Pokémon Gold on the Game Boy Color still holds up as one of the best in the series. You start off in New Bark Town, pick your starter (Cyndaquil for life, fight me), and before long, you're knee-deep in tall grass hunting for wild Pokémon. The day-night cycle was mind-blowing back then—seeing Hoothoots pop up at night or Mareep grazing in the morning made the world feel alive.

Johto’s got this cozy vibe, with its cherry blossoms and slower pace compared to later regions. And then, just when you think you’ve seen it all, boom—Kanto opens up after the Elite Four. Two regions in one game? Absolute madness in 1999. The pixel art’s still charming, though the battery save might be on its last legs if you’re playing an old cartridge.

If you’ve never played it, you’re in for a nostalgia trip—or just a solid RPG with way more depth than you’d expect from a tiny cartridge.