Completed Pokémon: Giovanni Origins [JOHTO - OUT NOW!]

DaleFails · May 31, 2023

Bug Fixed!

I have uploaded a new version of the game with a fix!

Bug: when using Teleport, Dig, Escape Rope etc you are teleported to a demo map which is not part of the game, and you will be stuck. The patch addresses this, and instead the Player will be spawned back into their home.

Amallah · Jun 1, 2023

First session done, and I got a couple things for ya! Just typos, no bugs aside from Nurse Joy still healing your "Pokémon" before you get your starter, if you think that might be worth fixing. Easiest way I can think of would be to have an NPC standing at the counter getting their team healed up, with some dialogue asking you to be patient or something like that, then make them disappear once your starter is chosen.

Anyway, these are typos I either forgot to report before, or completely missed my first playthrough:

Intro interrogation sequence - silent teatment -> silent treatment

Book in player room - Seadra evovles -> Seadra evolves

Mum in player house - don't forget to keep a tab of your the different outfits -> of the different outfits

Old man grumpy about someone trying to buy his house in Vermilion - "bare the thought" -> "bear the thought" (I mix these up all the time and always have to double-check, haha)

TV in Vermilion that talks about the potential war -> One of the questions about war ends in a period, when it should end in a question mark

Pokémon Fan Club President - "Well thank <player> for coming along today" -> "Well thank you, <player>, for coming along today."

This one may be more of a nitpick, so ignore it if you'd like:

Giovanni after defeat in Pokémon Tower - "You are the one of few things driving me to achieve my goals" -> "You are one of the few things..." I think the first way is technically a correct way to word it, it just sounds a bit awkward, but that's just my opinion!

DaleFails · Jun 1, 2023

Amallah said:
First session done, and I got a couple things for ya! Just typos, no bugs aside from Nurse Joy still healing your "Pokémon" before you get your starter, if you think that might be worth fixing. Easiest way I can think of would be to have an NPC standing at the counter getting their team healed up, with some dialogue asking you to be patient or something like that, then make them disappear once your starter is chosen.

Anyway, these are typos I either forgot to report before, or completely missed my first playthrough:

Intro interrogation sequence - silent teatment -> silent treatment

Book in player room - Seadra evovles -> Seadra evolves

Mum in player house - don't forget to keep a tab of your the different outfits -> of the different outfits

Old man grumpy about someone trying to buy his house in Vermilion - "bare the thought" -> "bear the thought" (I mix these up all the time and always have to double-check, haha)

TV in Vermilion that talks about the potential war -> One of the questions about war ends in a period, when it should end in a question mark

Pokémon Fan Club President - "Well thank <player> for coming along today" -> "Well thank you, <player>, for coming along today."

This one may be more of a nitpick, so ignore it if you'd like:

Giovanni after defeat in Pokémon Tower - "You are the one of few things driving me to achieve my goals" -> "You are one of the few things..." I think the first way is technically a correct way to word it, it just sounds a bit awkward, but that's just my opinion!

Hey - thanks for this! I really appreciate it. When you’re the sole developer you kinda become blind to a lot of your own typos!

I’ll get these sorted for the next release, and the healing Pokémon when you don’t have any quirk!

Thanks again for playing!

Amallah · Jun 1, 2023

DaleFails said:
Hey - thanks for this! I really appreciate it. When you’re the sole developer you kinda become blind to a lot of your own typos!

I’ll get these sorted for the next release, and the healing Pokémon when you don’t have any quirk!

Thanks again for playing!

No problem! Totally get being blind when writing your own stuff, I've often gone back to re-read some of dialogue I wrote and am mind-blown over some of the mistakes I find, haha.

Edit: Found a bug, impressive it took so long to finally come across one! You've done a great job :)

In Fuchsia Town -- I mean, Fuchsia City! -- there's a trade you can make in the Pokémon Center. The trainer asks for a Shinx in exchange for their Timburr, but will not accept my Shinx for trade. If I had to guess, the values might be swapped in the event for trade to where the trainer wants a Timburr for a Shinx.

I also believe there's an issue with the level caps that were added in this update. I defeated the Fuchsia Gym Leader who said the next level cap is 24, and I've leveled my starter to 26 so far without having any exp reduction. Not sure if that's intended or not, thought I'd mention it.

Also, some new typos:

Route 13 sign (fence maze) - Looks for dropped items -> Look for dropped items
Eusine in Celadon - Kanto Gym Leader owns one ofd them -> owns one of them

DaleFails · Jun 2, 2023

Latest Patch (v1.0.3)!

Updates:

Shiny odds amended to 1/250 - still rare, but fair for a fan game!
Can longer use the Pokémon Centre in Saffron prior to getting a Pokémon.
Level Caps have been fixed.
Shinx for Timburr trade in Fuchsia City fixed.
Move Relearner added to Pewter City.,
Missing door fixed in Pewter City.
Numerous small typos corrected.

