>>33639071I know this is bait but I'll reply as if you were sincere.
I absolutely love Gen 2 for both aesthetic and gameplay purposes. The game doesn't fucking nag you with cutscenes or hold your hand so much that you can't ever go anywhere but the plot. You can breathe in it and explore at your own pace, with completely optional locations like the Ruins of Alph and the entire area between Blackthorn and Route 29 (since you have Fly by that point). Your rival is always antagonistic and never sucks your dick, and while the level curve is really poorly-thought-out the game has sixteen badges, the latter half of which let you revisit the region from the previous games. The palettes are very rich and I love Gen 2's trainer and Pokémon sprites, and the music makes fantastic use of the Game Boy's audio capabilities and its use of the variable waveform channel.
I'm a giant fan of older RPGs in general. They often had a bigger focus on gameplay and less on story than later ones. I can't stand Gen 6 or 7 because of all the cutscenes, dialogue interruptions, rivals who suck your dick and never leave you alone (Lillie is the worst because she never even fucking battles you but still interrupts you all the fucking time anyway), and railroading so intense that you often can't even leave the town you're in to see the next route. In games like GSC they usually put the roadblock in the route after the town you need to do something in, like how in Goldenroad you can go all the way up to the Sudowoodo after getting there, and how you can go all the way to Olivine even before you do the things in Ecruteak that will let you Surf on the water.
Gen 2 respects the player (relatively speaking) and I think that's early Pokémon's biggest boon compared to newer Pokémon. It's much more focused on delivering gameplay and exploration, which I believe should always be the core focus in Pokémon.
