From The Legend Of Zelda to Mario and Pokemon, there are some wonderful Nintendo fan sites on the internet created by people truly dedicated to their passion. In this new series we're speaking to the founders of these sites who tell us why they love their favourite games. First up is Joe Merrick, the founder and overlord of the brilliant Pokemon website Serebii.net. Created in the late 90s in the midst of the Pokemon boom, to call it a fan site doesn't really do it justice. Here, Joe tells us why he loves Pokemon.
Why do you love Pokemon?
That's sort of a hard thing to answer. The games, to me, are just the epitome of fun. They're the sort of games you can play and enjoy by really focusing on them but you can also play when you're doing something such as watching television. Despite the fact that I really don't like turn-based RPGs, the games just bring me joy.
What got you into Pokemon?
Hard to say. I first experienced it when I was at school and a friend brought a copy of Pokémon Red back from a holiday in America. He let me play it and I was hooked instantly. I managed to convince my Mum to import a copy and from there, the love for the franchise continued. I started the site not long after this.
What's your favourite Pokemon game?
This is really a hard question to answer as the games continually add extra features with each iteration. Main-series wise, I'll have to say Pokemon Black and White. It added to the perfect formula and provided a brilliant twist by including a significant narrative which differed from previous entries.
Recently, I've been spending a lot of time on Super Pokémon Rumble, trying to collect all the Pokemon and get the best toys within it. PokePark 2 (which will be released in the UK in March) also has some great features.
What's the best thing about running a Pokemon website
I started the site in October 1999 during a lunch break at school. It has since become a major part of my life and has expanded greatly. Originally, it was never meant to be this big and I never imagined that it would ever be as large as it is now.
Another thing that I absolutely love is being able to share all the new aspects of the game with the world before anyone else. When the games come out, I shut myself away from the real world for a while and just focus on playing them. It's incredibly hard work but I love doing it.
Do you have a Nintendo fan site? Would you like to have your website featured here? Send an email to Thomas East.
My urge for a Pokemon Game seems to be getting stronger since reading this..I would really love a new pokemon game! But how about.. a Pokemon game With the graphics they had in Zelda OOT? That would be truly amazing, And it would be on the 3DS of course.
Or a completely 3D unova? Any Ideas?
its hard to find a reason not to love pokemon, but personally, i find its that lv 100 you've taken through 3 generations and is never going out of your sight, because although it may be just a few lines of code, its a few lines of code that reminds you of the times you've had, loving pokemon, playing such a happy game, those last ditch battles won on a knife edge, finding a shiny pokemon, beating the elite four, forgetting there is another guy after the elite four when you have no moomoo milk left, and generally going round.
it doesnt have to be a lv 100, or even any good, but its position in your party is secure as simply using it envokes positive feelings of 'that time when...'
for me, its my old Tyranitar, from fire red. caught in some rubbish cave, after hours of searching for a larvatar. levelled it up to pupitar, which i hated for just being weird. traded to pearl, owned some stuff. lv 42 i trade to platinum, where i decide it doesnt deserve to be pupitar, so level it up further. spend like 4 weeks training it in the battleground in platinum, til i finally get to level 100. i then trade it over to heart gold after i've done the 16 gyms, because lets be honest, the levelling up in the story are fun, and then we just go round and defeat everyone in our path. now, it resides in pokemon black. where it is used thoroughly and its still there, same moves, same stats, same nature, as back in pokemon fire red. well, kind of, you know what i mean.
i have other lv 100s, but he is more than a lvl 100. he is memories.
This Man Is A Living Legend. I dont even play pokemon any more but I can remember using serebii.net. He is awsome
Too true
I'm pleasantly surprised by this article. Serebii is one of the absolute best Pokemon resources out there and is pretty much where I learnt about the competitive elements and mechanics of Pokemon (then proceeded to bring that knowledge here
). I'm glad it's getting recognised in a more mainstream way. 
Serebii and Bulbanews are the two best places for Pokémon news in my opinion :D
I go on Serebii every day, me and some friends spent hours on it one night, figuring out EVs, Chaining, Calculating IVs... t'was a fun waste of time
Keep up the good work!
i use serebii and bulbapedia every day as it helps with IV and EV training as well as letting me know of any events that may come up. Keep up the good work man!
inb4 Smogon > Serebii
A true legend, great website as well
For me, pokemon blue was the first game i ever played and will always have a place in my heart. It was out of this world with the design, freedom, adventure, just everything.
The first time i played through it, i got my Charizard to lvl 100 and omg, the happiness after capturing Pichaku in the Verdan Forest
However now, the series has gone abit, marmite for me. Love it at first and couldn't get enough of Blue and Gold but now, i still love it, but only in small doses/thinly spread.
I'm still looking forward to the Pokemon games coming this year though, as long as one of them is a p'mon snap 3d or a new mystery dungeon...
they did that with pokemon xd and pokemon Colosseum on GameCube
bu i agree, they should bring that back for 3ds, it would be awesome
Love the site Joe. Keep up the great work. Serebii.net is the main website I use to keep on top of the latest Pokémon News and events and for all my training needs.
If it was'nt for Mr. Merrick my love of Pokemon would not be as great as it it. Kudos to you.
Serebii.net is the best Pokémon website on the internet. I have been visiting the site for as long as I can remember. Keep up the good work Joe!
Great to see this interview! Serebii isa fantastic site
Awesome!!! I always use Serebii when I need to know something to do with Pokemon!
I never knew though how it is possible for a human to gather so much information... For example, the exact percentage that you would get something if you do something else...
The reason I love pokemon is because you can choose what are your main pokemon, choose what moves they have. I love it when you first start your journey, especially if its a new generation of pokemon because you never know what youre going to find
They should interview the creator of Animalcrossingcommunity.com!
Aw I love pokémon too! This filled me with an unrelenting desire to play yellow all over again :')
I use serribi a lot for finding info on events and latest news. I havn't looked into the whole EV's yet I'm hoping they release a random matchup system so you can fight anyone online and nit just you friends.
They have that in Black & White already