Pokemon fans beg Nintendo for mobile versions of classic games

Ezequiel Leis
Pokemon Brilliant Diamond Shining Pearl screenshot

The first Pokemon games made history and changed the lives of many gamers around the world, but they’re hard to come by these days. Many Pokemon players believe that mobile devices are the perfect platform for classic titles to return once more.

While a lot of Pokemon fans are enjoying the many different experiences the franchise has to offer, others are wondering if Nintendo is thinking about bringing back classic games like Pokemon Red or Pokemon Silver. The titles released for the Game Boy and Game Boy Color cemented Pokemon as one of the most popular franchises in entertainment.

Fans over on Reddit are wondering why The Pokemon Company aren’t interested in re-releasing those games on mobile devices where they could now find a much bigger audience. “The gameboy Pokémon games would be perfect on mobile,” reads a recent Reddit post.

“They could release all the games from red & blue to emerald over a period of time,” one fan suggested. They go on to explain that “If they sold them for like $15-$20, they would sell like hot cakes, especially among millennials.”

Many Reddit users agreed that re-releasing these games on mobile platforms would be easy money for Nintendo and The Pokemon Company, but most concluded that it’s not gonna happen in the near future because they’re “anti-consumer.”

Others argue Nintendo doesn’t see mobile as a powerful enough market after a few tries with games like Super Mario Run. On the other hand, fans also wondered why Game Boy games have not appeared on the Nintendo Switch.

With the Nintendo Switch Online (NSO) subscription users can play games from the NES, SNES, and Nintendo 64 era on Nintendo Switch so fans argue that it shouldn’t be that hard to add the Game Boy catalog someday.

Back in April 2022, Twitter user trashbandatcoot claimed to have their hands on a leaked Game Boy Advance emulator for NSO with games like Pokemon Pinball, Mario Kart Super Circuit, and more, but there hasn’t been an official announcement from Nintendo since.

Currently, fans can buy Special Editions of Pokemon Red/Blue/Yellow and Gold/Silver/Crystal on the Nintendo 3DS eShop, but that won’t last forever. In fact, Nintendo will close the Wii U and 3DS eShops on March 27th, 2023.

Nintendo and The Pokemon Company are full of mysteries for most gamers but the Pokemon community is keeping their hopes up for mobile versions of classic games.


For more Pokemon, check out our guide to Pokemon Scarlet & Violet Mystery Gift codes, or everything you need to know about the Pokemon Scarlet & Violet online Battle Stadium.

Image Credit: Nintendo / The Pokemon Company

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About The Author

Ezequiel is a Games Writer at CharlieIntel. With a great knowledge of gaming, he's focused mostly on Pokemon, Fortnite, and HoYoverse titles such as Genshin Impact and Honkai Impact. With a journalism degree, Ezequiel has worked on La Cosa and Infobae, two of the most prestigious outlets in Latin America. He joined CharlieIntel in 2023. You can reach Ezequiel at [email protected]