Pokémon Gold and Silver/Unused Graphics

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This is a sub-page of Pokémon Gold and Silver.

Intro Graphics

Unseen Title Screen Palette

Late 1996	Spaceworld 1997	Early 1999	Final	Palette Glitch

Full Sprite	In-Game Sprite

The Ho-Oh sprite on the title screen of Gold actually uses three colors, suggesting that it was originally intended to appear in all its brilliance instead of as a mere silhouette. Various changes to Ho-Oh's presentation on the title screen were made during development, with it appearing as a silhouette in the '97 demo, then in muted colors in prerelease materials from 1999. In the final game, the palette assigned to Ho-Oh renders all three of these colors as black, so its illustrious hues are not normally seen.

You can see the non-silhouetted sprite by exploiting a glitch that causes the game to reset in mono Game Boy mode on the Game Boy Color, preventing the correct palettes from being loaded. The most reliable way to perform this is by listening to Machop's cry in the Pokédex, then attempting to use the Coin Case. The used palette comes from the male player sprite and not a dummied-out palette, despite looking remarkably accurate.

In Silver, Lugia uses only the two colors visible in-game. Due to how palettes are assigned, using the glitch will only change the eye color of Lugia and use a slightly brighter shade of black. This shows that the decision to render the Legendary Pokémon as a silhouette was made prior to Lugia's title screen sprite being created.

Both Pokémon are displayed in color on the title screens of HeartGold and SoulSilver.

Unseen Seafloor Layout

Full Layout	Visible Layout

The tilemap for the ocean depths seen in the intro extends past the screen's boundaries. This was also the case in the Spaceworld '97 demo, and it remains unchanged here.

Obscured Lapras Intro Sprite

Lapras' bottom half goes unseen during regular gameplay.

Unused Intro Starter Sprites

A rather old leftover, as these two sprites were used in the Spaceworld '97 demo's intro. The source code identifies this file as OP_OBJ3.DAT.

Unused Charizard Blast Frame

This frame would have been used in the intro sequence, between the second and last frames.

Miscellaneous Graphics

Unused Font Characters

A font set exists for the full roman alphabet, both uppercase and lowercase, with even an interrogation mark thrown in as a gift. This set feels rather redundant, as its only particularity is that the characters are bolded. The source code identifies this file as MAILFONT.DAT, suggesting it was originally tied to Mail.

As seen in the Space World '97 demo, the Pokégear was originally supposed to display the day of the week via unique kanji characters, the final games instead writing them in katakana using the standard font. The lightning bolt tile was also once part of the original Pokégear interface. The source code identifies this file as WEEK.DAT.

This tile was originally used in Generation I as the naming screen's "confirm" prompt. It was actually supposed to make a comeback in Gen II, as seen in the Space World '97 demo. On the topic of Gen I leftovers, the VS fontset also returns in Gold and Silver, with once again only the letters "V" and "S" getting used.

Unused Frame Type

In the Options menu, the player can change the frame which adorns dialogue boxes. While only eight frame types are normally accessible, there exist tiles for an unused ninth type. Shown above is a mock-up of what this border would look like in-game.

Unused Trainer Card Tile

Found right next to the Trainer Card's "BADGES" graphics is a tile for the number 1. This is likely tied to the scrapped Kanto badges page. Presumably, "BADGES" was originally "BADGES 1", with the next page's label then shifting to "BADGES 2".

Unused Fishing Sprites

The Generation I sideways fishing rod sprite still exists in the data of Gen II games, but goes unused as a new fishing spriteset was created for Gold and Silver. The Gen I fishing spriteset was used as late as the Space World '99 demo. The unused lure sprite from Gen I also still exists, again going completely unused.

Unused Reactions

All the various speech bubble "emotes" that were introduced up to the release of Yellow are accounted for in Gold and Silver, though only the exclamation point and heart ones are actually used. The happy one was originally used when the player gambles at the Game Corner, and the others were added in Yellow and are related to certain Pikachu interactions.

