|
|
Pokmon (Video Games) article deals with the Pokmon video games. When Pokmon was first released in Japan in 1996, it was named Pocket Monsters. Another company in North America had trademarked the name "Monster In My Pocket," so Nintendo had to change the game title when they released it there. Many Japanese players had already shortened the game name to "Pokmon," and this name was the one used. The initial games introduced the concept of becoming a Pokmon Trainer and catching all 150 of the original Pokmon (the 151st, Mew, was not introduced until the game's popularity soared). They also introduced the idea of different versions of the same game, with different monsters in each one. These original games were Pocket Monsters: Red, Green, and a remake version called Pocket Monsters: Blue in Japan. The Red and Green versions were released with Blue's enhancements as Pokmon Red and Blue in the rest of the world. The Pokmon games are classified as role-playing games because they have elements similar to other RPGs, such as a top-down tile-based point-of-view, item management, and a turn-based battle system with familiar elements like hit-points and status effects. They do not focus on plot and character development in the manner of Final Fantasy and many other RPGs. Instead, Pokmon games focus on the collection and training of creatures which are sent into battle against opponents (either AI-controlled or other fellow humans). Depending on the game's era in the series, there may be 151 (Red, Blue/Green, and Yellow versions), 251 (Gold, Silver, and Crystal versions) or 386 (Ruby, Sapphire, Emerald, Colosseum, FireRed, and LeafGreen versions) available Pokmon. A player's Pokmon can be traded with other players via the Game Boy Link Cable (or in FireRed and LeafGreen by way of a wireless device); this forms an integral part of the game as some Pokmon can only be collected by trading with another version. One of the pleasing and noteworthy aspects of the Pokmon games in particular is that, unlike many other series, once a character obtains or catches one Pokmon creature she or he may use that one creature for the rest of the entire game if he or she so chooses – while fun, catching others is strictly optional. Some battles will certainly be easier with Pokmon type A or B, but simply training one Pokmon and winning the game with it is technically possible. A Pokmon RPG usually begins in the hero(ine)'s hometown, where by chance the renowned Professor of the game's region (Kanto, Johto, or Hoenn) lives and does his research on Pokmon. It is from him that one can receive his or her first Pokmon to train. Along the way one will encounter a rival who has also received a starting Pokmon from the same professor. The goal of the game is to collect the eight badges from the eight Gym Leaders scattered throughout the region. The badges allow the player to challenge the Elite Four and the champion Trainer of the region. To do this, the player must capture and train a team of Pokmon that will ensure victory, and also complete in side quests such as thwarting the plans of the criminal organization in the area, Team Rocket in Kanto and Johto and Team Magma or Team Aqua in Hoenn. After defeating the Elite Four and the Champion, the player is allowed to continue training and collecting Pokmon. To capture wild Pokmon, the player must carry Pok Balls. When a wild Pokmon is encountered that is to be captured, it must first be weakened with a Pokmon in the player's party and then a Pok Ball tossed at it to catch it. The player might not be successful, but with each Pok Ball tossed there is another chance. A subculture exists which is devoted to the study of Pokmon battling and strategy. Usually research centers around Internet bulletin boards, most notably the GameFAQs forums. As well, multiple methods of online Pokmon battling exist, such as linkable Game Boy emulators, an IRC channel based program called RSBot, and a custom GUI-based program named NetBattle. The Pokmon games have also inspired the Pok Battles form of fiction. Different aspects of battle mechanics include: The Pokmon games are (in system order, then in release order): Game Boy (monochrome) era
- The Red and Green versions were initially released in Japan on February 27, 1996.
- The Blue version was released in Japan on October 27, 1996. It featured improved graphics and sounds.
- North America would get its first releases of Pokmon, the Red and Blue versions, on September 30, 1998. The North American versions were actually the Japanese Red and Green with the new changes that the Japanese Blue had.
- On September 12, 1998, Pokmon Yellow was released in Japan. It was initially known as Pocket Monsters Pikachu, as it was based on the popular animated cartoon series. In this game, the player's character would start with Pikachu instead of being able to choose between Bulbasaur, Charmander, or Squirtle, although it is possible to obtain all three of those Pokmon within the game.
- On October 1, 1999, Pokmon Red and Blue were released in Europe. They were identical to the North American versions.
