History Trivia / PokemonGoldandSilver

* DevelopmentHell: Working on Generation II was no more of a cakewalk than its predecessors. For starters, ''Gold and Silver'' were originally developed as Game Boy games, with UsefulNotes/SuperGameBoy compatibility and a set release date of "late 1997." Enough of the game was completed for a demo at Spaceworld 1997, and from hacking the leaked ROM of the demo, one can observe how much of a mess things were in this state. Hardly any of the gym leaders were programmed into the game, the Kanto region had been heavily distilled into a single map, and many other features were not anywhere close to completion. This, combined with the impending release of the UsefulNotes/GameBoyColor in 1998, forced Game Freak to delay the games to June 1999, something they didn't announce until March 1998, three months after the original release year lapsed. Despite this, Game Freak still faced massive difficulties with getting the game properly programmed, due to them having a lot of ideas that they didn't really know what to do with, and due to them having to reprogram much of the graphics to be compatible with the Game Boy Color in addition to the Super Game Boy, with both of these factors pushing the release date further back to November 1999. Even then, the game was in such a sloppy state that it seemed unlikely that it could be released at all. Enter [[SugarWiki/GeniusProgramming genius programmer]] Creator/SatoruIwata, who stepped in and did a lot of much-needed fat trimming for ''Gold and Silver'', distilling the games' jumbled collection of ideas into a cohesive unit and optimizing and compressing the game data so well that Game Freak were able to add in almost the entirety of Kanto from Generation I. Only after this were Game Freak finally able to release ''Gold and Silver'' on November 21, 1999 in Japan. The sheer chaos of the games' development is highly unusual and a much-talked-about subject among analysts, as not only did it mark the only time Game Freak delayed a mainline Pokémon game, but it also marked one of the most dramatic revamps of a Pokémon game from the initial drafts to the final release. The delays in development are also notable in that they forced the staff behind the Pokémon anime to improvise around the games' constantly-shifting release date, creating the Orange Islands arc as {{filler}} to ensure that the show could still keep running during the roughly two-year gap between the intended and actual release dates.

* DevelopmentHell: Working on Generation II was no more of a cakewalk than its predecessors. For starters, ''Gold and Silver'' were originally developed as Game Boy games, with UsefulNotes/SuperGameBoy compatibility and a set release date of "late 1997." Enough of the game was completed for a demo at Spaceworld 1997, and from hacking the leaked ROM of the demo, one can observe how much of a mess things were in this state. Hardly any of the gym leaders were programmed into the game, the Kanto region had been heavily distilled into a single map, and many other features were not anywhere close to completion. This, combined with the impending release of the UsefulNotes/GameBoyColor in 1998, forced Game Freak to delay the games to June 1999, something they didn't announce until March 1998, three months after the original release year lapsed. Despite this, Game Freak still faced massive difficulties with getting the game properly programmed, due to them having a lot of ideas that they didn't really know what to do with, and due to them having to reprogram much of the graphics to be compatible with the Game Boy Color in addition to the Super Game Boy, with both of these factors pushing the release date further back to November 1999. Even then, the game was in such a sloppy state that it seemed unlikely that it could be released at all. Enter [[GeniusProgramming genius programmer]] Creator/SatoruIwata, who stepped in and did a lot of much-needed fat trimming for ''Gold and Silver'', distilling the games' jumbled collection of ideas into a cohesive unit and optimizing and compressing the game data so well that Game Freak were able to add in almost the entirety of Kanto from Generation I. Only after this were Game Freak finally able to release ''Gold and Silver'' on November 21, 1999 in Japan. The sheer chaos of the games' development is highly unusual and a much-talked-about subject among analysts, as not only did it mark the only time Game Freak delayed a mainline Pokémon game, but it also marked one of the most dramatic revamps of a Pokémon game from the initial drafts to the final release. The delays in development are also notable in that they forced the staff behind the Pokémon anime to improvise around the games' constantly-shifting release date, creating the Orange Islands arc as {{filler}} to ensure that the show could still keep running during the roughly two-year gap between the intended and actual release dates.

