FireRed/LeafGreen - Changes FAQ

Written By: strawhat

Introduction

How many times have you seen "What is this game?" or "Is this a new game?" on the GameFAQs message boards? How many times have you felt like strangling those newbies who hate searching through topics and reading long FAQs? Well, here's my solution to all your pain and anger. With this FAQ, I'll tell the differences between all the Pokemon games similar to this, and end those repititious questions. Hopefully. This FAQ will not contain spoilers, so feel free to read it whether you have completed the game or not. This FAQ will also not include anything about beating the game. Read a walkthrough for that.

A lot of people ask, what is this game? This game is a total remake of the original Pokemon Red and Green. No, not Blue, Green. In Japan, Pokemon Red and Green were the first Pokemon titles released. The graphics are different and some Pokemon had different moves. After a while, Pokemon Blue was realeased which is also the American Pokemon Red and Blue. Pokemon Blue was similar to the other two except with improved qualities such as graphics. Pokemon Red and Green are remakes of the original, first Pokemon titles.

So what's different about this game? Read the next section and find out.

Red/Blue

How is Pokemon FireRed/LeafGreen different to the other versions? Not much really. Everything ingame is just about the same. The Pokemon make the same cries, the gym leaders still have their buildings, all houses are in the same places. Even the people say the exact same thing!

There are a few minor things that are different. Some of the ingame trades are different, such as you can't trade Nidorino for a Lickitung anymore, but you can still trade a Spearow for a Farfetch'd. The exclusive Pokemon for each version also changed to accomdate the extra evolutions that were gained in Gold/Silver and Ruby/Sapphire. A few Pokemon locations were also changed just for the heck of it. We could use a new challenge, can't we?

Many things have evolved since those old, black and white games. Remember breeding, shinies, and Pokemon with gender? All those are in these new games. There's still a rare chance of finding a shiny Pokemon. Breeding can be done on one of the new islands. Gender is also shown on the Pokemon now. Many things that could have been done in Ruby/Sapphire could be done in this game.

I know what you're thinking from reading that. NEW ISLANDS?? Yes, that is one of the new features in Ruby/Sapphire. At one point in the game, you can go to 9 new islands featuring new caves, puzzles, etc. This is also where you can find many Johto Pokemon from the Gold and Silver versions! Not only that, but on these islands you can hear remixes of the old versions. 7 of these islands you can get to, 2 of them you'll need special tickets like the Eon ticket from Ruby/Sapphire.

The graphics in this game has improved a lot since back then. They look just like the Ruby and Sapphire graphics with some improvements. Some sprites are the same from Ruby and Sapphire, and some are different between FireRed and LeafGreen. I don't know why some sprites are different. Maybe they were bored? Everything else is ripped exactly from Red and Blue then filled with color, or from Ruby and Sapphire.

The sound is ripped straight off of Ruby/Sapphire, so expect similar sounds. Music is just remixes from Red and Blue, so you know what to expect. No more beeps and boops though.

The game is a bit harder. The computer for the trainers seems smarter in choosing attacks. Instead of using Growl and Leer, they only use offensive moves such as Sludge or Scratch. This will make it somewhat harder, but some trainers are still dumb as a rock.

The introduction to the games are different. Instead of showing you and a Pokemon, in FireRed it will show Charizard against a detailed red background. There will be come embers about. In LeafGreen, it shows Venusaur against a green background with leaves going horizantally across the screen.

Depending on the starter that you picked at the beginning of the game, you will be able to obtain a legendary dog from Gold and Silver. It will be roaming around just like Latios/Latias.

The games also fixed up all of the old glitches in the game. You can't find Mew with the trainer trick anymore. You can't find Missingno. or multiply any of your items. You can't duplicate Pokemon either. Just about all of the old glitches are gone in the new remakes.

Many competitive players may wonder if the game follows the same battle formulas as in Ruby and Sapphire. It is the same. 510 EV cap, 255 max per stat. Base Stats, Individual Values, and Hidden Power forumlas remain the same.

There are also a few strange changes that were unnecessary. In Cinnibar Gym, one of the questions asked has changed from Tombstonder to Tombstony. Gamblers have also changed their name to Gamers.

Ruby/Sapphire

Ruby and Sapphire were excellent hits. They had a whole ton of new features such as contests. Can you find those features in FireRed/LeafGreen?

The answer, sadly, is a no. Although FireRed/LeafGreen was able to remake an old favorite and was able to get most of the features in Gold and Silver, it failed to deliver anything from Ruby/Sapphire. You cannot catch any Pokemon from Ruby/Sapphire. You must trade in order to do that. There are no contests, secret bases, or any spots to dive in.

