Pokémon FireRed (ポケットモンスター ファイアレッド, Poketto Monsutā Faiareddo, Pocket Monsters Firered) and Pokémon LeafGreen (ポケットモンスター リーフグリーン, Poketto Monsutā Rīfugurīn, Pocket Monsters Leafgreen), are enhanced remakes of the original Pocket Monsters Red and Pocket Monsters Green video games, the latter of which was released exclusively in Japan. They were developed by Game Freak and published by Nintendo for the Game Boy Advance handheld video game console, and were the first titles compatible with the Game Boy Advance Wireless Adapter which was bundled with the games. They were first released in Japan in January of 2004 and released to North America and Europe in September and October respectively. Players could obtain the game early at the Pokémon Center New York on august 282004, as part of a special pre-release event for players who pre-ordered the game. These two games, along with Pokémon Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald form the third generation of the Pokémon video game series, also known as the "advanced generation".

Being an enhanced remake of the first generation of games, FireRed and LeafGreen feature the first 151 Pokémon from the original Game Boy games, along with many others from later games in the series. This feature allows many of these Pokémon to be obtained for the first time in the newer games, as the original Game Boy and Game Boy Color games are incompatible with the Game Boy Advance games. The upgraded games are once again set in the fantasy world of Kanto and follow the progress of the central character, Red or Green in his or her quest to master Pokémon battling. Both games are independent of each other but feature largely the same plot and, while both can be played separately, it is necessary to trade between the games and the other advanced generation titles in order to fully complete the games' Pokédexes.

Setting and plot

Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen take place in the same fictional region as the original games; Kanto, which features a total of eight cities and two towns, along with different geographical locations and Routes connecting most locations to one another.^[1] Some areas are only accessible once the player learns a special ability or gains a special item; for instance, the player must acquire the HM Surf, which allows the character to ride certain Pokémon across the sea, in order to reach Cinnabar Island.^[2]

The silent protagonist of FireRed and LeafGreen (called Red or Green, depending on whether the player chooses a male or female character) is a young child who lives in Pallet Town. At the beginning of the games, the player may choose either Bulbasaur, Charmander, or Squirtle as their starter Pokémon from Professor Oak. His grandson, the protagonist's rival, has also become a Pokémon Trainer and will battle the player at certain points in the game.^[3]

The basic goal of the games is to become the best trainer in all of Kanto, which is done by raising Pokémon, defeating the eight Gym Leaders for Gym Badges, and eventually challenging the Elite Four and the Champion.^[4] Also throughout the games, the player will have to battle against the forces of Team Rocket, a criminal organization that abuses Pokémon, and its leader, Giovanni.^[5]

Near the end of the plot, the protagonist will be able to venture to the Sevii Islands, which is a new region not available in Red or Blue. It consists of an archipelago of seven islands that contain Pokémon normally exclusive to the Johto region. These islands hold a new subplot where the player must collect certain materials in order to power a trading link that can be used to trade between the other advance generation games; Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire.^[4]

New features

FireRed and LeafGreen are not exact remakes of the games which they model after. Most features have been retained, but new usability features have been added. For added usability to new players of the games, a contextual “Help” feature has been added, allowing a player to look up data at almost any point in the game, also including a type match-up list for in-battle use. When continuing a saved game, the player is shown the last four significant events prior to saving. This allows the player to remember what they were doing (e.g., items or Pokémon accessed on computer.)^[6]

FireRed and LeafGreen additionally build upon the game mechanics. The player may use an item called the VS Seeker, which allows the player to re-battle against non-player Pokémon trainers. However, this device doesn't work for gym leaders, nor does it work in caves or buildings. Addressing the fixed kinds of Technical Machines (TMs) that the player can find, non-player characters referred to as “Move Tutors” are available to teach Pokémon moves that aren't available with the default set of TMs. The games, when coupled with the Wireless Adapter, grant players the ability to connect to each other in the Union Room.^[7] The Union Room is a room of sorts allowing up to eight people to connect to each other and participate in battles, trades, or a text-based chatroom. Also, later on in the game, up to five players can compete in mini-games like jump rope using their Pokémon team. The “Mystery Gift” function also utilises the Wireless Adapter to obtain special items in Nintendo promotions.

New to FireRed and LeafGreen is another area available to players after meeting certain conditions. This is the archipelago known as the Sevii Islands, including Hoenn and Johto-related Pokémon, events, and items.

The two games are compatible with other Game Boy Advance and GameCube Pokémon RPGs, including Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald; Pokémon Colosseum and XD; and the utility program Pokémon Box. This compatibility is unlocked after beating the entire game and completing a side-quest.

Reception

The games were very well received, with the improvement of the graphics, and the inclusions of extras.^{[citation needed]} As of March 31, 2008, 11.82 million copies had been sold worldwide.^[14]

Music

The games feature music from Red, Blue, and Yellow by Junichi Masuda, along with selections from Gold, Silver, and Crystal, arranged and featuring new compositions by Go Ichinose and Morikazu Aoki. A two-disc set of this music entitled GBA Pokémon FireRed & LeafGreen Super Complete has been released; the disc features all the music used normally in-game, while the second disc features bonus tracks and arrangements. Among these are two vocal tracks: "Oshiete! Oniisan", sung by Hironobu Yoshida, and "Memory P", sung by Yumi Senka.

Notes

External links

• Pokémon Games FireRed LeafGreen page