Games
Gold and Silver: Johto, 100 new species and a real-time clock
Pokémon Gold and Silver are the Game Boy Color sequels to Red and Blue, released in Japan on 21 November 1999, North America on 15 October 2000 and Europe on 6 April 2001, with 100 new species, held items, genders, Eggs from the Day Care, the Dark and Steel types and events tied to a real-time clock. The adventure is set in Johto, with Lugia, Ho-Oh and the roaming Raikou, Entei and Suicune among the rare catches. Today they run on cartridges or on a 3DS that already holds the 2017 Virtual Console downloads; Switch has no release.
Editorial record, read 8 Nov 2026.
Gold and Silver start in New Bark Town and cross Johto
The hero lives in New Bark Town, Wakaba Town in Japanese, in the Johto region, and sets out with one Pokémon from Professor Elm, Professor Utsugi in Japanese, according to the official Japanese page. pokemon.com describes the pair as one of the first major role-playing games on Game Boy Color and the first to show Pokémon in colour, and as an expansion of the series with 100 new species, held items and real-time events driven by an internal clock. The Japanese page adds that some Red and Green species evolve in new ways here or appear as earlier forms, and that Unown sleep in the ruins. Gyms and the Elite Four return, listed in the table below.
Gold and Silver trade with each other and with Generation I
The official Japanese page says 249 species can be collected in Gold and Silver, and that many of them need trades with the other version or with Red, Green, Blue and Pikachu. Generation II adds six trade evolutions that need a held item, all recorded in the PokéAPI cache: Poliwhirl and Slowpoke with a King's Rock, Onix and Scyther with a Metal Coat, Seadra with a Dragon Scale and Porygon with an Up-Grade. The Time Capsule in a Pokémon Center trades with Red, Blue and Yellow as long as the species appeared in those games, and the Japanese Virtual Console page adds that a Pokémon knowing a move new to Generation II cannot cross either. On the 3DS Virtual Console, trades and battles run over local wireless.
Professor Elm gives the starter, and the new types reshape the matchups
Professor Elm gives you your first Pokémon in New Bark Town, according to the official Japanese page, and the matchups that follow use a changed type chart. pokemon.com notes that Gold and Silver add the Steel and Dark types. In the PokéAPI type data, Psychic now takes double damage from Bug, Ghost and Dark, and Ghost moves hit Psychic types for double damage, where Generation I gave them no effect. Steel types resist Psychic moves, and Dark types take no damage from them at all. The Psychic types that ran Red and Blue therefore meet real counters from the first hours. Flying types still take double damage from Electric, Ice and Rock moves.
Raikou, Entei, Suicune, Lugia and Ho-Oh are the rare catches
The official Japanese page names the rare catches of Gold and Silver: Lugia and Ho-Oh, the Unown sleeping in the ruins, and the three Pokémon that run across Johto, Raikou, Entei and Suicune. pokemon.com adds that the three are always on the move, so you need to be in the right place at the right time to catch one. The Japanese page also points to the discoveries spread through the game: new species, Red and Green species with new evolutions, and earlier forms of species seen before. Johto's own list is only part of the 249 species that the page says can be collected, and the rest arrive by trade from the other version and the Generation I games.
Held items gave every Pokémon a slot
pokemon.com lists held items among the main additions of Gold and Silver: items that Pokémon can hold to improve their skills. The evolution data in the PokéAPI cache shows held items doing a second job in this generation, because six species evolve only when traded while holding one. A King's Rock turns Poliwhirl into Politoed and Slowpoke into Slowking. A Metal Coat turns Onix into Steelix and Scyther into Scizor. A Dragon Scale turns Seadra into Kingdra, and an Up-Grade turns Porygon into Porygon2. Held items, genders and the Day Care together gave each Pokémon a choice beyond its species and moves.
Breeding started at the Day Care
pokemon.com describes the new Pokémon Egg groups: leave two compatible Pokémon at the Pokémon Day Care and an Egg may appear that hatches into a young Pokémon. Only some Pokémon produce Eggs, and Pokémon are picky about which others they get along with, so pairing takes experiment. Genders are new in this generation as well. The PokéAPI version groups record egg as a move learn method for Gold and Silver, which Red and Blue lack, so some moves reach a species only through a parent. The egg groups for each species are on the species sheets on this site, taken from the PokéAPI cache, and they are the first thing to check before leaving a pair.
The clock and two accessories extend the game
Gold and Silver carry an internal clock, and pokemon.com credits it with the real-time events that set these games apart from Red and Blue, so set it with care when a new game starts. Two accessories extend the cartridge. The official Japanese page lists the Pocket Printer, the Japanese name of the Game Boy Printer, among supported peripherals. Pokémon Stadium 2 on Nintendo 64, released in North America on 28 March 2001, connects through the N64 Transfer Pak, imports Pokémon caught in Gold and Silver for 3D battles, and plays Red, Blue, Yellow, Gold or Silver on a television. pokemon.com notes that Stadium 2 came to Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack on 8 August 2023.
