Prerelease:Pokémon Gold and Silver

This page details prerelease information and/or media for Pokémon Gold and Silver.

Pokémon Gold and Silver had a long development phase marked by delays and a shift from Game Boy to Game Boy Color. It went through a significant overhaul between its first reveal in 1997 and its release date, leaving traces of a very different game.

Development Timeline

• 1997
  • November - A playable demo of Pokémon Gold & Silver debuts at Spaceworld '97.
  • December - Nintendo's official Pokémon 2 page, archived in June, 1997, advertises an initial release date of the end of 1997.
• 1998
  • March - Nintendo's official Spaceworld '97 page advertises a revised release date of the last third of March.
• 1999
  • August 27th - The game is showcased at Spaceworld '99. It's said to be 90% complete.
  • November 21st - Pokémon Gold & Silver is released in Japan.
• 2000
  • October 15th - Pokémon Gold & Silver is released in America.

19xx

Announcement

Initially, the games were announced as "Pokémon 2", then lengthened to "Pokémon Gold and Silver." Four Pokémon were initially shown in Corocoro - Ho-oh, Slowking, Ampharos, and Donphan. The games were intended to be for Game Boy, with Super Game Boy support.

1997

May

To do: Add information from the Official Pokémon Fanbook (JP).

In May, a guide called ポケットモンスター公式ファンブック (Pocket Monsters Official Fanbook) was published by Shogakukan. It contained new details about the upcoming Pokémon titles, including an interview with director Satoshi Tajiri and producer Tsunekazu Ishihara.

Story

In the interview, Satoshi Tajiri gave a few details about the games' story:

The protagonist begins collecting Pokémon when he hears rumours about a certain boy in Kanto Province who completed his entire Pokédex. That's where the story starts.

There's something unusual about this quote: The official Japanese name for Kanto is カントー地方 (Kantō Chihou), which translates to "Kanto region", with the word "Kanto" written in katakana. However, it is referred to here as 関東州 (Kantō Shuu), meaning "Kanto Province", with the word "Kanto" written in kanji.

Characters

In response to the question "Will characters such as the protagonist and trainers from the previous titles make an appearance?", Tajiri had this to say:

There's a different protagonist, but the story takes place in the same setting, so there's a strong possibility that you'll meet characters from the previous titles. You'll definitely be seeing Ash and Professor Oak again! Giovanni also left to go train in the last games, so... [He laughs] Look forward to that.

Ash, known as Red, and Professor Oak did, indeed, go on to appear in Pokémon Gold & Silver. Giovanni, however, was absent from the game.

Pokémon

Tajiri stated that, while the number of Pokémon that would appear in the games was not yet officially decided, he wanted there to be over 100 more than before. He also mentioned that players would be able to evolve some of the Pokémon that didn't have evolutions in the previous games.

The cover of the fanbook featured official art for Donphan, Ampharos, and Slowking. These three Pokémon, along with Ho-Oh, were described in greater detail inside its pages.

Donphan:

Early Sprite	Gold Sprite	Silver Sprite
		File:Pokémon GS-Silver Donphan Sprite.png

This powerful-looking new Pokémon seems like it could really pack a punch. The details are still unknown, but it looks like a Rhydon-type Pokémon, doesn't it?

Ampharos:

Early Sprite	Gold Sprite	Silver Sprite
		File:Pokémon GS-Silver Ampharos Sprite.png

This new type of Pokémon looks as though it came from outer space. The name suggests that it might be an Electric Dragon Pokémon...? Its true nature is not yet known.

The Japanese name for Ampharos is デンリュウ (Denryū), which is a homonym for both 電流 (denryū), meaning "electric current", and 電竜 (denryū), which translates to "electric dragon".

Ho-Oh:

Ho-Oh was the first of the creatures appearing in Pokémon 2 to be revealed. It's said that this legendary Pokémon will only reveal itself to a genius...

In Pokémon Crystal and Pokémon Y, Ho-Oh's Pokédex description states that "It will reveal itself before a pure-hearted trainer by shining its bright rainbow-colored wings." There is no mention of whether the pure-hearted player must also be intelligent.

Slowking:

Secret Data on Slowking
Slowpoke, a very stupid Pokémon, was out fishing for bait when a Shellder clamped onto on its tail, causing it to evolve into Slowbro. However, it is said that, in 1 instance out of 10,000, a Shellder will clamp down on a Slowpoke's head instead of its tail. As the Shellder's bites down, its essence penetrates the Slowpoke's listless brain cells, bestowing upon it extreme motivation.