* DevelopmentHell: Working on Generation II was no more of a cakewalk than its predecessors. For starters, ''Gold and Silver'' were originally developed as Game Boy games, with UsefulNotes/SuperGameBoy compatibility and a set release date of "late 1997." Enough of the game was completed for a demo at Spaceworld 1997, and from hacking the leaked ROM of the demo, one can observe how much of a mess things were in this state. Hardly any of the gym leaders were programmed into the game, the Kanto region had been heavily distilled into a single map, and many other features were not anywhere close to completion. This, combined with the impending release of the UsefulNotes/GameBoyColor in 1998, forced Game Freak to delay the games to June 1999, something they didn't announce until March 1998, three months after the original release year lapsed. Despite this, Game Freak still faced massive difficulties with getting the game properly programmed, due to them having a lot of ideas that they didn't really know what to do with, and due to them having to reprogram much of the graphics to be compatible with the Game Boy Color in addition to the Super Game Boy, with both of these factors pushing the release date further back to November 1999. Even then, the game was in such a sloppy state that it seemed unlikely that it could be released at all. Enter GeniusProgrammer Creator/SatoruIwata, who stepped in and did a lot of much-needed fat trimming for ''Gold and Silver'', distilling the games' jumbled collection of ideas into a cohesive unit and optimizing and compressing the game data so well that Game Freak were able to add in almost the entirety of Kanto from Generation I. Only after this were Game Freak finally able to release ''Gold and Silver'' on November 21, 1999 in Japan. The sheer chaos of the games' development is highly unusual and a much-talked-about subject among analysts, as not only did it mark the only time Game Freak delayed a mainline Pokémon game, but it also marked one of the most dramatic revamps of a Pokémon game from the initial drafts to the final release. The delays in development are also notable in that they forced the staff behind the Pokémon anime to improvise around the games' constantly-shifting release date, creating the Orange Islands arc as {{filler}} to ensure that the show could still keep running during the roughly two-year gap between the intended and actual release dates.

* WhatCouldHaveBeen: [[WhatCouldHaveBeen/PokemonGoldAndSilver Has its own page]].

ered to appear in some capacity at one point.

