Chapter 7
"Now let's go to Generation 2. Since it was made three years after Generation 1, the storyline is also set three years after the events of Generation 1," Alice explains while showing me the three games. She points to the covers, where I see Ho-Oh, Lugia, and Suicune prominently displayed.
"These are Pokémon Gold, Silver, and Crystal. They are based on both the Kanto and Johto regions. We have a new character named Ethan, and his rival, Silver, is none other than Giovanni's son."
"Giovanni has a son?" I exclaim, my eyes widening in surprise. "That's something I didn't expect."
Alice nods, her expression serious. "Yes, Silver resents his father for abandoning him and Team Rocket. He's determined to become stronger to defy his father's legacy. It's an interesting twist in the storyline, adding a layer of depth to the characters."
Then Alice picks up the Pokémon Crystal Version, and she smiles. "This is the first game where you can choose the gender of the player, which means you can either pick Ethan or Kris."
"That is good. I mean, it wasn't fair for female players to only choose male characters," I nod in agreement.
"Exactly," Alice says, clearly pleased. "Now let's start with the Pokémon. Your father added an additional 100 Pokémon in the games. There is also a new mechanic known as 'Breeding Pokémon.' By sending two compatible Pokémon to the daycare, you might be able to get an egg from them."
"So in Generation 1, eggs are not possible?" I ask, intrigued.
"Yeah, eggs weren't a feature back then. In Generation 2, breeding introduces new possibilities. Sometimes, different species of Pokémon, if compatible, can pass on moves that you wouldn't expect. For example, Pichu can learn Reversal and Present if its parents know these moves. This adds an extra layer of strategy to breeding and move selection."
"Wow... that sounds amazing," I nod, my excitement growing. The idea of breeding and creating unique move sets opens up so many possibilities.
"They added eight baby Pokémon and some new evolution forms and methods. One of the more challenging methods is the Friendship evolution. For example, Golbat evolves into Crobat, and Eevee can evolve into Espeon or Umbreon based on the time of day," Alice continues, flipping through the game's manual.
"Yeah, you have to show them affection in the real world, but how do you do that in the Pokémon world?" I ask, curious about the mechanics.
"That's slightly the problem," Alice sighs. "There are certain conditions, like grooming, using vitamins, walking 512 steps a day, and so on. It's not that easy."
"Okay... that doesn't sound easy, especially if the map is smaller than what Johto used to be," I nod in agreement.
"And there is also a new trading method where you have to hold items like Metal Coat, King's Rock, Dragon Scale, and Up-Grade," Alice explains, showing me the items in the game.
"I see... so Steelix, Slowking, Porygon2, and Kingdra are considered Generation 2 Pokémon?" I ask, connecting the dots.
"Yep," Alice confirms. "As for stone evolutions, the Sun Stone is the newest addition, along with the Fire, Leaf, Thunder, Water, and Moon Stones from Generation 1. Sunflora and Bellossom are the ones that evolve with the Sun Stone."
"That's pretty neat," I say, appreciating the added depth and variety in the new generation.
"The encounter tables also add a new feature," Alice continues, "as you can see, there are 'morning', 'day', and 'night' encounters. For example, Sentret is sometimes found in the morning or day, while Hoothoot can be found at night."
"That might fit their natural behavior, after all," I nod, appreciating the added realism.
"What's more, there is also a rare chance you can get a Shiny Pokémon. Like your Noctowl is one," Alice smiles. "A lot of players aim to complete a shiny dex, which can take months to finish."
"Wow, that's incredible," I say, my eyes widening at the thought. "It must be a real challenge to find all the shiny variants."
"Definitely," Alice agrees. "But it's part of what makes the game so engaging for many players. The thrill of encountering a Shiny Pokémon and adding it to your collection is really rewarding. Another interesting feature in the Johto games is the Headbutt encounters, by using the move Headbutt on certain trees, you can encounter Pokémon that you wouldn't normally find in the tall grass."
"Headbutt? I remember teaching that to my Pokémon to shake berries off trees," I recall.
"Exactly. In Johto, certain trees can be headbutted to reveal Pokémon like Heracross, Aipom, and Pineco. It's a unique way to find and catch different species," Alice explains. "Each tree has a different set of potential encounters, so it encourages players to explore and try Headbutt on different trees."
