This review originally went live in 2016, and we're updating and republishing it to mark the game's arrival in Switch's N64 library via the Nintendo Switch Online Expansion Pack.
With the Pokémon franchise being as super effective as it was during the late '90s due to its handheld games, trading cards, television anime and manga, it was only a matter of time before fans saw the groundbreaking series advance into home console territory — and that it did. Pokémon Stadium was released on the Nintendo 64 in the year 2000 (1999 for Japan), and it arguably fulfilled every Pokéfanatic's dream by bringing everyone's favourite 151 critters to life in three dimensions.
Pokémon Stadium's gameplay was as many expected it to be: the conventional turn-based battle formula using the familiar creatures from the Game Boy games, but now in breathtaking 3D. It was definitely something to behold at the time, for fans of the series only really had the manga, anime, and the sprites from Pokémon Red, Blue, and Yellow to visualise each Pokémon in all their glory during battle.
Each battle had life breathed into it by the visuals, as well as an enthusiastic announcer who kept the excitement going throughout each bout. Whether it was charging up for a "Solar Beam" or landing a "Horn Drill" attack, the announcer made sure players were entertained and enthralled. Having to watch every animation really slowed down the flow of matches but hey, the novelty of seeing the series' bread-and-butter battles realised so beautifully went a very long way at the time.
The major difference between Pokémon Stadium and its Red, Blue, and Yellow counterparts was the fact that the game did not possess a storyline. However, for those revisiting the game now it's worth pointing out there are single-player modes — challenging ones at that — such as Stadium mode that allows you to earn trophies by competing in certain Cups that each have their own set of rules and restrictions, as well as the Gym Leader Castle that lets you challenge the eight Gym Leaders of Kanto, followed by the Elite Four and finally the Champion.
Afterwards, you can have an epic showdown with one tough Mewtwo, where only the mightiest of fire-breathing and storm-bringing 'mon will survive. Defeating Mewtwo unlocks a hard mode of the game, meaning everything will need to be completed again. Once done, Mewtwo can be challenged again, but you'll need six freakishly strong Pokémon to take it down a second time. With all that in mind, it's fair to say there's plenty of single-player battle content to keep those on their own busy, especially as these challenges aren't easy to clear.
If you're playing alone and are getting a little tired of battling, Pokémon Stadium offers something that this writer thinks is still quite remarkable: the GB Tower. This area of the game — sadly not available in the Nintendo Switch Online version — enables you to play Pokémon Red, Blue, or Yellow on your television screen. Sure, it may not sound as glamorous now, but back at the turn of the millennium this was a tremendously exciting feature. No more did we need to find a light source to hold our Game Boys under, and no longer did we need to rinse through hundreds of batteries throughout our adventure.
Playing the original GB games on your TV was achieved by inserting the Transfer Pak (a device that came with the game but was also sold separately) into the back of the N64 controller, with the game of choice inserted into the gadget. This nifty feature enabled the option to play with both double and triple-speed settings, making long-winded battles a thing of the past (let's not forget the lack of Running Shoes at the time!). The awesome part of it all, though, was being able to transfer your caught and raised 'mon between these games and Pokémon Stadium, meaning they could be used for battle instead of using Stadium's ordinary rental monsters. We will never forget the excitement of transferring our newly-caught Mewtwo into Pokémon Stadium and witnessing the almighty life-form in beautiful 64-bit presentation.
The Pokémon Lab is a nice touch for those who really want to graduate from the university of Kanto. Here, you can organise your Red/Blue/Yellow PC boxes, as well as access basic information about each Pokémon caught in their handheld adventures, including moves and stats. Pokémon and items can also be stored within Pokémon Stadium's own boxes, enabling players to obtain even more monsters and items than they usually could within the Game Boy games. Pokémon could even be traded between two plugged-in cartridges (meaning two plugged-in Transfer Paks), although Pokémon Stadium's rental Pokémon cannot be transferred for obvious reasons.
The Pokédex mode of the Pokémon Lab lets you marvel at your Pokémon in 3D as well as obtain their Pokédex information – a sweet feature that's likely to satisfy the taste buds of every Pokénerd's appetite. Each Pokémon's location can also be viewed on a map of Kanto, which even includes the level in which they are found.
