I have a pokemon question I know I will regret.

[YukoValis]

I have never played a pokemon game, and was always curious to try. I don't care about the show, story, etc. I just see the game for what you do in it. Go on an adventure to capture and fight pokemon.

SO I must ask since there are a dozen or more games, which one is the best? or at the very least would best include the concept of traveling the world with minimal headache.

 

[Baby Tea]

Red or Blue.
Easiest and best, in my opinion.

 

[Gladion]

For your purposes, you might wanna go with the first games, i.e. red/blue, because (to my knowledge) they're the 'smallest' ones, with only 151 monsters to get and only one country to travel. But I haven't played the GBA and DS ones, so I'm no expert.

 

[SmilingKitsune]

Well my favourite was gold version, but they're pretty hard to get a hold of these days, the battery in the cartridge wears out afer a few years so buying a second hand copy is not a good idea.
But really, the pokemon games are all very similar, if you've never played one just get the latest game.

 

[Ben Legend]

personally, I'd go with FireRed or LeafGreen, just because, i find them the most simplest and easy to navigate. Whereas Ruby/Saphire and Diamond/Pearl often leave me wondering where to go next.
Also FireRed and LeafGreen have a huge expansion area to explore with more pokemon.
Alternatively, you could go retro and buy Gold/Silver.

 

[Glitches are cool]

It's easiest to go with the earliest, before all the wacked out mechanics of the game, such as EV, Hidden Power calculations, and a bunch of stuff that's unneeded to really enjoy the game, was put into said games. Red or Blue, but it'll be hard to find those these days.

 

[Undead Dragon King]

I have never played a pokemon game, and was always curious to try. I don't care about the show, story, etc. I just see the game for what you do in it. Go on an adventure to capture and fight pokemon.

SO I must ask since there are a dozen or more games, which one is the best? or at the very least would best include the concept of traveling the world with minimal headache.

I agree that Red/Blue are the most original, but I would go for FireRed/LeafGreen for practical purposes. The story and Pokemon are mostly the same and the graphics are infinitely better. Add that to the fact that Red/Blue aren't that common anymore.

 

[OneHP]

Red or Blue.

 

[YukoValis]

ah ok thank you all hmm I should have put a poll up or something lol

 

[Same River New Water]

Nintendo really got it right with the first games, Red and Blue. Since then they've added a feature here or there, refined the odd detail and added another gender as the protagonist, but basically the games haven't changed. I've only played two Pokemon games: Pokemon Red in 1996 and Pokemon Pearl in 2006. Despite the ten-year gap, they felt just the same. And somehow that's not a criticism - I'll buy the next one when it comes out.

I enjoyed the original game a bit more, but back then it was new and exciting and I was nowhere near puberty, so it's not necessarily better. The later ones are bigger, more colourful and have a bit more stuff in them. I'd say you're safe starting with any game in the series - although the first games and the most recent games do have the best starter pokemon [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gameplay_of_Pok%C3%A9mon#Starter_Pok.C3.A9mon].

It's easiest to go with the earliest, before all the wacked out mechanics of the game, such as EV, Hidden Power calculations, and a bunch of stuff that's unneeded to really enjoy the game, was put into said games.

I wouldn't worry about this OP. There's a system of behind-the-scenes stat modifiers, but if you just played the games without looking it up online you would honestly never know it existed. It's only relevant for competitive battling.

Though I haven't played them myself, it sounds like FireRed or LeafGreen are the way to go: all the best things about the original games with the benefits of GBA technology.

 

[Onyx Oblivion]

Platinum.

No one's forcing you to worry about EVs, IVs, DVs, HIV and shit. Ignore those things if you want.

I'm a massive pokemon fan, and would never go back to Red and Blue, because they're not as good as the sequels.

 

[Ultress]

Gold/Silver, it tweaked red/blue and added a cool day and night system. The best of the series IMO

 

[fletch_talon]

Definitely Silver/Gold/Crystal however its unlikely you'll find a copy that'll work for long.
As mentioned by someone earlier, the second gen pokemon games have a battery in the cartridge, and this battery runs out eventually due to an real time feature in the game.

Which by the way is one of the big reasons why I recommend these games. They are the first to use the feature and until Diamond/Pearl/Platinum they were the only ones to do so. The time affects what pokemon you can catch (as there are dark pokemon tha are nocturnal) and also the occasional in game event. For example on certain days there is a bug catching contest (kinda like asafari zone) in which you could compete for prizes as well as catching hard to find pokemon.
Gold and Silver are also (I believe) the first and only games in which you could catch both featured legendary pokemon (the ones on the front of the boxes) if you don't include the compulsory 3rd games introduced in each generation.

Of course they were also the first generation I played so it could well be nostalgia talking.

 

[Woundingisfun]

I'm still playing my Pokémon blue for Gameboy Colour occasionally. Got gold a long time ago but I didn't care for it.

 

[YukoValis]

does red/blue have day and night though?

 

[AllHailTheAltmer]

does red/blue have day and night though?

No. Day and night was included in Gold/Silver. In fact most of the coolest aspects of the series were included in this version, which is why I, having played most of the games, still consider those to be the very best. Hard to find a copy though.

 

[YukoValis]

hmm ok so far it's Gold and siver for me. I do like the night/day concepts a lot. it would be a good start. yes I know these games are rare..but I have my ways *smirks*

 

[Grampy_bone]

The thing about Pokemon is that the games are more or less identical. If you have a DS, go for Diamond/Pearl/Platinum. If you have a GBA, you can't go wrong with either Fire Red/Leaf Green or Ruby/Sapphire. They're all pretty much the same.

 

[Nazulu]

Red and Blue is still one of the best and Gold and Silver is a great sequal with alot of extra stuff in it but the rest were not as interesting to me. It is all just opinions in the end but my favourite Pokemon adventures were in the earily games.

 

[Xpwn3ntial]

Red or Blue.
Easiest and best, in my opinion.

Yellow's just as good.