"That adds another layer of strategy," I nod, intrigued by the variety of ways to encounter Pokémon.
"Yes, and it makes the exploration feel more interactive. You never know what you might find by trying Headbutt on a random tree," Alice says, clearly enjoying the game's depth.
"Since it splits into different games, I assume there are version exclusives as well?" I ask.
"Yeah," Alice confirms. "In Gold, you get Teddiursa, while in Silver, you get Phanpy. It is also strange because you get Gligar and Mantine in Gold and Delibird and Skarmory in Silver."
"I didn't expect them to be counterparts after all..." I chuckle. "I have to assume that Ledyba and Spinarak are counterparts? Since that is what I could think of."
"You're right," Alice smiles. "Ledyba appears in Gold, and Spinarak appears in Silver. The version exclusives add an extra layer of strategy and fun, encouraging players to trade between versions to complete their Pokédex."
After finishing the discussion about the Pokémon, Alice decides to start with the gameplay description. She says, "So first, in the Johto games, you get to meet Professor Elm, who will give you a Starter Pokémon. However, just after you pick your Starter, you'll need to meet Professor Oak to get the Pokédex. Silver, your rival, will steal the Starter that has a type advantage over yours from Professor Elm, and you'll encounter him multiple times for battles, much like your encounters with Gary."
"That's crazy..." I gasp, taken aback by the twist in the story.
"As for the gym battles, sometimes it can be quite frustrating for some players because most of the gym leaders don't use the 100 new Pokémon. For example, Falkner's team is just a Pidgey and a Pidgeotto. I was expecting him to use a Hoothoot," Alice sighs. "And some gym leaders like Whitney and Clair throw a tantrum and refuse to give you the badge after you defeat them."
"Wait, seriously?" I ask in shock. "That's not the same as the two gym leaders that I knew."
"The anime did make them look better than the games, after all. But you have to admit, Whitney's Miltank is the worst. It has Stomp that causes flinch, Milk Drink to heal itself, Rollout that gets stronger with each use, and Attract to infatuate your Pokémon. The only reason it didn't work for me was because I used a female Pokémon," Alice explains, her frustration evident.
"Yeah, Whitney's Miltank is quite strong," I chuckle, remembering the challenges it posed to many trainers.
"And most of the 100 new Pokémon aren't available unless you beat the Elite Four, or their encounter rates are mostly 1% or 5%, which is also frustrating. I mean, Murkrow, Slugma, and Houndour are Generation 2 Pokémon, but they don't count as Johto Pokémon because they can only be found in Kanto!" Alice explains with a sigh.
"That sounds weird. But I guess you can go back to Kanto after beating the game?" I ask.
"Technically, Kanto and Johto share the same Elite Four and Champion. The Elite Four members are Will, the Psychic user; Koga, the Poison user; Bruno, the Fighting master; and Karen, the Dark leader. And the Champion is Lance," Alice explains.
"Now that's the Elite Four that I knew... except for Koga. What about the Fuchsia Gym?" I inquire, curious about the changes.
"Oh, Janine, his daughter, took over the gym," Alice replies, smiling. "She brings her own style to the gym, continuing her father's legacy."
"And that reminds me, back in Generation 1, there was no such thing as Dark, Fairy, or Steel types, right?" I add, thinking back to the earlier games.
"Yeah," Alice replies. "The Dark and Steel types were introduced in Generation 2 to balance the gameplay. Dark types are strong against Psychic types, which were quite overpowered in Generation 1. Steel types are very resistant to many types and have high defense stats. Fairy types were introduced much later, in Generation 6, to balance out Dragon types, which had become very dominant."
"That was quite weird, but I guess it does make sense," I nod, appreciating the effort to balance the game mechanics over the generations.
"Now back to the story," Alice continues, "since the story is three years after Red's journey, Team Rocket was seemingly abandoned by Giovanni, but that doesn't mean the grunts or admins will give up. You will still encounter them after all." Alice sighs, clearly frustrated by their persistence.
"Yeah, considering how those three keep following me wherever I go, I doubt that they would give up Team Rocket that easily. So I assume Giovanni never appears in the games?" I ask, curious about his role.
