Pros: entertaining, no reading, easy for a 6 year old to use
Cons: hard to find in the store, my other kids never get to play

We got Gameboys for three of our children. We took some long car trips to Disneyland (7 hours each way) and several cross country flights last summer. We wanted something that would keep the kids occupied. These seemed like a great solution as they were lightweight, portable and the kids can use headphones so grownups don't have to hear the games.

The biggest problem we found, which we didn't think of at the time we bought them, was all the reading that is involved in with many of the games. We have Sega, Nintendo64 and tons of computer games, but it seems like the majority of games for the Gameboy system require reading. That didn't help us as two of our children were 4 and 5 at the time. We were able to find some games that were good for them. Then we found this one.

Both my sons and 11 year old daughter wanted it for Christmas. I laughed and said don't hold your breath, this is one of the most popular games and I don't think I'll be able to get a copy.

As luck would have it I was able to get one copy. I gave it to my 6 year old, with the provision he had to share it. I love this game. No reading and just hours of fun. I'm not even sure if he's playing it right, but he doesn't seem to care. he is quite a junior gamer and generally figures out and masters games rather quickly. the game has this rumble pack attached to it which makes the unit shake when he plays, he thinks that is so cool.

I might be turned off by the game because it is Pokemon, but I also love not having to hear him cry because he can't read all the text or it is too hard to understand. It's also the perfect bargaining tool. Every day after school he rushes home to do his homework and other jobs so he can have pinball time. He also has to do extra work to earn batteries, because he does eat through them. Overall I am very pleased with this game, but my other two may not think so - they hardly get a chance to play so we may have to get another copy.