#4. Pokemon Gold/Silver (GBC)
The common story goes that when Game Freak were developing Pokemon Gold and Silver (then titled Pokemon 2) after the wild success of Pokemon Red and Blue, they legitimately believed that it would be the last game in the series- that after this, there would be no more Pokemon games, and they would move on to something else. And that was why they pulled out all stops, and held nothing back, in the process delivering a Pokemon game that was, for probably the first (and last) time, a great game period, with no artificial design constraints holding it back.
Pokemon Gold and Silver, back when it was released, was a perfect game- it took upon the solid base provided by Pokemon Red and Blue and expanded on it in ever way possible. Over a hundred new Pokemon, a hundred new moves, brand new TMs and HMs, two new Pokemon types, a re-balanced Pokemon type matchup list, new mechanics such as shininess and breeding, a brand new region to explore, eight new gym badges and trainers, new features such as real time day and night, berry farming, hidden areas and powerful legendaries… it was nuts, it was insane, and the fact that all of it was achieved on a handheld, and on a Gameboy Color no less, made it even more amazing and impressive.
And all of this is ignoring the elephant in the room, which was the most extensive post game in series history- after you got done with the main campaign, you received an unexpected surprise, as Kanto, the region from Pokemon Red and Blue, was opened up to you, with eight new gyms to conquer, and the final challenge being your character from Pokemon Red and Blue (till date, the highest leveled trainer in series history).
It was nuts. Pokemon Gold and Silver are not just amazing Pokemon games or amazing handheld games, they may also be among the best games ever made, period.
So what tops them?