* WhatCouldHaveBeen:
** The game was originally developed for the original UsefulNotes/GameBoy, with UsefulNotes/SuperGameBoy compatibility in the same vein as ''VideoGame/PokemonRedAndBlue'', and was slated for release at the end of 1997. However, the game ended up being delayed to 1999, allowing Game Freak to take advantage of the then-new UsefulNotes/GameBoyColor by making ''Gold & Silver'' a Game Boy-compatible GBC title; Super Game Boy compatibility did manage to remain, though this feature was excised from ''Crystal'', which needed the extra VRAM of GBC-only cartridges to store new features such as the animated Pokémon sprites.
** Forcing ''Crystal'' to boot up on an original Game Boy shows a somewhat functioning version of the game's intro and title screen ("somewhat" being the operative word; both the intro and title screen feature a number of graphical glitches due to certain sprites being programmed to be stored in areas of the Game Boy Color's greater VRAM that the Game Boy lacks). Force-booting the cartridge on a Super Game Boy additionally brings up the border for ''Gold'' and an orange-beige screen tint. Trying to play the game results in it crashing when it tries to load the overworld, however. Nevertheless, this appears to indicate that Game Boy compatibility was planned for ''Crystal'', but was dropped when it turned out to be too much for the original handheld to, um, [[JustForPun handle]].
** Similarly to the above, the Korean versions of ''Gold & Silver'', which are Game Boy Color-exclusive can also be force-booted on a Game Boy, though things tend to go haywire as soon as you get past the title screen due to the GBC's extra VRAM being used to store the rather large Hangul alphabet. The game is still playable, however, albeit in a very garbled state with occasional crashes; this seems to indicate that, as with the case of ''Crystal'', Game Boy compatibility was planned for the Korean ''Gold & Silver'' but was dropped due to the Hangul alphabet being too big to fit on a Game Boy-compatible cartridge.
** In an early build of the game, the name of New Bark Town was going to be [[Franchise/SilentHill Silent Hills]].
** Each town and city in Johto has an alternate map in the games' ROM with different layouts than the the final product. There is also a map for a town or city located in the Lake of Rage, complete with its own Gym.
** Updated maps for Cinnabar Island's Pokémon Lab are in the data (though they have no event data), indicating that the island was originally going to return unchanged.
** There's an unused script for an encounter with a Level 40 Entei, implying that it (and possibly Raikou and Suicune) was originally intended to be found in a static spot instead of randomly roaming around Johto.
** Pre-release material promised a skateboard item (separate from the bike) that would allow access to new areas.
** [[http://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/File:MicroGroup_Game_Review_Volume_14.jpg An image]] from the magazine ''[=MicroGroup=] Game Review'' shows unused designs for 2 Pokémon; a turtle that resembles Tirtouga from ''VideoGame/PokemonBlackAndWhite'' and what can only be described as a Hitmontop and Clefairy hybrid (with elements of the later Pokémon [[VideoGame/PokemonRubyAndSapphire Spoink]]). It also shows that Tyranitar's normal coloration was going to be brown instead of green.
** [[http://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/List_of_unused_Pokémon_and_character_designs#Kurusu The original Water and Fire starters were completely different creatures.]] The Fire starter was a rodent-looking Pokemon called Honoguma instead of Cyndaquil and the Water-type was a seal-looking CartoonCreature named Kurusu instead of Totodile. Happa, the early version of Chikorita, seemed to be almost or entirely complete, although an eyewitness drawing of it in the SpaceWorld 1997 caused people to mistakenly believe there was an earlier version in the demo. Oddly enough, Chikorita and Meganium are just about identical to their final designs, but Bayleef is replaced as their middle form with a strange, flowerlike creature that looks nothing like either of the two.
** A string of text in the ROM suggests that the Honey Tree mechanic that debuts in ''VideoGame/PokemonDiamondAndPearl'' was originally intended for these games.
** Staryu and Starmie may have been originally intended to have genders, as Staryu has Egg Moves programmed for it and both are able to be taught Attract (a move that only works if the user and target have opposite genders) in these games only.
** More like "What Could ''Not'' Have Been" in one particular case: in an "Iwata Asks" interview, it was confirmed that ''Gold & Silver'' were intended to be the last installments in the series, as the developers felt that they were too much of a ToughActToFollow. The only reason why the series was continued was simply because [[MoneyDearBoy the franchise was still making tons of money.]]
** The battle with Red was originally planned to [[OldSaveBonus pull data from]] ''VideoGame/PokemonRedAndBlue'' so that Red would use the Pokémon the player used completed the original game with. This proved too difficult to implement with the technology available at the time, so the default option of the three previous starters and the plot-relevant Pokémon were used instead.
** There's leftover code that allowed the player to name their mother. What this would have served isn't known, but this leftover data may have been used for the catching tutorial (which is used by [[WhoNamesTheirKidDude Dude]]). Naming your mother would show up in ''VideoGame/Mother3'' released several years later.
** Very early info mentioned that Ethan had a brother three years his senior that gave him a hand-me-down computer that he likes to tinker with. In the final versions of ''Gold and Silver'', Ethan is an only child, computers aren't important to the plot, and he has no known personality traits. Contrary to popular belief, the brother was not Red. Incorrect translations simply assumed it was Red. This was however part of the 1997 Space World version - his bedroom has two beds and an abundance of technology on the shelves- though the game was not far enough in development for any script to point to this.
** Satoshi Tajiri mentioned several unused plot details in an early 1997 interview. He said that the story starts when the protagonist learns of a boy in Kanto who completed his Pokedex, implying that Red was an important character and that the story took place directly after the original games. Satoshi also implied that Giovanni would return, when in the final product, he is absent and he didn't return until an event for the remake.
*** However, as shown in the Spaceworld 1997 ROM, Giovanni was intended to be a member of the Elite Four, so until the entire game was overhauled, his comment at the time was truth.
** A 1997 playable Space World demo featured completely different starters (the above-mentioned ones), different Japanese names for the Pokemon, and a vastly different overworld. It also had the starting town named "Silent Hills". Some of the name changes were: "Eleking" for Elekid, "Puko" for Harysen (Qwilfish), "Sunny" for Kimawari (Sunflora), "Painter" for Doble (Smeargle), "Yoroidor" for Airmd (Skarmory), "Buku" for Otachi (Sentret), and "Animon" for Unknown (Unown).
** A [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eFIcYX6FhHg ROM of said demo]] was revealed to have a whole slew of early designs, ideas that were scrapped and ideas that would be later reused in later generations:
*** Pre-evolutions for Meowth, Vulpix, Growlithe, Tangela, Grimer, Goldeen, Ponyta, Paras, Girafarig, and Doduo.
*** Evolutions for Pokémon like Farfetch'd, Ditto, Qwilfish, and Pinsir (seemingly recycled into its Mega Evolution in Gen VI), along with alternate evolutions for Bellsprout and Shellder (which resembled the Shellder on Slowbro's tail).
*** Ditto's evolution Animon eventually might get recycled into the last Gen 7 Mythical Pokémon, Meltan (but only by design).
*** A line of water types, starting with a Water type fish, that evolved into a Water/Steel shark head that would later become Gen III's Sharpedo, which evolved into a Water/Steel Gulper Eel that would later become Gen III's Huntail.
*** There were also evolutions for Lickitung and Tangela, a Mr. Mime pre-evolution, and a Grass-type Eeveelution. These Pokémon would later become Gen IV's Lickilicky, Tangrowth, Mime Jr., and Leafeon.
*** Quagsire, Togepi, Snubbull, Sunflora, and Marill were originally not part of an evolutionary line.
*** Espeon and Umbreon evolved from the aid of stones rather than a combination of Happiness and the time of day, namely the 'Heart Stone' and 'Poison Stone'. Umbreon was also going to be a Poison-type rather than a Dark-type, explaining why quite a few of Umbreon's Pokédex entries make note of its 'poisonous sweat'.
*** A Dark-Type black cat with a bell that evolved once, which could have been an inspiration for Glameow or Purrloin.
*** Girafarig was Dark/Normal typed instead of Psychic/Normal, and Dark types were weak against Normal-type attacks, as well as its own Dark-type attacks. Furthermore, it evolved from what appeared to be a pair of Dark/Normal ghosts stuck together.
*** An Electric-type tiger cub that evolved into an Electric-type tiger, possibly the inspiration for the Shinx line.
*** The Legendary Beasts look much more dog-like than their final designs.
*** [=Porygon2=] originally [[https://tcrf.net/File:PokeGoldDemo-front_239.png looked]] nothing like its final design or even the original Porygon.
*** The region itself was also much more expansive; mainly because it was based on the ''entirety'' of Japan instead of any specific region. Beta-Kanto was also much smaller as a result, looking like a combination of all the towns/cities of the original games. Also as a result, it's possible to find areas in the game that would later inspire the [[VideoGame/PokemonRubyAndSapphire Hoenn]] and [[VideoGame/PokemonDiamondAndPearl Sinnoh]] regions.
*** Blue was slated to be the Professor (Elm was nowhere to be found), and Red was the Gym Leader of the Kanto area. There were also two other unknown characters serving as two of the eight Gym Leaders.
*** While Lance was still Champion and Bruno still an Elite Four member, the other three E4 members were going to be Giovanni, Misty, and Lorelei.
*** The Steel type had practically nothing to do with the one we know. It was weak to Water and Electric (which merely resist Steel-type attacks now), resisted Poison (instead of being immune), Fighting (instead of being weak) and Rock (the only interaction that was kept), and was notably immune to itself (whereas it's now a resistance).
*** Other miscellaneous changes to the type chart: Electric initially resisting Water, and Ghost being neutral to itself at first (instead of weak).
** Game Freak posted a unused character design for Kris once. The screencap was small but details could be deciphered. Kris still had pigtails but they were styled differently and her hair seemed to be black, not blue.
** There was originally going to be a location called "Haunted House", as evidenced by an unused location name in the Japanese ROM. The idea may have been revisited with the Old Chateau in ''VideoGame/PokemonDiamondAndPearl'', much like the Sweet Honey talked about above.

