>>53163379From IGN's review in 2000:
"All battles take place in closed-off arenas with simple backdrops inspired by the anime series. The environments are pretty unimpressive -- but that's for a reason. The polygonal Pokémon are where it's at. These soft-skinned beauties are not only highly detailed and look exactly like their TV counterparts, they also move with such convincing animation that it seems likely that Nintendo has found a way to motion-capture real-life Pokémon. The bird animations are especially impressive and each of the 151 Pokémon has a unique (and often hilarious) "fainting" animation as well. There are so many neat details, that it's impossible to list them all. Grimer and Muk drip and ooze as they try to maintain their shape, Cloyster's horns rotate, Venusaur gets bloodshot eyes when it's in trouble, Jolteon shakes its head and stumbles backwards after a hit and Lickitung is at its most disturbing. Some of the size differences that weren't apparent in the Game Boy versions are also beautifully reproduced. Just pit a Gyarados against a Magikarp and you'll understand... And best of all, the framerate is rock solid.
The attack graphics are equally impressive, with colorful particle animations and screen-shaking special effects. Like in the Game Boy games, the Pokémon never actually physically "touch" each other -- which comes as somewhat of a disappointment. Luckily, all the elemental attacks and their effects on the Pokémon are shown in their full glory, so it isn't really that big of a deal if you can't actually see two Pokémon make contact with some of the more boring moves like Slash and Stomp.
Overall, the game's graphical presentation is top notch, though it naturally can't compete with adventure or platform games since it lacks environment detail."
