Alright, alright! Here’s a feature I’ve been DYING to do for a while and since X and Y is JUST around the corner. I’d like to get this STARTED! If you haven’t played Pokemon since the originals or maybe a bit later, you can use this article as a guide to get started. Keep in mind (if you HAVE played all the pokemon games, and you’re just reading this for whatever) I will NOT be going into many things exclusive to a single generation, mainly the little gadgets you get like the PokeNav. Please also keep in mind I will be linking to pages on Bulbapedia for extra reference but they will more often than not tell you about things I’ll explain later, so don’t get all confused, just read the whole thing before you question yourself.
Meant to be the last games in the franchise, Pokemon Gold and Silver were released to the public a couple years after the explosion of Red and Blue. Here, we saw a brand new region (just left of Kanto) and even got to play through Kanto AFTER defeating the Johto league. New pokemon starters came with it, too. The image above shows Chikorita, Cyndaquil, and Totodile being Grass, Fire, and Water respectively.
BUT! It was more than just new pokemon. Onix and Scyther got a new evolution, by trading them with a new item called a Metal Coat. These evolutions, Steelix (left) and Scizor (right) were classified with a new type, making them Steel/Ground and Bug/Steel, respectively. Want to read MORE on the new Steel-type? Click here.
If you remember, in Red & Blue, Psychic-types were VERY overpowered. They’re only weakness was Bug, and at that point, the Bug-types were very weak. Well, as well as introducing strong Bug moves and pokemon, Ghost-types were now super-effective against Psychic-types… along with a new type. The Dark-type. If you’d like to see more on the Dark-type, click here. If you look below, it shows Espeon (the Psychic-type pink one) and Umbreon (the Dark type black one). These cuties are Eevee’s new evolutions, evolving with high friendship during the night and day respectively. Friendship is basically how a pokemon feels toward you, if you battle with it a lot and care for it, it’ll go up. If you HAVE played Pokemon Yellow, you know what I’m talking about.
Breeding was also a new mechanic introduced. Here, you would drop off your pokemon in a Day Care and they COULD breed and have a little egg. Before you continue reading, I would suggest reading up on Breeding here, because it’ll be very hard to explain without having a follow-up after reading that page. Right, so, pokemon of different Egg Groups cannot breed. For instance, Zubat and Kingdra CANNOT Breed. But Zubat and Pidgeot can, because they are of the same Egg Group (as long as they are of different genders). Keep in mind dropping your in a Day Care and having them breed could take a while. Also, Ditto can breed with almost ANY pokemon. The page I linked to you before on Breeding will explain that and if you want more on Egg Groups, click here.
There are other things worth mentioning, too. Have you ever seen a pokemon that is weirdly colored before? More often than not, you haven’t but you probably have heard of these guys. Shiny Pokemon were introduced to the games thanks to Gen. Two as well. Basically, you have a rare chance of finding a differently colored pokemon in the wild. If you want to read a bit more on Shiny Pokemon, go right here.
There is a LOT more about Gold and Silver (click the names if you want to go to their Bulbapedia pages) such as pre-evolutions to Pokemon you already know like Pikachu’s pre-evolution Pichu or Pokerus (more commonly seen as PKRS), a virus that helps boost your pokemon’s stats tremendously (click here for that) but that’s just the tip of the iceberg for pokemon!
Generation Three (Hoenn) Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald
Then Generation Three came with a bang a while after Gold and Silver, introduced two monstrous new legendaries, Groudon, a red Ground-type in control of the earth and ground, and Kyogre, a blue Water-type in control of the rivers and seas. Later on, Rayquaza is found, a green Dragon/Flying pokemon who controls the sky and atmosphere. This also introduced Treecko, Torchic, and Mudkip, the Grass, Fire, and Water starters (seen below). While Generation Three didn’t introduce as much as it did as Two did, it made a HUGE impact on how the way Pokemon was played. Let’s dive right into this, shall we?
