List of glitches in Generation I
This is a list of minor glitches in the Pokémon games.
In multiple generations
Error codes
- Main article: Error codes
In Generations I and II, there are several error codes that appear when the game is not functioning correctly. Problems such as these often crop up when the game's memory access is corrupted or when experimenting with glitches such as the Mew glitch. Usually, when an error code appears, the game does not freeze and the player is allowed to continue playing the game without resetting. Occasionally mixed errors occur.
Experience underflow glitch
- Main article: Experience#Experience underflow glitch
In Generations I and II, level 1 Pokémon using the "medium-slow" growth algorithm will jump from level 1 to level 100 after gaining a low amount of experience points.
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Trade evolution glitch
Generation I Pokémon that can evolve by trading can be taught glitch moves through this glitch. This can be achieved by trading a trade evolution Pokémon from a Generation I game to a Generation II, at a level where its evolved form will learn a move not in Generation I. Trading the Pokémon back to the Generation I game will cause the move to become a glitch move. For example, trading a level 48 Haunter from Pokémon Red to Pokémon Gold will make the Haunter evolve into Gengar. Since it is level 48, it will learn Destiny Bond. If it is then traded back to Pokémon Red, it will still have the move, but the game won't recognize it properly since it is a Generation II move, so will become TM12.
Graphical glitches
- Main article: Graphical glitches
Shiny Ditto glitch
The Shiny Ditto glitch requires a game from Generation I and Generation II, but only has an effect on a Generation II game. By trading any Shiny Pokémon to a Generation I game, having a wild Ditto transform into that Pokémon, then catching and trading the Ditto into a Generation II game, the Ditto will be shiny.
In Generation I
0 ERROR
- Main article: 0 ERROR
A glitch similar to the Mew glitch that causes Route 6 to become glitched.
Cycling Road glitch
If the player does not have a Bicycle (or it has been deposited in the PC), it is still possible to reach Cycling Road by holding down the left button while the guard attempts to prevent the player from entering the Cycling Road. Upon entering Cycling Road, the player will be automatically riding a bike, despite not having one.
Deposit glitch
It is possible for the player to deposit all Pokémon except fainted ones and a black out will occur but only after four steps in the same session. In Red and Blue it is possible to progress further by saving the game before traveling four steps to reset the 'remaining step count' to 4 when the game is reset, though this is no longer the case in Pokémon Yellow because the remaining step count was changed to default to 1 step. The player immediately has a black out if entering a battle with just fainted Pokémon.
Draw audio glitch
Prior to Generation II, having the player character draw in a Pokémon battle causes the relevant victory theme to play even though the player has lost.
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Evolutionary stone glitch
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This glitch is in need of research. Reason: Glitch Pokémon which evolve by items You can discuss this on the talk page. |
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Pokémon can be evolved without the use of an evolutionary stone, provided that the player has sent out a Pokémon with the equivalent identifier of the relevant evolutionary stone item and finishes the battle with that Pokémon in the same battle that a Pokémon that evolves using an evolutionary stone levels up.
The starter Pikachu from Pokémon Yellow is no exception to this glitch and will still evolve into a Raichu, if it levels up and the player switches to Growlithe, finishing the battle.
Some glitch Pokémon with unusual evolutionary flags may evolve this way according to the game 'after exposure to an item' which isn't an evolutionary stone.
| Pokémon | Stone |
|---|---|
| Exeggutor | Moon Stone |
| Missingno.* | Fire Stone |
| Psyduck | Leaf Stone |
| Growlithe | Thunderstone |
| Onix | Water Stone |
Fishing in statues
The player can use a Fishing Rod when facing the right or left of a gym statue. It will always say "Looks like there's nothing in here...", except in the Cerulean Gym, where all the Pokémon obtainable in the gym can be caught. The player is also able to surf on these statues.
Ghost glitch
When encountering a ghost in Pokémon Tower without having a Silph Scope, it is possible to see its true identity by viewing the stats of any Pokémon in the player's party. However, this glitch is only graphical, and it is still impossible to fight or catch it.
Ghost Marowak glitch
Using a Poké Doll on the ghost Marowak in Pokémon Tower with or without the Silph Scope will cause it to permanently disappear.
Hall of Fame glitch
- Main article: Missingno.#Glitches caused
When glitch Pokémon have been seen on the save file, the player's Hall of Fame is badly corrupted with entirely different Pokémon, even glitch Pokémon, and very glitched characters, names and levels. This does not affect the Pokémon themselves, rather the data seen in the Hall of Fame.
