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Crystal hack: Pokemon Crystal - 251

30
Posts
2
Years
  • About Pokemon Crystal: 251 (v2.3)
    • The project makes obtaining all 251 Pokemon and Mystery Gift decorations and items possible without changing mechanics, story, difficulty, sprites, dialogue, music, or anything else. It also makes obtaining the rare held-items which were previously only obtained through the time capsule, available. Most of the glitches found in Pokemon Crystal have also been fixed (with a few carefully considered exceptions). The project also refused to introduce new or modern evolution methods, Pokemon, items, attacks, etc...

    There are two primary audiences for Pokemon Crystal: 251
    • Players who want to play the classic Pokemon Crystal on emulators, with the intent of filling their Pokedex without the need for game-link cables.
    • Players who want to flash a complete-dex Pokemon Crystal game to cartridge, while still preserving battle and trade mechanics for use with the game-link cables.

    Trade-Evolutions
    • In the process of pleasing both audiences, especially purist players from either group, obtaining trade-evolution Pokemon was a tricky problem, but, with some careful planning, was solved in totally organic ways. No, players will not find Steelix in the wild now, and no, neither does Onix evolve into Steelix through levelling up or through the use of a new or modified item. To reach a happy medium, these Pokemon have been split-up between a number of different events; in-game trades being one example. Some of these events are new, but they do not modify the story or the lore in any way. The downside is that training these few Pokemon at early stages and wishing to evolve them, still requires trading. However, the benefit is that by avoiding new evolution methods, the lore is uncompromised (a big one for me), cartridge players can still trade-evolve Pokemon without any issues, and everyone can complete their dex! As a convenience to players, a special NPC can be found taking a break from her tour of KANTO and JOHTO updating a journal of interesting people she meets. Players can check with her and her journal to get reminders on the details of the people trading: what they want, what they are offering, and where they are located - kind of like an in-game strategy guide (see image).

    Legendary Pokemon
    • Ho-oh and Lugia: Both Pokemon will know their signature moves, which, originally were only available in their respective games (Ho-oh in Gold / Lugia in Silver)
    • Celebi : The GS Ball event is re-activated and works exactly how the Nintendo 3DS VC edition handles it.
    • Mewtwo, Mew, Articuno, Zapdos, and Moltres have had careful consideration in getting them into the game. Trades? I could not suspend my disbelief far enough to accept that 5 trainers were going to trade away legendary Pokemon for Pokemon they could more easily obtain than the legendary Pokemon they already have (and I would also be asking how the heck did they get them). Gifts? I considered the idea, as under the right circumstances, this could work with careful consideration in the dialogue and presentation of one or two legendary Pokemon, but it wouldn' work for all of them, and would be, ironically, a bit un-eventful. Ultimately, I decided that what most players want is a battle and a chance to capture them. So all 5 of the missing legendary Pokemon have a battle event somewhere in the game. But, again, to make this as organic and natural as possible, I did take the liberty to introduce a few new areas to the game - areas which take their cues from RBY and beta GSC. I believe this was actually the least awkward solution to the problem.

    Wild Pokemon
    • All six starters are now wild with ample consideration of environment, rarity, level, and balancing. (none are at 1%)
    • Other, re-introduced, wild Pokemon take their cues from GS and GRBY and / or consider the new areas... (again, none are at 1%)

    Promo Pokemon
    • Special Pokemon originally obtained through interactivity with Pokemon Stadium 1 & 2 have been added to special events in-game.

    Items
    • Held items which originally came from trading through the time capsule (ex: Light Ball on Pikachu), or Mystery Gift (ex: Scope Lens) have been introduced in various ways.
    • All Mystery Gift items and decorations have been inserted into various gifts / rewards / pickups throughout the game

    Bugs / Glitches
    Bugs and Glitches which would create inconsistencies in game-link battles if "fixed" have been left alone. However, most other bugs and glitches from base Crystal have been patched, notably:
    • Moon, Love, Fast and Heavy Pokeballs now work as they are intended
    • Glacier Badge now correctly boosts Special Attack and Special Defense as intended
    • Burn, Poison and Paralysis now correctly affect catch rates
    • Dragon Fang (not Dragon Scale) now boosts Dragon-type moves as intended
    • Daisy's Grooming now works as intended
    • Magikarp are now measured correctly, and are bigger at the Lake of Rage (as intended)

    For a complete, detailed list of where and how to obtain each re-introduced Pokemon and Item, complete glitch-fix report, and more, check the ReadMe provided in the .zip (Obviously contains major spoilers) Players will be able to know they've patched the rom successfully early if they can see a "patch" of flowers outside Elm's Lab (see image), and can check their patch version in the Celadon Mansion Game Freak Meeting Room on the developers computer (see image).