Unused Move Animations

A small handful of unused sprites exist, relating to Pokémon moves:

A slice of cake. Grouped alongside other "objects" (the Curse nail, Sketch pencil, Encore hands, etc.) It's a leftover from the Spaceworld '97 demo, where it was used for "Tempt" (えさをまく) a scrapped move that was later replaced by Sweet Scent.
A megaphone. Group alongside other "miscellaneous" items (the Kinesis spoons, Metronome Hands, Heal Bell, etc.) It's a leftover from the Spaceworld '97 demo, where it was used for "Megaphone" (メガホーン) a scrapped move that was later replaced by Megahorn.
Swirls. Grouped in their own section. The source code identifies this file as UZUCHR.DAT, with "Uzu" (渦) being the Japanese word for a whirlpool or vortex. This suggests that these sprites may have once been used for the move Whirlpool. For reference, these sprites don't seem to exist in the Spaceworld '97 demo, and in that build Whirlpool doesn't have an animation yet (aside from a mere screen shake effect).
Poison drop. Grouped alongside the Poison type move graphics. It's a Gen I leftover, where it was used for moves like Acid, which in Gen II only uses the "poison splat" (which is also carried over from Gen I).

Unused Footprint Sprites

While not occupied by any valid Pokémon, spots #252 to #256 use dummy footprint graphics which are comprised of a generic paw print with their numeral internal index spot. As seen in late prerelease material, this style of footprints was originally used as a placeholder while the graphics were still waiting to be drawn.

Unused Minigame Sprites

Found among the icons for the Game Corner' slot machines is an unused sprite of Bulbasaur. It doesn't have any payout amount assigned to it, and in the final games Squirtle is the only member of the Kanto starter trio to be featured on the revamped board. Moreover, all the slot icons have unused secondary frames, which is a leftover from the Spaceworld '97. In that build, pressing A to stop a slot row would cause its icons to animate, though that concept was ultimately scrapped.

There also exists a rather odd sprite of what looks like a puff of smoke, or at the very least some sort of cursor. It's possible it might have been intended for the elusive Chansey egg throw, which lacks any visuals for when the egg makes impact with the slots.

Unused Ruin Puzzle Tile

This ground tile, normally seen in the overworld, is found alongside the graphics for the Ruins of Alph puzzle. Only a rock border is used in the final games.

Overworld Sprites

Unused Object Palette

Pink Palette (Unused)	Red Palette (Used)

With the shift to Game Boy Color, overworld objects can now be assigned various colors. These range from red, green, blue, or brown for NPCs, and three unique palettes for Berry trees, smashable boulders, and the Silver trophy decoration. However there exists an unused palette, at ID 4, which consists of a pinkish hue. This palette is rather close to the red palette, which might be why it was ultimately scrapped.

(Source: Pokémon Gold and Silver disassembly project)

Old Link Receptionist

The Gen I Link receptionist still exists, but never gets used as Gen II uses a brand new nurse sprite instead. Oddly enough, only her front-facing sprite was carried over. Its ID is 58. The source code identifies this file as OLDPC.DAT.

Paper Sheet

Yet another leftover from Gen I, where it was used for letters. Instead, Gen II only ever uses the book ("Pokédex") sprite to represent readable material. Its ID is 56. The source code identifies this file as LETTER.DAT.

Mr. Fuji

Oddly enough, Mr. Fuji's spriteset was carried over to Gen II, but instead of using it, the games instead reused the standard bearded old man NPC spriteset. Even weirder is that this spriteset actually was used in the Spaceworld '97 demo, appearing inside a house in Birdon. Moreover, even if the original set was used, he remains stationary, and thus his walking frames would once again remain unused. Its ID is 09. The source code identifies this file as FUJI.DAT.