So I suppose you're wondering what would happen if you trade a Pokemon with contest stats to FireRed/LeafGreen. I think that the contest stats are still stores in the Pokemon, so when you trade it back over you'll have the same stats.

The TM/HM list in FireRed/LeafGreen is the same as in Ruby/Sapphire. You can't mix records either.

Many wonder if this game is actually any different from Ruby/Sapphire. Other than the fact that FR/LG take place in Kanto and this game in Hoenn, the game is mostly the same.

If you want to use the same movesets for competitive game play from Ruby and Sapphire, you can do that. Ruby and Sapphire and FireRed and LeafGreen all are in the same generation, so they are compatible with trading and battling.

FireRed/LeafGreen

OK, so now we know about the differences in the previous versions. So what's new about this game? What's the differences between these two games?

Between the two games, not much. Some Pokemon are rarer in one version than another, but it's always balanced out. The main difference is just the exclusive Pokemon, nothing more.

Differences between this game and the previous ones, that's a lot. First, they have the brand new, never before seen islands. These islands contain new puzzles, Pokemon, and people. There are 9 islands, 7 of which you an access normally in the game. These islands are home to most of the Pokemon that were in the G/S/C generations. Some of the islands even play remixes from the Gold, Silver, and Crystal games! The islands add to the plotline.

There's also the second wave of the Elite 4 that is much more challenging than the first. They have different Pokemon and can range from level 50 to 75, outranked in level only by Red in GSC! There is also all the Johto Pokemon that you can catch that aren't in Pokemon Colosseum.

FireRed and LeafGreen have an interesting feature in which when you press Continue, it'll show all the previous things that you did before you saved the game so you won't forget. There is also an animation whenever you give a Pokemon an item or TM/HM outside of battle. There are added details in the Pokemon party menu. None of these features were in Ruby and Sapphire.

A cool new feature is the Pokedex. The Pokedex was totally redone in this game. You can now list the Pokemon in both the standard and national mode when you get it. You can also see them based on type, alphabetical, size, weight, and category. Each Pokemon in the game have a specific category. They can be forest, field, cave, and so on. Pokemon are also organized on pages. Scroll through the pages to find up to 4 Pokemon on one page that you can each view separately.

A major difference is the use of the Wireless Adaptor that comes with the game. After doing a task on one of the islands, you'll have the capabilities to play mini-games or battle other opponents...without a single cable! The mini games can include games like Dodrio's Green Berry and Pokemon Jump. I believe that the Wireless Adaptor goes about 30 meters. Some claim it to be only 3 meters though, so I'm not sure. These are features never before seen on a Game Boy.

Another thing is that you can catch Deoxys with the help of a ticket that you get outside of the game. This Deoxys is a legendary Pokemon you can get no where else. This Pokemon is different depending on which version you catch it in. The Deoxys you get will have different stats, abilities, and looks. If you trade it over to a different version, it changes yet again!

Oh yes, and there's one more thing. You can't evolve a Pokemon that was not in the original 150 until AFTER you get the National Dex. What's that you ask? Just play the game and you'll find out.

The biggest thing that will effect competitive gameplay are Move Tutors. These are people that are placed in Kanto that teach you the old TM moves from RBY once and once only. This opens up many new possibilities in movesets. You can have many parashufflers now and can use the old Counter Blissey moveset. Some Pokemon also had moveset makeovers, such as Shellder being able to learn Icicle Spear.

The mystery of Blast Burn and all the other elemental Hyper Beams were solved. They can be obtained on one of the new islands for ONLY the starter Pokemon.

On one of the Islands, there will be a trainer tower. In the Japanese game, the contents are based off of E-cards. In the Amercian version however, you can select different modes to test your skills.

FAQ

Q: When is this game going to be released in the US?
A: September 7th, 2004.

Q: Which game should I get? FireRed or LeafGreen?
A: FireRed. Actually, it doesn't matter. Choose the game that has your favorite Pokemon in it.

Q: Is there day or night in this game?
A: No.

Q: Can you catch Mew or Celebi in this game?
A: No.

Q: Can you get Lugia or Ho-oh?
A: Both, but you need to get an item outside of the game.

Q: Does this run off of the same EV/IV system as in Ruby/Sapphire?
A: Yes.

Q: Can you trade with versions other than RSE?
A: Still no. You will never ever be able to trade with the other version ever again. Ever. They run off of different systems and the GameBoy Advance link cable can't connect to a normal Game Boy or Game Boy Color.

Thanks to everyone who read this very short FAQ. Hopefully, it can calm some questions on many message boards and shorten up some spam. I hope I cleared up some information. Thanks all, and good night. Help control the pet population.

Credits

Electrosham
Matt St George
Aidan
PkmnMstr10