Pokémon Crystal Version is a role-playing video game created by Game Freak and released by Nintendo for the Game Boy Color. It was first sold in Japan in December 2000 and later released in other countries in 2001. It is an improved version of the 1999 games Pokémon Gold and Silver and is the last game in the second generation of the Pokémon series. The game added new elements, such as extra story details, a special area called the Battle Tower, the ability to play as a female character, animated Pokémon images during battles, and small improvements. The Japanese version of the game used a special device called the Mobile Adapter GB, which allowed players to trade and battle using cell phones and a paid service named "Mobile System GB." These features were possible because the Game Boy Color had better technology, making Crystal the first Pokémon game that could not be played on the original Game Boy.
Although Pokémon Crystal is the least popular main series Pokémon game so far, it is still one of the top ten best-selling Game Boy games. Some critics said that many of the game’s improvements were not as important in the non-Japanese versions, which did not support the Mobile Adapter GB. Later reviews were mostly positive, with many people recognizing Crystal’s introduction of features that later became common in the Pokémon series and its role in keeping the franchise interesting during a time when it was losing popularity.
Gameplay
Pokémon Crystal is a role-playing video game similar to Pokémon Gold and Silver. Players explore a fictional world by catching, training, and battling with Pokémon. Crystal improves some parts of Gold and Silver, adding visual and gameplay changes. The game's visuals are better with animated Pokémon sprites when first seen in battle, signposts that appear when entering new areas, and small graphical improvements in different locations. Players can choose between two characters, including Kris, a female trainer with a unique design. A new feature called the Battle Tower allows players to challenge seven trainers with three Pokémon set to customizable maximum levels to earn prizes.
The Japanese version of Pokémon Crystal included support for the Mobile Adapter GB, a device that connected the Game Boy Color or Game Boy Advance to a mobile phone for online activities through the Mobile System GB service. Players could use this feature to battle and trade online, read news updates, take quizzes, play mini-games, and save battle replays. These replays could be transferred to Pokémon Stadium 2 on the Nintendo 64 using a Transfer Pak. A special item from the Mobile System GB service also allowed players to catch the rare Pokémon Celebi. Users paid a fee for each minute of online use, with extra charges of 10 to 100 yen for specific features like battling, trading, or downloading content.
Nintendo planned to release the Mobile Adapter GB and launch the Mobile System GB service with Pokémon Crystal in December. However, delays pushed the service's launch to January 27, 2001. Online features in Pokémon Crystal were heavily promoted, and the game was expected to be the main attraction for the service.
Despite this, the Mobile Adapter GB sold only 80,000 units in its first year and was not released internationally. The Mobile System GB service ended on December 18, 2002, after less than two years. However, some functions of the Mobile Adapter GB, such as peer-to-peer connections that did not require the service, remained usable.
Plot
The setting and story of Crystal are mostly the same as in Gold and Silver. In the game, the player trains and battles Pokémon to defeat the Johto Gym Leaders and Elite Four, becoming the Johto League Champion. Some new encounters and characters are added to the main story. Crystal includes more involvement from Legendary Pokémon, such as Suicune, Entei, and Raikou, which the player meets at different points in the game. A new character named Eusine appears, who is searching for Suicune. Eusine helps the player find and battle Suicune and the other Legendary Pokémon in the game. The way the player meets Gym Leader Clair is slightly different in Crystal. Additionally, the role of the Pokémon Unown in the Ruins of Alph is expanded. Players can solve extra puzzles in the Ruins of Alph to earn rewards and messages from the Unown.
Development and release
Crystal was created by Game Freak in 1999 after the release of Pokémon Gold and Silver. It was the first Pokémon game to have Junichi Masuda as a lead director. Earlier, Masuda had worked as a composer for the Pokémon games and as a sub-director for Gold and Silver. Nintendo announced the development of Crystal and the Mobile Adapter GB in December 1999. At that time, the game was called Pokémon X. Artist Ken Sugimori said Crystal was made to support Nintendo’s new Mobile System GB service. Masuda explained that the game’s name was connected to "crystals used in electronic transmissions." Nintendo president Hiroshi Yamauchi said, "Pokémon, which includes ideas about sharing and collecting, would be the best way to help people learn about a new type of game that uses mobile phones."
Nintendo first showed Crystal and the Mobile Adapter GB at Space World in August 2000. The game was released in Japan on December 14, 2000. Nintendo previewed Crystal for North America at E3 in May 2001. The game was released in North America on July 30, 2001, in Australia on September 30, 2001, and in Europe on November 2, 2001. In North America, special versions of Crystal were sold with lime green Game Boy Color models in a package called the Pokémon Crystal Bundle.
