If you’re among our younger readers, you might not know that Pokémon Red and Green were the first couple of titles in the franchise’s long history, taking place in the Kanto region. Players are tasked with obtaining Gym Badges from the greatest trainers in the region while also completing their Pokedex by finding all 151 Pokémon hidden away in the world.

Of course, the new editions are ports of a 2004 remake of the two classics, released for the Game Boy Advance back in the day. They’re digital download-only on the Switch (with backwards compatibility on Switch 2), with Pokémon Home integration being promised a little later down the road. That means any Pokémon you’ve unlocked in other titles, such as Legends Z-A, can be brought over to your save file and engaged with in the games, or even sent to Pokémon Champions if that’s your jam.

If you’re a Pokémon fan, these titles are definitely something you should check out, not just for their nostalgic appeal, but because they’re quite entertaining in their own right. The release trailer is below, if you’re interested in checking it out.

Why did Nintendo choose to handle these releases differently? According to its surprisingly lengthy FAQ, “In celebration of 30 years of Pokémon, we thought it would be fun to return to the ultimate versions of the original Pokémon adventures in the Kanto region with these special releases.” It also clarified that these titles aren’t planned for the Game Boy Advance – Nintendo Classics collection.

In fact, it isn’t planning to add any of the classic titles to Nintendo Switch Online – not even the original Pokémon Red, Blue and Green. Don’t worry, though – it remains “focused” on providing non-Pokemon classics through the service.

As for why it chose to release FireRed and LeafGreen as opposed to their originals, “We thought users will appreciate the ultimate versions of those original adventures, which add various features and upgrades to the contents of Pokémon Red Version and Pokémon Blue Version.”

Given the surprise nature of the announcement and Nintendo’s releasing an FAQ like this, it clearly anticipated concerns about simply cashing in on the nostalgia surrounding both titles.

Of course, that’s been a long-running criticism of the Pokémon franchise for a while now. At the moment, it remains to be seen where it could go next and what the next showcase could announce in terms of the future. There is Pokémon Pokopia, a life sim developed by Omega Force, launching on March 5th for Nintendo Switch 2. It was recently confirmed to offer a 20 to 40-hour-long story with even more content awaiting afterwards.

But Nintendo is going even a step further, emulating how the titles released in the past. What that means is that in North America, for example, you can only purchase the titles with English, French or Spanish options. That’s right – no option for multiple languages in a single copy, just like the good ol’ days.

Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen launched in 2004 for Game Boy Advance, and retain pretty much everything you know and love about the originals while adding a brand new area, the Sevii Islands. The Switch versions include support for Pokémon Home at a later date.

This isn’t the only re-release that Nintendo has dropped out of nowhere – see Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition, which recently received a Nintendo Switch 2 Edition. It offers up to 4K resolution and 60 FPS on the platform, with Switch 1 owners able to upgrade for $4.99.