If you find Pokémon Fire Red and Leaf Green easier, it's because they were made that way to attract a new audience

Junichi Masuda, director of the remakes of Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen, revealed in an interview with the Japanese publication Nintendo Dream that specific changes were made to the design of the games to attract a female audience. According to Masuda, the intention was to diversify the player base, which had long been predominantly male. To achieve this, adjustments were made to the game’s difficulty and recaps were introduced, making progress easier for those who play in more sporadic sessions.

They wanted to reach a female audience by reducing the difficulty

A notable change was the redesign of the Pokédex, which now resembles a notebook more than an electronic device, which could be more appealing to young female players. This approach is based on the premise that girls tend to play in shorter and more sporadic intervals, which could make them forget where they left off in the game, a phenomenon that was attempted to be mitigated with the new features.

Although it has not been communicated whether these design decisions have led to a significant increase in the player base, the popularity of the first generation of Pokémon suggests that these changes have been well received. Thus, these remakes aim not only to update a classic but also to open their doors to new audiences, contributing to the enduring legacy of the franchise.

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