* WhatCouldHaveBeen: An unused [=PokéGear=] icon that resembles Kris can be found in the data, implying she might have been considered to appear in some capacity at one point.

*** There were also evolutions for Lickitung and Tangela, a Mr. Mime pre-evolution, and a grass-type Eeveelution. These Pokémon would later become Gen IV's Lickilicky, Tangrowth, Mime Jr., and Leafeon.

** In an "Iwata Asks" interview, it was confirmed that ''Gold & Silver'' were intended to be the last installments in the series, as the developers felt that they were too much of a ToughActToFollow.

* CowboyBebopAtHisComputer: For months prior to the official release of the game promotional materials referred to the Pokémon Marill as "Pikablu" likely due to its mouse-like appearance, the zig-zag tail that resembled Pikachu's lightning bolt tail and... well, [[ShapedLikeItself the fact that it was blue]]. Marill was ''never'' officially referred to by this name at any point, not even during the planning stages. Despite this the misnaming was so prevalent that even Topps used it in the ''Anime/PokemonTheFirstMovie'' [[http://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Pokemon_the_First_Movie_Trading_Cards Trading Cards]].

** Pre-release material promised a skateboard item (separate from the bike) that would be allow access to new areas.

** Satoshi Tajiri mentioned several unused plot details in an early 1997 interview. He said that the story starts when the protagonist learns of a boy in Kanto who completed his Pokedex, implying that Red was an important character and that the story took place directly after the original games. Satoshi also implied that Giovanni would return, when in the final product he is absent and he didn't return until an event for the remake.

