When I was younger, I didn’t have a Nintendo GameBoy or GameBoy Advance, and neither did my brother. Our cousins did, though, and we’d visit each other at least twice a year. Whenever they came over to ours, or we visited them, we’d play Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen on their GBAs, and alongside watching the anime following Ash and his friends’ adventures, that’s what got me hooked onto Pokémon.
That love has once again been re-ignited in 2026 by the launch of the Nintendo Switch and Switch 2 version of what’s arguably the best Pokémon 2D game (and I will die on this hill). Since it came out on February 27, I’ve been playing FireRed non-stop. I play it on my commute to and from work, before sleeping, and whenever I can squeeze in a couple of hours.
Since its launch, I’ve sunk over 80 hours into making my way through the gyms, fighting trainers, catching Pokémon, and training up my party. Replaying FireRed has emphasized all the flaws that the modern Pokémon games carry — and I say that as someone who has played many of the 3D games, such as Let’s Go, Sword and Shield, and Legends: Arceus. FireRed has done nothing but bolster my wish for the Pokémon Company, and GameFreak needs to bring back 2D games, and here’s why.
I’m not afraid to admit that a lot of my love for Pokémon FireRed comes from it being the first game I played on the Nintendo GBA, and I admit that when it was first announced on the Nintendo Switch, I was looking at it through rose-tinted glasses.
I was worried that GameFreak and the Pokémon Company were going to make certain changes to it that I wouldn’t like, and for the most part — I’d say 99% — FireRed remains untouched. It is, essentially, the same game that was released all the way back in 2004. 22 years later, it’s still great.
What I loved about FireRed back then and still do today is the fact that grinding never feels like a pain, and it’s nowhere near as punishing as a Souls-like game. Encounters with wild Pokémon are extremely fun, and finding certain Pokémon on specific routes adds to the versatility.
Battling against them and jumping into battles with rivals, and the amount of EXP you get depending on the level of the Pokémon you’re battling feels rewarding, especially when your Pokémon evolves when you were least expecting it.
I picked Charmander as my starter, and it dawned on me that I would struggle against Brock and his rock-type Pokémon for the first time — so I started grinding. I caught a Mankey, leveled it up, and struggled but persisted against Brock to get the Boulder badge. It was hard, but again, nothing like the sweet taste of victory when you’ve struggled so much.
Type match-ups and ensuring that I had the correct type of Pokémon when battling any gym leader were crucial, and knowing that kept me motivated to fill up my Pokédex, too. I remember loving it just as much when I was a child, and though it’s time-consuming and takes many, many hours, I’m more motivated than ever to complete the Pokédex this time around, as I never did it when I was younger.
The modern games just don’t cut it
I was late to the Nintendo Switch party, and I got the OG Switch during the first COVID-19 lockdown in 2020. When I was at my family home during lockdown, I played a lot — and I mean a lot — of The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Pokémon Let’s Go Pikachu, Pokémon Sword, and Pokémon Legends: Arceus.
According to my Switch’s game tracker, I’ve played Let’s Go for 90 hours and Sword for 150 hours. Clearly, I loved them. But I could never put my finger on why they didn’t hit the same way that Pokémon FireRed did when I was a child.
And it hit me recently. FireRed, to me, feels like it’s got more soul and feel to it. It feels like a game made by a company that actually cares. Every character in FireRed, whether that’s an NPC that has only one line of dialogue or your rival, feels like they have a distinct personality to them.
The 2D pixel art feels more detailed than the often stiff-looking 3D models in the modern titles, and the pacing feels just right. It isn’t too slow, and it isn’t too fast, and the 2D pixel art feels richer and more detailed.
One of the reasons I love FireRed is that it leaves things to your imagination. When I’m fighting wild Pokémon, I’m picturing them in clear detail in my head — the sounds they make, the way they act. My brain feels a lot more engaged playing FireRed now than it ever did with Sword and Let’s Go.
That’s because FireRed requires the right level of strategy and planning without overdoing it. Both Sword and Let’s Go felt like a piece of cake to me. FireRed actually feels challenging, and most battles aren’t something you can just wing.
Fight it out (locally)
Even as an adult, I’m finding tons of enjoyment in training up my party in Pokémon FireRed, and one of the quickest ways to still get humbled is fighting other trainers. I’ve been locally battling it out with my colleague and friend Harry from sister site TechRadar when we’re in the office together. The local connection has been fairly stable with not much input lag, and it’s been a lot of fun fighting his party. In place of online play, it’s the next best option.
Both Harry and I were at very different points in the game (he’s got LeafGreen, which is perfect for locally trading too), so he was a little under-levelled compared to my party. But both of us promised that we’d train up and battle again once we had both beaten the Elite Four and our respective parties were level 60 and higher.
We even promised that we’d catch version-exclusive Pokémon for one another and trade them at a later point. That has always been the fun of Pokémon for me, to trade with friends and do things like these for each other, and playing FireRed has been a treat for my soul and inner child.
FireRed isn’t perfect, though
As I said earlier, anyone who played Pokémon FireRed as a kid will surely be enjoying playing it as an adult on the Nintendo Switch or Switch 2. But nostalgia is a double-edged sword, and while the modern version of FireRed is nothing short of fantastic and remains virtually unchanged, it’s not perfect.
The lack of wireless play, at the time of writing, limits trading capabilities. I remember filling a large part of my Pokédex in Pokémon Sword with the help of strangers on the dedicated Subreddit.
And while Nintendo has confirmed that FireRed and LeafGreen will be getting Home support eventually, it isn’t bidirectional, so you can’t transfer Pokémon into the game from other titles. This makes it nearly impossible to complete the national Pokédex, which is a shame for completionists and anyone who wants to get as many hours as possible out of the game — like me.
Another annoying change that’s been introduced? If you press all four face buttons (ABXY) together, you’ll soft-reset the game if you aren’t careful. Personally, I can’t see myself pressing all four buttons unintentionally, but I’ve heard a few people complaining about it online, so clearly it is a sticking point for some.
One thing I have learned during my time on the internet is that people love to complain and hate on anything that’s trending at the moment, and looks like another sticking point for some is that FireRed costs too much for what’s basically an unchanged, non-remastered, non-remade port.
To that I say, is it really that problematic? The digital download costs $19 / £16 today, and 22 years ago, it would have cost nearly double, if not more. It’s nowhere near the retail price of Mario Kart World or a AAA title, and you get easily 100 hours out of it.
I also like Nintendo’s decision to re-release FireRed and LeafGreen on the modern consoles, given that the only other way to play them (officially) is buying a second-hand GBA that costs hundreds and hundreds. As someone whose first experience with handheld console gaming was the OG FireRed, I’m glad young children are getting to experience it the way I did, as I’ve seen on Reddit and Instagram.
As I said, the modern 3D Pokémon games just don’t cut it for me, and if you want an authentic Pokémon gaming experience, FireRed or LeafGreen is a great starting point.
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