The major bomb Generation Three dropped was the fact Abilities were added. Abilities sort of added spice to battles. Certain abilities did certain things, and pokemon could only have one. Let’s use some pokemon as an example, okay? Look to the left, and you’ll see a pokemon newly introduced to Generation Three, Torkoal. He has a special ability pretty much exclusive to only him called White Smoke, which prevents it from it’s stats being lowered. Older pokemon from previous generations got abilities, too! Look at Pikachu, for example. He got the ability Static, which has a chance of paralyzing you’re opponent when they use a physical move like a Fighting-type or Poison-type attack. Abilities can be found right here if you want more info.
A new little mechanic was introduced that’s sort of like a minigame. These are called Pokemon Contests, and are found in four locations placed in four different ranks across the Hoenn region. Pokemon are graded by certain categories. For instance, if you go into a Tough Contest, bring a move like Scratch or Egg Bomb, not moves that fall into other categories like Hypnosis or Triple Kick. Each move can have a different effect on the audience, other contestants, and can work differently depending on different contestants. The goal is to get the most appeal by filling the Applause bar on YOUR turn. There is judging before this though, Primary Judging. Basically, they judge to see how your pokemon fits into the theme. All you need to do is use PokeBlocks, red ones for Coolness, Blue for Beauty, etc. which will boost their ranking in that category. And remember! ANY pokemon can join! For more on Contests, click right here.
A new battle mechanic was ALSO introduced to the games, though. Double Battles! Here, two pokemon face off against an opponents two pokemon. Certain moves, like Surf, affect ALL of the pokemon on the field. Other moves, like Helping Hand, can help your teammate. Each turn, you choose the moves each pokemon will use and each pokemon will move according to speed, like a normal battle. Certain pokemon do well together, like a pokemon with Skill Swap (a new move that switches abilities with it’s target) and Slaking. See, Slaking has the ability Truant, which makes it move every OTHER turn because it’s SO powerful. Check out Double Battles here.
Generation Three is very cool and there is a LOT to delve into here, though. Like the new villanous teams, Team Magma and Team Aqua or the new Battle Frontier (click their names for more info on THOSE) but Hoenn has always been a personal favorite of mine. However, the best is yet to come.
Generation Four (Sinnoh) Diamond, Pearl and Platinum
With a new generation, comes new legendaries. Starting from the left, we have the Water-Dragon Pokemon in charge of space, Palkia. Next is the ruler of the alternate world, the Distortion World, the Ghost-Dragon Pokemon, Giratina. Last but certainly not least, is Dialga, a Steel-Dragon type and ruler of time. Under this text are the Grass, Fire, and Water starters, Turtwig, Chimchar, and Piplup.
The major new addition to the Sinnoh, in my opinion, is the fact that most of the Sinnoh pokemon are evolutions to pokemon prior. There are a lot, and I can’t find a page with exclusively those, but you can check out ALL pokemon with evolutions that are for pokemon of previous generations here, keep in mind there are some from older generations like Seadra to Kingdra. Anyways, these pokemon evolve in strange ways. For instance, Magmar now evolves into Magmortar when holding a Magmarizer and being traded.
However, there’s another main addition added to the pokemon games this time around. You’ve probably heard of this referred to as “the physical/special split.” See, originally in pokemon games, moves were determined by their type not by literal sense. For instance, Poison-types were originally exclusively physical, but now to this generation, moves like Sludge and Acid are special. So, keep an eye out on your pokemon’s moveset because it’ll fall into one of three categories, Physical (these moves can be affected by abilities like Static or Cute Charm, moves like Tackle or Jump Kick), Special (NOT affected by abilities like Static or Cute Charm, moves like Solarbeam and Psychic), and Status (moves that affect yourself, opponents, or the arena, moves like Haze or Conversion). If you want to learn more about these types of moves, click here.
Along with all this, Wi-Fi Connection was now incorporated into Pokemon! Battles, trades, battle videos… all could be shared over the web with anyone you please. There was even a cute new feature where you’d play minigames and see parades themed off of the Grass, Fire, or Water starters along with Electric-types (along with an EXTRA rare Mew themed one), however these Wi-Fi Clubs were introduced in Platinum (Diamond and Pearl still allowed you to trade and stuff, though.) This has now been a series staple ever since! If you want to know more about the Wi-Fi Plaza, check it out here.
