Sure, a massive tower dedicated to Bellsprout, a rather forgettable Gen 1 Pokémon wouldn't have been first on most people's list of ideas for a Pokémon game, but it's the kind of strange inclusion that nobody knew they wanted, nobody expected, and yet so distinct and memorable that they kind of love it. It's the most thoughtfully designed, comfy, homey, quirky, and memorable. First, Johto is the best region in the series, bar none. But the biggest three factors that go into making this game so great are its most simple.

The fact that you can unlock an item that restores the iconic Gold and Silver OST, the improvements made to the series as a result of the jump from Gen 2 to Gen 4 as well as improved movesets overall, the iconic legendary events, most of which you can still access thanks to a recently discovered loophole, the fact that so much time and effort went into adding content to the campaign without sacrificing even a drop of the original game's charm, there's just so much attention to detail that makes Pokémon what it is.

But really, what make HeartGold and SoulSilver so beloved are the little things. Not only has Kanto been beefed up HeartGold and SoulSilver, but the game has even added Pokémon Platinum's Battle Frontier for good measure, making for a beyond satisfactory reward for your hard efforts. Gold and Silver's postgame consisted of little more than stomping around a miniature Kanto like Godzilla. For another, it offers the most bang for your buck out of any of the games. They stuck to the respective games' various design layouts while also containing a few of the improvements and changes made in Pokémon Crystal, such as not having to chase Suicune around Johto. For one, they're built off of the backbone arguably the series's finest entry at the time, Pokémon Gold and Silver. These 'findings' seem to agree that Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver are pretty much the platonic ideal of a Pokémon game. Moreover, it seems to have gotten people thinking about what makes a Pokémon game great, and what fundamentally works with the series. Pokémon Sword and Shield has come and gone and, though not as cataclysmically bad as many were anticipating, the game left a lot to be Pokémon Sword and Shield has come and gone and, though not as cataclysmically bad as many were anticipating, the game left a lot to be desired.

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