Pokémon Gold, Silver, and Crystal (1999, Game Boy Color)

Pokémon Gold and Silver—and the 2000 followup, Pokémon Crystal—proved that Pokémon could be so much more than a glorified version of rock-paper-scissors. For one thing, the creature compendium of Pokémon was expanded, for the first time, past 151, and added two new types to the mix: dark and steel. For another, the in-game clock actually changed alongside the real-world clock, even dictating when some Pokémon would or would not appear. (At the time, this was mind-blowing.) It also started players off in a brand-new land called Johto—complete with its own eight-gym circuit—before sending them to the original game’s Kanto, where they could see a slightly remixed version of that game world. Simply put, Gold and Silver were enormous.

But, at the end of the day, they’re still Game Boy Color games. They’re still clunky, hard to play, and lacking in modern-day quality-of-life features. They certainly don’t hold up in light of the 2009 remakes, HeartGold and SoulSilver. Standard-setting only goes so far.