Slowking has quickly become a hot topic among Pokémon collectors. How its evolution takes place is still unspecified, but it has been established that it evolves from Slowpoke!

In the final game, Slowpoke evolves into Slowking when it is traded while holding an item called the King's Rock.

Overworld

This image was captioned "The starting town, Silent Hills". (This name predates the popular video game Silent Hill, which wasn't released in Japan until January, 1999.) In the final game, the protagonist's hometown is known as ワカバタウン (Wakaba Town), which translates to "Young Leaf".

• The houses are closer to the ones seen in Red & Blue. Their chimneys are unique to this iteration.

• While the trees are similar to those the final game in terms of size and shape, their detailing is slightly different.

• The female NPC in this image does not resemble any NPC from the final game.

The town in this image was captioned オールドシティ (Old City).

In both of the images above, the player sprite is not offset.

September

Specifications

The October, 1997 edition of Monthly Coro Coro Comic magazine (published in mid-September, contrary to its name) carried an advertisement for Spaceworld '97's Mew giveaway event, in which 100,000 players would be given the opportunity to insert their game cartridge into a machine that would upload Mew into an empty slot in their party, provided they'd received the Pokédex. The advertisement stated that this Mew could be traded to Pokémon 2, confirming its compatibility with previous titles.

October

To do: Add info from the October, 1997 edition of Monthly Coro Coro Comic magazine (published in mid-October, contrary to its name).

November

To do: Add info from the December, 1997 edition of Monthly Coro Coro Comic magazine (published in mid-November, contrary to its name).

The first publicly playable demo of Pokémon Gold & Silver was featured at Spaceworld '97, a showcase event held in Tokyo from November 21st to 23rd. Gold and Silver kiosks were separated into two large rows, and players were able to choose which version they wanted to try. Playtime was limited to around 10 minutes.

A promo video was on display in the area, which incorporated both footage and still images.

The official guidebook for the event also featured two full pages dedicated to the game, as well as a shorter bio. The following screenshots were featured in the guidebook.

Specifications

The game was described as a Link Cable-compatible Game Boy RPG that was scheduled to be released in the last third of March, 1998, for a price of ¥3,500. It was said to be 80% complete.

The held item mechanic, new to Gen II, was introduced in the guidebook with a quote from Professor Oak himself:

Big news! It seems that some of the Pokémon set to debut in Pokémon Gold & Silver have been found to carry items themselves. What's more, I hear that there are occasions when, if the Pokémon is intelligent enough, it will use the item it's holding to give it an advantage in battle. It also appears that when you trade Pokémon with a friend, you'll also be able to exchange items. I'm sorry, but that's all the information I have right now...

The professor also advertised a number of new Pokédex features:

I also had a hand in revising and improving the latest version of the Pokédex. Pages can now be flipped through 10 at a time, and it will even automatically search by Pokémon type - Water, Fire, Grass, etcetera.

Characters

Protagonist

The official guidebook introduced the protagonist thus:

A boy living in a certain town. He has a brother who's 3 years older. These days, his primary hobby is toying around with a hand-me-down computer that was given to him by his brother.

Rival

The rival's description follows:

The boy's rival. He lives in the same town. His appearance and personality differ from the rival in the previous games.

Trainers

The guidebook also listed some of the trainers who would be opposing the protagonist, and included official artwork for each. These were Schoolboy, Lass, Firebreather, Kimono Girl, and Fisherman.

Pokémon

Official Guidebook

Names and official art for Ho-oh, Slowking, Ampharos, and Donphan were published in the guidebook. While no other details were provided, the designs and Japanese names for these new Pokémon were evidentially finalized by this point.

Playable Demo

The following Pokémon were allegedly encountered or mentioned in the playable demo. Because the only source for the information below is a Japanese fan site dedicated to cut Pokémon, its veracity is unclear. The sketches are fan-made and sourced from the same site, which claims that they are based on official art.

