Why Google Gemini’s Pokémon success isn’t all it’s cracked up to be – Ars Technica

🔍 Summary:

Google’s Gemini 2.5 AI model recently achieved a notable milestone by completing Pokémon Blue, a feat that took over 106,000 in-game actions and was celebrated by followers, including Google CEO Sundar Pichai. This accomplishment was streamed on Twitch and marked a significant contrast to Anthropic’s Claude 3.7 model, which continues to struggle with Pokémon Red. However, it’s important to note that Gemini’s success was not solely due to its inherent capabilities but also heavily relied on external assistance.

Developed by JoelZ, who is not affiliated with Google, Gemini was equipped with a custom “agent harness” that provided additional game-related information and tools. This harness helped the AI model understand the game environment better, remember previous actions, and navigate through the game more effectively. For instance, it included a textual representation of a minimap, enhancing Gemini’s ability to navigate the Pokémon world—a feature that Claude lacks.

Moreover, Gemini was supported by secondary “agents” designed for specific tasks, such as solving complex mazes and puzzles, which were integrated into the base model to enhance its decision-making and reasoning abilities. JoelZ emphasized that these interventions were necessary as current large language models (LLMs) do not yet possess the capability to independently build mental maps or handle complex game strategies.

This use of specialized tools and additional information raises questions about the effectiveness of using Pokémon games as benchmarks for evaluating the progress and capabilities of LLMs. While beating a Pokémon game with an AI model is an achievement, the level of external support provided to Gemini suggests that LLMs still require significant assistance to handle complex tasks that humans manage with relative ease.

The experiment underscores the ongoing challenges in developing AI systems that can independently reason and solve problems without heavy reliance on tailored enhancements and interventions.

📌 Source: https://arstechnica.com/ai/2025/05/why-google-geminis-pokemon-success-isnt-all-its-cracked-up-to-be/