Thanks again to everybody playing and reporting bugs, and a special shout out to user 'Amallah' for the various bug reports!

Tom12k2023 · Jun 2, 2023

DaleFails said:
Welcome to Pokémon: Giovanni Origins

View attachment 17129

In this story, set roughly 20 years before the events of Pokémon Red and Pokémon Blue, you play as the childhood friend of Team Rocket Boss Giovanni.

Growing up in Saffron City, you and Giovanni will traverse Kanto and Johto together, challenging for gym badges and championships along the way. You will witness first hand the backstory of Giovanni, watching from the sidelines as your friend ventures down a dark path, turning to a life of crime.

As you explore Kanto and Johto, you will see the vast difference 20 years can make to a region. You will find characters and references to the future games hidden everywhere you look. Enjoy exploring the Pokémon world long before the stories of legendary Pokémon trainers such as Red and Blue.

>>>>>>>>>> Google Drive link v1.0.3 - Kanto complete! Click here! <<<<<<<<<<

>>>>>>>>>> Mediafire link v1.0.3 - Kanto complete! Click here! <<<<<<<<<<

Transfer your save to a newer version of the game:

Transfer the following file your existing directory of the game into the same folder in your newly downloaded version of the game, and you should be able to carry on from where you left off!

View attachment 18229

Key features:

Set roughly 20 years before the events of Pokémon Red and Pokémon Blue versions.

Explore both Kanto and Johto (current release includes all of Kanto, eight badges & Kanto League)

Explore the regional differences between the Kanto and Johto you know, to the Kanto and Johto of old!

Explore various areas before their demise, such as Pokémon Mansion and the Kanto Power Plant!

Seek out the original 16 Gym Leaders and Elite Four, hidden around the region as Easter Eggs.

Predominantly Kanto Pokémon, with other Pokémon from all other regions available in limited numbers.

Find out the backstory of Giovanni, the criminal mastermind behind Team Rocket!

Boss battles! Hunt and beat powerful wild Boss Pokémon for special rewards!

Side quests - talk to NPCs to discover various side quests with various rewards.

Generation 1 and 2 soundtrack, including soundtracks from other Pokémon games.

Speed up button - press Q to accelerate the game. Please use sparingly!

Level Caps to prevent over-levelling, and late game repeatable trainers within Victory Road for late game grinding.

A big plot twist to end the game!

DaleFails developer house! Find and battle me once you've beat the Kanto League!

The current release features eight gym badges, the Kanto league and all of Kanto - feedback wanted!

I do plan to include Johto with a full continuation of the story, eight more gym badges, more boss battles and a new league challenge, but this will take a long time to produce. Please enjoy the Kanto release of this game, as I unsure if I will return to complete Johto in full!

Screenshots:
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Socials - let's talk Pokémon! I collect and play!
TikTok - DaleFails
Instagram - DaleFailsGaming

Essentials version and Plugins used:

Pokémon Essentials v20.1

Pokémon Essentials v20.1Hotfixes

Essentials Deluxe

Always in Grass

Generation 8 Pack Scripts

Overworld Shadows EX

Speed Up 2.0

Pre-looped Music Library by ENLS, Thundaga, YTKrakerwat & Sulucnal

Public tiles as sourced from Relic Castle

Tiles and Overworlds from various sources across the Pokémon from over the years

and a huge thanks to the developers of all of the above!

Credits:

Game development (mapping, scripting, eventing, everything!):
Myself - DaleFails

Pokémon Essentials:
"Pokémon Essentials" was created by:
Flameguru
Poccil (Peter O.)
Maruno

With contributions from:
AvatarMonkeyKirby<s>Marin
Boushy<s>MiDas Mike
Brother1440<s>Near Fantastica
FL.<s>PinkMan
Genzai Kawakami<s>Popper
Golisopod User<s>Rataime
help-14<s>Savordez
IceGod64<s>SoundSpawn
Jacob O. Wobbrock<s>the__end
KitsuneKouta<s>Venom12
Lisa Anthony<s>Wachunga
Luka S.J.<s>
and everyone else who helped out

"mkxp-z" by:
Roza
Based on "mkxp" by Ancurio et al.

"RPG Maker XP" by:
Enterbrain

Pokémon is owned by:
The Pokémon Company
Nintendo
Affiliated with Game Freak

This is a non-profit fan-made game.
No copyright infringements intended.
Please support the official games!

