Okay. So we all know this game was in the making ever since they released Diamond and Pearl. It was obvious. So now that it’s finally out Stateside, how does it stand up?

To cut to the chase, this is the best portable game I have ever played. Yes, you heard me. This game not only brings about a fresh experience, but also an obvious aura of nostalgia about it. Here you begin, a young upstart trainer leaving his or her hometown of New Bark Town to become the next Pokémon Master. We lived this a decade ago, time to relive what was the definitive portable RPG, remade for new and old alike.

The game is what you’d expect from the remake of Gold and Silver transposed to the 4th generation, much like Fire Red and Leaf Green were transposed to the 3rd. Interestingly enough, many elements from Crystal were borrowed, as well, such as the obvious gender selection (which is less a Crystal element and more a rule in general ever since), to Eusine and a special role of Suicune’s that makes it stand out from Raikou and Entei, all the way to new roles from existing characters such as the Kimono Girls, and to an extent, even Lance.

Gyms have been overhauled to boast new puzzles and a different way of advancing through your quest for the badges, and gym leaders boast their old Pokémon with new moves to create more complex strategies to work around. Though your foes’ Pokémon may seem stronger, it should be noted that leveling up tends to be somewhat quicker than it used to be two generations ago, so you should be able to keep up with them, as well as new moves and with them, new strategies to use.

Once you unlock certain events in the game, you can even hold rematches with your fallen gym leader opponents, and even rematch your old friend atop Mt. Silver, Red (who is harder than before, don’t you worry). The game’s replay value has stricken upwards from its predecessor, and registering people in your Pokégear, although even more annoying than before, can yield surprising rewards.

The only real flaws I can see are that you can no longer decorate your room (which was always a fun escape from the wild grass outside), and the Game Corner has been essentially killed off (it exists, but it’s really boring, featuring only a solitary Minesweeper-style card game), but these are very minor changes compared to all the things they added in. For example, the Safari Zone’s back, and don’t worry: it doesn’t replace the Bug-Catching Contest.

I think all in all it’s a much more hands-on and easier to approach than the original games. It’s got the day-and-time features in still (which, just between you and me? It’s detected via the DS clock; if you want to get an event without waiting an actual day or two or six? Just change the time or date on the DS), and everything else that brought GSC above its older cousin RBY. Both young and old can truly appreciate this marvel, complete with revamps (and originals!) of the legendary soundtrack, the unique presentation of Japanese legends and stylizing, and, of course, the tried-and-true goal of, simply put, catching ‘em all.