    Download Link

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    Updates:
    • V2.3 - Minor wild Pokemon location change, side-quest added, and added Trainer ID Kanto Badges.
    • V2.2 - Minor update adding the final missing item (Brick Piece). Touched up a bit of dialogue. Added hints for where a few Pokemon can be found.
    • V2.1 - Fixed a minor graphical bug which rarely appeared on one NPC. Gave the new areas locations on the PokeGear map.
    • V2.0 - Added remaining Mystery Gift items and Decorations, Revamped some of the new areas / events.
    • V1.1 - Moved Remoraid from Route 42 to Route 44 as was intended
    • V1.0 - Crystal 251 Debut
     
    Last edited:
    30
    Posts
    2
    Years
  • Updated to v1.1: Remoraid is moved from Route 22 to Route 44. (Old save files from v1.0 will work with the v1.1 update, and v1.0 ReadMe Guides are accurate to v1.0 locations.)
     
    30
    Posts
    2
    Years
  • Interesting concept for sure. Would you consider importing Goldenrod Pokécom Center from Japanese Crystal and use that place for trade simulation instead of current method? And maybe replacing censored sprites with the originals.

    I have tried multiple times to get a trade simulator going, and have constantly run into an issue I have yet to figure out a solution to. However, once I can figure the issue out, trade-simulation is something I would like very much to add, and would definitely consider the Japanese Pokecom Center as a location for that. As for the sprites... this was a hard decision for me from the very beginning. I finally opted to not un-censor the sprites as I felt that in the spirit of vanilla, un-censoring was not in the plans, and that anyone who wishes to un-censor the sprites should be able to do so easily through the use of stand-alone un-censoring patches. I have not tested it myself, however, I have not changed anything with sprite storage or mechanics, so I do believe there should be no issue.
     
    1
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    2
    Years
  • Thank you so much for this!

    I have been looking for exactly such a hack for ages.
    All other hacks in this category simply change too much else.
    I can't tell you in words how happy I am.
    Keep up the great work 😘

    Lisa
     
    30
    Posts
    2
    Years
  • Why they don't recognize saves from Original Crystal in Emulation?

    Hey, Ragengar! Thanks for checking the game out. The problem is that any hacks that remove or add "events" will become less compatible with each other, including the original games save files. For instance I have an "event" called "FOUGHT_MEWTWO" - which does not exist in the original game's code. If you load a save game from original crystal, into this game, the flags get confused in the engine. Now, you can add one or two without issue, but after so many the game automatically re-arranges data, and old save files just wont work. Events are needed for each static pokemon battle (Crystal 251 has something like 11), as well as any item you find on the ground (which I've added a good number of), and any item / pokemon which is given to you as a gift (there are also a few new added here) - so quite a bit of the "event flags" have been added, which old save files will not recognize.

    I would have loved to have made it work, but it's just the nature of how these hacks work.
     

    ericgall23

    Quiet Pokémon fan
    36
    Posts
    7
    Years
  • Hi there!

    I played your game up to the end, and I've enjoyed it! ;)

    What I liked about it:
    - The new areas present in this game make the game much more complete and little differetn as well. I especially liked the haunted house and Cinnabar Cave (shape inspired by Blaine's Gym), they were really awesome! :)
    - We can catch all 251 Pokémon in the game! It's sure a good thing for those who don't use TGB DUAL, but since I use it, it's not a necessity for me! Still, it's great for sure! ;)
    - The fact you didn't add "new" moves or "new" Pokémon. This way, this game stays 100% compatible by trading using TGB DUAL. It's very important! ;)
    - The In-Game trades are all different, and they're great too! ;)
    - I noticed most trainers now switch Pokémon when they're disavantaged against us! That's really good, and makes a greater challenge! ;)
    - The fact some Pokémon got rearranged movesets, like Lugia with Aeroblast now learning it when at Level 60! It should have been this way for Lugia and Ho-oh in the originals too!
    - We can obtain the GS BALL! It's the first time ever that I got it in my life! Thanks! ;)

    What I less liked about it:
    - The fact that all trainers and texts are 98% the same as the original game. Well, since you warned us about this, it's alright, and I was truly prepared for this! ;)
    - Kanto trainers on routes are still too easy! (Well, it's the same thing for the original game, so don't worry about this! Seriously, the league is at levels 40-50, and once you gain access to Kanto, all trainers are like level 30-35, rarely higher than 40 except gym leaders...)
    - I would personnally have liked new TMs, especially the most useless ones being replaced (like TM43, TM12 or TM40). Then,again, it's just my opinion, but it doesn't ruin your game! ;)
    - Some marts could also have been improved, as many of them were redondant, and TMs could have been more on sale! (Then again, it's only my opinion!)
    - Game Corner Prizes could also have been modified, like in Yellow 151! (Then again, it's only my opinion!)

    Bref, your game is really good in general! I like Crystal version and your game clearly improves it! I played Yellow 151 too some days ago. Your games are good! ;)

    Have a good day!
     
