One of my strangest gaming choices as a kid was picking Pokémon Stadium. I enjoyed the show, but I wasn’t a fan of the Game Boy games. The problem with Stadium is that it’s mainly a companion piece for Red, Blue and Yellow, so your experience is hampered by not having them. I did try using a save file I found online, but it didn’t have that many high level Pokémon (although it did have a surfing Raichu).

One thing I did enjoy was the minigames. There are only nine (with a few duds), but you can have a lot of fun with friends. The Lickitung one especially is great, where you have to eat the most sushi. For the tournaments, you can borrow rental Pokémon from the game – choosing any of the first 149 Pokémon (Mewtwo and Mew can be unlocked, too). However, these aren’t as powerful as the ones trained by yourself, and you can’t modify their abilities.

The battles themselves feature 3D models of all the Pokémon, and they’re all wonderfully animated, along with their moves (although the Pokémon don’t directly hit each other). It was a great way to see the Pokémon you trained on your TV, especially so if you and a friend both have the Game Boy games, as it provides an easy way to select your team. Stadium also allowed you to play the Game Boy games directly on your TV, too. I do find it odd that Nintendo never released a “Game Boy Player” to work with the Transfer Pak.

As a companion piece to Pokémon Red, Blue and Yellow, Stadium is a wonderful bit of software. Without the Game Boy game, however, and the game is much more difficult due to the rental Pokémon not being as good.

Fun

But it’s not just seeing the Pokémon brought vividly to life that makes Pokémon Stadium such a joy – it’s watching them take part in the gut-tightening battles that unfold on screen. On the Game Boy, the various fighting moves looked as cute and harmless as the monsters themselves – in glorious 3D, they’re truly frightening. Giant balls of electricity sparkle, hissing beams of pure ice are thrown around the arena, fire roars across the screen, and eerie light shows play behind Pokémon as they execute hypnotic attacks.

Mark Green, N64 Magazine #41. Review Score: 90%

Remake or remaster?

With the Pokémon games now being on Switch, the features of this should be part of the main games.

Official Ways to get the game

There is no way to buy a new copy of Pokémon Stadium, the only official way to play is to rent it via the Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack. It should also be noted that it has no Game Boy compatibility, so you’re stuck with the rental Pokémon.