Finally, the Pokémon Lab can be used to receive prizes that can be won within the other modes of the game, such as a Pokémon (Bulbasaur, Charmander, Squirtle, Hitmonlee, Hitmonchan, Eevee, Kabuto, and Omanyte) that can be transferred over to players' Game Boy adventures. On original release, this was a great way to grab the remaining Pokémon players couldn't get on their single adventure play-throughs, as you could only choose one starter (unless you were playing Yellow), obtain one of the two "Hitmons", obtain one Eevee, and choose one of the two fossilised Pokémon. This meant completing the Pokédex was easier if players didn't have the luxury of trading with friends but you did have Pokémon Stadium.
There's also a memorable minigame area, the Kids Club, which takes a handful of Pokémon and inserts them into fun micro-game environments that are suited to their traits. Kids Club offers nine minigames, which can either be played individually or as part of a tournament. Up to four players can take part, with any remaining spaces being controlled by the computer AI. It's a fun way to enjoy the franchise's characters without a constant focus on battling, and it compliments the rest of the game with a light twist. Those who are fans of the Mario Party series may enjoy this mode, as some of the minigames can certainly become both addictive and competitive.
There are further subtle yet effective elements that Pokémon Stadium brings to the table. For one, its hub acts as a city that introduces you to the world of Pokémon. Each area of the game is represented by a building or attraction navigated to using an orbiting Magnemite cursor. This really raises the bar in terms of UI/UX right from the get-go, as you are immediately absorbed within the world and introduced to some of the Pokémon you're about to encounter — all of them looking so much closer to the anime versions fans had been enjoying outside of the GB games. The hub is even changed when Mewtwo is ready to challenge you, as its glowing silhouette graces the area above the Stadium, turning the sky dark and eerie.
Pokémon Stadium also boasts a delightful soundtrack, containing repurposed and remastered favourites from the series' iconic playlist. Further minor delights include Pokémon possessing slightly different colour shades, signifying a rival's Pokémon or Pokémon transferred/being used from a Red/Blue/Yellow save file. Bear in mind, this was seen during a time when shiny Pokémon did not exist, so it was pretty cool to see our favourite monsters with an adjusted colour palette.
Conclusion
All in all, Pokémon Stadium was a revolutionary step up for the monster-catching franchise, and that's not just due to the fact that we got to see all 151 critters in full-fledged 3D. The inclusion of the GB Tower, as well as allowing players to experience Pokémon characters in fun new ways through minigames and the Pokémon Lab, felt remarkably fresh and offered a new perspective on our repository of 'mons. Sure, the battling can get a bit repetitive and lengthy, but the awesome visuals, animations, and commentary can help keep this from becoming mundane.
Played today, Pokémon Stadium provides a healthy number of alternative ways to enjoy the classic 151 once again, but is tightly integrated with the original Game Boy titles, primarily enhancing and augmenting them rather than standing on its own. It's far tougher to recommend to anyone who doesn't have a collection of critters available to upload from on a Game Boy cart, but there is loads to love here if you're an OG fan.
Comments 43
The NSO rerelease does not warrant an 8/10, imo. Without the ability to transfer in Pokémon, the battles in the game can become immensely challenging, to the point that it’s not fun. While you can look up the movesets for each battle in each Cup or Gym Battle, you’re still going to probably be lacking in areas. And besides, what’s the fun in looking up a walkthrough? The mini-games are still pretty tight, but when that’s the main draw, there isn’t much else to experience as a single player. And the battles somewhat drag on.
I’d probably give this version a 5/10. It would be an 8/10 with the ability to transfer in Pokémon, but since that’s not currently a thing, I’m gonna be skipping this one.
Loved this game as a kid, but it’s sadly one of those games for me that’s more fun to look back on than it is to actually play today.
I went my whole childhood only using the Transfer Pak to play the Gameboy Pkmn games on N64, I never actually transferred anything between games and beat every cup using rentals. With that being said, playing on Switch is giving me crazy nostalgia and I'm having a blast 😎
For the ones who want the Stadium series back, with a Pokémon Stadium 3 or a remake or the old ones, forget it, highly unlikely.
The appeal of these games was from a time the mainline Pokémon games had 8-bit graphics and little to no animations, so playing battles with 3D graphics and animated Pokémon on a console was a big deal, now, the mainline games have 3D graphics.