Remember abilities from Generation Three? Well, Generation Four mixed ’em up a bit, adding a bit more flavor to an already pretty cool feature. Pokemon, both old and new, had the chance of getting one of TWO abilities. Not all, such as Pikachu, who still has Static, but some. For instance, let’s look at a pokemon newly introduced to the Sinnoh region, and VERY popular, Lucario. He has the chance of getting the ability Inner Focus, which prevents him from flinching, or Steadfast, which when he DOES flinch, he Speed raises up. I said new AND old, however, so let’s look at a pokemon from Generation One… how about Mankey? Originally, in Generation Three, Mankey could only have Vital Spirit, an ability that prevents a pokemon from falling asleep. However, in Generation Four, they added a new ability to the series and gave it to him as another ability he COULD have. This ability is called Anger Point, in which if the pokemon is hit with a critical hit, it’s Attack will MAX out!
There’s a BUNCH more I could talk about Generation Four, like a new way in contests theming around Poffins. Or how about the mystical legends like Cresselia or Arceus, creator of the UNIVERSE? Generation Four probably is the most “new” generation in the pokemon series in terms of things added or changed.
Generation Five (Unova) Black and White
The mascots for Black and White were Reshiram, the white one, for Black (confusing right?). Reshiram represesnts truth and is a Fire/Dragon pokemon. Zekrom, the black one, for White, represents ideals and is an Electric/Dragon pokemon. The starters below, Snivy, Tepig, and Oshawott, are Grass, Fire, and Water, respectively.
Generation Five didn’t make any groundbreaking or game-changing stuff, but there are some details that certainly made it unique. First off, in Generation Five, all pokemon now have animated sprites, front AND back, constantly moving. Another cute thing is seasons. Each month, the seasons would change, and could affect the world around you. For example, fallen snow in winter can fill up a bit and allow you to cross and get an item. Or in Summer a place will have different pokemon than in Fall. In fact, Sawsbuck (and it’s pre-evolution Deerling) change appearances depending on the seasons, which was a nice little touch for Game Freak. From left to right, it goes Spring, Summer, Winter, and Autumn.
However, TWO new battles came out and about. The first one was Rotation Battles. Here, you send out three pokemon but it’s sort of like an interchangeable Single Battle. Each turn, you and your opponent COULD rotate the little wheel to another pokemon. Triple battles work similarly to Double and Single battles, except with three pokemon. Let’s say you have three pokemon. The one on the right can’t hit your opponents pokemon to your left. The pokemon in the center can hit ALL opponents, while the ones on left and right can’t hit their vice versa. Click here for more on Triple Battles and click here for more on Rotation Battles.
Another thing added to the games were a new little thing on the internet you can go to. It’s kind of weird to explain, but here we go. There was a new feature added in Generation Five called the Dream World. Here, you can put your pokemon to take a Dream Sleep or something like that and they’d go into a website called the Pokemon Dream World (it’s down in light of X and Y, though) Here, you could catch pokemon in special areas and play minigames. However, there’s something interesting about these pokemon you could there. Let’s say you catch an Eevee in the Pokemon Dream World. Normally, Eevee could have Run Away or Adaptability, but in the Dream World, it can ONLY have a special ability IF you catch it from there. Eevee’s “hidden ability” is Anticipation, an ability that causes your pokemon to “shudder” if it’s opponent has a move super-effective against it. Check out more about the Dream World here!
Like I said, Unova didn’t bring much in the majority of new features, but there are LOTS of cool details they added. For instance, shaking grass, which will often have rarer pokemon hiding in it. Or dark grass, where pokemon are higher leveled and can appear in double battles. What about the new Pokemon World Tournament where you can battle old and new leaders and champions alike in a tourney-like fashion (which was actually added in Black 2 and White 2)! One of the best parts, however, is that TM’s are now being able to be used INFINITELY. No more sparing that Earthquake TM any longer, because now you can keep them all you want. There WERE a lot cool things happening around in the Unova region!
So now you’re wielded with all the tools you need and MORE, like info on Contests and the progression of pokemon abilities. Keep an eye out for X and Y as the two games are right on the horizon, October 12th to be exact! I’ll see you all then!
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NintendoSpot 
Beautiful, thank you for the work you put into this!
Thanks for this!