Gold or Silver? And why not Crystal? The three versions tell the same adventure, but not quite in the same way. Here, point by point, is what sets them apart, and our advice for choosing well.
The comparison
| Gold | Silver | Crystal | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mascot | Ho-Oh | Lugia | Suicune |
| Ho-Oh | Lv. 40, mid-adventure | Lv. 70, after the League | Lv. 60, after the three beasts |
| Lugia | Lv. 70, after the League | Lv. 40, mid-adventure | Lv. 60, after the League |
| Suicune | Roaming | Roaming | Thread of the story, Lv. 40 |
| Playable hero | Boy | Boy | Boy or girl |
| Animated Pokémon in battle | No | No | Yes |
| Battle Tower | No | No | Yes (Route 40) |
| Console | Game Boy and Game Boy Color | Game Boy and Game Boy Color | Game Boy Color only |
The exclusive Pokémon
Gold and Silver share about twenty Pokémon between them: Growlithe, Spinarak, Gligar, Mantine, Mankey or Teddiursa on one side; Vulpix, Meowth, Ledyba, Delibird, Skarmory or Phanpy on the other. Crystal mixes both lists and redistributes many encounters. The complete list, calculated from all wild encounters, is in Version Exclusives.
Everything Crystal adds
- A heroine: for the first time, you can play a girl.
- Suicune and Eusine: the water beast appears several times throughout the story, pursued by Eusine, before the face-off at the Tin Tower.
- Animated Pokémon at the start of each battle.
- The Battle Tower on Route 40.
- The Mystery Egg given at the Day-Care, with an increased chance of being Shiny.
- The Dratini of Dragon’s Den, with ExtremeSpeed for whoever answers the Dragon Elder well.
- The secret chambers of the Ruins of Alph, opened by the Unown inscriptions.
- Buena’s show at the Radio Tower, and its points exchangeable for items.
- A Move Tutor in Goldenrod City, who teaches Flamethrower, Thunderbolt or Ice Beam in exchange for coins, after the League.
- Celebi through the GS Ball, on the Nintendo 3DS Virtual Console.
In Japan, Crystal was compatible with the Mobile Adapter GB: remote battles and trades, news, online Battle Tower. This feature was never offered in Europe.
Our advice
For a first playthrough
The most complete and lively version, with a richer story and the Battle Tower.
For Ho-Oh early in the adventure
The rainbow bird at level 40 before the League, and the exclusives Growlithe, Spinarak, Gligar.
For Lugia early in the adventure
The guardian of the seas at level 40 before the League, and the exclusives Vulpix, Meowth, Skarmory.
Whichever version you have, the selector at the top of each page of this mini-site adapts the sprites, the Pokédex and the walkthrough to your cartridge.
