Pokemon Gold

by Nintendo

Product Features

• collect 250 Pokemon
• each Pokemon has unique skills
• collect badges to enter the Pokemon League
• trade Pokemon via link cable

Product Details

• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B00004TEYR
• Item Weight: 5 ounces
• Media: Game Cartridge
• Release Date: October 15, 2000
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (168 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #836 in Video Games (See Top 100 in Video Games)

Product Description

Amazon.com Review

Featuring a new adventure that's filled with numerous enhancements and innovations, this long-awaited sequel to Pokémon Red, Blue, and Yellow greatly improves upon the series' winning formula, and makes for an even more insanely addictive and wholly absorbing gaming experience.

Like Pokémon Silver--which essentially is the same story, with minor gameplay variations--Pokémon Gold casts players in the familiar role of a young Pokémon Trainer who's out to collect as many different kinds of Pokémon as possible. As in previous games, gameplay consists mostly of exploration (completing various quests in the process) and Pokémon battles, which employ a unique battle system that's like a complex twist on rock-paper-scissors.

But, despite the similarities, it's quite apparent that Pokémon Gold is a whole new ball game from the start. The game is played out in real time, with the current time and day of the week (recorded by an internal clock) having a direct impact on gameplay elements, such as what Pokémon you'll find in the wild, and when certain events occur and characters appear.

While there are too many new and improved features in Pokémon Gold to list here, among the highlights are 100 new Pokémon (including two new types), new evolution processes (including breeding), and a more streamlined game interface that has better-organized menus and button shortcuts.

Although it's easier to progress in Pokémon Gold than in the previous games, the sheer amount of fun and game time that's involved is daunting. You'd be hard-pressed to find a better value than this one. --Joe Hon

Pros:

• Insanely addictive and wholly absorbing gaming experience
• Time and day of week impact gameplay directly
• Bevy of new features and hidden secrets
• Improved graphics and more streamlined game interface

Cons:

• Minor compatibility issues when using Game Link with previous versions

Product Description

POKÉMON GOLD offers another game for fans of the popular Pokémon characters, and the list of features is almost overwhelming. Explore a world with more than 250 Pokémon! The game keeps track of the time via an internal clock, and some Pokémon will only come out during certain times of the day, which means you will quite literally have to get up early in the morning to find them all. Also new to POKÉMON GOLD is Pokémon breeding. You've heard of Pikachu, but have you heard of Pichu? The PokeGear adds a more streamlined interface for an even greater RPG experience. As in the past games, link up with a friend, rival, or fellow trainer to trade or battle Pokémon. You can link up to your previous version of POKÉMON RED or BLUE or YELLOW to bring all of your favorite Pokémon into the new game. This version of the game includes Pokémon found only in POKÉMON GOLD

See all Product Description

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

216 of 224 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The best pokémon game EVER!, May 13, 2000

By A Customer

= Durability:5.0 out of 5 stars  = Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars  = Educational:5.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: Pokemon Gold (Game Cartridge)

I've played this game right through to the end (in japanese) and all I can say is WOW! This tops the original in every possible way. The graphics, the sound, the moves and the gameplay in general is simply light years ahead of the original. The battles are simply spectacular! Almost all of the existing moves have been beautifully redesigned and there are an extra forty as well. The otherwise dull Quick Attack for instance looks superb on this game. And to make training even easier, the pokémon have an extra blue "experience meter" which fills up as you gain experience. It's a wonderful innovation and it allows you to more accurately judge when a pokémon is ready to reach the next level. Even pokémon from the red and blue versions can evolve even further!

The story is situated three years after the red/blue versions and you play the role of an ambitious young boy destined to catch all the pokémon. There are initially eight gym leaders to challenge and defeat, then you have to face the Elite Four. When you've defeated them, you get to move on to the "Old World" where the original pokémon game took place and visit all the cities! You can even challenge the old Gym leaders including Brock, Misty and Gary (the new Viridian gym leader) bringing the total amount of badges up to sixteen! Be warned, after three years of experience they have become much tougher than when you last faced them.

I think the games biggest feature is the introduction of a real-time clock. Special built-in batteries allow the cartridge to act like a realistic clock, meaning that if it's one-thirty on Friday in the real world, it's also one-thirty on Friday in the game! It's a revolutionary breakthrough in video game technology! This allows the game to track whether it's day or night and it is reflected in the game. So if you want to find some nocturnal pokémon, you'll probably have to wait until dinnertime to catch them. On a larger scale, there are also some special events or pokémon that appear only on certain days of the week. Lapras for instance only appears in its cave on Saturdays, which means that you'll have to wait until Saturday if you want to catch it.