    30
    Posts
    2
    Years
  • Hi there!

    I played your game up to the end, and I've enjoyed it! ;)

    What I liked about it:
    - The new areas present in this game make the game much more complete and little differetn as well. I especially liked the haunted house and Cinnabar Cave (shape inspired by Blaine's Gym), they were really awesome! :)
    - We can catch all 251 Pokémon in the game! It's sure a good thing for those who don't use TGB DUAL, but since I use it, it's not a necessity for me! Still, it's great for sure! ;)
    - The fact you didn't add "new" moves or "new" Pokémon. This way, this game stays 100% compatible by trading using TGB DUAL. It's very important! ;)
    - The In-Game trades are all different, and they're great too! ;)
    - I noticed most trainers now switch Pokémon when they're disavantaged against us! That's really good, and makes a greater challenge! ;)
    - The fact some Pokémon got rearranged movesets, like Lugia with Aeroblast now learning it when at Level 60! It should have been this way for Lugia and Ho-oh in the originals too!
    - We can obtain the GS BALL! It's the first time ever that I got it in my life! Thanks! ;)

    What I less liked about it:
    - The fact that all trainers and texts are 98% the same as the original game. Well, since you warned us about this, it's alright, and I was truly prepared for this! ;)
    - Kanto trainers on routes are still too easy! (Well, it's the same thing for the original game, so don't worry about this! Seriously, the league is at levels 40-50, and once you gain access to Kanto, all trainers are like level 30-35, rarely higher than 40 except gym leaders...)
    - I would personnally have liked new TMs, especially the most useless ones being replaced (like TM43, TM12 or TM40). Then,again, it's just my opinion, but it doesn't ruin your game! ;)
    - Some marts could also have been improved, as many of them were redondant, and TMs could have been more on sale! (Then again, it's only my opinion!)
    - Game Corner Prizes could also have been modified, like in Yellow 151! (Then again, it's only my opinion!)

    Bref, your game is really good in general! I like Crystal version and your game clearly improves it! I played Yellow 151 too some days ago. Your games are good! ;)

    Have a good day!

    Thanks again for checking out my hacks! I am happy you liked what you liked. I've seen a lot of hacks that changed more than what I did, but I haven't seen many which tried to do as little as I did. This was a project made for myself at the start - I really just wanted to play the original Crystal version as it was when it released, but I wanted to be able to complete the dex without trading or using cheats (like action replay codes). So the entire idea was to try and change as little as possible. It's why you find some trainer battles that are still too easy.

    If you have the time, would you mind leaving a review on the RHDN page for it? It currently has zero reviews, and I think any positive reviews might help more people to make up their mind about trying it. But if you don't have time, I totally understand! I do appreciate the time you've taken to share your feedback here, in these forums. Have a good one!
     
    2
    Posts
    2
    Years
    • Seen Oct 25, 2023
    Hello there, does this hack have the uncensored trainer sprites (sages, beauty trainers, female swimmers, etc) from the japanese version of crystal?
     
    1
    Posts
    1
    Years
    • Seen Jun 10, 2022
    Not sure if there is any solution for this, but I have been working to catch Articuno and am unable to get to the location to initiate the static encounter. Am I missing something to trigger this pokemons availability? The rocks in the ice do not lead me to the stairs. And there doesn't seem to be a way to that location.
     
    30
    Posts
    2
    Years
  • Not sure if there is any solution for this, but I have been working to catch Articuno and am unable to get to the location to initiate the static encounter. Am I missing something to trigger this pokemons availability? The rocks in the ice do not lead me to the stairs. And there doesn't seem to be a way to that location.

    I guarantee that there is a path through the ice-puzzle to reach Articuno. I have done a 100% normal playthrough from start to finish to double check EVERYTHING. And just to make sure, I have just now gone through the puzzle once more to be sure.

    Just keep trying, my friend!
     
    30
    Posts
    2
    Years
  • Hello there, does this hack have the uncensored trainer sprites (sages, beauty trainers, female swimmers, etc) from the japanese version of crystal?

    it does not. If you find a patch which simply uncensores the sprites, it should work with my patch - just use my patch first, then the uncensoring patch.
     
    4
    Posts
    4
    Years
    • Seen Aug 31, 2022
    i'm trying to apply this patch, and it says it's doing so successfully, however, i'm not seeing the flower patch in front of elm's lab. is this a possible bug, or am i not patching the hack correctly?
     
    4
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    4
    Years
    • Seen Aug 31, 2022
    never mind! i had the version "RTC patched" downloaded. i found the 2.0 patch download. the RTC patch is the one it gives you from the download on romhacking.net. i clicked the '2.0' link in the description of the hack information.
     
    30
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    2
    Years
  • Updated to 2.1

    2.1 is a minor update fixing a small graphical bug and giving the new locations proper names on the Pokegear map. Still recommended to update, but nothing critical.
    2.0 was a major content update - if you missed it, I highly recommend you update (save inside a pokemon center before updating).
     
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