- On October 25, 1999, North America received its version of Pokmon Yellow, named Pokmon Yellow Version: Special Pikachu Edition. It would remain much the same as the Japanese version.
first games in the series had no fixed name for the player's character or rival character, although among default selectable names one would match the color of the cart (e.g. Red or Blue), and for the rival's name the opposite color would be offered. In the TV show, the protagonist is named Satoshi after the creator, Satoshi Tajiri while the rival is named Shigeru after Shigeru Miyamoto. In the English translation, these names were changed to Ash Ketchum and Gary Oak respecively. Many comics and other media use the names featured in the TV series, however the Pokmon Adventures (Pokmon Special in Japan) comic uses the name Red for the protagonist and the name Blue (Green in the Japanese version) for the rival. It has been shown on the original carts that the memory sections storing the main character's name and rival's name are first initialized as Nintendo and Sony respectively. A third Pokmon Adventures character named Green (Blue in the Japanese version) is represented as a girl in a short, black dress. She wears white gloves and has long, brown hair. Her design is based on an unused character seen in a piece of official artwork for the original Pokmon games. The artwork features the protagonist, the rival and the unused female character along with the three starter Pokmon. It is rumoured that she was originally intended to be an alternate playable character. The Japanese fans may confuse Blue with Buena, the radio hostess from Pokmon Crystal, due to the fact that the latter's Japanese name, Aoi, means "blue". However, the two clearly do not share any other resemblances. In the recent remakes of the original games, Pokmon FireRed and LeafGreen, there is the option to play as a female character, who greatly resembles the unused character for the original games. In the Pokmon Special comic, Blue later appears with the same clothes and design as seen in the FireRed and LeafGreen versions. Pokmon Adventures also introduces a fourth protagonist named Yellow, to tie in with the Pokmon Yellow version (just as the Red, Green and Blue versions each had their own characters in the comic). Yellow is a completely original character exclusive to the comic. She is accompanied by two Pikachu as a loose tie-in with the Yellow game, in which the protagonist is followed by a Pikachu, an idea taken from the anime TV series. The Gold, Silver and Crystal versions reveal the video games' actual name of the original protagonist to be Red and the video games' name of the original rival to be Blue (Green in the Japanese version). Game Boy Color era
- On November 21, 1999, Pokmon Gold and Silver were released in Japan. These two games introduced a total of one hundred brand new Pokmon and the new region of Johto. These versions had limited compatibility with the previous versions. North America received Gold and Silver on October 11, 2000.
- Pokmon Crystal, the equivalent Yellow version of Gold and Silver, was released in Japan on December 14, 2000. It was the first version to allow players to choose if they wanted to be a male or female character, and the Japanese version of Crystal included (in a first for a handheld system) the ability to go head to head online over Japanese cell phone networks. Another notable feature that Crystal introduced is the animated sprites of the Pokemon, which are displayed at the beginning of each battle and on the status screen. Japanese players also had the opportunity to catch Celebi, a Pokmon otherwise only available through Nintendo promotions, through these same networks. On July 21, 2001, North America received Pokmon Crystal. However, the North American version did not include the mobile phone component.
The plot of Gold, Silver, and Crystal takes place three years after the first series. It is a direct continuation of the storyline, with many references to the plot details of the first generation of games. The region of the previous games, Kanto, can be explored at a later point in the game, and following that many characters make their second debut. Similarly to the Game Boy era, the main characters' only official names are colors of the versions, Gold for the male player and Silver for the rival character (the rival allegedly has no default list of names, but not selecting a name would generate 'Silver' in Gold and Crystal versions, whereas 'Gold' in Silver version). As said, this series also introduces the first playable female character, whose official name is Kris (Pokmon Crystal only; Gold and Silver only had a male character).
Game Boy Advance era
- The series had its first major overhaul when Pokmon Ruby and Sapphire were released in Japan on November 21, 2002. These games featured a major graphics overhaul to accommodate the new features of the Game Boy Advance. They were also the first versions to feature two-on-two battles. Ruby and Sapphire were released in North America on March 18, 2003. The European release followed on July 25th, 2003.
- On January 29, 2004, Pokmon FireRed and LeafGreen were released in Japan. They are remakes of the original two Pokmon games, Red and Green (Blue outside of Japan), but with many additions including the Sevii Islands. These games can trade Pokmon with Pokmon Ruby, Sapphire, and Colosseum, so new players could finally get the older monsters. FireRed and LeafGreen also come bundled with a Wireless Adapter, allowing trading and battling between these two games via a wireless connection. The North American versions were released on September 9, 2004 and in Europe on October 1, 2004.
- A final game of the Ruby and Sapphire series has also been announced. Titled Pokmon Emerald, it will be to Ruby and Sapphire what Yellow was to Red and Blue, or what Crystal was to Gold and Silver. It will have several new features, including a new battle arena (the Battle Frontier), the same wireless support that FireRed and LeafGreen will have, and a new form of Deoxys. It was released in Japan on September 16, 2004, and will be released in North America on May 1, 2005.
