Nintendo The original Pokemon games for Nintendo Game Boy remain stone cold classics, beloved by an entire generation – some of whom refuse to accept that any subsequent Pokemon games are even worth a look.
To many, the original 151 critters are the only Pokemon worth catching. A perfectly formed selection of monsters that inexplicably includes a pile of purple sludge and some magnets stuck together, but nostalgia helps us overlook the naff parts.
NintendoWhile design documents and prototypes from development of this iconic RPG has historically been limited to blurry pictures and whispers, a huge dump of assets from Helix Chamber shows off a treasure trove of unused elements for Pokemon Red/Green.
The assets were apparently sent to Helix Chamber last Summer via an anonymous source. The site then worked through the deluge of information to uncover unused Pokemon designs, maps, sprites, and so much more.
There really is a boat load of information, and it’s an absolute dream for fans of the original Pokemon games to finally be given so much insight into the development of the original games.
NintendoI’m gonna try and stick to the most interesting revelations, but I do urge you to check out Helix Chamber if you want to really dive deep on these exciting new finds.
Let’s start with a look at some of the sprites for Pokemon that never made it into the games, including Gorochu (175), a previously planned evolution of Raichu that was actually uncovered last year.
There’s a lot to take in there, but some of the more interesting sprites include a possible Cubone evolution (146) which resembles Khangaskhan, giving weight to the fan theory that the two monsters were somehow connected.
There are also some concepts for monsters that were completely abandoned, including a Yeti Pokemon (52), and some kind of balloon creature (50). 181 meanwhile, appears to be some kind of Wartortle evolution that was obviously scrapped in favour of Blastoise.
A few unused sprites for the trainer character also surfaced, which you can see below. Note that one design actually had the player holding a whip, which was presumably abandoned because it didn’t really mesh with the game’s theme of treating Pokemon as friends and equals.
Finally, you can see an early version of the game’s Kanto map below. The anonymous donor apparently told Helix Chamber that Silph Co was to be the original venue for the Pokemon League, and that the road to the Elite Four would have involved a dungeon containing every Gym leader before finishing off with a Mewtwo battle.
Helix ChamberIf you’re eager to see more, head on over to Helix Chamber and dive in. There’s some fascinating stuff, so I strongly urge any Pokemon fans to give it a good look.
Ewan Moore is a journalist at UNILAD Gaming who still quite hasn’t gotten out of his mid 00’s emo phase. After graduating from the University of Portsmouth in 2015 with a BA in Journalism & Media Studies (thanks for asking), he went on to do some freelance words for various places, including Kotaku, Den of Geek, and TheSixthAxis, before landing a full time gig at UNILAD in 2016.