Essentials Deluxe: Lucidious89

Always in Bushes: Kotaro, Titania318, Kleinstudio, derFischae

Overworld Shadows EX: Golisopod User, Marin, WolfPP

Generation 8 Pack for Essentials v20.1:

Battler Sprites:
Gen 1-5 Pokemon Sprites - veekun
Gen 6 Pokemon Sprites - All Contributors To Smogon X/Y Sprite Project
Gen 7 Pokemon Sprites - All Contributors To Smogon Sun/Moon Sprite Project
Gen 8 Pokemon Sprites - All Contributors To Smogon Sword/Shield Sprite Project

Overworld Sprites
Gen 6+ Berry Tree Overworlds - Anarlaurendil
Gen 6 Pokemon Overworlds - princess-pheonix, LunarDusk, Wolfang62, TintjeMadelintje101, piphybuilder88
Gen 7 Pokemon Overworlds - Larry Turbo, princess-pheonix
Gen 8 Pokemon Overworlds - SageDeoxys, Wolfang62, LarryTurbo, tammyclaydon
Gen 1-5 Pokemon Overworlds - MissingLukey, help-14, Kymoyonian, cSc-A7X, 2and2makes5, Pokegirl4ever, Fernandojl, Silver-Skies, TyranitarDark, Getsuei-H, Kid1513, Milomilotic11, Kyt666, kdiamo11, Chocosrawlooid, Syledude, Gallanty, Gizamimi-Pichu, 2and2makes5, Zyon17,LarryTurbo, spritesstealer, LarryTurbo

Icon Sprites
Gen 1-6 Pokemon Icon Sprites - Alaguesia
Gen 7 Pokemon Icon Sprites - Marin, MapleBranchWing, Contributors to the DS Styled Gen 7+ Repository
Gen 8 Icon Sprites - Larry Turbo, Leparagon

Cry Credits:
Gen 1-6 Pokemon Cries - Rhyden
Gen 7 Pokemon Cries - Marin, Rhyden
Gen 8 Pokemon Cries - Zeak6464

Script Credits:
Golisopod User, Luka S.J.

Compilation of Resources:
Golisopod User, UberDunsparce

v20.1 Hotfixes: Maruno

Public tiles and overworlds: SailorViscious, Magiscarf, Kyledove, WesleyFG

Speed Up 2.0: Marin for the original script, Phantombass for updating to 19.1

Pre-looped Music Library: ENLS, Thundaga, YTKrakerwat & Sulucnal

Officially licensed Pokémon credits:
The Pokémon Company
Nintendo
Affiliated with Game Freak

Thank you again to all the above - these are some incredible resources.

When I lose to Voltaic in the power plant the game bugs and doesn’t let me battle him again, he starts his dialogue but then nothing happens afterwards

DaleFails · Jun 2, 2023

Tom12k2023 said:
When I lose to Voltaic in the power plant the game bugs and doesn’t let me battle him again, he starts his dialogue but then nothing happens afterwards

Really? I’ll have a look when I can. Unfortunately I’m away and won’t be able to issue a fix until Sunday evening. Thanks for letting me know!

Amallah · Jun 3, 2023

DaleFails said:
Latest Patch (v1.0.3)!

Updates:

Shiny odds amended to 1/250 - still rare, but fair for a fan game!

Can longer use the Pokémon Centre in Saffron prior to getting a Pokémon.

Level Caps have been fixed.

Shinx for Timburr trade in Fuchsia City fixed.

Move Relearner added to Pewter City.,

Missing door fixed in Pewter City.

Numerous small typos corrected.

Thanks again to everybody playing and reporting bugs, and a special shout out to user 'Amallah' for the various bug reports!

Glad I could help!

Got a couple new bugs for you, or more likely old ones I overlooked my first playthrough.

It seems the level caps are still a bit off. I'm on the latest version, which I confirmed by going to trade for Timburr (my favorite gen 5 Fighting evolution line), and the trade succeeded this time. I'm just about to fight the Celadon Gym Leader, so my level cap should still be 24 (unless the broken thing was White saying it was 24), and my Vulpix is level 26 going into the leader battle. It's possible the fix only applies to a new save though, in which case you can ignore this!

For the reports below, you can click the thumbnail images to view a larger version. The original pictures ended up huge, so I didn't want to take up too much space.

The tiles below me in the Safari Zone are passable. While it's a great shortcut for me, I thought I'd report it haha

After defeating Scott on Seafoam Islands, he disappears from view. Might have teleported him away early or don't have an sprite set on the event page with the after-battle text, if it's on a different page.

Encounters seem to be missing on Route 20 (Edit: Never mind, they must just be really rare, I surfed around a ton and it took three trips back and forth between Cinnabar and Seafoam to get any)

Some rocks are missing on the outskirts of Cinnabar to prevent you from surfing outside it. Also, not sure if the encounter late is just incredibly low, or if it only is fishable in one tile like in Ruby/Sapphire/Emerald, but I can't seem to fish up Feebas around the city like a fisherman suggested. I've been through at least 100 encounters so far. Is it actually the routes surrounding Cinnabar that it's fishable?

The rock below me at Mt. Moon has no collision

Tables used in the Power Plant can be stood on, sort of

Didn't get a screenshot, but in the Power Plant the trash can near Voltaic has no collision, so you can stand in it.