The Game Boy Advance games marked a new beginning in the series, as they are incompatible with previous versions. In addition, the Ruby and Sapphire versions take place on an entirely different continent and have no storyline relation to the previous games in the series; they were a way for new players to get into the series. The player can be either a male or female character. The character not chosen to play as becomes the player's rival. Like previous games the player can input his or her own name for the character, but for the first time the rival's name is always set. The male's set name is Brendan (Yūki in the Japanese version) and the female's set name is May (Haruka in the Japanese version and the Pokemon anime series). The Pokmon Special (Pokmon Adventures in English) comic, however, carries on its character naming tradition by calling the male Ruby and the female Sapphire. Nintendo DS era
At a recent press conference promoting the launch software of Nintendo's newest handheld, the Nintendo DS (shorthand for "Nintendo Dual Screen"), the company has announced that the next two games in the main Pokmon series, Pokmon Diamond and Pearl, are in the works for the handheld. There has even been a new Pokmon released (named Gonbe in Japan or Munchlax in the English version, a pre-evolved form of Snorlax) that is expected to be in those games. It should be available shortly after the console's launch. Nintendo also recently announced that people can bring the DS to screenings of the upcoming eighth Pokmon anime movie in order to download new content; however, it isn't known if the content is tied in to the upcoming games. Nothing fully authenticated has been confirmed about Diamond and Pearl yet other than two new Pokmon. It is highly believed that it will let the player be either a male or female character. Many Pokmon fans desire to have various ideas, such as a customizable character. Nintendo has already released a spinoff Pokmon racing game called Pokmon Dash! for DS. Pokmon generations
As of 2005, there are four different generations of Pokmon. These generations each correspond with an era. Codes and glitches
There are many glitches which can be triggered in the Pokmon games, especially the Red and Blue versions. Some of the more famous ones include: - The Missingno. glitch, which works only in the Pokmon Red and Blue versions.
- The Glitch City glitch, available only in the Red, Blue, and Yellow versions.
There are also several, more minor glitches that have little to no practical reward beyond the player's own amusement. These include standing on a bush, opening up an invisible PC, fishing on a statue, swimming on top of trainers, walking on water, and inverting the main character's color. Fake codes There exists a vast number of fake glitches for the Pokmon games. The creation of such codes exist as a trick for gullible children. The majority of the fake glitches attempt to fool people into thinking they can capture "Unobtainable Pokmon" (present in each game) as they would a normal Pokmon. For example, many fake codes supposedly give the player a Mew. There are even rumors that Mew is available in the Japanese Red, Green, Blue, and Yellow versions. One such rumor claims that Mew was originally given from the Game Freak Pokdex designer in Celadon City once the player caught the other 150 Pokmon; another claims that the trick to find Mew by surfing to a truck east of the S.S. Anne actually worked in the Japanese games. Both of these rumors have been proven false. However, the truck is still in FireRed and LeafGreen: a Lava Cookie (an item which heals a Pokemon of any status effect) is hidden near the truck, and is the only one available in FireRed and LeafGreen until the store on the second island gets them, late in the game. There are also a number of codes for real Pokmon that are only in future editions of the game; and "Pokgods", which are non-existent Pokmon (usually super-powerful). The credibility of such codes may be increased, in some cases, by falsified screenshots from the in-game Pokdex - however, it is highly unlikely that such Pokmon actually exist. Four such examples are codes for obtaining Togepi, Ho-oh, Steelix and "Pikablu" in the Red, Blue or Yellow versions ("Pikablu" being what some young American gamers insisted was the name of Marill before the Gold and Silver versions were released). Although such codes were excessively common for the Red and Blue (and to some degree Yellow) versions, numbers of false glitches for later games has dropped significantly. The "unobtainable" Pokmon
Six of the Pokmon (Mew, Celebi, Jirachi, Deoxys, Ho-oh, and Lugia) are special, extremely rare, and nearly impossible to get for Game Boy Advance players. They can all be obtained by using a Gameshark, Action Replay or similar cheating device, or from special Nintendo personnel at special events. - Mew can be found in the Red, Blue, and Yellow versions using the "Mew glitch" (see Codes and glitches, above). Additionally, it is possible to get a ticket in Pokmon Emerald and use this to travel to World's Edge Island, where Mew can be caught. Other than those two methods, there are no ways to obtain Mew without using a cheating device or obtaining it directly from Nintendo at promotional events which are no longer ongoing.
- Celebi can be caught with the GS ball (only obtainable in the Japanese version of Pokmon Crystal through a cell phone network service), or by using a cheating device. It is also available on the Japanese version of the Pokmon Colosseum bonus disk, which was available with preorders. For the Gold, Silver, and Crystal games, Celebi has been provided as a promotional Pokmon at special events, but for the Game Boy Advance series Celebi is not yet obtainable outside of Japan.
- Jirachi can only be obtained legitimately with the Pokmon Colosseum bonus disk (which was available with preorders) in North America, which allows a player to trade this Pokmon into the Ruby and Sapphire games. Europeans can get it by finishing Pokmon Channel, after which Jirachi will be downloadable to the GBA games.
