Why is Johto considered the best gen?

[Waki Tobaye]

Ok so... when I first Pokémon forums and entered on some random topic on the General Pokémon Gaming or Pokémon General (don't remember) I was shocked at how most of the users said Sinnoh "sucked" (in few words), especially the designs and blablabla. Ok, I know some(Lickylicky and Probopass, to name some) are not the best of designs, but then they also said similar words about Hoenn, which, also has it's own fails (Nosepass) but I don't consider that Pokémon got ugly starting Hoenn. They also said (Mainly the reason of the topic) that arguably the 2º gen, Johto, was the best one.

2º introduced the berries, day&night system, breeding, shinyness, and many more things! BUT, 3º introduced the colorful graphics, the Pokémon Contests, Battle Frontier, Pokémon Events. 4º also introduced things, principally Pokémon Minigames(The Poffin ones and the WiFi ones), WiFi play, Atk and SAtk switch, following Pokémon, Pokéathlon, and so on. Then, why does 80% of the forum consider Johto the best gen?
And if you're gonna say that Johto introduced the most features, well lemme tell you that you're wrong. Kanto introduced Pokémon itself, so I guess the answer's clear there.

Then dear readers, what do you say about this? Why is Johto considered the best by almost every Poké-gamer?

 

[Åzurε]

Imo, it's because, among other things, Gold was the first Pokemon game I played. I like the actual Pokemon just as much today as I did back then. GSC remains the only generation where I encounter a Pokemon and go "that one looks so cool! I have to catch it!" the Red match, Blue's gym made of LEGOs, the Slowpoke Well incident, the Tin Tower, complaining about Whitney's Miltank, etc. The list goes on for me. Oh! and Sudowoodo. I laughed so hard when I saw him shake his butt in the Crystal animation. And an article in engrish calling Togetic "Togikachu", which is what I name every GSC Togepi I get ever from now on. And... Oh wait, I said I was done. Sorry. So yeah, maybe it's all a nostalgia trip for me.

 

[Trap-Eds]

Nostalgia. And the fact that it's the sequel to the start of Pokemon. But, mostly nostalgia.

 

[Jolene]

I always figured it's because a lot of the users here were at an impressionable age when they played Gold or Silver for the first time, so those games impressed them the most. Being less impressionable nowadays, newer games fail to leave an impression.

 

[Zeta Sukuna]

... Thank you for asking this. I was waiting for someone to ask this. What is so attractive about the 2nd gen? I don't know. Personally, 4th gen is my favorite, but I'd better answer the question.

The 2nd gen is so popular because it's where a lot of people (myself included) came on to pokemon. It likely blew their minds, and to this day, they remember it with a rosy tint that comes from the Nostalgia Goggles. It is pretty good, but I like Sinnoh more. Also, another thing with the Second Gen is the fact that there's two regions, two separate gym leagues. That was my favorite thing of the 2nd Gen, but overall, I liked the 4th gen more.

 

[Demigod]

Kanto = Johto > Hoenn >>>>>> 5th gen coming > Sinnoh

 

[Lt_Nite]

To me it's by far my fav gen just because, well I dunno really more of a nostalgic factor, my first game was Red but for some reason there's just that something about Johto. There is so much to do and for me at least it's replay value is extremely high.

 

[Munch Dog]

To me it's by far my fav gen just because, well I dunno really more of a nostalgic factor, my first game was Red but for some reason there's just that something about Johto. There is so much to do and for me at least it's replay value is extremely high.

Pretty much the same for me, though my first was Yellow. All the new features like day/night, kurt making custom pokeballs, being able to go back to Kanto and fight all the old gym leaders, and of course it has in my opinion the best rival. It had just a lot of things that the newer gens seem to lack, I thought the 4th gen did a really good job at bringing some of that feeling back though.

 

["Shadow Lugia"]

If nostalgia was the sole reason for choosing my favorite Pokemon games, then R/B/Y would be my favorites. Here's a list of reasons why I consider G/S/C to be my favorite, and the greatest, Pokemon games:

1. The new features. You're right when saying R/B introduced the most features, since they were the first games, but I would say Johto introduced some of the most important features since then. These features are the introduction of Dark and Steel types, the split of the Special stat, breeding, held items, the day/night and day of the week system, shiny Pokemon, and rematching trainers. There are many more changes, but these are the most important in my opinion. Also they were the first Pokemon games that really had color. :P

2. The Pokemon designs. Even though G/S was the generation that introduced the least amount of new Pokemon, those new Pokemon have some of my favorite designs. There's Typhlosion, Feraligatr, Furret, Sneasel, Scizor, Skarmory, Heracross, Kingdra, Ursaring, Donphan, Raikou, Espeon, Umbreon, Ampharos, Steelix, Azumarill, Hitmontop, Houndoom, Lugia, and many others.

