Thread: Why is Generation II so loved by fans?

Please take note: hostile, flaming poats will not be tolerated.

In curious where the adoration for Gen II comes from. What makes this generation the apparent fan favorite? Is it only based on nostalgia?

Because it was fad then. Getting completely new 100 pokemon must have been an exciting prospect back then.

Basically because Game Freak took what was so great about RBY and perfected it, without changing too much of the overall gameplay. When Generation III rolled around, they changed a hell of a lot and some people saw it as a complete reboot. Because of this the popularity among long-time fans died down.

Pokemon breeding. Ain't it obvious?

It was released in 2000 just as the fad phase was peaking. The fact that the games were improved over gen I, yet still connected/relied heavily on the plot, and other elements from gen I, made the games instantly familiar. You still fight Team Rocket, you still see the majority of Kanto Pokémon in wild encounters as well as in trainer encounters, and gym matches. I think it is this overall familiarity that makes the games so popular.

I like generation II because it has 16 badges and it can trade with generation I games and trade back. They were also loved because many generation II pokémon were shown in the anime before it released. In this order they are Ho-oh, Togepi, Marill, Snubbull, Donphan, Ledyba, Elekid, Bellossom, Hoothoot, Slowking and Lugia. Ho-oh, Snubbull and Slowking were also shown in the manga before it released. It also introduced breeding by hatching eggs which made exclusive moves available. It also introduce time. It has the day of the week which is not in generation III. The memory was controlled by a battery which I think is the only bad thing about it because when it runs out the saved file is deleted.

Nostalgia. Most people have only played Gens I and II. Then when III came out, it was new and "RUINED FOREVER". By then, they were getting out of Pokemon.

Originally Posted by AbsolJM

Basically because Game Freak took what was so great about RBY and perfected it, without changing too much of the overall gameplay. When Generation III rolled around, they changed a hell of a lot and some people saw it as a complete reboot. Because of this the popularity among long-time fans died down.

This sums it up in the shortest sense. Gen.2 was a direct sequel to Gen 1 and is still the one gen that we know 100 percent when it took place. It showed time actually passing in Kanto and though some people complain about the changes, I thought it was all very natural.

Gen. 3 is the most controversial Gen because of all the changes that took place and the exclusion of so many of the old pokemon. Gen. 2 had most of the old ones and added new ones to boot. The fact that you could challenge 16 gyms, visit 2 regions, AND battle Red are some of the greatest things about Gen. 2 Also, while a lot of people say it sucked it was extremely succesful and sold very well.

Gen 2, I think, added more to the series than a lot of the other games did. Roaming legendaries, hold items, rematches, etc. It also seems to be the closest thing to a true sequel, whereas the Hoenn and Sinnoh adventures in later games were their own stories with no real relation to any other game in the series.

But as stated, I think the best part of the games was the ability to visit the old region and obtain 16 badges instead of the usual 8.

I had a really long reply but it was eaten up by a Database Error.

Basically, I like Gen. 2 because of the design of the new Pokemon were more appealing to me. I also like the expansion of my favorite feature in Yellow, the Happiness rating. I also liked the breeding element if only to help me "restart" certain Pokemon whose movesets I screwed up on or "clone" my starter.

Just for nostalgic value. As said in the previous posts, generation II was something new and exciting for fans of generation I. It's kind of a fad thing.

Generation II was my favorite too. Probably because of the egg factor, and the length of the game itself.

I don't know... I personally find Gen II to be my least favourite of all Generations, and I could never understand the obsession everyone has with it. It wasn't bad, but it was the worst. So, not all Pokémon fans loved that Generation.

It was the improvements they made at time. They introduced so many new things to Pokemon. They gave us Night and Day, weekly events, both (At the time) regions to explore, Pokemon breeding and 100 new Pokemon. At the time, it was the perfect Pokemon game. It gave us a whole new region to explore where every area felt new, but old at the same time. Then Ruby came around and took away features.

I'm not going to bad mouth Ruby too bad, since I actually do like those games, but the fact that they took away features always disappointed me. Now that I'm older, I can appreciate the new (At the time) combat system, and all that jazz, but unless you're actually a die hard Pokemon fan, you're not going to notice the stuff about natures.

IMO, you need to have experienced it when it came out to appreciate it.

I didn't get into the games until 2005; I played RBY and GSC, but I wasn't as enamored with them as much of the fandom, as I like the changes implemented in RSE.

What I see as causing the love for Gen II:
-- peak of Pokemon's popularity
-- new area, new pokes, old plot, old pokes

The return of Johto in the form of HGSS was probably the best thing that Game Freak could have done for business. It brought back everyone who ragequit during Gen III because something that was done they didn't like. They realized, from a retrospective point of view, that the implementation of the Gen III changes ultimately made the pokemon games more playable, and they came back for BW. The surge of popularity after HGSS (measured in new users here at BMGf), I can bet you is much larger than the wave after DP or Pt.

I agree with most people when they say it was the fad. It's true - Pokemon was pretty much at it's peak back then. Also the excitement of getting an entirely new region, set of Pokemon, cast of characters, soundtrack, etc. That's why, by the time 3rd gen. came around, it wasn't as anticipated as 2nd gen. was. Even though, IMO, 3rd. gen was just as good, if not better, the fanbase just wasn't there anymore.