Picture	Name	Romaji	Type	Final Equivalent	Notes
100px	ハッパ	Happa	Grass	Chikorita	This Pokémon's name translates to "Leaf". It was one of three starters. Some of its moves were Absorb, Tackle, Growth, and Leech Seed. Its appearance is almost identical to Chikorita, who is described as a "Leaf Pokémon" in its Pokédex entry. However, unlike Chikorita, it has ears, and its leaf is attached to its head via a stalk. Its eyes and necklace are a different color, and it lacks a tail, defined feet, and claws.
100px	ホノオグマ	Honōguma	Fire	[Unknown]	This Pokémon's name translates to "Fire Bear". It was one of three starters. Some of its moves were "Fire", Scratch, and Leer. It knew "Fire" from the beginning.
100px	クルス	Kurusu	Water	[Unknown]	This Pokémon was one of three starters. Some of the moves it could learn were Tackle, Growl, and Water Gun.
100px	プクー	Pukū	Water	Qwilfish	This Pokémon appears to be an early version of Qwilfish, whose final Japanese is Harīsen. "Buku buku" is a Japanese onomatopoeia for bubbling. Its design is less angry-looking compared to Qwilfish.
100px	キリンリキ	Kirinriki	Dark/Normal	Girafarig	This Pokémon is an early version of Girafarig, with whom it shares a name. Its Pokédex entry described it as "Combo Pokémon". One of its moves was Double Kick. It could be encountered in the tall grass just beyond the protagonist's hometown. Unlike Girafarig, it possesses two heads, rather than a sentient tail, and lacks spines going down its back.
100px	マリル	Mariru	[Unknown]	Marill	This Pokémon is an early version of Marill, with whom it shares a name. Aside from its pink color, it has smaller ears, and a differently-shaped body and tail.
[None]	サニー	Sunny	Grass	Sunflora	This Pokémon appears to be an early version of Sunflora, whose final Japanese name is キマワリ (Kimawari). Its Pokédex entry described it as a "Flower Pokémon". Some of its moves were Leech Seed and Sing.
[None]	ハネコ	Haneko	Grass/Flying	Hoppip	This Pokémon is likely an early version of Hoppip, whose final Japanese name is ハネッコ (Hanekko).
[None]	ワタコ	Watako	[Unknown]	[Unknown]	This Pokémon is likely an early version of Jumpluff, whose final Japanese name is ワタッコ (Watakko).
[None]	ペインター	Painter	Normal	Smeargle	This Pokémon may be an early version of Smeargle, whose final Japanese name is ドーブル (Dōburu). Its Pokédex entry described it as a "Fairy Pokémon", and it had the appearance of an artist.
[None]	ヨロイドリ	Yoroidori	Flying/Metal	Skarmory	This Pokémon's name translates to "Armor Bird". Its Pokédex entry described it as a "Bird Pokémon". It's likely an early version of Skarmory. While Skarmory's final Japanese name is エアームド (Eāmudo), it is described in the Pokédex as an "Armored Bird Pokémon". Yoroidori's name and type were mentioned in an article found on the PC on the protagonist's house, which announced the discovery of a new Pokémon type known as "Metal". In the final game, this type is called はがね (Hagane), meaning "Steel".
[None]	アクア	Aqua	[Unknown]	[Unknown]	The playable demo referred to this Pokémon only by name. Its name suggests that it's Water-type.
[None]	エレキング	Eleking	[Unknown]	[Unknown]	This Pokémon may be an early version of Elekid or a cut evolution for Electabuzz. Electabuzz didn't receive an evolution until Gen IV's Electivire, whose final Japanese name is エレキブル (Elekiburu), which is likely a pun on the Japanese pronunciation of the English loan words "electric" and "cable".
[None]	ネタモン	Netamon	[Unknown]	[Unknown]	This Pokémon's name is very similar to Ditto's Japanese name, Metamon. It could be encountered on a route.
[None]	ブクー	Bukū	[Unknown]	[Unknown]	This Pokémon could be encountered at night on a route near the player's house. It was described as resembling a flying squirrel. It's possible that Bukū was an early version of Sentret, whose final Japanese name is オタチ (Otachi).

Promo Video

Pokédex entries for the following Pokémon allegedly appeared in a promo video on display at Spaceworld that explained the new features of the Pokédex. Because the only source for the information below is a Japanese fan site dedicated to cut Pokémon, its veracity is unclear.

Picture	Name	Romaji	Type	Final Equivalent	Notes
[None]	アクエリア	Aquaria	[Unknown]	[Unknown]	This Pokémon's name suggests that it's Water-type, and that it may be the evolved form of Aqua.
[None]	アニモン	Animon	[Unknown]	[Unknown]	"Animon" may be a portmanteau of the English word, "animate", and the Japanese word 文 (mon), meaning "letter" or "character". As such, it's possible that this Pokémon was an early version of Unown.
[None]	イカリ	Ikari	[Unknown]	[Unknown]	This Pokémon's name translates to "Rage". In the final game, "Ikari" (Rage) is a Pokémon move. The name may be a pun on イカ (ika), meaning "squid" or 錨 (ikari), meaning "anchor".