Typo(s):

Cinnabar Research Lab egg lady - my Pokémon at the Day Cared -> at the Day Care
Cinnabar Mansion Sailor Trainer after defeat - all the way for Cianwood -> all the way from Cianwood
Cinnabar Mansion chef - One of the new, trainee cook's -> One of the new trainee cooks
Sign below Viridian City - limited by their poweer points -> limited by their power points
I accidentally passed the dialogue too quickly to get the exact sentence, but in Giovanni's speech after the plan failed in Viridian, I believe I saw "nymore" instead of "anymore". Apologies if I mis-read!
After defeating Neolith in Pewter Gym - Absoloutely outstanding. -> Absolutely outstanding.
^ and - They battle has breathed... -> The battle has breathed...
When interacting with Electrode in the Power Plant - locked into the power grind -> locked into the power grid
The Viridian City Gym statues say it's actually the Celadon City Gym
Accidentally passed dialogue too quickly, but in the interrogation scene after defeating Digga, I saw a double "we" from the officer

Bowlingsoup · Jun 4, 2023

I just finished playing game, and I have to say it was a blast to play through. The esthetic of the game is pleasing to look at and it was fun to explore Kanto in a completely different version. I do however have some feedback to improve your game even more, which is mainly focussed on the balance of your game.

The northern ends of the rock walls are currently passable inside the Safari. This means you can unintentionally skip parts of the Safari.
Every single ladder has the 'pbCaveEntrance' command set up. This means that you can't use an Escape Rope to get outside of the Rock-Gym or Victory Road, making these areas more tedious than they need to be.
There is currently no map location set up. Which does take away from the game immersion. But also means that Flying through the overworld takes longer than it should, because Kanto is positioned all the way on the right. While the cursor starts all the way at the top left.
Giovanni mentions he will heal your Pokémon at the Power Plant. But the scoundrel that is Giovanni, doesn't actually heal your Pokémon at that moment.
The Power Plant doesn't have a 'Starting Over' switch event set up. If a player whites out at the Power Plant, and then later enters a Pokémon Center, the nurse immediately starts to heal your Pokémon. Because the 'Starting Over' event still needs to be ran.

At first I was confused by the victory dialogue of the Gym Leaders. They clearly mention there should be a level cap, yet for the first six Gym Leaders, there isn't. This has a few implications on the balance of the game:

Blastoise is by far the best starter out of the three. It has the best defensive typing, a great movepool, amazing defensive stats. But more importantly, the move Shell Smash. The entire game can currently be beatable and cheesable by Blastoise alone. Case in point, my Blastoise was level 46 at the Digga battle event. This was only from defeating every single trainers, and a very small amount of wild Pokémon. And even though you clearly didn't intend for the first Digga battle to be beatable, I was still able to defeat him thanks to an overlevelled Blastoise. After this exact fight the level cap is actually fixed. Which is when I realized that you meant for there to be a level cap from the start of the game.
Surf is accesible in the early game. Which, if you guessed it, amplifies the performance of Wartortle and Blastoise even more. Making the two Pokémon not only great at soaking up damage, but dealing damage as well.
The Exp. Share is obtainable in the early game. This means that a player can defeat every single trainer with one Pokémon (Blastoise), and still have the other party members be on the same level as the trainers.
After the level cap is fixed, the game is still cheesable with Blastoise. This is solely because of Shell Smash. Which means that there isn't a single trainer that is an actual challenge.
The ace of Digga felt unfun for me personally. This is only because of the evasion boost Mamoswine receives, which has no means for you to counterplay. You either hit your moves and win, or you don't and lose.

Fixing the level cap should fix the Digga event. But there is always the option to add a small easter egg. The dialogue of the investigator can always be changed. So that if the player does find a way to defeat Digga, the investigator can make note of this with dialogue similar to: 'Are you seriously so embarrassed by this event, so that you have to lie about it? We both know you lost to Digga that day. As I told you before, I have the reports right in front of my nose. I know exactly when you're lieing.' Adding this small easter egg, will also make the game feel more immersive for the players that did cheese this battle.
Fixing the level cap should limit the snowball effect that is Blastoise. But due to Surf being early accessible, the level cap fix won't stop it completely. Which means another tweak should be in order:
Have Blastoise learn Shell Smash much later on in the game. Wartortle currently learns the move at Level 35. But if you postpone this wrecking ball of a move, the player can use Blastoise as a tank at first. And a sweeper in the endgame.

The Pokémon tower event was by far the best thing I've seen in an Essentials project. The glitchy part was incredibly well done, and made me think for a slight second that you actually wanted to reset the game. But the entire esthethics and creepiness of the event pushed this entire experience over the top. You've done an amazing job on this part!
I loved what you did with the overworld boss battle events. Seeing a level 80 'Kong' made me say 'Oh, shit' irl. It was the feeling of being overwhelmed by a strong opponent, that made these events feel amazing.
There was not a single point of the game that felt slow. Or that I felt lost at. It was very clear what needed to be done by the dialogue. This was especially well implemented with the side quests.
Having the option to explore the four different corners from Saffron City was a fun experience. It made Kanto feel incredibly immersive. And made the game not feel linear at all, even if there was a set direction that had to be followed.

