Pokémon Crystal | |
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Pokémon Crystal box art | |
Developer(s) | Game Freak |
Publisher(s) | Nintendo |
Designer(s) | Satoshi Tajiri |
Platform(s) | Game Boy Color |
Release | December 14, 2000(JP) July 29, 2001(NA) November 1, 2001 (EU) |
Genre(s) | RPG |
Mode(s) | Single player Multiplayer |
Pokémon Crystal is the third game in the Pokémon video game series' incarnation for the Nintendo Game Boy Color. It follows Pokémon Gold and Silver.
The game was released in Japan on December 14, 2000 and on July 21, 2001 in North America. It was followed by the Game Boy Advance games Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire.
Game information
Pokémon Crystal was an enhanced remake of Pokémon Gold and Silver. Unlike Gold and Silver, Pokémon Crystal was optimized to be playable only on the Game Boy Color.
In addition to the new 100 Pokémon introduced to the series in Gold and Silver, Pokémon Crystal allowed players to finally choose the sex of their character. This is a feature that has been included in all handheld Pokémon RPGs made after Crystal.
One of the game's biggest additions was the Battle Tower, a new building added west of Olivine City which allowed players to participate in Pokémon Stadium-like fights.
A focus on the Pokémon Suicune was also added as a subplot. Some Crystal-only events involve running into a man named Eusine, who is hunting Suicune as well.
There were also some changes made to the Ruins of Alph.
Another feature introduced in Crystal and later reused is the Move Tutor. After the Elite Four is defeated, a man would start appearing twice a week who would teach the player's Pokémon one of three moves – Flamethrower, Ice Beam, or Thunderbolt. In Crystal, this required 4000 coins from the Game Corner in Goldenrod City.
The player would also receive a new egg from the Daycare Couple for free. This was in addition to the Togepi egg players would receive earlier in the game, making two eggs they would get in the game without any breeding.
In the Japanese version of Crystal, the player could link up with others through the use of a mobile phone. The Goldenrod City Pokémon Center was replaced by a much larger building which included the machine to use this feature. Using the mobile phone link-up would give the player an extra item, a GS Ball. After taking the Ball to Kurt in Azalea Town to examine, the player would place the GS Ball in the Ilex Forest shrine. This would cause a level 30 Celebi to fly down and attack the player. Two Gameshark codes can be used to activate the GS Ball related events and eventually catch Celebi in the English version of Crystal.
Crystal version, along with Gold and Silver, was the longest of all Pokemon games with 16 badges from two regions, Kanto and Johto. After getting the first eight Johto badges, the player could take on the Pokemon League. Then, they could collect the eight Kanto badges. By showing these to Prof. Oak, the player could gain entrance to Mt. Silver and face off against the final boss, Red. Some fans believe Red to be Ash Ketchum from the TV series, because his Pokémon selection includes a high-level Pikachu and all three evolved starters, but there is no other evidence to support this.
The Pokémon
In total, there are 251 Pokémon that can be used in Pokémon Crystal. However, in Crystal alone, there are only two 222 Pokémon that can be caught or seen. For an additional 27 Pokémon, the player would have to trade with other games.
For ten of the Pokémon, one would have to at least trade with Pokémon Gold and Silver.
These ten Pokémon can be traded from Gold and Silver:
- Mareep
- Flaaffy
- Ampharos
- Girafarig
- Remoraid
- Octillery
- Mankey (can also be caught in the Red/Blue/Yellow era)
- Primeape (can also be caught in the Red/Blue/Yellow era)
- Vulpix (can also be caught in the Red/Blue/Yellow era)
- Ninetales (can also be caught in the Red/Blue/Yellow era)
However, there are a total of seventeen Pokémon that can't be caught in Gold, Silver or Crystal. To capture them, a player must trade with Pokémon Red, Blue (or Pocket Monsters: Green in Japan), or Yellow.
These seventeen Pokémon are:
- Bulbasaur
- Ivysaur
- Venusaur
- Charmander
- Charmeleon
- Charizard
- Squirtle
- Wartortle
- Blastoise
- Articuno
- Zapdos
- Moltres
- Omanyte
- Omastar
- Kabuto
- Kabutops
- Mewtwo
The final two Pokémon, Celebi and Mew, are almost unobtainable in any of the games. Actually, there is no way to obtain Celebi in the US version except via a cheating device or from a Nintendo Event, but Mew can be traded from Pokémon Red, Blue and Yellow after catching it with the Mew's Glitch and then trading it to Pokémon Gold and or Silver.
Pokemon Mobile Phone System
In the games Pokemon Crystal and Pokemon Stadium 2, someone can hook an adaptor to their Game Boy and connect it to a mobile phone which people can receive news, trade, and battle with other players across Japan. In Pokémon Crystal there is a Pokémon Communication Center (PCC) is in the place of the Goldenrod Pokémon Center, and it is basically just an advanced version of it.