In 2026 Gold and Silver run on a cartridge or a 3DS download already owned
The official Japanese page lists Game Boy, Game Boy Color and Game Boy Advance as the systems for Gold and Silver, so the cartridges also run on an original Game Boy; Nintendo's support page rules out the DS and DS Lite. The 3DS Virtual Console versions came out on 22 September 2017, reproduce the Game Boy Color screen, and support trades and battles over local wireless. Nintendo ended 3DS eShop purchases on 27 March 2023; owned copies still redownload. The Japanese Virtual Console page lists a Celebi download bonus for Sun, Moon, Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon. Pokémon move from the Virtual Console games through Poké Transporter into Pokémon Bank, which ends on 25 February 2027. No version is on Switch.
| Species | Version |
|---|---|
| Mankey | Gold |
| Primeape | Gold |
| Growlithe | Gold |
| Arcanine | Gold |
| Spinarak | Gold |
| Ariados | Gold |
| Gligar | Gold |
| Teddiursa | Gold |
| Ursaring | Gold |
| Mantine | Gold |
| Vulpix | Silver |
| Ninetales | Silver |
| Meowth | Silver |
| Persian | Silver |
| Ledyba | Silver |
| Ledian | Silver |
| Delibird | Silver |
| Skarmory | Silver |
| Phanpy | Silver |
| Donphan | Silver |
Unverified. No official page lists the Gold and Silver split; the Japanese page says only that trades are needed for 249. The PokéAPI cache holds no encounter tables.
| Badge order | Leader | Badge | Type | City |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Falkner | Zephyr Badge | Flying | Violet City |
| 2 | Bugsy | Hive Badge | Bug | Azalea Town |
| 3 | Whitney | Plain Badge | Normal | Goldenrod City |
| 4 | Morty | Fog Badge | Ghost | Ecruteak City |
| 5 | Chuck | Storm Badge | Fighting | Cianwood City |
| 6 | Jasmine | Mineral Badge | Steel | Olivine City |
| 7 | Pryce | Glacier Badge | Ice | Mahogany Town |
| 8 | Clair | Rising Badge | Dragon | Blackthorn City |
| Kanto | Brock | Boulder Badge | Rock | Pewter City |
| Kanto | Misty | Cascade Badge | Water | Cerulean City |
| Kanto | Lt. Surge | Thunder Badge | Electric | Vermilion City |
| Kanto | Erika | Rainbow Badge | Grass | Celadon City |
| Kanto | Janine | Soul Badge | Poison | Fuchsia City |
| Kanto | Sabrina | Marsh Badge | Psychic | Saffron City |
| Kanto | Blaine | Volcano Badge | Fire | Seafoam Islands |
| Kanto | Blue | Earth Badge | Mixed | Viridian City |
Unverified. Leaders, badges, types and cities, the Kanto half and the Chuck and Jasmine swap rest on game knowledge; no official page read on 8 Nov 2026 lists them.
5 checks before you act
- Set the clock correctly at the start; real-time events depend on it.
- Plan trades with the other version and with Generation I games to reach 249 species.
- Strip moves new to Generation II before sending a Pokémon through the Time Capsule.
- Give the right held item before a trade evolution: King's Rock, Metal Coat, Dragon Scale or Up-Grade.
- Move Virtual Console Pokémon to Pokémon Bank before 25 February 2027.
Read next
Sources read for this page
- Readpokemon.co.jp, ポケットモンスター 金・銀 product pageread 8 Nov 2026
- Readpokemon.com, Pokémon Gold Version and Pokémon Silver Versionread 8 Nov 2026
- ReadPokéAPI evolution chains, repository cache (repos/dexvoyage/data/cache/evolution-<id>.json)read 8 Nov 2026
- Readpokemon.co.jp, VC クリスタル features pageread 8 Nov 2026
- ReadPokéAPI types with past damage relations, repository cache (repos/dexvoyage/data/cache/type-<id>.json)read 8 Nov 2026
- ReadPokéAPI version groups, repository cache (repos/dexvoyage/data/version-groups.json)read 8 Nov 2026
- ReadPokéAPI species records, repository cache (repos/dexvoyage/data/species/<id>.json)read 8 Nov 2026
- Readpokemon.com, Pokémon Stadium 2read 8 Nov 2026
- ReadNintendo Support, Can the Nintendo DS or DS Lite Play Game Boy Games?read 8 Nov 2026
- ReadNintendo UK, Pokémon Gold Version product pageread 8 Nov 2026
- Readpokemon.co.jp, 3DS Virtual Console 金・銀 official siteread 8 Nov 2026
- ReadNintendo Support, Wii U and Nintendo 3DS eShop Discontinuation Q&Aread 8 Nov 2026
- Readpokemon.com, Pokémon Bankread 8 Nov 2026
- Readpokemon.co.jp, Pokémon Bank: how to depositread 8 Nov 2026