Title Screen

Spaceworld '97	Final (J)	Palette Glitch (U)
File:1999-GS beta title screen.png

This early version of the Gold title screen features animated leaves on a white background. A stationary Ho-Oh is emblazoned across the center. The title reads ポケットモンスター2 金 (Pocket Monsters 2 - Gold), with a stylized "2" partially visible behind the kanji.

Footage and descriptions of the Silver title screen has yet to be found, so it's unclear what it may have looked like. It's unknown whether Lugia even existed at this point in development.

At one point during the game's development, the Ho-Oh that appears on the title screen of Gold was rendered in color instead of silhouette. This functionality is still accessible in the final game by using a a glitch that causes Ho-Oh to be displayed in color, albeit with an incorrect palette. Conversely, the Lugia that appears on the title screen of Silver lacks these extra palette colors, suggesting that the sprite may have been created after the developers decided to switch to silhouettes.

Overworld

Information

• The first town in the demo was not named in personal accounts, but its description resembles the picture of Silent Hills. It consisted of the player's house, Oak's lab, and a Pokémon Center. Players could meet the rival, watch a news story about Professor Oak, and leave the town by going west. The first route had Pidgey, Rattata, Pikachu, Marill, Sunflora, Ledyba, Hoppip, and Girafarig in the grass.
• The next area was a forest dungeon, similar to Ilex Forest. Caterpie and Metapod could be found in the grass. Various trainers could be fought in this area; each trainer had either Paras, Snorlax, Clefairy, Meowth, or Slowking. Trainers were named, and their trainer classes included Bug Catcher, Lass, Schoolboy, and Beauty.
• There is a gate at the end of the forest (perhaps the building with "GATE" above its doors, seen in screenshots) and the rival stands in front of it. If the player talks to the rival, the demo ends.
• According to visitor accounts, night and day had been implemented, along with Pokémon encountered only at night, and the real time clock also was functioning (although it may have been adjusted to show off the nighttime feature.)

Screenshots

Four screenshots of the overworld were included on page 35 of the Spaceworld '97 Official Guidebook. The player sprite is not offset in any of them.

To do: Add commentary.

The overworld is also briefly visible in a snippet of preserved footage from the promo trailer. Once again, the player sprite is not offset.

File:PKMN GS Spaceworld 97 video snapshot 1.png

To do: Add commentary.

File:PKMN GS Spaceworld 97 video snapshot 2.png

Battle

• The game's palette was not completely configured for the Super Game Boy yet. The SGB had the ability to draw multiple palettes on the screen at once for Pokémon Red and Green, allowing for Pokémon to have their own palettes with different colors. In this picture of a battle, everything on the screen is a shade of orange. Like in Red and Green, the palette would change for different locations in the game, as seen in screenshots, but more than one palette could not be used on the screen at the same time, resulting in a monochromatic battle interface. Despite this, some magazine pictures and gameplay videos showed correct palettes in place, implying that this may have been further along in development outside of the demo.

(Source: Love Conquers All Games)

• Gust's type had been changed from Normal-type to Flying-type at this point.
• Metapod's sprite is unique to this demo.
• The Super Game Boy border is unique to this demo.
• During the promotion video, the weather function was shown, with Poliwhirl using Rain Dance.

December

To do: Add info from the January, 1998 edition of Monthly Coro Coro Comic magazine (published in mid-December, contrary to its name).

1999

August

To do: Add info from here and other sources. Was this a playable demo?

Pokémon Gold & Silver was showcased at Spaceworld '99, held at the end of August, where it was said to be 90% complete.

November

To do: These screenshots can use comparisons with final.

These are screenshots of unknown origin, but the border may help identify the source. They're dated 1999-11-08. The player sprite is not offset. Genders are not present on battle screens. Prototype footprints can be seen on Pokédex screens. The Bag layout is radically different.

Possibly Route 30

Prototype	Final

Possibly Route 32

Prototype	Final

Possibly Route 46

Prototype	Final

Prototype	Final

Possibly Union Cave

Prototype	Final

National Park

Prototype	Final

Prototype	Final

Prototype	Final

Prototype	Final

Prototype	Final

Prototype	Final

Prototype	Final

Prototype	Final

Prototype	Final

Prototype	Final

A Pokédex screenshot in the previous set from a clearly different build.

