I could talk about the main game within Pokemon Stadium, but I don’t know anything about Pokemon. So, let’s talk mini-games!
I think it’s easy to forget that the Nintendo 64 was the first system to standardize four controller ports on a console. Multi-taps for other systems could offer more players, but it was hard for developers to rely on the consumer owning one.
Nintendo 64’s out-of-the-box solution encouraged them to make silly side mini-games or multiplayer modes even if a game didn’t necessarily need them. There’s only nine mini-games in Pokemon Stadium, but they’re a good mix of timing, endurance and memorization challenges.
It’s also cute to see another side to the Pokemon universe outside of just battling. The games may be small, but a lot of thought and effort went into making them charming to watch. It has beached Magikarps struggling to jump in the air, waddling Lickitongues fighting over food and a teacher Clefairy slapping her desk while summoning toy hammers to bonk her students.
I personally spent a handful of hours playing these games, which is nice considering it’s one of the many side-features in the Pokemon Stadium. You could do traditional Pokemon battles with friends, but, with a crowd of four, the mini-games are much funner.