Invisible tree
- Main article: Cut glitch#Invisible tree
There is a tree near the bottom of Route 14. If this particular tree is cut down and then the player walks five steps west from where the tree was (so that the spot where the tree used to be is at the edge of the screen) and then walks back their path will be blocked as if a tree was still there. Even though the tree is not visible, it can still be cut down normally using the move Cut.
Invisible PC
In Generation I, there is an invisible PC in the hotel in Celadon City. This fact is explained by the close resemblance between the hotel and a Pokémon Center. This was less a glitch, and more likely an oversight by the programmers, who may have forgotten to remove the code to activate the PC at that particular point, though the sprite of the PC itself is no longer there. It is possible to walk on the tile where the PC is.
Leech Seed and Toxic stacking
If the target of Leech Seed is also under the effect of Toxic, Leech Seed damage will increase every turn as the N value of Toxic increases because Leech Seed and Toxic both use the same damage algorithm (N * max(1, int(0.0625*MaxHP). This was fixed as of Generation II. If the current HP of the recipient of Leech Seed's HP-restoring effect is greater than its maximum HP, its current HP will be set equal to its maximum HP.
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Lookout station glitch
Certain lookout stations which can be accessed after the player passes Cycling Road will have guards that restrict the player from passing if the Bicycle is deposited in the PC, even though the player does not require a Bicycle.
Man on roof
If the player does not have the Secret Key to the Cinnabar Gym, and surfs on the east coast and returns to land directly in front of the gym, a man will appear on the roof of the gym.
A similar effect happens if the player walks into the Vermilion Gym, walks directly left and then up so that they are facing the bottom-left trash can and press A to inspect it, or if the player is in the gatehouse to Cycling Road. One of the Trainers in the gym will be misplaced and return to his usual spot once the text box disappears, and when in the gatehouse there may be a man standing on an object somewhere behind the guard.
Both of these variations of this glitch were fixed in some European versions of Red and Blue, such as the Spanish version, as well as all versions of Yellow.
Prevented progress
If the player's starter Pokémon evolves before they obtain their Pokédex from Prof. Oak, the game will assume, since they have 2 Pokémon registered as caught, that they already have a Pokédex, and will not allow them to proceed. This glitch is only present in the Japanese Red and Green Versions.
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Q Glitch
- Main article: Q#Q glitch
Q and Charizard 'M enable a player to swap Pokémon's moves. It involves depositing Q and other Pokémon into Bill's PC in a certain order, and then when they are retrieved, the Pokémon's moves and stats will be transferred from one Pokémon to another.
Save Surf glitch
The glitch is performed by standing next to a water tile that is facing up, left, or right, walk in that direction and pressing start without letting go of the D-Pad. The game then needs to be saved and reset. When loading the saved data, the player will be facing in the direction that was being held down when the start button was pressed. Using Surf will cause the player to surf on the tile immediately south, even if it is not a water tile.
When loading a saved file, the player usually starts facing south. This is because of the limited data in the game. This glitch causes the player to face in a different direction, which confuses the game.
Selfdestruct/Explosion and Substitute glitch
In Red, Blue, and Yellow using a sacrificial move like Explosion on a Substitute and having the damage break the Substitute prevents the user from fainting. The sprite of the user vanishes regardless.
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Silent Indigo Plateau glitch
In the battle against Blue at Indigo Plateau, if the player evolves a Pokémon in battle and defeats Blue, the music will be muted until Professor Oak takes the player into the Hall of Fame.
Standing on a tree
- Main article: Cut glitch#Standing on a tree
In Generation I, if the player cuts down a tree, stands on the spot where the object was, saves, turns the game off, then loads it, the player will be standing on the tree. It is no longer possible to stand on a tree in later generations, nor is it possible to stand on a boulder.
This glitch occurs because the Generation I engine would not store the data needed to remember that the tree had been cleared.
Stuck in a wall
If the player lures an NPC into the grass above Pallet Town, she will block the player from following Professor Oak correctly, causing the player to become stuck in the wall of Oak's laboratory.
In Generation II
Coin Case glitches
- Main article: Coin Case glitches
Dratini glitch
After the player speaks to the Dratini in Blackthorn City or listens to its cry in the Pokédex, then uses the Coin Case, the Coin Case's display will change what the coin case says from "Coins: ..." to "Which move?he pp of" permanently unless the game is turned off without saving.
Machop glitch
After the player listens to the cry of Machop, Machoke or Machamp, then uses the Coin Case, the game enters the "glitch dimension".