** A 1997 playable Space World demo featured completely different starters (the above-mentioned ones), different Japanese names for the Pokemon, and a vastly different overworld. It also had the starting town as named "Silent Hills". Some of the name changes were: "Eleking" for Elekid, "Puko" for Harysen (Qwilfish), "Sunny" for Kimawari (Sunflora), "Painter" for Doble (Smeargle), "Yoroidor" for Airmd (Skarmory), "Buku" for Otachi (Sentret), and "Animon" for Unknown (Unown).

*** Ditto's evolution Animon eventually might got recycled into the last Gen 7 Mythical Pokemon: Meltan (but only by design).
*** A line of water types, starting with a Water type fish, that evolved into a Water/Steel shark head that would later become Gen III's Sharpedo, which evolved into a Water/Steel Gulper Eel that would later become Gen III's Huntail.

*** Espeon and Umbreon evolved from stones rather than a combination of Happiness and the time of day, namely the 'Heart Stone' and 'Poison Stone'. Umbreon was also going to be a Poison-type rather than a Dark-type, explaining why quite a few of Umbreon's Pokédex entries make note of its 'poisonous sweat'.

* KeepCirculatingTheTapes: The games apparently had a small print run, because copies are starting to get ''extremely'' rare. Copies are going for nearly ''[[https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0038MTE7C/ $300]]'' on Amazon. And Mew help you if you're looking for a Pokewalker, too.

*** Ditto's evolution Metamon eventually might got recycled into the last Gen 7 Mythical Pokemon: Meltan (but only by design).

*** Ditto's evolution Metamon eventually might got recycled into the last Gen 7 Mythical Pokemon: Meltan.

*** [=Porygon2=] originally [[https://tcrf.net/File:PokeGoldDemo-front_239.png looked]] nothing like its final design or even the original Porygon; apparently it was [[ShoutOut based off]] the mascot for a chain of Japanese doughnut shops.

** Very early info mentioned that Ethan had a brother three years his senior that gave him a hand-me-down computer that he likes to tinker with. In the final versions of ''Gold and Silver'', Ethan is an only child, computers aren't important to the plot, and he has no known personality traits. Contrary to popular belief, the brother was not Red. Incorrect translations simply assumed it was Red.

*** There were also evolutions for Lickitung and Tangela, a Mr.Mime pre-evolution, and a grass-type Eeveelution. These Pokémon would later become Gen IV's Lickilicky, Tangrowth, Mime Jr., and Leafeon.

** [[http://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/List_of_unused_Pokémon_and_character_designs#Kurusu The original Water and Fire starters were completely different creatures.]] The Fire starter was a rodent-looking Pokemon called Honoguma instead of Cyndaquil and the Water-type was a seal-looking CartoonCreature named Kurusu instead of Totodile. Happa, the early version of Chikorita, seemed to be almost or entirely complete, although an eyewitness drawing of it in the SpaceWorld 1997 caused people to mistakenly believe there was an earlier version in the demo.

*** The Legendary Beasts look much more dog-like then their final designs.
*** Porygon2 originally [[https://tcrf.net/File:PokeGoldDemo-front_239.png looked]] nothing like its final design or even the original Porygon; apparently it was [[ShoutOut based off]] the mascot for a chain of Japanese doughnut shops.

*** Evolutions for Pokémon like Farfetch'd, Ditto, Qwilfish, and Pinsir; along with alternate evolutions for Bellsprout and Shellder (which resembled the Shellder on Slowbro's tail).

*** A line of water types, starting with a Water type fish, that evolved into a Water/Steel shark that would later become Gen III's Sharpedo, which evolved into a Water/Steel Gulper Eel that would later become Gen III's Huntail.

*** A Gulper Eel, which would later become Gen III's Huntail. There were also evolutions for Lickitung and Tangela, a Mr.Mime pre-evolution, and a grass-type Eeveelution. These Pokémon would later become Gen IV's Lickilicky, Tangrowth, Mime Jr., and Leafeon.

*** Girafarig was Dark/Normal typed instead of Psychic/Normal, and Dark types were weak against Normal-type attacks, as well as its own Dark-type attacks.

*** Girafarig was Dark/Normal typed instead of Psychic/Normal, and Dark types were weak against Normal-type attacks.

*** The region itself was also much more expansive; mainly because it was based on the ''entirety'' of Japan instead of any specific region. Beta-Kanto was also much smaller as a result, looking like a combination of all the towns/city of the original games. Also as a result, it's possible to find areas in the game that would later inspire the [[VideoGame/PokemonRubyAndSapphire Hoenn]] and [[VideoGame/PokemonDiamondAndPearl Sinnoh]].