I hadn't played Pokémon since Red either. Well, I'd dabbled with my friend's Gold (and I really wanted Silver for myself, but by the time I could afford it I was past Pokémon) and White was my re-introduction to the series.
What a fantastic re-introduction that was. I've fallen completely in love with the series all over. The main points that helped this:
- Restricting wild and opponent Pokémon to only the 150ish new designs. This was a very clever design move, as just with playing Red for the first time it gives a manageable pool of brand new creatures to experiment with and (importantly) learn. I can recall all original 151 Pokémon from Red, I'm close to that with the White/Black set. Now the post-game is open I can catch all the other Pokémon, but I'll never be able to remember them all or, frankly, desire to really use them. It also helps that the new designs are mostly excellent.
- Having two rivals, both of them your friends rather than enemies. It creates such a whimsical tone to the early parts of the story. You have two virtual people that are just as excited as you to be setting off on the adventure and will want to share the excitement with you, rather than some asshole who just happens to be related to Oak. It creates an in-game version of having friends who also got the latest Pokémon game, essentially virtualising the social appeal of the franchise to a degree. There is also some (kid's level) depth to each character, as they have stories, motivations and doubts. Each rival goes through an arc of their own through the course of the game with a satisfying pay-off, especially Bianca.
- The cities and towns are incredible. I'm told they're the best in the series so far; it shows. Every new city has tons to do and see and all feel distinct from one another. Despite being a very linear Pokémon, it retains the sense of exploration and wonder thanks to the well-made areas. You always want to push forward to see what is coming up next, yet you are also sad to leave each area as they have been a home base for a few hours as you prepared to face each gym leader. This is all enabled by an excellent art style that pops off the screen in a cartoon wonder-glow.
- It asks the "isn't it cruel to catch Pokémon?" question. Granted, it never really follows through the question other than with some vague handwaving (else kids would feel evil playing the game, I guess), but that it addresses the ideas you've been harboring ever since you turned 14 and started thinking about the concept critically is a boon the story. It gives the narrative real purpose and urgency. It also lightly brushes over the topic of how fucked up it is to let 10 year olds go off on Pokémon adventures. In this way, the game feels like it's making nods to us grown ups every now and again. It's good.
- I hate using the word for anything that isn't The Odyssey or The Illiad, but by the end of it, the story feels so damn epic. Really. Dat ending.
In short - playing White as an adult was like playing Red as a child. It just has that undefinable magic about it. You can't go wrong with B/W.