This spriteset was later used in Crystal, where it is assigned to the Dragon Shrine elders. Not only that, but the walking frames even get used, with only the "walk north" one unused.

Captain

The Captain of the S.S.Anne (now the S.S.Aqua) makes a return in Generation II, although his back sprite is never seen as he always stands with his back against his chair.

Monster

Unused Frames	Animated Sprites

The overworld sprite used for monstrous Pokémon was also carried over from Gen I, though here the sideways walking frames never get used.

Dragon

Unused Frames	Animated Sprites

The newly created overworld spriteset for Lance's Dragonite is only ever seen from the side, though its front sprite is technically used, as it is taken from its animated menu sprite.

Male Clerk

Unused Frames	Animated Sprites

The Poké Mart clerks have full directional movement, but never move. The devs likely included walking frames for this character type just in case they were ever needed.

Female Clerk

Unused Frames	Animated Sprites

These clerks also have unused walking frames, just like their male counterpart. This spriteset gets used in Crystal, where a female clerk guides the player through the Battle Tower.

Old Woman

Unused Frames	Animated Sprites

This spriteset is shared between the old woman NPC and Mediums, and neither ever walk south. Later used in Crystal, with a Medium NPC found in the Battle Tower's lobby.

Fancy Woman

Unused Frames	Animated Sprites

This spriteset is shared between Beauties and Skiers, and neither ever walk north. Also gets used in Crystal, with a Beauty NPC roaming in front of the Battle Tower.

Kimono Girl

Unused Frames	Animated Sprites

Kimono Girls were once standard trainers, which might be why they have walking frames. The devs might have also included those just in case. The "walk north" and "walk south" sprites were later used in Crystal, with a Kimono Girl CPU trainer which can be encountered in the Battle Tower.

Red's Mother

Unused Frames	Animated Sprites

Red's mother never moves, and thus her walking frames go unused.

Daisy Oak

Unused Frames	Animated Sprites

While she moved up and down in Gen I, Daisy is completely stationary here. Interestingly, this spriteset was originally used as a placeholder for the Link Cable nurses.

Important Trainers

Unused Frames	Animated Sprites

Besides Jasmine and Misty, all Gym Leaders have sprites which never get used. Most of them are walking frames, though in a handful of cases even their back sprite never even ends up seen due to them standing right against a wall. This also expands not only to Red, but also to Elite Four members Bruno and Koga, with Bruno's being reused from Generation I, and Koga's being newly created for Gold and Silver. It's also worth noting that neither Will nor Karen have walking sprites, due to their spritesets being late additions.

In Crystal, Morty's walking frames get used in a newly introduced event, in which he roams the Burned Tower prior to the awakening of the Legendary Beasts. As for Clair, her side walking sprites are seen in the Dragon Shrine, another new addition to this game.

Unused Early Player

Early Spriteset	Final Spriteset

The original player spriteset, found at ID is 44, and first used in the Space World '97 demo. It is rather close the final one (ID 01), only being less refined in some spots, not carrying a backpack, and having a spikier tuft of hair poking out of the cap. This early design was used for a surprisingly long time, as it can be seen in early 1999 promotional material, and even by the time of the Space World '99 demo the cycling sprites still hadn't been updated.

While this spriteset is assigned a brown palette in the games' data (instead of red as one would assume), early screenshots reveal that the player was seemingly always red once development shifted to the GBC. This could be explained by this spriteset having overwritten a different one, with the old palette unchanged since there was no need to update it. Worth noting is that in the source code, both the early and final spritesets share the same filename, HERO.DAT, with the early sprite only found within a backup folder.

Unused Old Man

This last spriteset, at ID 3F, is never assigned to any NPC, and the source code simply calls him "Western-style old man" (ようふうじいさん). This distinguishes him from the other old man spriteset (ID 2F), which is labeled as "Japanese-style old man" (わふうじいさん). The OBJDATA folder refers to both spritesets as OLDMAN.DAT and OLDMANY.DAT respectively. This character looks rather similar to Pryce, which might be why he was ultimately shelved.