I hope you can do something with the feedback I provided! Thank you very much for making this game!

DaleFails · Jun 4, 2023

Amallah said:
Glad I could help!

Got a couple new bugs for you, or more likely old ones I overlooked my first playthrough.

It seems the level caps are still a bit off. I'm on the latest version, which I confirmed by going to trade for Timburr (my favorite gen 5 Fighting evolution line), and the trade succeeded this time. I'm just about to fight the Celadon Gym Leader, so my level cap should still be 24 (unless the broken thing was White saying it was 24), and my Vulpix is level 26 going into the leader battle. It's possible the fix only applies to a new save though, in which case you can ignore this!

For the reports below, you can click the thumbnail images to view a larger version. The original pictures ended up huge, so I didn't want to take up too much space.

The tiles below me in the Safari Zone are passable. While it's a great shortcut for me, I thought I'd report it haha

View attachment 18273

After defeating Scott on Seafoam Islands, he disappears from view. Might have teleported him away early or don't have an sprite set on the event page with the after-battle text, if it's on a different page.

View attachment 18281

Encounters seem to be missing on Route 20 (Edit: Never mind, they must just be really rare, I surfed around a ton and it took three trips back and forth between Cinnabar and Seafoam to get any)

Some rocks are missing on the outskirts of Cinnabar to prevent you from surfing outside it. Also, not sure if the encounter late is just incredibly low, or if it only is fishable in one tile like in Ruby/Sapphire/Emerald, but I can't seem to fish up Feebas around the city like a fisherman suggested. I've been through at least 100 encounters so far. Is it actually the routes surrounding Cinnabar that it's fishable?

View attachment 18303

The rock below me at Mt. Moon has no collision

View attachment 18304

Tables used in the Power Plant can be stood on, sort of

View attachment 18307

Didn't get a screenshot, but in the Power Plant the trash can near Voltaic has no collision, so you can stand in it.

Typo(s):

Cinnabar Research Lab egg lady - my Pokémon at the Day Cared -> at the Day Care
Cinnabar Mansion Sailor Trainer after defeat - all the way for Cianwood -> all the way from Cianwood
Cinnabar Mansion chef - One of the new, trainee cook's -> One of the new trainee cooks
Sign below Viridian City - limited by their poweer points -> limited by their power points
I accidentally passed the dialogue too quickly to get the exact sentence, but in Giovanni's speech after the plan failed in Viridian, I believe I saw "nymore" instead of "anymore". Apologies if I mis-read!
After defeating Neolith in Pewter Gym - Absoloutely outstanding. -> Absolutely outstanding.
^ and - They battle has breathed... -> The battle has breathed...
When interacting with Electrode in the Power Plant - locked into the power grind -> locked into the power grid
The Viridian City Gym statues say it's actually the Celadon City Gym
Accidentally passed dialogue too quickly, but in the interrogation scene after defeating Digga, I saw a double "we" from the officer

As usual, fantastic feedback. I will give you a mention in the original post for your contribution! Thank you again, these have all been addressed with the release I am about to upload.

Bowlingsoup said:
I just finished playing game, and I have to say it was a blast to play through. The esthetic of the game is pleasing to look at and it was fun to explore Kanto in a completely different version. I do however have some feedback to improve your game even more, which is mainly focussed on the balance of your game.

The northern ends of the rock walls are currently passable inside the Safari. This means you can unintentionally skip parts of the Safari.

Every single ladder has the 'pbCaveEntrance' command set up. This means that you can't use an Escape Rope to get outside of the Rock-Gym or Victory Road, making these areas more tedious than they need to be.

There is currently no map location set up. Which does take away from the game immersion. But also means that Flying through the overworld takes longer than it should, because Kanto is positioned all the way on the right. While the cursor starts all the way at the top left.

Giovanni mentions he will heal your Pokémon at the Power Plant. But the scoundrel that is Giovanni, doesn't actually heal your Pokémon at that moment.

The Power Plant doesn't have a 'Starting Over' switch event set up. If a player whites out at the Power Plant, and then later enters a Pokémon Center, the nurse immediately starts to heal your Pokémon. Because the 'Starting Over' event still needs to be ran.

At first I was confused by the victory dialogue of the Gym Leaders. They clearly mention there should be a level cap, yet for the first six Gym Leaders, there isn't. This has a few implications on the balance of the game:

Blastoise is by far the best starter out of the three. It has the best defensive typing, a great movepool, amazing defensive stats. But more importantly, the move Shell Smash. The entire game can currently be beatable and cheesable by Blastoise alone. Case in point, my Blastoise was level 46 at the Digga battle event. This was only from defeating every single trainers, and a very small amount of wild Pokémon. And even though you clearly didn't intend for the first Digga battle to be beatable, I was still able to defeat him thanks to an overlevelled Blastoise. After this exact fight the level cap is actually fixed. Which is when I realized that you meant for there to be a level cap from the start of the game.