"Instead, it's his favorite admin, Archer, who is leading Team Rocket. Other than him, there are Petrel, Ariana, and Proton. They try to poach Slowpoke in the Slowpoke Well for their tails, and in the Lake of Rage, they use weird energy to create a Shiny Gyarados. That's when you storm into their base," Alice explains, her eyes narrowing as she describes their schemes. "And finally, they take over the Goldenrod Radio Tower because they want Giovanni to return and lead them again."
"I see... Team Rocket really likes trouble, huh..." I mutter, shaking my head.
"After becoming the Johto Champion, you get to travel back to Kanto and challenge the gyms again. They are much stronger than in the original games, using mostly four to six Pokémon," Alice explains. "And as you already know, Fuchsia's gym leader has changed to Janine. As for the Viridian Gym Leader, it used to be Red, but he left the gym to his rival Blue and headed to Mt. Silver. So now, Blue is the gym leader of Viridian."
"I wasn't expecting that. I mean, Gary as a Gym Leader?" I sigh, trying to imagine my rival in that role.
Alice nods. "Yeah, it's a surprising twist. Blue brings his own style and challenge to the gym, making it a tough battle for anyone who faces him."
"So I assume the encounter tables are different from Generation 1 in the Kanto Region?" I ask, curious about the changes.
"Yeah," Alice confirms. "Some Pokémon like the Kanto starters and certain Legendary Pokémon are unavailable unless you transfer them from the Generation 1 games."
"That makes sense," I nod. "It adds a bit of continuity and encourages players to connect their different game versions."
Alice smiles. "Exactly. It keeps the experience fresh and ensures that the Pokémon you caught in the previous games can continue their journey with you. Plus, it gives you a reason to revisit and play the older games."
"That's a smart way to keep players engaged," I say, appreciating the thought put into the game design.
"Definitely. It's one of the many ways the developers have made the Pokémon world feel connected and expansive," Alice agrees.
"And what about the Legendary Pokémon in Johto?" I ask, intrigued by the possibilities.
Alice's eyes light up with excitement. "In Johto, you'll encounter several Legendary Pokémon. The most prominent ones are the Legendary Beasts—Raikou, Entei, and Suicune. They roam the region, so tracking them down can be quite the challenge. Suicune has a special role in Pokémon Crystal, making it even more unique."
"Roaming Pokémon? That sounds tricky," I comment, imagining the effort it would take to catch them.
"It is," Alice nods. "Raikou and Entei will appear randomly in different areas of Johto after you've initially encountered them. You'll need to use your Pokédex to track their location. Every time you move to a different area or use Fly, their location changes, so it requires patience and strategy to corner them. They tend to flee on the first turn, so having a Pokémon with moves like Mean Look or a status effect like Sleep or Paralysis is very helpful."
"That sounds like quite the challenge," I say, appreciating the complexity involved.
"Absolutely. But it's also thrilling when you finally catch up to them and manage to catch them," Alice says. "Besides the Legendary Beasts, you'll find the Tower Duo—Ho-Oh and Lugia. Ho-Oh resides in the Tin Tower in Ecruteak City, while Lugia can be found in the Whirl Islands. Each of them requires a specific item to encounter: the Rainbow Wing for Ho-Oh and the Silver Wing for Lugia."
"That sounds amazing," I say, feeling the excitement build. "And what about any other Legendary Pokémon?"
"There are a few more," Alice continues. "For Celebi, you can't get it normally. Instead, you'll need a special item known as the GS Ball, which was distributed for the Crystal Version. Once you have the GS Ball, you use it at the shrine in Ilex Forest."
"That sounds like a unique challenge," I say, imagining the quest to obtain such a rare Pokémon.
"Absolutely," Alice nods. "Celebi is incredibly rare and having it in your team feels really special."
Alice leans back, a satisfied look on her face. "So, that's Generation 2 in a nutshell. It's full of new experiences and challenges that build on what you knew from Kanto."
I nod, absorbing all the new information. "It's amazing how much they've added and improved. I can see why so many people love these games."
Alice smiles. "And there's even more to come. But that's a story for another time. Next up, we'll dive into the wonders of Generation 3."
With a renewed sense of anticipation, I look forward to exploring the Johto region, catching new Pokémon, and facing new challenges. The world of Pokémon continues to grow, and I'm ready to dive back in.
Here is a new chapter, and this is talking about Generation 2. I hope you like it.