(Source: Pokémon Gold and Silver disassembly project)

Unused Tiles

Tileset 01

The tileset used for the Johto overworld has some leftover tiles which were originally used in an earlier design for the pagodas. These tiles do not appear in any block.

Tileset	Unused Tiles

Tileset 02

The tileset used for "modern" Johto contains the pier post tile, but never uses it anywhere. This tile appears in the unused block 43, with it being also found (and actually used) in the standard Johto blockset, at the same ID.

Tileset	Unused Tiles	Related Block

Tileset 03

The Kanto tileset has an extra ground tile which never gets used. It was used in Generation I for right-facing ledges, and can actually be found on Route 25 in the Space World 1999 demo. Unused blocks 47 and 4B (which are lifted from the Gen I Kanto blockset) make use of this tile.

Tileset	Unused Tiles	Related Block

Tileset 04

The standard NPC house tileset contains unused tiles which make up a chalkboard. This is due to tileset 04 being built off of Generation I's tileset 02, where these tiles were namely used in the Viridian City Trainer School. This generation's Trainer School (here in Violet City) uses tileset 09, which has a completely redrawn set of tiles for its chalkboard.

Tileset	Unused Tiles	Related Block

Tileset 05

The tileset for the Player's house contains a handful of unused tiles, some of which date back to the Space World 1997 demo. These include a dark floor tile, carpet, a radio, a Virtual Boy, bookshelf drawers, and two miscellaneous nondescript tiles. The first two were originally used in the player's bedroom, prior to it getting its own separate tileset. The Virtual Boy, meanwhile, was originally a Nintendo 64, and ultimately became redundant because while a VB can be obtained as a decoration, it is an object.

Tileset	Unused Tiles	Related Block

Tileset 06

This tileset is used by Pokémon Centers, and it contains tiles and corresponding blocks which mimic elements of the original Generation I layout. In the Space World '97 demo, these were used as part of a unique interior for the Time Capsule, based on the original Pokémon Center design. As the final game's Time Capsule uses the Trade Center interior, the graphics intended for this layout remain unused. Below is a mockup of what the demo's layout would look like using the final version's tileset:

Tileset	Unused Tiles	Related Block

Generation I	Space World '97 demo	Final (unused tiles, mockup)

Tileset 07

The gate house tileset contains both ascending and descending staircases, which were once used in the Space World '97 demo. Also going unused are a dark floor tile, and a chunk of window, both of which also leftovers from the '97 demo.

Tileset	Unused Tiles	Related Block

Tileset 08

The harbor tileset contains shore and reef tiles, as well as corresponding blocks which really have no business being here, as only bollards are ever used. Also found here is an odd water tile which doesn't really fit anywhere.

Tileset	Unused Tiles	Related Block

Tileset 09

In the laboratory tileset are graphics for an ascending staircase, with a corresponding block at ID 19 making use of it. This is rather interesting, as while the placeholder Trainer Schools do have an upper floor in the '97 demo, the floor type used here is specifically the lab one. It's then possible that Professor Elm's family originally lived upstairs from his lab, much like how they do in the games' remake.

Tileset	Unused Tiles	Related Block

Tileset 0A

The facility tileset has leftover door tiles from Generation I's Cinnabar Lab tileset, which was used as the basis for 0A. These tiles do not appear in any block.

Tileset	Unused Tiles

Tileset 0C

The tilset used for the Celadon Mansion contains a handful of unused tiles for its wall formations, one of which having an incorrect palette, being gray instead of blue. Also found here are an unused light blue tile, as well as unused portions of the potted plant.

Tileset	Unused Tiles	Related Block

Tileset 0E

The tileset for the Elite Four rooms contains an unused gray tile, as well as ones for the side of carpets. These tiles do not appear in any block.