Surf is accesible in the early game. Which, if you guessed it, amplifies the performance of Wartortle and Blastoise even more. Making the two Pokémon not only great at soaking up damage, but dealing damage as well.

The Exp. Share is obtainable in the early game. This means that a player can defeat every single trainer with one Pokémon (Blastoise), and still have the other party members be on the same level as the trainers.

After the level cap is fixed, the game is still cheesable with Blastoise. This is solely because of Shell Smash. Which means that there isn't a single trainer that is an actual challenge.

The ace of Digga felt unfun for me personally. This is only because of the evasion boost Mamoswine receives, which has no means for you to counterplay. You either hit your moves and win, or you don't and lose.

Fixing the level cap should fix the Digga event. But there is always the option to add a small easter egg. The dialogue of the investigator can always be changed. So that if the player does find a way to defeat Digga, the investigator can make note of this with dialogue similar to: 'Are you seriously so embarrassed by this event, so that you have to lie about it? We both know you lost to Digga that day. As I told you before, I have the reports right in front of my nose. I know exactly when you're lieing.' Adding this small easter egg, will also make the game feel more immersive for the players that did cheese this battle.

Fixing the level cap should limit the snowball effect that is Blastoise. But due to Surf being early accessible, the level cap fix won't stop it completely. Which means another tweak should be in order:

Have Blastoise learn Shell Smash much later on in the game. Wartortle currently learns the move at Level 35. But if you postpone this wrecking ball of a move, the player can use Blastoise as a tank at first. And a sweeper in the endgame.

The Pokémon tower event was by far the best thing I've seen in an Essentials project. The glitchy part was incredibly well done, and made me think for a slight second that you actually wanted to reset the game. But the entire esthethics and creepiness of the event pushed this entire experience over the top. You've done an amazing job on this part!

I loved what you did with the overworld boss battle events. Seeing a level 80 'Kong' made me say 'Oh, shit' irl. It was the feeling of being overwhelmed by a strong opponent, that made these events feel amazing.

There was not a single point of the game that felt slow. Or that I felt lost at. It was very clear what needed to be done by the dialogue. This was especially well implemented with the side quests.

Having the option to explore the four different corners from Saffron City was a fun experience. It made Kanto feel incredibly immersive. And made the game not feel linear at all, even if there was a set direction that had to be followed.

I hope you can do something with the feedback I provided! Thank you very much for making this game!

First off, thank you very much for playing and for all of the feedback!

In the release I am about to announce, I have addressed all of the quality issues. I have no idea that pbCaveEntrance and pbCaveExit determined the Escape Rope usage! I have also fixed the map locations and Starting Over switches. Thanks again.,

Balance Tweaks - the Level Cap fix did require a new save to be started, as they are set up from the start of the game. The Blastoise move.. holy sh*t, I had no idea Shell Smash did THAT! I have replaced it with Body Slam in the learnset, and then put Shell Smash as a very late learner move. That move is ridiculous and will just take the challenge out of the game for everybody. Blastoise now learns this very late, at Level 63.

Thank you for the kind words also, I'm glad you didn't find it to be a drag and worked through at least some of the side quests and boss Pokémon, I have had a lot of fun putting those in, especially the Pokémon Tower event you mentioned!

DaleFails · Jun 4, 2023

Latest Patch (v1.0.4)!

Updates:

The Power Plant event bugs are fixed. If the Player loses to Voltaic or Pierce in the Power Plant, you will no longer be softlocked.
Power Plant battle music fixed.
Map Locations added to add convenience when using HM move Fly.
Escape Rope now functions in caves as expected.
Blastoise NERF. The move Skull Smash has been added as a Level 63 learn move for Blastoise. This move makes the game too easy otherwise.
Some tiling fixes throughout.
Some grammar fixes throughout.
The Player can now check which version of the Game they are playing on the Poster in the Player's room.
Feebas encounters around Cinnabar Island fixed.
Starting Over events in Power Plant and Viridian City fixed.

Note: Level Caps are only working for brand new save files created on Version 1.0.3 or later.

Thanks again to everybody playing and reporting bugs!

Amallah · Jun 5, 2023

DaleFails said:
As usual, fantastic feedback. I will give you a mention in the original post for your contribution! Thank you again, these have all been addressed with the release I am about to upload.

Thanks very much!

Do you have a Discord up for the game or nah? Also, got a couple new things and a spoiler-y question for you:

I've got a Feebas and I'm trying to evolve it for the side quest in Vermilion. I've made sure to equip it with the Prism Scale. What level is it meant to evolve at since it can't be traded? It's at 44 so far.