Egg black out glitch
If an egg is obtained before any other Pokémon, the player will repeatedly black out and be forced to restart the game. This was remedied in Generation III and later games by requiring the player to have two Pokémon with them in order to trade, rather than just one.
Infinite continues glitch
- Main article: Infinite continues glitch
The infinite continues glitch is a glitch that can be performed in Pokémon Stadium 2 with any Stadium Cup. It does not work in the original Pokémon Stadium. If there is a previously suspended game and the player is playing the Stadium Cup, suspending the game after a loss causes a warning message to pop up, telling the player that there is already a suspended game. If "Continue without Suspending" is selected, a rematch with the opponent who just defeated the player will be triggered, but no continue will be used.
Thick Club glitch
If a Marowak with a maximum Attack stat (maximum IVs and Stat Exp in Attack) uses Swords Dance while holding a Thick Club, its Attack will overflow to 8. This glitch is not present in Pokémon Stadium 2. [1]
Trainer House glitch
- Main article: Trainer House glitch
This glitch affects the Trainer in the Trainer House. It is caused by corrupted RAM for save data in Gold and Silver Versions. It is not present in Crystal Version.
In Generation III
Focus Punch glitch
This glitch is triggered by selecting Focus Punch in a double battle on the first Pokémon, pressing the "B" button, then switching out the first Pokémon. When the battle is conducted, the first Pokémon will tighten its focus in preparation for Focus Punch, then switch out.
Poké Flute glitch
When the player plays the Poké Flute and while the melody is playing, if the Help Menu is activated and deactivated, the music will be muted until Snorlax wakes up.
Infinite ball glitch
The infinite ball glitch is a glitch in Pokémon Colosseum that enables the player to reuse any type of Poké Ball. It does not work in the Player's Choice version or in Pokémon XD.
The glitch is performed by selecting a Poké Ball with the player's first Pokémon's turn. Then, on the second Pokémon's turn, switching the location of the Poké Ball in the bag chosen with another Poké Ball in the bag (using the "Y" button). After the Ball is thrown, the Poké Ball pocket will still have the same amount of Poké Balls, as if the Ball just thrown had not been used.
Sometimes, if using a Master Ball, the game will freeze and bring the "An error occurred" message the Nintendo GameCube gives when it fails to properly read a game.
Also, if the second Pokémon is using a multiple-turn move that has been selected on a previous turn, the attack prevents the glitch from working, which causes the thrown Snag Ball to be used.
Ledge glitch
East of Mauville City there is an Aroma Lady that will battle the player. If the player stands right behind the ledge in her line of sight, she will see the player and walk onto the ledge and stay there until the player leaves the area. This does not occur in Emerald due to her not walking around.
Mirage Tower glitch
In Mirage Tower, on the second floor near the stairs there is no rock, but the player cannot walk there.
Nightmare glitch
In Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire, if Nightmare is used on a sleeping Pokémon yet the sleeping Pokémon wakes up due to Shed Skin, the enemy Pokémon is still harmed by Nightmare even though it is not asleep.
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Pay Day glitch
In Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire, the wrong amount of money received from Pay Day will be displayed if the Amulet Coin is held, leaving the impression that it does not affect Pay Day. Yet, upon checking the Trainer card, the player will discover that the money earned from Pay Day has been doubled and added to their total savings. This error was fixed in Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen and all subsequent games.
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Purification glitch
Pokémon Colosseum only. In Agate Village, the cliffs directly to the left and right of the hill at the entrance are glitched. If the player walks downward while on these small cliffs, there are two specific points where the player will hit the edge and continue to walk, and the screen will start to shake. This will cause all Shadow Pokémon in the player's party to be purified at the same rate as if the player is walking around.
Roaming Pokémon glitches
Roaming IV glitch
- Main article: Roaming IV glitch
The roaming Pokémon glitch is a glitch in Pokémon Ruby, Sapphire, FireRed and LeafGreen Versions that causes roaming Pokémon to have extremely low IVs. The glitch is not present in Emerald Version.
Explanation
In Generation III, the data for a Pokémon's IVs are stored in a 32-bit integer. However, when a roaming Pokémon is captured, only the last eight bits are transferred. While the HP IV is unaffected, the Pokémon can only have a maximum Attack IV of 7. The other IVs will always be 0.
Roaming Roar glitch
If a roaming Pokémon uses Roar to flee from battle, it will permanently disappear from the game.
