Wikipedia

Pokémon Stadium

"Pocket Monster Stadium" redirects here. For the Japan-only video game, seePocket Monsters Stadium.

Pokémon Stadium,known in Japan asPokémon Stadium 2(Japanese:ポケモンスタジアム２Pokemon Sutajiamu 2) is a 1999strategy video gamevideo game developed and published by Nintendo for theNintendo 64.The gameplay revolves around a 3Dturn-basedbattling system using the 151 Pokémon from theGame BoygamesPokémon Red,Blue,andYellow,with several in-game challenges for players to overcome. The game includes four "Cups", each of which is a series of three-on-three Pokémon battles against an ordered lineup of opponents. The "Gym Leader Castle" mode involves battles against several Boss opponents who appeared in the Game Boy games.Pokémon Stadiumalso features mini-games and numerous features available through its compatibility withPokémon Red,Blue,andYellow.Using theTransfer Pakaccessory that was bundled with the game, players are able to view, organize, store, trade, and battle using Pokémon uploaded fromPokémon Red,Blue,andYellow.

Pokémon Stadium
North American box art featuringBlastoise(left) andCharizard(right)
Developer(s)Nintendo EAD
Publisher(s)Nintendo
Director(s)Takao Shimizu
Producer(s)
Programmer(s)Yasunari Nishida
Artist(s)Tatsuya Hishida
Composer(s)
SeriesPokémon
Platform(s)Nintendo 64
Release
Genre(s)Turn-based strategy
Mode(s)Single-player,multiplayer

It was the firstStadiumtitle released in Western regions, succeeding the Japan-only 1998 Nintendo 64 releasePocket Monsters Stadium.Pokémon Stadiumwas released in Japan in 1999, before being released in Australia, Europe and North America in 2000.Pokémon Stadiumbecame one of the best-selling Nintendo 64 titles, selling one million copies before the end of the year. Critics praised the game's visuals and the connectivity with the Game Boy games but criticized the games' audio quality and repetitive gameplay. A sequel,Pokémon Stadium 2,released in 2000, supporting connectivity with the gamesPokémon Gold, Silver,andCrystal.Stadiumwas re-released on theNintendo Switch Online + Expansion Packon April 12, 2023.

Gameplay

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See also:Pokémon Red, Blue, and Yellow § Gameplay
The player'sDragonitefaces off against the opponent'sParasect.In international regions, this was the first time Pokémon were depicted in 3D in a video game.[5]

Unlike the previous games in the series,Pokémon Red,Blue,andYellow,Pokémon Stadiumdoes not have a storyline or a well-defined world or story.[6]Stadiumtakes a more battle-focused approach with its gameplay, which functions similarly toRed,Blue,andYellow.Players select teams of six Pokémon to battle. These are either Pokémon collected fromPokemon Red, Blue, Yellowusable via theNintendo 64 Transfer Pak,or Pokémon with pre-determined movesets included inPokemon Stadium.[5]Six Pokémon are chosen as the party. Only three of them can be chosen for individual battles.[7]Pokémon are depicted in 3D and have unique animations in-battle.[5]The game also features an announcer,[5]who says voice lines in response to actions that occur in battle.[8]

The game challenges the player to succeed in trainer battles at the Stadium, a tournament consisting of four in-game tournaments that last eighty battles in total, with each tournament having its own rules and restrictions.[8]Another mode, the Gym Leader Castle, has the player battle the eightKanto Gym Leaders, the Kanto Elite Four, and the Champion,who previously appeared in the Game Boy games. Defeating the mode allows players to obtain rare species of Pokémon.[8]When all Cups have been won and the Gym Leader Castle is completed, a six-on-one battle againstMewtwoisunlocked.[8]Defeating Mewtwo unlocks another round of Stadium, Gym Leader Castle, and the Mewtwo battle, but with higher difficulty.[8]

Other features

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ANintendo 64Transfer Pak,used to send data fromPokémon Red,Blue,andYellowtoPokémon Stadium

Pokémon Stadiumfeatures other game-modes. The Pokémon Lab feature allows players to connect withPokémonGame Boy game cartridges via the Nintendo 64Transfer Pak.A player's stored Game Boy Pokémon can be organized and traded in the Lab, and players can view Pokedex information and models for particular species.[9]Players can store Pokémon and items from the Game Boy games inStadium,and allows players to transfer Pokémon stored onPokémon Red,Blue,andYellowGame Boy cartridges toStadium,where they can be used inStadium'sbattle modes. Players can play the Game Boy games throughStadiumvia the connection.[8]The Lab also allows players to receive Pokémon species as gifts, with the species available being species obtainable only as part of a one-time choice in the Game Boy games, allowing for players to more easily complete their Pokedex in the Game Boy games.[8]