- Deoxys can be caught on Birth Island to the south of Kanto in the FireRed, LeafGreen, and Emerald versions, provided the player has an AuroraTicket, which is a bonus for pre-ordering a ticket to see the 7th movie in Japan. Deoxys is currently unobtainable outside of Japan, except through Nintendo promotions, involving the use of the "Mystery Events" function.
- Ho-oh and Lugia can be caught on Navel Rock to the south of Kanto in FireRed, LeafGreen, and Emerald if the player has a MysticTicket, which can obtained by using Mystery Gift near a Joyspot. Ho-oh and Lugia are not promotional in Gold, Silver, and Crystal, in which they can be found in the Tin Tower and the Whirl Islands, respectively, if the player has a Gold Wing or Silver Wing respectively (both in-game items). Lugia is currently unobtainable outside of Japan in the Game Boy Advance series, but Ho-oh can be caught in Pokmon Colosseum by Snagging and purifying all 48 Shadow Pokmon and then beating Mt. Battle with a in-game team.
Nintendo also produced modified versions of other, not so rare Pokmon to serve as promotional icons. One of these was a surfing Pikachu, which was originally available only through a Nintendo Power contest although it was later provided as unlockable secrets in the Pokmon Stadium and Pokmon Box console games. Similarly, for a short time in Japan there was a giveaway providing flying Pikachus. Other Pokmon games
Since the introduction of the Pokmon games, there have been many released that didn't belong to the main RPG series. Some of these games were released for the Nintendo 64, some for the GameCube, and others were on the Game Boy Color and Game Boy Advance systems, a couple new games for the Nintendo DS (Dual Screen) system, and one game and other programs for the PC (two of them based on the Pokmon Trading Card Game) with two versions, and art projects based on a popular art project series. There were also several games for the handheld-console Pokmon Mini. Some of them aren't RPGs like their Game Boy cousins. Some are puzzle games, other are spin-offs, giving some sort of twist to the Pokmon games. Some are not even video games. Pokmon characters are also featured in the fighting games Super Smash Bros. and Super Smash Bros. Melee as playable characters, items, and trophies. These games include: (NOTE: All games are released by Nintendo unless otherwise indicated) - Pokmon Play It! Versions 1 & 2 (PC) (made by Wizards of the Coast, a division of Hasbro, who held the rights to the Pokemon Trading Card Game until 2002, when Nintendo took over. This was packaged with starter sets for the TCG)
- Pokemon Project Studio Red and Blue versions (PC) (made by The Learning Company, now part of Broderbund)
- Pokmon Stadium series; includes the original Japanese Pokmon Stadium, Pokmon Stadium (Pokmon Stadium 2 in Japan), and Pokmon Stadium 2 (Pokmon Stadium 3 in Japan) (Nintendo 64)
- Pokmon Puzzle League (Nintendo 64; only available in North America. This was the North American version of Panel de Pon)
- Pokmon Snap (Nintendo 64)
- Hey You, Pikachu! (Nintendo 64)
- Pokmon Puzzle Challenge (Game Boy Color)
- Pokmon Pinball (Game Boy Color and Game Boy Advance)
- Pokmon Trading Card (Game Boy Color)
- Pokmon Card GB2 (Game Boy Color) (Japan only)
- (Game Boy Advance)
- Pokmon Box: Ruby & Sapphire (Nintendo GameCube)
- Pokemon Master Arena (PC) (made by ValuSoft, a division of THQ)
- Pokmon Channel (Nintendo GameCube)
- Pokmon Colosseum (Nintendo GameCube)
- Pokmon Mini (Pokmon Party Mini, Pokmon Pinball Mini, Pokmon Puzzle Collection, Pokmon Zany Cards - these were only available in the USA at the Pokemon Center store in New York and at Japanese Pokemon Center stores; Pokmon Tetris, Pokmon Race, Pokmon Puzzle Collection 2, Pichu Bros. Mini, Pokmon Breeder and Togepi's Great Adventure, all available only at Pokemon Center stores in Japan.)
- Pokmon Dash! (Nintendo DS)
A Pokmon trading card game (or TCG for short) was made which allows players to trade Pokmon amongst themselves. Like other TCGs, the Pokmon Trading Card Game also allows players to stage a battle between their Pokmon, much like in the anime and the video games. To attack, the player must have sufficient energy cards, like in other TCGs, which in a way mimics the limited PP characteristic of the video games. Pokmon has also been featured in two versions of Pokmon Pikachu, a portable virtual pet, where the player could shake it and Pikachu gained voltage, and two versions of Pokmon board game, MONOPOLY, UNO, Sorry!, Yahtzee, Jr. and numerous other toys. Pokmon video games
|
 |