Sticky hold glitch
This glitch occurs when Thief or Covet is used to knock out a Pokémon holding an item that has the Sticky Hold ability. It causes the sprite of the defeated Pokémon to stay in a ghost-like form. This lasts until the screen is changed. Switching to the item list or Pokémon list will cause it to disappear.
If it is a battle against a team of six Pokémon, defeating the next Pokémon will cause that Pokémon's sprite to vanish normally, but the ghost-like sprite will remain. If the second Pokémon is defeated without leaving the battle screen, a third Pokémon will come out, but the second Pokémon's sprite will not remain. The original ghost-like sprite will remain and get recolored to match. This is because the game stores color palettes separately to the pictures themselves.
Step-by-step photos
Thunder glitch
In some copies of Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire, using Thunder or Thunderbolt may cause the game to freeze during the moves' animation sequences. This can be remedied by turning off the battle animations in the options menu. Also, in Pokémon FireRed, LeafGreen, and Emerald, the sound of Thunder or Thunderbolt may get stuck until the game resets.
Walk on water glitch
This glitch is present in Pokémon Ruby, Pokémon Sapphire and Pokémon Emerald. While underwater on Route 128, if the player presses the B button while entering the Seafloor Cavern at the right time, the game will ask the player if he/she wants to resurface while they are on top of the entrance. Choosing to do so will result in the player resurfacing on a rock tile instead of a water tile. The player can then walk on the water, but cannot go back on land this way. To fix the glitch, simply either Dive and resurface once more, or Fly/Teleport to any location.
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In Generation IV
Ace Trainer Kate glitch
In HeartGold and SoulSilver, there is a slight glitch with Ace Trainer Kate on Route 34. She will only battle with the player if they walk straight down the path. If the player walks to either side of her, she will apologize as she would after the player has defeated her. If the player walks down the path towards her after talking to her on the side she will somehow see them while facing the wrong way and then battle.
Black Belt glitch
Pokémon Platinum only. Due to consecutive spaces, Black Belt Eddie in Sinnoh's Victory Road will say "Done in" with every letter on an alternating line.
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Boulder glitch
In the Japanese version of Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver, a boulder in Slowpoke Well can be pushed over a ledge into the water. The boulder (unlike in FireRed and LeafGreen) will act as if it was on dry land. The boulder was removed in international releases.
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Broken escalator
This is one of two glitches in Generation IV officially acknowledged by Nintendo, with the other being the surf glitch. In Diamond or Pearl, after entering the Union Room on the second floor of the Pokémon League building, when the player goes up to the second floor of a Pokémon Center, the player will end up in a wall and not be able to return.
In the case where the player has not saved the game while trapped, it is possible to work around this bug:
- Restart the game from the previous save state.
- Go to the Super Contest Hall in Hearthome City.
- Speak to the leftmost attendant (there is no need to actually participate in a Super Contest).
- Save the game and restart.
Dress-up hiker glitch
The glitch only occurs in Pokémon Diamond and Pearl. When talking to the hiker at Jubilife TV who allows Pokémon to be dressed up, if a button on the D-pad is pressed so that the player is facing away from the hiker just before the screen to select which Pokémon will be dressed up opens, the player will not walk on the set path; this can lead to walking through walls or the hiker, or canceling the action altogether.
Egg nature glitch
Pokémon Diamond, Pearl, and Platinum only. A well timed switch between boxes will allow the player to see the nature, ability and type of the Pokémon inside an egg.
Fire Fang glitch
In Generation IV, Fire Fang affects Pokémon with Wonder Guard, even if it is used on a Pokémon that does not have a weakness to Fire-type moves. This does not apply to Ice Fang and Thunder Fang. This was corrected in Generation V.
Global Terminal glitches
- Main article: Global Terminal#Glitches and Manipulation
Morphing glitch
- Main article: Global Terminal#Morphing glitch
Causes Pokémon up for trade on the GTS to change species and hold a Seal Bag.
Level display glitch
- Main article: Global Terminal#Level display glitch
Pokémon Platinum only. In some copies of Platinum, the levels of a Pokémon might not be displayed on the GTS. In order to fix this, the player must contact Nintendo.
Trade evolution glitch
- Main article: Global Terminal#Trade evolution glitch
In a Generation IV game, if the player deposits any Pokémon on the GTS that can evolve through trade (holding any necessary items), and then either waits for over 24 hours before taking it back, or trades for another Pokémon before taking the first back, it will evolve after being received.