The Kids Club feature allows players to play mini-games, which deviate from standard gameplay toMario Party-styled mini-games.[8]Nine mini-games are included inPokémon Stadium,and each game allows up to four players, who all play as Pokémon. If any of the four player slots are not taken, the CPU takes over the excess slots.[10]There are a large variety of games, such as a game based onSimon SaysfeaturingClefairy,and a game based onring tossfeaturingEkans.[11]

Development

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Pokémon Stadiumwas developed byNintendo EAD.ProducerShigeru Miyamotoexplained in 1997 that Nintendo EAD was then a group of 20 to 30 staff each devoted to every title. Within EAD, a programming group called SRD, involved a separate company of about 200 people working exclusively for Nintendo.[12]The team had previously producedPocket Monsters Stadium.The game was initially set for release on the cancelled64DD,and was planned to feature every Pokémon from the Game Boy games. This number was reduced to 40 during development, and eventually released on cartridge for the Nintendo 64.[13][14]

Pokémon Stadiumwas initially released in Japan asPokémon Stadium 2,acting as a sequel and expansion to the Japan-exclusivePocket Monsters Stadium.[15]Unlike the prior release,Stadiumallowed the usage of all 151 species of Pokémon instead of the limited pool of 40 used prior,[13]and greatly expanded on various different gameplay features that were in the prior game.[15]For the US releases ofPokémon Stadium,the Gallery mode was included, Pikachu's voice was changed, and changes were made to the tournaments used in the game.[15]In the international releases of the game, the in-game announcer is portrayed byTed Lewis,[5]while Pikachu is portrayed byIkue Ōtani.[16]

Release and promotion

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Japan

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Pokémon Stadiumwas announced in the December 1998 issue of the Japanese magazineThe 64Dream.[17]In March and April, Nintendo held a tournament involving the game as part of thePokemon Festival '99,an event to promoteStadiumandPokémon Snap(1999) andPokémon Pinball(1999).[18][19]

Pokémon Stadiumwas released to retail on April 30, 1999, for theNintendo 64.[20]Nintendo Official Magazinereported in July 1999 thatPokemon Stadiumwas the number one best-selling game in Japan, followed byPokemon Pinballin second place. The magazine commented that it had been "a long time since Nintendo featured so well in Japanese charts. That's the power of Pokémon."[21]It was the 10th best-selling video game of the year in Japan by August 1999.[20]Nintendo reported to have sold 1,370,000 copies of the game by December 1999 in the region.[22]

International

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Promotions for Pokémon Stadium were held at Blockbuster stores (top) in North America. The game's release helped boost sales of the Nintendo 64 console (bottom) internationally.

Sales for the Nintendo 64 console fell 12.5% in the United States in the year prior to the release ofPokémon Stadium,with Enrique Rivero ofVideo Businessdescribing sales as being "softer-than-expected".[23]The report stated that this was largely due to consumers purchasingPokémongames for the Game Boy instead.[23]Nintendo'sPokémonfranchise was at a high point of popularity in the United States by late 1999, with the franchise having a high-selling VHS tape, top-viewed kids television show, and over seven millionPokémongame cartridges sold.[23][24]

On March 6, 2000, Nintendo launched a $7 millionPokémon Stadiumadvertising campaign on television, print, and online media as part of a wider $30 millionPokémonpromotion.[25]Nintendo released a promotionalPokémon Stadiumbundle featuring a Nintendo 64 console, two differently coloredNintendo 64 controllers,a poster, a journal, and a "CoolPorygon"promo card for thetrading card game.[26]

Nintendo of America promoted the game through a national tour between March 11 and April 9 titled thePokémon 2000 Stadium Tour,allowing them playPokémon Stadium.[27]Nintendo embarked on its first online marketing push for the franchise specifically for the United Kingdom, launching an officialPokémon Stadiumwebsite specifically for a UK audience.[28]

In celebration of the game's North American release, Nintendo andBlockbusterpartnered for a promotion in which the firstPokémon Stadiumgame cartridges delivered to Blockbuster contained a coupon for a limited-editionPokémon Stadiumsticker poster and a free "Pokémon Smart Card," which could be used to redeem up to sixteen stickers at Blockbuster locations.[29]The Smart Cards were previously available in Blockbuster's 1999 promotion forPokémon Snap.[30]

