Pokémon Stadium

About This Game

Gameplay

Unlike the previous games in the series, Pokémon Red, Blue, and Yellow, Pokémon Stadium does not have storyline-driven gameplay. Stadium takes a more battle-focused approach with its gameplay, which functions similarly to Red, Blue, and Yellow. Players select teams of six Pokémon to battle. These are either Pokémon collected from Pokemon Red, Blue, Yellow usable via the Nintendo 64 Transfer Pak, or Pokémon with pre-determined movesets included in Pokemon Stadium. Six Pokémon are chosen as the party. Only three of them can be chosen for individual battles. Pokémon are depicted in 3D and have unique animations in-battle. The game also features an announcer, who says voice lines in response to actions that occur in battle. The game challenges the player to succeed in trainer battles at the Stadium, a tournament consisting of four in-game tournaments that last eighty battles in total, with each tournament having its own rules and restrictions. Another mode, the Gym Leader Castle, has the player battle the eight Kanto Gym Leaders, the Kanto Elite Four, and the Champion, who previously appeared in the Game Boy games. Defeating the mode allows players to obtain rare species of Pokémon.

History

Pokémon Stadium was developed by Nintendo EAD. Producer Shigeru Miyamoto explained in 1997 that Nintendo EAD was then a group of 20 to 30 staff each devoted to every title. Within EAD, a programming group called SRD involved a separate company of about 200 people working exclusively for Nintendo. Nintendo EAD had previously produced Pocket Monsters Stadium, the prior entry in the series. Pocket Monsters Stadium was initially set for release on the cancelled 64DD console and was planned to feature every Pokémon from the Game Boy games. This number was reduced to 40 during development and eventually released on cartridge for the Nintendo 64. Pokémon Stadium was initially released in Japan as Pokémon Stadium 2, acting as a sequel and expansion to the Japan-exclusive Pocket Monsters Stadium.