>>47759530Crystal was my first proper pokemon game experience - little bit of snap and stadium minigames at my friend's house next door prior, but otherwise all I had was the anime, tcg, and various toys before crystal. I think what really made it shine compared to other games was it really did capture the feeling of having pretend pokemon battles and discussing what you'd do if you lived in the pokemon world on the playground, it was YOUR adventure as opposed to other games that had a set protagonist with a set personality and a known destiny right from the start that was easily predictable based on the story blurb or opening cutscene defining their goals. Sure, in reality the events of your journey were just as predetermined, but the devs/designers crafted an experience that felt organic and open. You were free to use any team you wanted, once you had the tools to get around road blocks you could go back or press onward at your leisure, you weren't sent out on a grand quest or being delegated earth-shattering responsibilities the instant there was trouble but just stumbling into the plot as if it could've been anyone, puzzles were just there and as mysterious to the npcs looking into them as they were to you. I miss that. These days the instant something happens instead of letting you wander in to check it out then end up as more than a bystander you're getting shoved right in the middle and treated like a prophetic hero and handed legendaries that must be added to your party this instant instead of happening upon their nest in the depths of a dungeon you were exploring just to explore with no knowledge of what dwells within. You may still name your character, and now you can even dress them up, but they're less you than ever as they get paraded around theme parks full of flashy spectacles you can't interact with. Like, we're so so close to being able to realize the dreams we used to share, but the magic spark is fading away more and more.