The game was released in the United States on March 6 and in Europe on April 7, 2000.[2][1][31]It sold over 100,000 in the United Kingdom.[32]By April, Nintendo of America announced thatPokémon Stadiumsold over 1 million copies.[26]It became the best-selling console game in the region during the year 2000.[33]Anne Sherber ofSupermarket Newswrote that Nintendo had the biggest share of the American console video game market in 2000, with sales of the Nintendo 64 being driven by the release ofPokémon Stadium.[34]Gamesmagazine reporting that 12% of video games sold in 2000 werePokemon-related titles.[35][34]A Nintendo represented posited that the sales were due to their new series of N64 featuring translucent case colors, while Quang Hong ofGamasutrainferred sale may have been due toPokémon Stadiumrelease.[36][37][38]

Nintendo of America announced that it would be released as aPlayer's Choicetitle, a well-selling game with a lower suggested retail price, on December 26, 2000.[39]At least more than 3.97 million copies have been sold, including 3.16 million in the United States,[40]710,765 in Japan,[41]and more than 100,000 in the United Kingdom.[32]The bookPikachu's Global Adventure: The Rise and Fall of Pokemonstated that the while the game's innovative features helped elevate it to a level of success,Stadiumwas unable to replicate the success of the Game Boy games before it.[42]

Reception

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Pokémon Stadiumreceived mostly positive reviews from critics, attaining a score of 78.60% on review aggregatorGameRankingsbased on 26 reviews.[43]GameSpotcontributorJeff Gerstmannhighlighted the Pokémon's visual appearances and battling, but stated that the lack of a story and the "generic" battling may be off-putting for players.[48]IGN'sPeer Schneider praised the game's connectivity with the Game Boy games and the game's difficult battles, as well as the visual appearances for the Pokémon. He criticized the game's repetitive gameplay and the game's sound design.[6]Famitsupraised the game, highlighting its focus on strategy and the animations of the individual Pokémon.[52]

GameRevolutionpraised the game's expressive Pokémon models and animations, and highlighted the degree of strategy needed to succeed in battle compared to the Game Boy releases. They criticized the repetitiveness of the gameplay and the game's announcer.[47]Regarding the game's announcer, a frequent complaint among critics,RPGamer's Ben Martin praised the game's interactions with the Game Boy and accessibility, but criticized the game's lack of features for players who didn't have access to the Game Boy games, as well as for the lack of content available to returning players. He also criticized the game's lack of striking musical score and the game's announcer.[7]Nintendo Powerpraised the game, highlighting its graphics, but criticized the game's music and announcer.[53]

David Grossman, writing forInverse,praised the game's Game Boy compatibility and novelty factor as a result, but criticized the Nintendo Switch port for not maintaining that novelty.[54]Arjun Joshi, writing forNintendo Life,praised the game's 3D graphics, gameplay options, and music, but criticized the game's lack of content for players without access to the Game Boy's compatibility features.[8]

During the4th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards,Pokémon Stadiumreceived a nomination for the "Console Family"award by theAcademy of Interactive Arts & Sciences.[55]

Sequel and legacy

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Main article:Pokémon Stadium 2

Months after its debut, a follow-up toPokémon Stadium,tentatively titledPokémon Stadium Gold/Silver,was announced by Nintendo.[56]The game was released in 2000[57]asPokémon Stadium 2,featuring every Pokémon from the first two generations, including those released inPokémon GoldandSilver.Transfer Pak compatibility is included forPokémon Gold,Silver,andCrystalas well asPokémon Red,Blue,andYellow.[58]

Following the release ofStadium 2,several games with similar gameplay to theStadiumseries were released, but no official continuation to it was. According to Game Freak employeesShigeru OhmoriandJunichi Masuda,theStadiumseries' main feature of allowing for Pokémon battles in 3D was not considered as "impressive" as it was before, primarily due to the release ofPokémon XandY,the first mainlinePokémongames to feature entirely 3D graphics. They stated it would require "some sort of new invention" to justify the series' return.[59]

The game was re-released on theNintendo Switch Online + Expansion Packon April 12, 2023.[60][61]The re-release functions identically to the original game, but transfer and connectivity capabilities with the Game Boy are not available.[62]Online features were additionally implemented, allowing players to play the Kids Club mini-games with players throughNintendo Switch Online.[63]The game was later updated to patch out a bug that would consider in-game rental Pokémon's movesets to be hacked.[64]

References

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