Sure, the recent Pokémon games have terrible 3D graphics and animations, and don't have the whole Pokedéx, this is when a Pokémon Stadium 3 with better graphics and all Pokémon could be a great idea, but no, we need better mainline Pokémon games.
Also, just make a Pokémon game with just the minigames, including all the minigames from Pokémon Stadium 1 and 2 remade, they were the best thing they had to offer anyway.
Completed it 100% with Rentals back in the day. Admittedly it was very hard but it was possible. It's all about registering the right sets for specific challenges and I look forward to taking that challenge again though I'll admit I do miss being able to use my own Pokèmon like I did with the Transfer Pak.
I am part of the audience that is defined by challenging gameplay. I get the issue with some people disliking the fact that you cant transfer your own team into Pokemon Stadium. But for me, the joy and fun of this game is the rental only challenge!! Its so creative and fun when you put limits on what you can (or can't use). It makes for a very strategic and unique gameplay based on what you have rather than what you want.
I am definitely playing this game with that in mind but I am even more excited for pokemon stadium 2 when they did the special stat split (Sp. Atk and Sp. Def).
Finally!!!! Dont have to transfer anything to the game to enjoy it, the game is just great anyway!!!
The mini games are no joke 10/10 for me. I don’t think there’s another game on my 64 I put more playtime (or at least play days, if not total time) into than Pokémon Stadium. I don’t know what it is about them. They’re so simple and so perfect.
As for the battle aspect, I dunno. I haven’t booted up a battle yet, but it’s such an odd title to be on the service without having transferability. Makes the game certainly more challenging.
I hate how Nostalgia fueled gaming has become. I like this game, it's fun. But taken objectively, this game is a highlight of everything people say is "wrong" with the Pokémon franchise. Stale, long drawn out battles with little to no actual strategy, literally no story, and only a collection of minigames and the extra "D" in the graphics to make it any different then what you're doing in every other Pokémon game,
This games core features, everything this game has on offer, is discussed in every modern Pokémon review, including the ones here, as justification as to why it's NOT getting a higher score. The argument is made that Pokémon is "bad", today, because you still do the stuff you are doing in this game.
But THIS game gets an 8 our of 10 despite having ONLY what reviewers on this site say are the worst parts of Pokémon, because this is actually a review on how someone remembers feeling as a 9 year old seeing their Pokémon in 3D for the first time.
Which is fine! If that's the article you want to write, write it. I'm sure a lot of people agree. But don't package it in the same format as a normal review and give it a number. Just write the opinion piece on how the game makes you feel and stop there.
@Broosh Same, mostly played with rentals only and still had a blast even though I only stayed in Round 1, it's absolutely possible to complete it even like that like @RubyCarbuncle mentioned (although I'd say Round 2 is not recommended for most people), not to mention the minigames alone are worth it as @somnambulance said!
@LeMasters It would be nice if the Transfer Pak features were eventually added but still, couldn't agree more!
@Redax stop complaining and just use the mons in the game
I'm playing it now, I'm not advocating the exclusion of the transfer pak features I wish they were there too, but without them you have to think outside the box a little bit and use Pokemon/moves you wouldn't normally, this is a fandom that wants more difficulty, well there it is on a plate, I'm having a ton of fun with it.
Only complaints I do have is with the controls. In the Ekans mini game the Switch stick is far too sensitive meaning you can only hit the ones at the back and I don't like the fact that you have to aim the right stick to choose moves, instead of using the D-pad. Also when playing couch co-op you can see pretty clearly when your opponent is going to switch which was always the case but it's no longer fun anymore, but that's 20 something years of experience over-riding the nostalgia.
@Nanami_Ataraxia Your comment is very accurate. Most people online complain how easy Pokémon is. Here is a more difficult version and most people are reluctant to try it. You don’t get the freedom of the main series games but if you’re looking for a competitive battling challenge… well, here it is lol.
@HeadPirate Don't forget about a problem Pokémon always had and this game is an epitome of it, you can't have all the fun without buying more games and connecting them.
In Pokémon Stadium 1 and 2, you won't enjoy 50% of what the game offers without the Game Boy carts and the Transfer Pak, maybe not even 10%, yet Nintendo Life gave 8 out of 10 to an emulator port that cuts the whole point of it, sure, the minigames are the best these games offer and you don't need the Game Boy games to enjoy them, but with just 9 minigames you can't have a good game.
