games.

Remakes, however, take you back without setting you back. The same ol' places, but they look a lot nicer. The same ol' music, but remixed (which may or may not be a good thing. Usually, it is). The good ol' story, with additional twists and turns. But the game mechanics are the same, refined stuff you're used to from the latest generation. The movepools are just as deep, the range of abilities is the same, item mechanics work the way you like them. The same gameplay as you remember from your childhood, but things look and sound better, and remakes usually add new content too.

If you haven't played the originals, the remakes would really stand out as better games. Better graphics, better mechanics, more Pokémon available, more content in general. Not that I've played a remade Pokémon game without knowing the original, but I really see no reason why a newcomer to the game would prefer the old one over the new. That is, it would certainly be possible, but that would require GameFreak to screw up badly. They haven't yet.
 
I'm incredibly torn between the two. I prefer Red and Blue over Firered and Leafgreen any day of the week; there's so much hype and excitement stored from 1997 in those two games that it's impossible to remake them better IMO. While FRLG may be a better game technically, it loses a lot of the charm that the old graphics and bugs gave the originals. Personally, I very much dislike what was added in FRLG (I can't stand the Sevii Islands for some reason), which is a lot of why I prefer the originals to the remakes there.

Gold and Silver, however, is a different story. I have an insane amount of love packed into 2nd gen; it has some of my favorite Pokemon, it was the first Pokemon game I ever played (and the first one I beat), and it feels like an incredible and logical next step after RBY. One of the saddest moments of my life was realizing that I couldn't transfer Pokemon from 2nd to 3rd gen, leaving my lovingly crafted team stranded in a cartridge that was doomed to be corrupted. As much as I love it, however, Heartgold and Soulsilver did it better. They took everything that was good about the 2nd gen games, and made it better. The Pokeathlon is hands-down the best side quest Game Freak has ever made, with an enormous amount of depth and so much to do. Having the Pokemon follow you around was incredible as well; it really adds an immersive element to the games, and helps you build connections with your Pokemon. It improved on the battle mechanics as well; unlike RBY, the battle mechanics were not particularly one of the charms of Gold and Silver, so that is an improvement. They even had that one item that made the music 8-bit again (too lazy to look up the name right now), so you can experience nostalgia again.

I'm honestly torn between the two. Remakes do improve on mechanics and graphics, but sometimes that's part of the previous games' charm, so I can't decide. I guess I'll have to wait for the next remake, so that I can make a final decision.
 

Anty

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I have always secretly been a genwunner. Gen1 was amazing days, not properly knowing what to do, teams of lvl 70 charizards, lvl 42 pideyots, then random raticates and vaporeons you tried to train but got bored. (i didnt play much gen2)

The remakes are amazing, but they dont feel as good as the origanals, tpp wouldnt be as fun if it were fr/lg. I love ruby soo much, my fav out of all games, but i still want a remake, even if i dont play it, i want other kids to have as much fun as i did and know the experience of finally beating winona's altaria, and catching groudon in a pokeball and especcially beating steven. (if there was a remake, i hope more rival battles with brandon/may AND wally)

The remakes are fun, but the buggy originals are just as, if not more fun.
 
For G1, I have to say the originals. FR/LG just didn't seem to have the same charm for me, not to mention that it was missing my absolute favorite G1 species and I had no way of getting it besides going back to the originals.

For G2, I have to say the remakes. I did like the originals, Gold was the first Pokémon game I played. But for one thing, longevity was a problem, I was heartbroken when the internal battery shorted out in 2007. And for another thing, HG/SS just had... more. I was more attached to my team, I could do more stuff with them, there was just plain more to do.
 
I would say the originals, if only for the nostalgic quality of the 8-bit music. I don't know what it is, but there's a quaint warm feel to it, and its always fun to reminisce. But HG/SS are definitely the better games, so I just hack in the GB Sounds and get the best of both worlds
 
I guess it honestly depends on which remakes we're talking about.

To me, I preferred the original Red and Blue over FireRed and LeafGreen because of a lot of small reasons put together. It felt almost...too...copy and paste from Red and Blue. One thing I downright hated was the lack of being able to evolve guys that honestly should be able to evolve before you get the National Dex. Seeing my Golbat stop evolving because I didn't get the national dex was almost infuriating. I felt like the Sevii Islands were almost a completely different feel to the game too rather than just an extension of the games. It was like a disjoint between the original sections and then the new sections suddenly appearing out of nowhere completely unconnected to the rest of Kanto. It didn't seem to have the charm of the original either, but that's probably because the nostalga glasses didn't go on like they should. In addition, compared to Ruby and Sapphire, FireRed and LeafGreen just felt slow. The running shoes had the same pace as the bike which is just terrible for someone that only rarely switched out of using the Mach Bike in RSE. I also disliked the lack of time feature...though to be honest that only affected evolving Eevee so it wasn't too much of a problem...but I loved Espeon. The games also felt kind of short but I guess that's only a fault of the original design of the game.

On the other hand, they seemed to have fixed all the problems with HeartGold and SoulSilver without having to necessarily shoehorn everything in. The pacing was improved. The bike speed was good. The extra unrelated areas were fewer though I still felt they were kinda tacked on (in particular the Safari Zone path felt that way to me). They also made the game feel vastly longer. I mean they pretty much put a full version of Kanto in rather than just that part. Rebattling Gym Leaders was fun. Including the Suicune event from Crystal was nice (though I could have also gone for the Odd Egg event too...) The Celebi, Spikey Eared Pichu, and Arceus events were tastefully added in without really needing to shoehorn them in. I loved the extra legendaries that made an appearence too. Beyond that, those remakes were still some of my favorite Pokemon games because of just how long and fulfilling they were. (And to be honest, I enjoyed Voltorb Flip better than the casino)

If they were going to make a Ruby and Sapphire remake I hope they consider HeartGold and SoulSilver as a guide to how to make a good remake. I would like something that really expands on the game (even to the point of having to include more Pokemon in the local dex). I would like to almost see a downright improvement in features between the two generations something that really I didn't feel that much in FireRed and LeafGreen. Maybe have a bike that's the combination of the mach and acro bikes this time around. Either that or make the mach bike ludicrously fast. I don't know how they can really improve on the games but it would be nice if they tried. Obviously, what's hard about a remake of these games would be trying to fit the whole storyline in. So you would do battle with both Aqua and Magma. Both teams would summon their legendary. You'd summon Rayquaza...and what? Maybe the cover legendary goes and hides and it's up to you to stop it? We'd have to consider that portion of the plot too.
 

Codraroll

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At least an eventual Ruby/Sapphire remake wouldn't need to go outside the map to find new areas to add. The seas of Hoenn have many islands without any purpose in RSE. It would be reasonable to assume they'd add something to break up the water routes. Hoenn is a beautiful region with easily fixable flaws, so unless they screw things up badly I'm almost certain I'll like the remakes even better than the originals. A little TLC to the oceans would go a long way of improving it.
 

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