3. The Johto region. I've always found Johto to have some of the most memorable locations: From Goldenrod with the Radio Tower and Magnet Train, to Azalea where you rescue the Slowpoke, to Ecruteak with a historic, Japanese feel, to Olivine with its towering lighthouse to Blacktorn with the Dragon's Den, to the relaxing National Park, to the cold Ice Path, to the enigmatic Ruins of Alph, to the Lake of Rage with the Red Gyarados.

4. The ability to go to Kanto. While taking much less time to complete than in R/B/Y, the ability to go to Kanto was still a very significant achievement. Considering the GameBoy's low memory, it was also a technological achievement to have so many more maps and trainers in G/S than in R/B/Y. It added significantly to the post-game content, which certainly isn't a bad thing, either. Lastly, I've always loved the idea of being able to explore the old world in the newer games and seeing what's changed and what's stayed the same over time.

5. The rival (AKA Silver). Silver is easily my favorite rival from any Pokemon game. Blue was a jerk, Brendan/May didn't seem to care about battling much, Wally seemed like a weakling until the very end, and Pearl (Barry) was a bit too much of a clown to take seriously. Silver, though, hit every note right. He did what he wanted to and never apologized for it, which made him feel like a legitimate threat. In addition, he's one of the few characters in any Pokemon game to have good character development, which isn't something you see every day.

6. The music. A lot of my favorite Pokemon music is from G/S/C. From the National Park theme, to the Ecruteak theme, to the Kanto trainer theme, to the Kanto Gym Leader theme, to the rival theme, to the Surfing teme, to the Kanto wild Pokemon theme, to the legendary beast theme, to the Champion theme etc. I can't really explain why I like a piece of music, but you can always find the G/S/C music online if you're curious about them.

7. The battle with Red. I highly doubt a future Pokemon game will ever have a final battle as amazing as the battle with Red. It was probably the biggest twist in any Pokemon game; taking the character you played as in the very first Pokemon games and then making him your final opponent in the newer ones. It shocked everyone and led to a fantastic final battle.

Note that personally, I really like all of the generations. Still, G/S/C are by far my favorite games.

 

[Loxius]

Personally I think IV gen is my favourite. o-o; It's just there's so much to do and now you can even connect to other people via Wi-fi. I think that's what makes the difference for me. I get why people love love Johto though. It was pretty great but I think people down on the newer gens too much. I do think it's the nostalgia talkin' a bit anyway. Anyway people have a right to their opinion.

 

[Timbjerr]

Nostalgia mainly...but GenII was the last good era before pokemon games became bogged down with minigames, pointless legendaries, and overly contrived plots. Old school gamers like me simply appreciate having a solid RPG game without too much flair.

 

[Cham]

I too think nostalgia has a part to play with this, but the first generation has an equal amount of nostalgic value as well. I think what drew me to this generation was the fact that because I loved the first generation so much, when I discovered they were making a sequel I was so hyped up for it. Now all the sequels are expected, and because of this are less shocking.

I thought the monster design for 152-251 were the best,, and I also think that 250 was the right balance between amount/variety, but not having a ton of useless/redundant monsters like the newer generations.

 

[ChrisTom]

I must say firstly...

You are wrong about following Pokemon in Gen IV. In all technicality it was introduced in Gen I. Don't make me go Pikachu on your behind!

However, I believe your question is legit. Why do we assume that one Generation is better than the other? It's like saying what color is the best. You can't really answer. In my opinion, most people prefer Gen II, due to the (God, I hate saying cliche words) Nostalgia. It was arguably the most important Generation of Pokemon, mainly because people were still lapping up the Hype of the first games, and also because of the introduction of new Pokemon. You might also want to take into consideration, the massive memory bank this game had. Back in those days, this was INSANE technology. Night and day, internal clock, calender. You had 2 regions, something that has only been implemented in that game. Even then, there are several beta maps which still exist on the game. May I bring up the Safari Zone? Also, the aforementioned Pokemon designs were ingenius. Cute Totodile, Shy Cyndaquil, Pretty Chikorita. They brought a new era of Pokemon.

Now if you look a few years into the future of Pokemon, you will see yet another reason it is preferred. What kind of Pokemon can you only get in Safari Zone in Gen III? Gen II Pokemon. They are coveted by Gen III collectors, who have almost no way whatsoever to get them.

Finally there is the fact that you defeat a previous version of yourself, per se. I am referring, of course, to the infamous Red, who is well known as having the Highest level Trainer Pokemon in all of the games. And on top of that, he serves as an almost inspiration to the Gen I players.


