(Soul)Silver for nostalgia, Emerald for favourite to replay

In no particular order: Yellow, Crystal, emerald, platinum (oh shit, of course. It’s all the merger titles)

Crystal is very special to me. I always felt like I was “wrong” as a child for not liking “girl things.” It was the first game I ever played that offered a female protagonist. That was something that told me that I was okay the way I am. I know it’s kind of silly, but it really helped me become comfortable with myself.

Emerald it gave me the first taste of the battle tower and I’ve been hooked since

I played Gen 1 as a kid and didn’t play Pokemon again til Black and White. It was an amazing leap to see the first and last pixel animated mainline Pokemon games, and both had their own unique set of 150 Pokemon. It’s like a showcase of how much the series had grown.

Incidentally, it was the last mainline Pokemon game I actually enjoyed.

Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky

In terms of mainline games though, I’d probably have to go with Blue version, since it’s the one I’ve spent the most time with over the years

I put the most hours into soul silver, but god, I fucking loved Prism

Until Arceus came along and finally did what Pokemon should have been doing a long time ago, it was Pokemon Snap. Arceus is great, but it’s also the bare minimum of what I think the series should be. I would hope that Palworld has set a fire under Nintendo and GameFreak’s ass to get them to make something that actually brings the series forward instead of keeping it mired in game design from a bygone era.

My favourite will always be Red because of nostalgia. It doesn’t really hold up these days but being a kid during peak Pokémon mania where everyone were whipping out their Gameboys during recess and the dude who got a Mew from some marketing event was king of the schoolyard was just the source of so many memories. Most of them related to longing for an innocence lost, I’m sure. But still.

Realistically though as a game I think HeartGold/SoulSilver was the peak of the series. Lovingly recapturing the essence of the first two generations, adding a ton of content on top and even shipping with the freaking Pokewalker! It’s got everything that was good about G/S/C in a modern package, what more can you want? Going back to Kanto after beating the Pokémon League is still the coolest thing ever. But maybe I’m swayed by nostalgia again…

Emerald holds a special place in my heart. Omega Ruby got me back into Pokemon and to this day is my favorite. I’m currently playing through every generation, but no other region hits harder that Hoenn

Crystal (mostly nostalgia), Emerald, and Conquest

Ruby and Sapphire, 100% because of nostalgia as I haven’t played either in 20+ years - those were the last games my grandpa gifted me so they hold tremendous sentimental value.
Gold and Silver would be close seconds, since my sister and I played those games when growing up and I have great memories from back then.

Crystal!

For Nostalgia? Red/Blue and Gold/Silver.

HG/SS and B/W are up there too for different reasons.

And funnily enough, I actually enjoyed S/V quite a bit. Aside from the lull between gens 6 through 8ish, there’s a lot to like throughout the series imo. A lot to dislike too, but still a lot to like.

I’ve always enjoyed Firered and Sapphire and recently found Polished Crystal which is fantastic