Typos:

Cool Trainer Miles on Victory Road - defeat the reigning the Champion! -> defeat the reigning Champion!
NPC by Nurse Joy at Indigo Plateau - I want to make on last change -> I want to make one last change
Both ninjutsu students inside the school - is too focussed -> is too focused
Upon defeating Odanaga - The Pokémon shatteres -> The Pokémon shatters

And then the tiles beside the Indigo Plateau doors don't have collision, so you can walk up to the roof:

This boulder in Cerulean Cave doesn't have an event to move it.

This is a very small thing, but when you're going to battle the Jonin in the Ninjutsu school, he asks you if you're ready to battle or not. The Show Choice option appears in the top left, rather than the right side of the screen like you'd expect. If it's something you're interested in fixing, I'm guessing you have an event command between the dialogue and Show Choices option, possibly a switch or something? If you move the Show Choices option directly below the dialogue in the event, that should do the trick. Like so:

DaleFails · Jun 5, 2023

Another day, another Patch! (v1.0.5)!

Updates:

Item evolutions fixed, such as Metal Coat for Onix, Prism Scale for Feebas etc.
On Route 4, outside Cerulean City, you can now rematch 4 trainers with high-level Pokémon for easy grinding!
Tile permissions fixed around the Pokémon League.
Some grammar fixes throughout.

Note: Level Caps are only working for brand new save files created on Version 1.0.3 or later.

Thanks again to everybody playing and reporting bugs!

DaleFails · Jun 5, 2023

Amallah said:
Thanks very much!

Do you have a Discord up for the game or nah? Also, got a couple new things and a spoiler-y question for you:

I've got a Feebas and I'm trying to evolve it for the side quest in Vermilion. I've made sure to equip it with the Prism Scale. What level is it meant to evolve at since it can't be traded? It's at 44 so far.

Typos:

Cool Trainer Miles on Victory Road - defeat the reigning the Champion! -> defeat the reigning Champion!
NPC by Nurse Joy at Indigo Plateau - I want to make on last change -> I want to make one last change
Both ninjutsu students inside the school - is too focussed -> is too focused
Upon defeating Odanaga - The Pokémon shatteres -> The Pokémon shatters

And then the tiles beside the Indigo Plateau doors don't have collision, so you can walk up to the roof:

View attachment 18309

This boulder in Cerulean Cave doesn't have an event to move it.

View attachment 18311

This is a very small thing, but when you're going to battle the Jonin in the Ninjutsu school, he asks you if you're ready to battle or not. The Show Choice option appears in the top left, rather than the right side of the screen like you'd expect. If it's something you're interested in fixing, I'm guessing you have an event command between the dialogue and Show Choices option, possibly a switch or something? If you move the Show Choices option directly below the dialogue in the event, that should do the trick. Like so:

View attachment 18312

Thanks again bud - I have fixed most of those tonight. The boulder in Cerulean Cave is supposed to be like that as Cerulean Cave is late-game content for Johto. The 'focussed' spelling is English so that one is fine too. The Yes/No thing I looked at, but it is set up how you suggested. Not a game breaker so I left it.

Thanks yet again for your contribution! I'll be putting you in the End Credits at this rate, haha!

Amallah · Jun 6, 2023

DaleFails said:
Thanks again bud - I have fixed most of those tonight. The boulder in Cerulean Cave is supposed to be like that as Cerulean Cave is late-game content for Johto. The 'focussed' spelling is English so that one is fine too. The Yes/No thing I looked at, but it is set up how you suggested. Not a game breaker so I left it.

Thanks yet again for your contribution! I'll be putting you in the End Credits at this rate, haha!

Ah dang, I knew most of the English spelling differences in the game from my work (my boss is from the UK), so TIL 'focussed' is one of them haha. Thanks!

I just finished what I think was my last side quest after the fixes today, so here's my full game feedback after wrapping everything up:

Getting ~~scammed~~ talked into paying $10,000 for a 'Lucario' makes this an instant 10/10

Jokes aside, this was a really great fan game! One of the best I've played recently, and I've played quite a few of them to see the design choices other devs have made and learn from them. Your side quests were all pretty well explained, the concept of Pokémon bosses was interesting and well-executed, and the maps all actually felt like Kanto of the past.

I can't speak much on the level cap system since I was too far in to restart when the fix went live, but based on what the leaders said the cap would be after defeating them, each cap seemed reasonable. The gym leaders and Elite 4 were all crafted well! They each had a good team of Pokémon, some of the later ones had good "gimmicks" (the Sturdy team was annoying, but in a good way!), and their personalities were distinct and well-written. Neolith was probably my favorite out of the gym leaders. Something about having a really o l d man with seemingly one foot in the grave being one of the strongest gym leaders in a region is so satisfying to me.

On the way to Victory Road, the sudden switch to the "future" Kanto battle against Blue was a cool sequence. At first I will say I was a bit confused, and was almost about to report it as I thought that I got teleported to a test map, but decided to play out the battle once I realized I still had my team. It was a nice touch though to symbolize the player's journey to fight their rival ahead, like Red and Blue in the originals. I think the only thing that could be done there to make it more obvious that it's intended would be to have a screen effect of some kind (maybe a shimmering, if it's possible?) that begins when the player freezes at the event trigger spot, then have the map change after the effect ends. Once the battle ends, the same effect could be played to return the player to the present and get awarded with that outfit. Just a suggestion of course!

