If someone would come up and ask me, "what made you become a gamer for life?" I would say the Pokemon series made me the gamer that I am today. Like just about every other kid in the world at the time, I couldn't get enough of pokemon. I liked the anime and I thought the trading card game was okay, but I absolutely loved the games. Because of Pokemon, I not only love playing video games, but I also can't get enough of JRPGs. If it hadn't been for Pokemon, I know I wouldn't be the same person I am today. Thank You Gamefreak!!!

Anyway, back then there were only 2 games to choose from: Pokemon Red and Pokemon Blue. They were pretty much the same game except there were certain pokemon that would only appear in 1 of the versions, and if you wanted the pokemon that didn't appear in your game, you'd have to trade with someone else. I decided that I wanted Pokemon Red because I much preferred the cover of red than blue. (CHARIZARD FTW!) Back then, that game was by far my favorite, and I had plenty of other games such as Super Mario 64, Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, for the N64 and Crash Bandicoot for the PS1. Now that I'm older though, I see that those 3 games I just mentioned are better games than Pokemon Red. I still love Pokemon Red though, and now I'm going to review it, enjoy!

Graphics: 8/10 Visually, Pokemon Red is one of the better looking games for the game boy. The character sprites look great, the pokemon themselves looked nice for the time, though there were a few pokemon that I feel didn't look appealing at all compared to the trading cards such as geodude. Also the towns, cities, and caves look very good as well. For these reasons I'm giving the graphics an 8.

Sound: 10/10 Out of all the gameboy games I've played, Pokemon Red has by far the best soundtrack I've ever heard on the system. Everything from the gym leader theme to the creepy lavender town theme is stunning for a gameboy game. All JRPGs need a great soundtrack, and Pokemon Red has that. Since this soundtrack is the best that the original gameboy had to offer, I'm definitely giving the sound a 10.

Addictiveness: 10/10 Back in 1998, few games could even come close to being as addictive as Pokemon, which is a huge reason why it was so successful. At that time, there was no other game out there that had quite as much customization as Pokemon Red. There are a total of 151 pokemon for you to catch, each with their own strengths and weaknesses, which can make choosing your team of 6 a tough, yet exciting decision, and also it gives you a big reason to play the game multiple times. The game also has a great story, a fantastic soundtrack, and plenty of entertaining battles to keep you entertained for a long time. Also the ability to trade and with friends gave Pokemon Red and Blue even more addictiveness than it already had. For these reasons, I'm giving the addictiveness a 10!

Story: 8/10 This game has you play as Red, a 10 year old boy who wants to go on a pokemon journey and become a pokemon master. To help him accomplish this, you must catch and train pokemon, defeat gym leaders, and take on the pokemon league before your rival. Along the way, you'll take on a fiendish group called Team Rocket, an evil organization that steal and exploit pokemon just so they can make money. They view pokemon as tools to help them achieve their goals. So while you're trying to earn badges and catch pokemon, you're also trying to stop Team Rocket, and then finally challenge the pokemon league and try to become the champion. The story is very good, especially for a gameboy game. I'm giving the story an 8 because there are better storylines out there.

Depth: 8/10 When it comes to gameboy games, Pokemon Red has the most to do. There's 8 gym leaders to battle, the pokemon league to conquer, a pokedex to complete, and lots of trainers to battle. The only thing I wish Game Freak could've done was possibly add a little bit more post game content. I know that this was the 1st game in the series and it was on the original gameboy, but it still would've been nice to have a little bit more to do than go to cerulean cave. But since there aren't very many gameboy games with as much depth as Pokemon Red, I'm giving the depth an 8.

Difficulty: 5/10 As a little kid, I thought that pokemon was a very tough game. Now that I'm much older and more experienced at gaming, I see that it isn't super difficult. There are some battles that could give experienced gamers some trouble, but as long as you know what you're doing, this game shouldn't give you a lot of trouble. Each gym leader has 1 specific type they specialize in, and as long as you have at least 1 type that can take down that type, you should be fine as long as your pokemon is at a high enough level. Even trainers who have multiple types shouldn't be too hard as long as you have a diverse party. Because the game isn't super difficult, I'm giving this category a 5.

Overall Score: 9/10 There's a big reason why Pokemon Red (and Blue) was such a cultural phenomenon. It's easily one of the most addicting games of the 90s. It has an amazing soundtrack, a great storyline, and lots of pokemon to catch. Whether you want to have a Pikachu or something with more power such as a Charizard, you'll still have a great experience with the game either way. Whether or not you're new to the series, or if you love JRPGs, Pokemon Red is a must play. My final Score for this game is a 9.

Just like every other kid? *looks at profile* Damn, being 9 years older DOES change taste as I've never cared for Pokemons. Back in 1998, Final Fantasy 7 was THE game for me.

Otherwise I must say I'm impressed with your review. It's well-detailed and divided and I can feel the "love" you have for the game. Can't wait to read your next one!