Crystal became available on the Nintendo eShop for the Nintendo 3DS handheld consoles on January 28, 2018.
Reception
When Pokémon Crystal was released, most critics gave it good reviews, noting the new features added to the game. Frank Provo of GameSpot said the additions provided "a great deal of value," pointing to improvements like timed events, quality of life changes, and better visuals. Nintendo Power praised the Battle Tower, calling it a "truly challenging" feature that would interest experienced players. Kelly Starr of Nintendo Gamer said the game had enough small differences to make it worth buying, especially the option to play as a female trainer, location signs, and improved animations.
Some critics thought the changes in Crystal were not significant and too similar to Gold and Silver. Craig Harris of IGN said the game had better design but called the visual changes "very little," noting that it used the same game engine as older titles. Simon Brew of Game Boy Xtreme said there was "little else on offer" for players who already owned Gold and Silver, stating the game had reached the limits of its formula. Chris Johnston of Electronic Gaming Monthly said the changes did not affect how the game was played, suggesting they should have been included in the original game. Chris Thompson of Pocket Games said the game was a good choice for new players but did not have enough new features to justify buying it again.
Although Pokémon Crystal did not sell as well as Gold and Silver and is still the least successful main series Pokémon game, it sold well overall, ranking among the top ten best-selling Game Boy games. Worldwide, Crystal sold 6.3 million copies, compared to 23.7 million for Gold and Silver.
In Japan, the game topped weekly sales charts and sold 1,871,307 copies, making it the second-best-selling Game Boy Color game in the country. Internationally, Crystal was the best-selling Nintendo title for Game Boy consoles in January 2002 and stayed in Nintendo Power’s top ten charts for the entire year. In the United States, it sold about 600,000 copies in the first two weeks of its release.
Legacy
Retrospective reviews of Pokémon Crystal have highlighted it as one of the best games in the Pokémon series. Darryn Bonthuys of GameSpot called Crystal "the definitive Pokémon game of the Game Boy era" and one of the best Game Boy Color titles, noting its "revolutionary" animations and story. Chris Tapsell of Eurogamer praised Crystal as "the best Pokémon game" because of its "peerless artistry" and the "quaint, restricted painterly presentation" of its animations. Arjun Joshi of Nintendo Life said Crystal "added even more life to an already vibrant game," praising its animations and "captivating and memorable" additions to the story.
Many reviewers have noted that Crystal introduced features that later became standard in Pokémon games. These include the pattern of releasing an enhanced version after the main games of a generation, allowing players to choose their character's gender, creating an overarching story with "chosen one" themes, and adding a Battle Tower feature. Tomas Franzese of Dual Shockers said the game helped set "multiple precedents" for the series. Nintendo Power mentioned that the design of the Mobile Adapter GB, though limited to Japan, influenced later portable networking features like the Game Boy Advance Wireless Adapter and the Nintendo DS.
Some writers have noted that Crystal helped the franchise stay popular during a time of change. Arana Judith of Well Played said Crystal marked the end of the original vision for the franchise due to the end of the Game Boy Color's life cycle and growing interest in other games. This was shown by critics who believed Crystal came at a time when interest in Pokémon was declining. Judith wrote that while later games like Ruby and Sapphire would help the series last longer, Crystal was released when "Pokémon merchandise was disappearing from stores," showing that the widespread popularity of Pokémon was fading. Rhiannon Bevan of TechRaptor said the game's additions were bold and helped the series stay popular for a long time.
Pokémon Crystal has been praised for allowing players to choose their character's gender. Juno Stump of Polygon said Crystal and its character, Kris, helped girls feel included in the game and see themselves on their own Pokémon journey. Clare McBride of Syfy Wire said the game was important for women because it let players use their names instead of a default male name. Anya Archer of Wired noted that the feature also helped transgender players by allowing them to play as a character whose gender does not match the one they were assigned at birth.
On March 2, 2014, Crystal was played in a special event called Twitch Plays Pokémon. This allowed users of the streaming service Twitch to control the game through chat commands. The game used the same main character and Pokémon to connect with earlier streams. The event faced some criticism because some players tried to copy intense moments from the first stream, like releasing Pokémon from the PC, and some features were added and later removed, such as changes to "Democracy" and "Anarchy" modes. The Crystal stream was completed in 13 days and 2 hours.