Not even going to bother updating the review to reflect the loss of compatibility with the GB games, huh?
@Wisps
I feel the same way. It is more of a fun challenge to only use the Pokemon in the game and not transfer your own ready made team. I do understand this game maybe not being worthy of the same score it originally got since you are missing a key element/feature of that game. But great fun still.
But there are still some who continually gripe about the NSO expansion anyway (even at an average of less than $5 per month!). Oh well.
Hopefully we get Red, Blue & Yellow released soon and compatible. It’s the sensible option and therefore I won’t be holding my breath. 😅
@GamerGrandpa Yeah, I also do not get the constant gripes with the NSO pricing. Its fine (not the best but just fine). As many people have said in the comments, the pokemon fandom has a group that is constantly asking for bigger and harder challenges. I don't think pokemon should always cater to that (Side note: Go for Shin Megami Tensei if you crave that in a similar pokemon style), but both pokemon stadium 1 and 2 can do it with the rental only challenges. Its amazing imo.
It reminds us of the best time in our universe's timeline, the first pokemon craze, you can't assign a number to childrens' happiness
@Altaria_97
Exactly! What people seem to be forgetting is that you couldn't give all your Pokemon the best moves in one playthrough, you'd have to teach them good moves and level them up, transfer them over to the Stadium boxes and then start your GB game again and repeat because of the limited TM's. Even with triple speed that was a grind, and I didn't even mention you need different levels of Pokemon to qualify in the smaller cups, your level 20 GB Vulpix with ember is going to be inferior to a rental one unless you teach it good moves. Then there was a maximum level cap limit on what you could bring to the cups, meaning that you could bring 5 level 50's and one level 55 but the enemy would always scale to your highest mon, I can't recall completely but it worked something like that.
It worked in the N64 days when we only had a handful of games to play to last us years, but now there are so many games competing for our time to justify grinding for hundreds of hours on old games. Besides, it might be kid brain but I had all GB Pokes and I still lost bad on round 2.
If people struggle that much with rentals you can even abuse the save states feature if you get bad RNG, heck you might be more likely to beat it that way than with your own GB Pokemon back in the day, even if it's pretty cheesy.
Anyway about playing it currently, remembering gen 1's little quirks like the physical/special split not being a thing and how broken speedy psychic and normal types are, it's charming and refreshing and lovely to revisit.
I also can't believe how well it holds up visually with that li'l bit of paint, it looks super crisp to me, but that might be nostalgia goggles and underwhelming recent titles talking...
I believe there are some things you’ll never be able to complete in the NSO version, like the hall of fame statues.
I found the game wholly boring though pretty back in the day because my transferred team steamrolled every challenge. Not that I'm super interested in squeaking out victories by trading small damage blows over long battles either.
I have more nostalgia for Pokémon Stadium 2, hopefully it won’t be too long before they drop it on NSO.
@HeadPirate exactly. Never played this game before, tried to start it with a fresh mind this afternoon but really didn’t see the point if it. It was just ugly looking pokemon using the same old movesets. In a world of
Modern pokemon games and pokemon go there is only place for this in nostalgic
Hearts…
I remember being able to teach Pikachu the move Surf and transfer it to Pokémon Yellow so you could play the surfing mini game.
It's really just mini games here which tbh after like a month or so of owning the original on the n64 is all I ever did in it but they were great.
Pokémon Colosseum and XD are the single player focused pokemon games I'd love to see released again
More like a 6/10 today...
This isn't a game I would have needed on Switch.
@ComfyAko But I was 21. 😅
I give the Switch version of this game a 2/10 in the current state. something you mess around with for 20 minutes or so before moving on after you get tired of the mini games.
First of all you cannot purchase it on its own, its locked behind the service. Second, and most importantly using the rentals might be fun for some, but for me its just so unenjoyable and soulless of an experience. as of now(I'm sure this will change) you cant use your team from the Gameboy games.