In conclusion, Gen II is considered to be the best game, purely for the ingenius imagination and thought that was put into it. It was then that they started thinking about extreme interactivity and realism...


With all regards,

-ChrisTom

 

[Dirtyjerry]

I liked it because it had the two regions and it was always my favorite as a kid. So as most others are saying, the nostolgia.

 

[Serene Grace]

Johto was the best region, for me, simply because they introduced innovative features to Pokemon. Firstly, it was the first Pokemon game to feature gender choice which was positively accepted by most of the female population of Pokemon gamers who didn't want to play as guys. Secondly, it had great Pokemon designs. Seriously, I think that the second generation had the best designs of any Pokemon generation and they got the evolution and pre-evolution designs number perfectly - not too much so we're not overwhelmed but still making them look cool (Scizor says hi). Finally, it had two regions which made the game longer and more fun to play - something other Pokemon games are lacking.

 

[Charmageddon]

I think it helped that it was a sequel, a proper continuation from the original story, rather than the same concept set in a differet region. It gave a greater sense of continuity and made the Pokemon world feel like one, connected story. Hoenn and Sinnoh were great and all, but they were seperate from all other regions and as a result felt... detatched and isolated.

Gen II made a big deal about being a continuation of Pokemon, not a new, separate generation. Trainers had new Pokemon, but still an abundance of old ones. Team Rocket and the original E4 were back, but with a twist. Johto expanded the Pokemon world, while Hoenn and Sinnoh created new ones. I think people prefer the large, connected, expanded story to new, isolated ones.

 

[Haza]

I think it helped that it was a sequel, a proper continuation from the original story, rather than the same concept set in a differet region. It gave a greater sense of continuity and made the Pokemon world feel like one, connected story. Hoenn and Sinnoh were great and all, but they were seperate from all other regions and as a result felt... detatched and isolated.

Gen II made a big deal about being a continuation of Pokemon, not a new, separate generation. Trainers had new Pokemon, but still an abundance of old ones. Team Rocket and the original E4 were back, but with a twist. Johto expanded the Pokemon world, while Hoenn and Sinnoh created new ones. I think people prefer the large, connected, expanded story to new, isolated ones.

Omg, you said it... GSC seemed like he only ones that were true to the originals. You even got to travel back and battle Red(pretty much Ash, the closet anime reference in the games ever). GSC had it all and were extremely classic. Even though I found them boring when I was younger, I find it easier to enjoy it for all its charm now.

 

[Gary the Magic Fairy]

[JQ]Gen II made a big deal about being a continuation of Pokemon, not a new, separate generation. Trainers had new Pokemon, but still an abundance of old ones. Team Rocket and the original E4 were back, but with a twist. Johto expanded the Pokemon world, while Hoenn and Sinnoh created new ones. I think people prefer the large, connected, expanded story to new, isolated ones.[/JQ]
This, exactly. I can understand not including every region in every game, but they really should have stuck to either including Kanto or connecting the next region to the last one. I think Hoenn would've been more well-received if it had some connection to Kanto or Johto. Instead, they drop you in some bizarre parallel universe, with pokemon that are different but the same, with nothing at all being preserved. Pretty much the same with Sinnoh. At least they got back on track a little, with little things like Jasmine and such.
Anyway, that explained pretty well why I liked Johto but didn't care for Hoenn, and it seems like a logical reason for why many others feel the same.

 

[Moltres111]

Nostalgia. And the fact that it's the sequel to the start of Pokemon. But, mostly nostalgia.

I always figured it's because a lot of the users here were at an impressionable age when they played Gold or Silver for the first time, so those games impressed them the most. Being less impressionable nowadays, newer games fail to leave an impression.

... Thank you for asking this. I was waiting for someone to ask this. What is so attractive about the 2nd gen? I don't know. Personally, 4th gen is my favorite, but I'd better answer the question.

The 2nd gen is so popular because it's where a lot of people (myself included) came on to pokemon. It likely blew their minds, and to this day, they remember it with a rosy tint that comes from the Nostalgia Goggles. It is pretty good, but I like Sinnoh more. Also, another thing with the Second Gen is the fact that there's two regions, two separate gym leagues. That was my favorite thing of the 2nd Gen, but overall, I liked the 4th gen more.

My answers quoted above. Thanks guys, I only needed to do some quoting. =D

 

[billi1000]

johto is definitely the best generation for most fans and for myself as well because:
1.Best looking pokemon
2.Best region (the only games containing containing both johto and kanto)
3.Best storyline
and thats just about it, the rest speaks for itself :)