• 

Info to Add

Assorted

• Pokémon GS Beta Thread - Neogaf (EN)
• "Official GSC Programming & Beta Glitch Thread" - Serebii (EN)

• Coro Coro Comic Scans - Zoidsland (JP)

• All linked from http://inusoku.blog87.fc2.com/blog-entry-1722.html
  • http://www.reocities.com/TimesSquare/Castle/5553/prepm2.html
  • http://park3.wakwak.com/~pokepale/pokeold/archive/kingin.htm
  • http://web.archive.org/web/19970605021149/http://www.nintendo.co.jp/n02/dmg/kingin/index.html
  • http://web.archive.org/web/20021114111108/http://www.bekkoame.ne.jp/~niki/poke2.html

Footage

• Brief later footage from Nintendo's website. - YouTube (EN)
• Early footage and title screen. - YouTube (EN) (Original video)

Nintendo Promotional Video

A build was showcased in footage shown on Nintendo's website. This showcases a much later version of the game, with more new Pokémon. Some sprites are different, but many elements resemble the final more than the Spaceworld demo. Notably, some Pokémon are encountered in the wild that are impossible to encounter in the final game, namely Slowking, Ampharos, and Togepi.

To do: Document sprite changes.

Images

• Many early screenshots. Change your encoding to SHIFT_JIS to read the text. - Hakuda2 (JP)
• Magazine scan of screenshots with early place names. (JP)
• IGN Prerelease Screenshots - IGN (EN)
• RPGamer Prerelease Screenshots - RPGamer (EN)
• TV Gamer Scan - Twitter (JP)

To do: Source these, group by build, place in appropriate sections.

Unknown

A set of screenshots of unknown origin. The player sprite is not offset.

• 
• PkmnGS-SilentHills.png
• 
• 

Unknown

This is a set of four screenshots found in several publications.

• Screenshots 1 and 4 can be found in ポケットモンスター公式ファンブック (Pocket Monsters Official Fanbook) [1]
• All four screenshots appeared in a magazine called TV Gamer [2]
• Black and white version of these screenshots appeared in the third edition of a book book called ポケットモンスターを遊びつくす本 赤, published on Feb. 20th, 1998 [3]

Notably, the player sprite is offset. A variation on Old City can be seen, without the extra signpost and with more space between the two visible houses.

• 
• 
• 
• 

Unknown

A set of screenshots that possibly came from a video. The battle screens contain gender symbols.

To do: comparisons

Prototype	Final

PokéGear Radio

Prototype	Final

• The PokéGear menus were reordered to put the back button in front.
• Markers were added to the radio tuner.
• The "tuning" text was changed from ちょうせい to チューニング.

Party menu

Prototype	Final

The rows containing HP bars and numbers were swapped.

Possibly Route 29

Prototype	Final

Egg hatching

Prototype	Final

Entering the Bug Catching Contest

Prototype	Final

The player is entering a Bug Catching Contest on a Monday. In the final, it holds every Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday.

PokéGear Phone

Prototype	Final

• The PokéGear menus were reordered to put the back button in front.
• Current time can be seen in the top right corner. It is only present on the "back" menu in final.
• Prof. Elm is not present in the contact list.
• Bug Catcher Wade speaks of his Scyther, but he doesn't have one in the final.
• The trainer class Picnicker (ピクニックガール, Picnic Girl), known in Gen 1 as Jr. Trainer (ガールスカウト, Girl Scout), was not yet renamed at this point in development. Furthermore, no trainer is named サトミ in the final.

Prototype	Final

Textual Info

• A large compilation of information and accounts of prerelease Gold and Silver. (JP)
• The former, summarized, with pictures intact. (EN)
• Personal account of a dedicated fan at Spaceworld 1997. (JP)
• Translation of above account. (EN)
• Some Gold/Silver Japanese websites are listed here, some with prerelease information. (JP)
• Official guide for Spaceworld 1997, section on Pokémon 2. (JP)
• Iwata Asks on Pokémon Heart Gold & Soul Silver (EN)
• Various Pokémon fansites archived by Sanqui (JP)
• Pokémon Gold & Silver: Development - Wikipedia (EN)
• Pokémon Gold & Silver Beta - Bulbapedia (EN)
• Pokémon Gold & Silver IGN Coverage - IGN (EN)
• Lugia Design Info 1 - Style.fm (JP)
• Lugia Design Info 2 - Nintendo Dream via Reddit (JP & EN)