I’ve been there from the very start. A child who loved the anime. A child who couldn’t believe his eyes when the elusive “rainbow bird” soared into the clouds in the first episode. With my Game Boy Color in hand and a copy of Pokémon Red, I had everything a child in the nineties needed to be a Pokémon Master.
Looking back, I don’t think I had much of an idea what I was doing. I’m not even sure how old I was, but I know my reading skills weren’t great and the concept of beating a video game felt daunting. I started off by naming my Squirtle “Squirt”, and yet despite the back-sprite having a smile, I thought he looked sad at the name. So I restarted and kept Squirtle as-is, realising that his back sprite was the same regardless.
I powered through Pokemon Red, with Squirtle in the lead and over-powering most trainers due to his insanely high level, with Pidgey and others in the back at much lower levels. No wonder I struggled. There was no thought behind strategy or much else really. Toward the end of the game, Squirtle had fully evolved into Blastoise repping four water-type moves and ready to take on the world. Or at least, the Kanto league. He was at least level 80, with the rest of the team fighting for their lives in the early 30’s, if they were lucky.
I tried over and over again to beat the league. I’d get as far as Lance, only to fail. One fateful evening I remember sitting up late in my bed. My parents had a friend over and I could hear the chatter downstairs. No one was telling me it was bed time. This was my moment.
I took out three of the four members of the Elite Four as I often did, and reached Lance. The battle was tense, but I remember the moment I saw his final Dragonite fall victim to Blastoise. The moment I had been waiting my early life for was arriving, I was going to be a Pokémon Master.
But wait. My rival, named Gary at the time, was in the hall ahead. How could this be? I thought I had earned my way into the Hall of Fame. I didn’t anticipate any further battles. My heart was pounding. The chatter continued downstairs. I could do this. And I did. I finally beat the Pokémon League. Gary was eating my dust as I walked into the Hall of Fame to record my win. I had finally beat Pokémon Red.
This moment cemented some core memories and my future. I beat my first video game. My first Pokémon game. I climbed a mountain and achieved something that felt massive. It sparked my love for gaming and Pokémon. Fast forward to me in my 30’s, I’ve met some of my best friends thanks to Pokémon. I’ve played just about every Pokémon release (for better or for worse) and I get to be excited for the Pokémon 30th Anniversary.
Everyone's Arcade 
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