Vanishing glitch
- Main article: Global Terminal#Vanishing glitch
After uploading a Pokémon to the server and checking its summary without changing the Pokémon, the "summary" button is sometimes replaced with "deposit", suggesting that the Pokémon has been traded. Selecting "Deposit" will cause a communication error, and the player will return to the front desk. Logging on to the server again will cause the Pokémon to reappear, with no noticeable changes.
HM05 Defog glitch
In Pokémon Diamond, Pearl, and Platinum, HM05 (Defog) appears as a Water-type HM rather than a Flying-type one. However, in Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver, HM05 was replaced with a Water-type move, Whirlpool.
Indigo Plateau guard glitch
This glitch only occurs in Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver. If the player attempts to enter the GS Cup in the Indigo Plateau Wireless Club and checks the list of special Pokémon, the guard blocking the Elite Four entrance will not move until the player re-enters the room.
Kadabra Trade Glitch
If a Kadabra is traded while it is holding an Everstone, it will still evolve into Alakazam.
Pal Park glitch
- Main article: Pal Park#Manipulation
Allows the player to migrate any number of Pokémon via the Pal Park, this is used to overcome the 6 Pokémon per 24 hours limit.
Silent Route 214 glitch
This glitch occurs in Diamond and Pearl if the player goes onto Spring Path off Route 214, where the music changes. If the player views the TM & HM section of the bag, closes it, then returns to Route 214, there will be no music. Sound effects such as collision sounds still occur and if the player encounters a wild Pokémon, the normal battle music will play. The same glitch can also be activated by changing the music so that it is not the default in any other way. For example, by using the Bicycle.
External links
Tower Tycoon event skip
In Diamond and Pearl, if the player achieves a 20 battle streak in the Battle Tower and battles the Tower Tycoon by choosing the option "REST" and then the option "NO" instead of choosing the option "KEEP GOING", a normal Trainer will appear instead; with the same roster of the Tower Tycoon. Interestingly, this Trainer gives the unused dialogue "Now come! Show me, the Tower Tycoon, what you're really made of!" If this Trainer is defeated, the player will receive 1 BP instead of the normal 20 BP.
In Generation V
Sky Drop glitch
- Main article: Sky Drop glitch
This glitch only occurs in Pokémon Black and White. Due to the glitch, the move Sky Drop was banned in Wi-Fi Random Matches starting November 10, 2010.
This glitch can only occur in double and triple battles. It is activated when Gravity is used while two Pokémon are in the semi-invulnerable state after Sky Drop is used. Gravity will bring the user of Sky Drop down while the target will be stuck in the semi-invulnerable state, unable to move until it is knocked out.
Nimbasa Gym Trainer glitch
In Pokémon Black and White, if the player loses to Lady Colette in Nimbasa Gym while directly facing her when encountered, this glitch will occur. When the player comes back in she will be standing on the same spot and will battle the player. After she is defeated, she still remains on the tracks of the roller coaster, and can be passed through while riding the roller coaster to Kamitsure.
TM67 Retaliate glitch
In Pokémon Black and White, TM67 (Retaliate) (received from Lenora) appears as a Dark-type TM, despite the move being a Normal-type move. It is unknown whether this glitch is in the early releases of Pokémon Black and White or in all versions.
In the side games
Dungeon shop glitch
The Kecleon money glitch is a glitch in Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Red Rescue Team and Blue Rescue Team. By placing an item on the carpet and quick saving the game, after the game is restarted Kecleon will continue to think that the item has been sold recently and will pay the sell price every time he is spoken to.
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False thief glitch
In Explorers of Time and Darkness, if a wild Pokémon is knocked out on a Kecleon shop and drops an item, the item is picked up like usual, but this will be considered as stealing. Even talking to Kecleon before leaving the shop won't do anything, as it wasn't set as a Kecleon shop item.
Kecleon glitch
A glitch in Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Red Rescue Team and Blue Rescue Team and Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time and Explorers of Darkness that allows the player to make Kecleon act as if it were part of the team without recruiting it. It is not present in Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky. It is not actually part of the team, only behaving as part of it, so it will not follow the team onto the next floor.
The team leader is required to wear a Pass Scarf and stand next to a Kecleon. When the team leader is attacked by a wild Pokémon and the attack is passed onto the Kecleon, Kecleon will attack the Pokémon who attacked it. After this Pokémon has fainted, Kecleon will be treated as if it were a team member for that floor, except it does not appear on the list as a team member. However, it is not actually a team member, so Kecleon will disappear once the team goes to the next floor.
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References
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This glitch Pokémon article is part of Project GlitchDex, a Bulbapedia project that aims to write comprehensive articles on glitches in the Pokémon games. |