Another cool feature is that the pokémon can be either male or female (which will undoubtedly lead to outrageously sexist arguments on which is the stronger) and you can get baby pokémon by making them ... er ... "mate". So if you catch a male and female Pikachu and get them to do their thing, you'll get an adorable little Pichu. You can even crossbreed pokémon of the same type to get a new pokémon that is of the mother's specie, but has the father's stats. Just think of the combinations!

The new gadgets available in the game are surprisingly modern: e-mails, cell phones and a realistic radios. The latter is surprisingly fun to use; it sports a tuner than can change its frequency so you can listen to different radio stations and their music, just like in real life. Unfortunately, you won't find anything like Britney Spears. Possibly the coolest items are the "mysterious" ones that you receive by e-mail from time to time. The only way to access them is by trading them to another Gameboy or a Pocket Pickachu Colour game. When you do, you can either receive decorative items for your virtual room like carpets, plants, dolls and consoles or you can receive battle items like potions, evolution stones and even rare candies! No other game in the world has been so universally interactive!

On a side note, the pokémon that cannot be caught in gold or silver are: Bulbasaur, Squirtle, Charmander, Omanyte, Kabuto, Articuno, Zapdos, Moltres, Mewtwo, Mew and any of their evolved forms. The reason being that there is only one of each and they were already caught in the red & blue versions three years ago. And finally, when you have finished absolutely everything, there will be one last trainer left for you to face. I won't spoil the surprise, but I think it's pretty obvious who it is.

This is simply the best game on any console! With 251 monsters to catch and an ultra-rare gold or silver version of each one to find, the pokémon relive in this epic adventure that will last for years. So what are you waiting for? Pre-order it NOW!

59 of 62 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An exceptional RPG., November 3, 2000

By 

Shorebird (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Pokemon Gold (Game Cartridge)

Blue, Red, and Yellow were great, but they just can't compare to Gold and Silver. Full color graphics make the game even better. A whole new world to explore with 8 new cities with gym leaders to defeat and badges to earn. A completely new character. Not Ash this time (Although you do see Ash, or "Red" and Gary, "Blue" later on). Gold and Silver now include male and female Pokemon which can breed and make an egg for a completely different Pokemon. Completely new technology includes the PokeGear which can be expanded into a radio and a telephone. 100 new Pokemon to catch, and new battle animations, and now an experience meter is included in the battle screens to show how high your Pokemon is on his/her current level. The Pokemon Centers now include the Time Capsule, allowing you to trade Pokemon with Red, Blue, and Yellow. And for those who own the Pikachu 2 GS, you can earn more items with watts that you can send to Gold and Silver. And not to mention that a lot has changed in 3 years. A must-have RPG for anyone, even people that aren't interested in Pokemon. Definitely worth buying, no doubt about it.

107 of 119 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars An improvement on the first games: not yet at the "just cashing in" stage, September 27, 2000

By 

Herm Baskerville (England) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Pokemon Gold (Game Cartridge)

OK, I'm not the world's biggest Pokémon fan. Only ever played the Gameboy games, don't care for the cards or cartoons and I lost interest upon the advent of Ruby and Emerald <s>cash-ins</s> sequels.

I was impressed with the concept, style and execution of the first games, Red and Blue. Less so with Yellow (for a game which was 99% identical to the first two, it was definitely not worth the price). Having played the Japanese version of Gold and Silver, I am pleased to say that these ARE worth the price - if you are a Pokémon fan and after more of the same.

The basic plot is similar - catch, train and battle your Pokémon ("Pocket Monsters"), solving puzzles and beating the bad guys along the way.

The most notable additions are the superior graphics (the originals were not designed for the Gameboy Color and consequently the display colours were not great), male/female Pokémon and the ability to breed them, 100 new species of Pokémon and the clock feature, all of which have been described numerous times in other reviews.

Other additions which I liked include the ability to "equip" items to your Pokémon for use in battle. There is even a "Mail" item that lets you attach a short message to a Pokémon then trade it to a friend. There are rare Pokémon which are unusual colours.

There are different Pokémon to catch depending on whether it is daytime or night-time in the game. There are also a lot more puzzles to solve (some of which are very frustrating) and a special feature once you complete the game that lets you revisit the world of Red and Blue.

There are numerous improvements to the menu system, including a very handy feature that lets you assign the Select button to one particular item you use a lot - the bicycle, for example.

Before buying Gold or Silver, look at "Pokémon Crystal", which is the same game with a couple of extra features, such as (limited) animation of the Pok?mon and some extra puzzles.

To sum up - the second generation of games has many advantages over the original Red, Blue and Yellow. You may miss some in-jokes or references if you haven't played one of the originals, and will find the learning curve steeper with 250 'species' to memorise.