This article is a work in progress. ...Well, all the articles here are, in a way. But this one moreso, and the article may contain incomplete information and editor's notes.
To do: Many more prototypes are in need of documentation. This page will also eventually need to be split up into multiple pages.
On April 24, 2020, a massive amount of files related to the second generation of Pokémon games were leaked. This included an obscene amount of localization prototypes from every language that Gold, Silver, and Crystal were translated into (English, French, German, Spanish, Italian, and Korean).
These are two early prototypes of the Korean version of Silver, based on the Japanese version. One build is titled MONS2.ISX and the other is mons2_x.isx, both having a compile date of December 29, 2001. Please note that some emulators will not run these builds at all, Sameboy then appears to be the best option as it can play the raw .isx files, removing the need to convert the files.
These builds appear to have been early tests to see how the Korean Hangul characters would display in-game.
Most dialogue, text strings, Pokémon names, and moves are translated into Korean, but menus are still in Japanese.
Anywhere a name is entered, such as the player name or Pokémon nicknames, Japanese is still used.
The Hangul characters do not have color changes applied for the Pokédex.
There are a large amount of graphical glitches related to Hangul characters.
These builds are also extremely broken:
It is impossible to save in either build, as the game crashes after saving and the save file is not kept.
The DUDE's catching tutorial softlocks the game.
MONS2 does not properly load sprites.
Obtaining items causes a dialogue overflow, and the graphics temporarily corrupt until the screen is refreshed. The player sprite will also be offset down and to the right every time, leading to a very odd gameplay experience. This can be fixed through events that reset the player's location, such as flying or whiting out.
The old man in Cherrygrove City freezes the game at the end of his scenic tour.
German
Dated October 5, 2000, this build is still mostly in English, with only various menus and lists of strings, such as Pokémon names, localized so far.
Pokémon
Dex #
October 5, 2000
Final (German)
Final (English)
Notes
220
Zwerkel
Quiekel
Swinub
Likely from "Zwerg" (meaning "runt" or "pygmy") and "Ferkel" (meaning "Piglet").
238
Kussmuss
Kussilla
Smoochum
Likely from "Kuss" (meaning "kiss") and "muss" (meaning "must" or "have to").
Items
Index #
October 5, 2000
Final (German)
Final (English)
Notes
002
Meisterball
Hyperball
Ultra Ball
Erroneously uses the name for the Master Ball.
030
Punchaneira
Lucky Punch
Lucky Punch
A pun on "Punch" and "Chaneira", the German name for Chansey.
107
Dauerfrost
Ewiges Eis
NeverMeltIce
Literally means "Permanent Frost", while the final name means "Everlasting Ice".
126
Chan-Ei
Glücks-Ei
Lucky Egg
Literally means "Chan's Egg", which implies that it is Chansey's egg, while the final name means "Lucky Egg".
139
Fruchtsaft
Beerensaft
Berry Juice
Literally means "Fruit Juice", while the final name means "Berry Juice".
152
Power-Gen
Berserk-Gen
Berserk Gene
Literally means "Power Gene", while the final name means "Berserk Gene".
157
Volumenball
Schwerball
Heavy Ball
Literally means "Volume Ball", while the final name means "Heavy Ball".
Locations
October 5, 2000
Final (German)
Final (English)
Notes
Einheitshöhle
Einheitstunnel
Union Cave
Literally means "Union Cave", while the final name means "Union Tunnel".
Zedra City
Anemonia City
Cianwood City
Finsterberg
Kesselberg
Mt. Mortar
Literally means "Darkness Mountain", while the final name means "Cauldron Mountain".
Mahagonia Town
Mahagonia City
Mahogany Town
Here "Town" was changed to "City" in the final game.