The game could be a 10 for me if It could be purchased outright rather than locked behind a subscription service, you could use your team from the Gameboy games, and using teams from those games offered some of the modern eases of life that the current pokemon games offer (Bottle Caps/breeding, multiple use TMs/move tutors) because it was really painful to decide what you wanted to use some of your valuable TMs like Earthquake on back in the day lol. now that last bit is wishful thinking that has very little chance at happening so 9/10 if they fixed the other two. Stadium 1+2 are the spinoff games I had by far the most fun with in the entire series.
@Wisps
Agree with this 100%. Saw several folks say this game is "worthless" without the GB connectivity, but I'm finding the challenge fun and it's doable with rentals.
i think the use of numbers has some people thinking that the score at the end of the review is somehow objective. it's not.
It's not the bizarre movepools that will kill you using rentals in the game, it's the level advantage the CPU frequently has since the Cup rules are all over the shop. Good luck to anyone taking the challenge, but for those who never played this before back in the day I can only say this: prepare to suffer. Hope they bring Stadium 2 on board at some point, my favourite cup was always the random one from that game.
@Rooty 2 is already confirmed for the last batch that were announcement, just not sure when we'll get it. Mario Party 3, Excitebike, and 1080 Snowboarding are the others we're still waiting on.
The complaining on NLife comments about no transfer Pak has opened my eyes. Little me was a pro gamer cause he cleared the cups using rentals lmao. Transfer Pak was for connecting the games to the TV only!
People always defend shady stuff Nintendo does. They emulate stuff pretty badly and they take away half of the game and what do you people do? Celebrate and give it an 80%. I used to respect you guy's reviews and even used them for games I didn't purchase on my Switch but this is crazy.
And just because when you were 9 you bet the game with the ridiculous rental pokemon that aren't even good RPG characters because you have no growth and no control of the Pokemons moves. This was a problem when the game was released and it's a problem today twofold because they want to drip feed you original GB games to get you to pay for what is no doubt the worst online service.
I had to change my internet to be able to play online Splatoon because Nintendo is stupid. Everything else worked fine. That's PSN and Xbox Live or good or whatever it is nowadays.
Acting like this isn't a legitimately criticism is nostalgia and fan worship at its worse. But that's what I expected from things related to Nintendo now.
@Nanami_Ataraxia Damn, well said haha. Transferring your Pokémon is a cool feature but like you said, unless you’re grinding for insane amounts of hours in a GameBoy game then it’s not very practical or even that much more helpful.
The important thing is that the game is still a blast to play with or without the feature. And yeah, I was shocked how well the game looked on my 75” TV with the upscaled resolution through NSO. Everything looks sharp and the animations are just as solid as I remember. It’s a blast to play this again!
@FatWormBlowsASparky anybody who got to experience Pokemon then was a child at heart
This was one of the first N64 games I played, having rented it from blockbuster back in the day.
It was the coolest thing to send off random pokemon but I think the magic vanished pretty quickly.
It's definitely a N64 game, that's for sure.
But you know, I can't help feeling that this game wasn't selected for VC during the Wii or Wii U era because of the lack of GB support. Now, in an Iwata-less Nintendo there's no need to care so they bring out this incomplete re-release.
Maybe the feature will come later, like the fog in Ocarina of Time did.
@Nanami_Ataraxia Everything you said is spot on like @Altaria_97 said, both the positives and the negatives!
@GamerGrandpa @Wisps The constant gripes with the NSO pricing are even more ridiculous when you consider that you can pay even less than the already fine price by sharing a family plan with family and/or friends, I pay only around €10 a year by doing so!
@locky-mavo While I'm quite happy we got at least this one for now I absolutely have my fingers crossed it won’t be too long before they drop Stadium 2 on NSO, too!
@Roibeard64 Personally, I'd say the rest of the game can still be worth it if you're looking for a challenge, but it's definitely worth it for the minigames alone and I'd also love to see Colosseum and XD eventually rereleased!
@Arminillo Little me wasn't as a pro gamer as you since I don't think I cleared all the cups, but I played mostly with rentals (also used the Transfer Pak mainly to play Blue on the TV since my sister and I shared it) and still had a blast!
This game is so slow, like battles take forever!
Gave it a spin last night and literally fell asleep during my first battle. Also I don't get why this gets an 8/10 when two thirds of the game are unusable since requiring a GB save to play.
This review is very out of touch with the NSO version, praising features like the transfer pak and GB tower which are entirely absent from the NSO release. Not a good time to re-use an old irrelevant review.
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