Rachael Gater's Pokémon Memories
We take our readers back to 1999 to share the Pokémon memories of Rachael Gater, as she celebrated Christmas with her brother, and played Pokémon Red for the first time!
For many kids in the late 90s celebrating Christmas, it’s likely that something Pokémon-related was lurking under the tree. This was certainly the case for Rachael Gater and her brother. We are proud to be sharing her memories from Christmas 1999!
Both me and my brother had been obsessively watching the Pokémon anime EVERY day after school since its first airing in the UK. We had caught full blown Pokéfever!
Much like our friends, classmates and generation at the time it satisfied so many childhood comforts and interests. Adventure, collecting, varied animal species and of course... the friendly competition and high-adrenaline fun of battling! (Wrestling was at an all-time high and we were already fully entrenched in the high energy anime of Dragon Ball Z, play fighting in the garden and on our friend's trampoline.) Whether you were a kid who liked fighting, exploring, cute creatures or otherwise, Pokémon had something for everybody!
Our excitement around Christmas 1999 was at an absolute high. Not just myself and my brother but the whole school; it was all we played in the playground, all we talked about in class. It felt like everybody was hyped to finally play the game. As seen in the photo, my teal Game Boy Color went everywhere with me. You name it! Long car journey? Trip to an old person's house with no cable? Day with the parents shopping for clothes at a shopping centre? Game Boy got you covered, fam.
I still have it and my original grey Game Boy to this day! You could tell a lot back then about a kid depending on their Game Boy and the state it was in. Some chose to cover theirs in stickers, others had their name Tipp-Ex'd or Sharpie markered on, some had lost their battery flap completely... I remember cutting out a tiny Pikachu that I drew and stabbing a hole in the cheek to sellotape over the light on mine (I felt so cool, but in hindsight it looked awful!)
Back to Christmas Day though, my brother and I were so happy and grateful to have received the games from our parents. I was gifted Red, my brother Blue. My starter was [the] reliable Bulbasaur, whom I named Charlie! My brother chose a Squirtle, [which] was his favourite at the time, but unfortunately their name escapes me. (I have a feeling it may have been 'Bubbles'.)
We sat side by side for most of the day playing, our parents happy to let us enjoy the games and not being too strict about the amount of time that we played. I do recall that we chatted together as we played, checking in with each other now and then about the other's progress ("Wow, look at this one!", "Where did you catch that?") Despite not owning a link cable at this point in time, we still played the games 'together'. I do remember our parents looking over our shoulders throughout the day and being impressed by the at-the-time cutting edge tech!
Boxing Day rolled around, and ever since we were born, this is the day that we spend together with our extended family (grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins). Whereas in previous years I would lament having to leave my latest Christmas game for a whole day after just receiving it, [this time] we had the luxury of bringing them with us!
It was a nice balance. We weren't permitted to sit in the corner and game the whole day, of course, but when the adults were talking and enjoying themselves in the evening they were more than happy for us to be entertained.
In some ways it was the last of our 'childhood' Christmases as our parents split a couple of years later, but I think that's why the time really stands out in such a wonderful light to me. I even remember the smell on Christmas Day that year; our mum had bought these scented candles. I can't recall the name but they were very festive and kind of spicy-smelling.
We want to say a big thank you to Rachael for sharing her Pokémon memories, and for reminding us just what it was like for so many kids who undoubtedly had similar experiences on that very same day all across the world!