Tileset	Unused Tiles

Tileset 0F

The tileset used for the traditional Ecruteak interiors has a single unused tile, which was originally originally used for the underside of tables in the Space World '97 demo. However, it was ultimately touched-up, and thus doesn't fit anywhere anymore, in addition to being replaced by a different tile altogether. This tile doesn't appear in any block.

Tileset	Unused Tiles

Tileset 10

The train station tileset contains an unused floor tile which appears to match the darker fence post used during the animation that plays when taking the Magnet Train. This tile doesn't appear in any block.

Tileset	Unused Tiles

Tileset 11

In the tileset partially used by the Olivine Gym, the upper portion of the large boulder graphic never gets used as none can be found. This tile doesn't appear in any block.

Tileset	Unused Tiles

Tileset 13

In the tileset used by the player's room are two unused floorboard tiles. These tiles may actually belong to two scrapped decorative carpet types, as seen by their block layouts. The tiles for the unobtainable Pikachu Bed are also found here.

Tileset	Unused Tiles	Related Block

Tileset 15 & 1B

The tileset used by caves contains unused tiles such as tall grass, a duplicate of the light rock tile, the original boulder top graphic, as well as two tiles which may have been used to decorate back-facing cave entrance. Most interesting however are a set of railroad tracks, a buffer stop, and a minecart, none of which ever get used in the final games. an unused mine cart and corresponding tracks that are never used in the final game. As it turns out, all of these tiles date back to the '97 demo, where were used in a group of maps aptly labeled as "はいこう" (Abandoned Mine). With the exception of the tall grass, none of these tiles appear in any blocks.

Tileset	Unused Tiles	Related Block

Tileset 16

The National Park tileset contains a handful of tiles which go unused, such as a fence post, three different flavors of ground tiles, and a small fountain/bird bath. The latter was ultimately redrawn and used in Crystal. The beaten ground tile is used in block ID 02, which would have appeared in the cut Safari Zone map.

Tileset	Unused Tiles	Related Block

Tileset 17

The tileset for the ruins of Alph contains quite a handful of unused graphics. Namely, we have wall tiles, brick flooring, as well as tiles which make up a locked door. These were used in a predecessor to the Ruins of Alph, aptly labeled as "いせき" (Ruins), from the Space World '97 demo. New to the final games are the Unown glyphs, of which the B and Y never get used, but are assigned to unused blocks 0C and 25 respectively. Last thing worth noting is a copy of the floor panels used in the Hall of Fame, which in the final games was moved to 1A, shared with the Ice Path instead. This suggests that tiles were shifted from one tileset to another during development.

Tileset	Unused Tiles	Related Block

Tileset 19

The tileset for the Rocket Hideout contains a handful of tiles which never get used. From table chunks, to bits of walls, to an early crate, these tiles are leftovers from the Space World '97 demo. Also present is a version of the ascending staircase with the Gen I slanted tiled floor, with a corresponding floor tile.

Tileset	Unused Tiles	Related Block

Tileset 1A

The tileset for the Ice Path contains the tiles necessary for a front-facing cave entrance. These tiles appear in the unused block 13, with it being also found (and actually used) in the standard cave blockset, at the same ID. Also found here are the unused entrance tiles from the cave tileset (though here with a yellow palette instead of a brown one), as well as two different water tiles, one of which being pulled from Generation I.

Tileset	Unused Tiles	Related Block

Tileset 1C

The tileset used by Ilex Forest contains a few unused tiles, such as the one used for beaten paths, and ones which would have made up a boulder. Also found here are two sets of signpost tiles, one duplicate and one unused. The sign tiles are a remnant from the Space World '99 demo, where the Ilex Forest tileset didn't exist yet, instead using tileset 01. Seing how the unused sign is from 01, it's possible the standard sign was used as a placeholder while the custom one was still being made. These tiles don't appear in any block.

Tileset	Unused Tiles