Red & Blue's First Rival Battle Is Still Pokemon's Best

thegamer.com:

Pokemon Red & Blue are phenomenal video games. Sure, they're broken in several ways and often feel like they're held together with sellotape, but they're also legendary entries in the storied JRPG genre. We tend to forget that Pokemon is a turn-based JRPG because, well, it's Pokemon. It's a thing unto itself. Unfortunately, part of the reason Pokemon feels like a specific genre is because all of the main Pokemon games have been the same. Sword & Shield's Wild Area was the first major change the series has picked up beyond the aesthetics since the Physical/Special split, while Scarlet & Violet look set to embrace Legends: Arceus' open-world philosophy. Way back in Red & Blue though, Pokemon wasn't relying on this safe formula, it was inventing it. That's why the first battle with your rival is still the best one in Pokemon history.

We've previously highlighted a different rival battle in RBY, namely the scuffle at Silph Co. before Giovanni. Both battles speak to the same idea - the rival wanting to beat you just because he can. In modern iterations of Pokemon, they're more of a friendly pal who challenges you at convenient times in order to help you become your best self. In Sword & Shield Hop, Bede, and Marnie are all rivals of sorts, but only Bede actively sees you as a nemesis, and in doing so challenges the energy of Gary/Blue/Fartface/whatever you called your RBY rival. However, what makes the first battle so special is the element of surprise.

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To be clear, I'm not talking about the actual first time you fight Blue as soon as you get your Pokemon. That's really just a tutorial, and one that's difficult to lose even with the type