While I enjoyed all of the side quests and bosses, I gotta say the Lavender Tower event was probably the best I'd seen in a long time. The atmosphere fit the tower really well, the glitchiness that started to happen really made it feel haunting and like the game was actually breaking, and while the basic form of the boss was obvious due to the event's location, you added a nice twist at making it the mega version of the Pokémon in the actual battle. The background during some parts of the event that used the sprite of the "mysterious" ghost from the gen 1 games was also a great touch. This is something I'd like to see in more games in the future, and something I intend to strive for as well.

I think that's about all I've got here other than an overall "great game!" I'm really looking forward to the Johto updates, but of course take your time on them!

mikethemaster2012 · Jun 6, 2023

How to evolve scyther. Is the metal coat and level up?

Amallah · Jun 6, 2023

mikethemaster2012 said:
How to evolve scyther. Is the metal coat and level up?

I don't know for sure, but try using it on Scyther rather than making it hold it. That's what I had to do with Prism Scale for Feebas rather than holding it and leveling it up, so it could work the same.

Sentin29 · Jun 6, 2023

I am sorry but where do i get surf in Celadon

Amallah · Jun 7, 2023

Sentin29 said:
I am sorry but where do i get surf in Celadon

Try speaking with the lady worrying over her plants.

DaleFails · Jun 7, 2023

mikethemaster2012 said:
How to evolve scyther. Is the metal coat and level up?

Rather than level whilst holding, it's just a straight use item - the same way an evolution stone would work.

Amallah said:
Ah dang, I knew most of the English spelling differences in the game from my work (my boss is from the UK), so TIL 'focussed' is one of them haha. Thanks!

I just finished what I think was my last side quest after the fixes today, so here's my full game feedback after wrapping everything up:

Getting ~~scammed~~ talked into paying $10,000 for a 'Lucario' makes this an instant 10/10

Jokes aside, this was a really great fan game! One of the best I've played recently, and I've played quite a few of them to see the design choices other devs have made and learn from them. Your side quests were all pretty well explained, the concept of Pokémon bosses was interesting and well-executed, and the maps all actually felt like Kanto of the past.

I can't speak much on the level cap system since I was too far in to restart when the fix went live, but based on what the leaders said the cap would be after defeating them, each cap seemed reasonable. The gym leaders and Elite 4 were all crafted well! They each had a good team of Pokémon, some of the later ones had good "gimmicks" (the Sturdy team was annoying, but in a good way!), and their personalities were distinct and well-written. Neolith was probably my favorite out of the gym leaders. Something about having a really o l d man with seemingly one foot in the grave being one of the strongest gym leaders in a region is so satisfying to me.

On the way to Victory Road, the sudden switch to the "future" Kanto battle against Blue was a cool sequence. At first I will say I was a bit confused, and was almost about to report it as I thought that I got teleported to a test map, but decided to play out the battle once I realized I still had my team. It was a nice touch though to symbolize the player's journey to fight their rival ahead, like Red and Blue in the originals. I think the only thing that could be done there to make it more obvious that it's intended would be to have a screen effect of some kind (maybe a shimmering, if it's possible?) that begins when the player freezes at the event trigger spot, then have the map change after the effect ends. Once the battle ends, the same effect could be played to return the player to the present and get awarded with that outfit. Just a suggestion of course!

While I enjoyed all of the side quests and bosses, I gotta say the Lavender Tower event was probably the best I'd seen in a long time. The atmosphere fit the tower really well, the glitchiness that started to happen really made it feel haunting and like the game was actually breaking, and while the basic form of the boss was obvious due to the event's location, you added a nice twist at making it the mega version of the Pokémon in the actual battle. The background during some parts of the event that used the sprite of the "mysterious" ghost from the gen 1 games was also a great touch. This is something I'd like to see in more games in the future, and something I intend to strive for as well.

I think that's about all I've got here other than an overall "great game!" I'm really looking forward to the Johto updates, but of course take your time on them!

View attachment 18340

Thank you so much for the kinds words, and for your help with the bug fixing. Honest to god, I cannot believe how many typos I missed, and I thought I was pretty good at spotting them!

Awesome team to finish the game as well. I'm going to add a Dusk Stone to Pokémon Tower's upper levels as your Misdreavus reminded me that I hadn't put that stone in the game!

I plan to add some more Kanto flashbacks into the game, as well as side quests etc. To be honest, when I've finished Johto (long way off), I might send it to you exclusively first for a playthrough / bug test! Thanks again!

Completed Pokémon: Giovanni Origins [JOHTO - OUT NOW!]

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Horror Maze Enthusiast

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Horror Maze Enthusiast

Rookie

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