Appendix:Red and Blue walkthrough/Section 1

This is the Bulbapedia walkthrough for Pokémon Red and Blue.
These pages follow the original Game Boy iteration, not Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen. The guide for those games can be found here.

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Introduction

Name selection

After a brief cutscene, press the A Button or Start on the title screen to reach the main menu. Option may be used to change settings like Text Speed. Select New Game and press the A Button. The resident researcher of the Kanto region, Professor Oak, appears and introduces new Trainers to the Pokémon world. Next, the player is prompted to select their character's name from a list of preset options, which differs between versions.

Default Names
Game	Pokémon Red	Pokémon Blue
Player	Red, Ash, Jack	Blue, Gary, John
Rival	Blue, Gary, John	Red, Ash, Jack

To use a different name, move the cursor to New Name and press the A Button. On this screen, pressing the A Button will select a letter while pressing the B Button will delete the previous one. A custom name may be up to seven characters long. When ready, press Start or select End in the bottom-right corner.

Next, Professor Oak introduces his grandson, who happens to be your rival. The professor is having trouble remembering the boy's name, and asks if you might know. Choose his name from a different list of preset names, or select a new one. With that done, the player is transported into the world of Pokémon to begin their adventure!

Pallet Town

Pallet Town

The journey begins in Pallet Town, in the southwest part of the Kanto region. It is a rather small, sleepy town with only three buildings. The western house belongs to you and Mom, while the eastern one is home to your rival and his sister. The large building to the south is Professor Oak's Laboratory. The north part of town leads to the tall grasses of Route 1, and the waters to the south open up to Route 21.

Available Pokémon
Pokémon Games Location Levels Rate First partner Pokémon Bulbasaur R B Y Gift 5 One Charmander R B Y Gift 5 One Squirtle R B Y Gift 5 One A colored background means that the Pokémon can be found in this location in the specified game. A white background with a colored letter means that the Pokémon cannot be found here.

Items
Item Location Games Potion Home; retrievable from the player's PC  R  B  Later visit Pokédex Oak's Lab; from Professor Oak, after he receives his parcel  R  B  Town Map Blue's house; from Daisy, after obtaining the Pokédex  R  B

Home

2F

The journey begins in your bedroom, with you standing in front of your Super Nintendo Entertainment System. Now that you can control your character, the various buttons and their effects are as follows:

Input		Effect(s)
GB	3DS
+Control Pad	+Control Pad, Circle Pad	Moves character; moves cursor in a menu
A Button	A Button	Interact with people and the environment; select menu options
B Button	B Button	Cancel a selection; exit a menu
Start	Start, X Button	Opens the main menu

The PC in the corner acts as your item storage. Since your Bag can only hold 20 different items, it would be necessary to use or discard some before obtaining anything new. The PC can hold up to 50 different items. Deposit Item and Withdraw Item allow for moving items between inventory and storage, while Toss Item discards an item permanently. It seems as though there is already an item in storage, so select Withdraw Item and choose the Potion to add it to your Bag. Press the B Button to close the menus and return to your bedroom. To save the game, press Start to open the main menu, select Save, and then Yes. When the menu disappears, your progress is saved and it is safe to exit the game.

To go downstairs, step on the stairs in the northeast corner of the room.

1F

Mom is sitting at the table, and tells you that Professor Oak has been looking for you. To leave the house, step on the floor mat along the south wall and press down on the +Control Pad.

Oak Appears!

Pallet Town has only a few places to explore, and Professor Oak is nowhere to be found. There is nothing else to do around here right now, so head for the tall grass on the north side of town. Suddenly, the professor appears! He scolds you for trying to venture off on your own, as it can be dangerous without a Pokémon of your own for defense against wild Pokémon.

Professor Oak's Lab

Oak leads you back to his lab where Blue is already waiting, and gives you the choice of your very first Pokémon. Each has its advantages and disadvantages, so simply choose the one that you like the best.

Bulbasaur		Charmander		Squirtle
Grass	Poison	Fire		Water
	Ivysaur		Charmeleon		Wartortle
Grass	Poison	Fire		Water
	Venusaur		Charizard		Blastoise
Grass	Poison	Fire	Flying	Water

• The Grass/Poison-type Bulbasaur does well against Water-, Rock-, and Ground-type Pokémon. It also has the most weaknesses of the trio, and fares poorly against Fire-, Flying-, Psychic-, and Ice attacks. Bulbasaur's typing gives it an easier time in the early part of the game, making it a good choice for less experienced Trainers.
• The Fire-type Charmander is great when battling Grass-, Bug-, and Ice-type Pokémon, but is vulnerable to Water-, Rock-, and Ground-type moves. Its final form, Charizard, gains a secondary Flying type. Charmander may struggle early on, so it is a good choice for those looking for a challenge.
• The Water-type Squirtle has an advantage when facing Fire-, Rock-, and Ground-type Pokémon, but may struggle against Grass- and Electric-type attacks. It is the most well-rounded of the trio.

Once you have chosen a Pokémon, it's your rival's turn. He will always choose the Pokémon that has a type advantage against your own. When you turn to leave, he will challenge you to your first Pokémon battle!

Rival Battle 1

When battling, each Trainer sends out one Pokémon at a time; both of these particular Pokémon are on Level 5, indicated by the :L5 aside each Pokémon. Below that is the health bar, which shows the Pokémon's remaining HP. A battle is won or lost when either side has no remaining Pokémon with the strength to continue.

Choosing Fight will allow you to launch an attack against the target. Each of the professor's Pokémon have two moves. The first will damage the opponent, and the other will lower one of its stats. If your Pokémon's HP runs low, be sure to use that Potion from your PC. Go to Item to select the medicine and apply it to the Pokémon.

If the player chose Bulbasaur:

Blue Professor Oak's Laboratory Red, Green, and Blue Reward: $175 Type: Fire Unknown Charmander Lv.5 Scratch Normal   --       Growl Normal   --       Struggle Normal   --       Struggle Normal   --

If the player chose Charmander:

Blue Professor Oak's Laboratory Red, Green, and Blue Reward: $175 Type: Water Unknown Squirtle Lv.5 Tackle Normal   --       Tail Whip Normal   --       Struggle Normal   --       Struggle Normal   --

If the player chose Squirtle:

Blue Professor Oak's Laboratory Red, Green, and Blue Reward: $175 Types: Grass Poison Bulbasaur Lv.5 Tackle Normal   --       Growl Normal   --       Struggle Normal   --       Struggle Normal   --

Once you have defeated Blue, you earn a cash reward of $175, and he will leave. The encounter earns your Pokémon enough Experience Points to grow to Level 6. Leave the laboratory and head north to Route 1.

Red and Blue walkthrough

Route 1, Viridian City, Oak's Lab, Route 2 Part 2 →

This article is part of Project Walkthroughs, a Bulbapedia project that aims to write comprehensive step-by-step guides on each Pokémon game.