The Pokemon series has been around for over 25 years now so it’s no surprise that the games have gone through a lot of changes.
From 2D to 3D, and now from classic JRPGs to the action genre in Legends Arceus, some of these features obviously weren’t considered back in 1996. We’ve even covered a long list of features that Game Freak decided to drop as the games have moved along.
For newer fans who may not have had the chance to go back through the franchise, there are some features that you may be surprised that they haven’t been here since day one.
Here’s our list of fundamental features that we can’t imagine the core series doing without!
1. Breeding
Introduced: Pokemon Gold and Silver (1999)
Breeding is one of the core features of the Pokemon series that seems like it has been here forever. Whether you’re completing the Pokedex, hunting shinies or making the perfect fighting machine, breeding helps competitive and collection players alike.
The process of sharing hard to find Pokemon like starters or version exclusives is so much easier when all you need is to throw them and a Ditto together in daycare for a few minutes.
Nintendo added this mechanic in Generation Two, where they made a big deal of it, adding baby forms to some of Kanto’s finest like Electabuzz and Magmar. We saw eggs before Johto though, with Misty and her Togepi in Kanto, so new fans wouldn’t be crazy for thinking that it was here the whole time.
2. Friendship
Introduced: Pokemon Gold and Silver (1999)
For many fans, making friends with your Pokemon is the aim of the game. Checking your friendship level is a great way to measure how good a job you’re doing here.
If you get enough friendship points with a Pokemon, you can get all sorts of goodies. Exclusive ribbons, powerful attacks, and even some evolutions are available only to trainers with loving bonds.
Famous evolutions include Umbreon and Espeon, who need you to make a deep connection before they evolve from Eevee at different times of the day. Surprisingly there was no measure of your bond in the original games, this being one of the many additions in Gold and Silver brought to the table that it’s strange to think weren’t in the games before.
3. Female playable character
Introduced: Pokemon Crystal (2000)
While you wouldn’t expect there to be a customisable character or outfit back on the original Nintendo Game Boy, you might be amazed that it wasn’t until Pokemon Crystal that you could choose your gender at the start of the game.
While implied to have been a cut feature, your only choice for female leads in Kanto was waiting five more years for the FireRed/LeafGreen remakes. On the other hand, you could read the Pokemon Adventures manga that features strong women like Yellow and Blue in more prominent roles.
4. Move Deleter
Introduced: Pokemon Gold and Silver (2000)
Do you remember those pesky HM moves? These moves are often mandatory for the story, helping you smash boulders and slice down trees as you travel the overworld. The main downsides are that most of these moves are terrible in battle, and you can’t replace them with new ones.
As HMs are the perfect way to ruin a good Pokemon, it’s important for you to know exactly where the Move Deleter is in any game you play. However back in Generation One, there is no Move Deleter, so any HMs you teach are there for life! Luckily Johto brought us a helpful man who can make all those moves disappear, and he’s stayed a staple of every game since.
Thankfully HMs are not a concern anymore, as Game Freak got rid of them all together in Sun and Moon.
5. Move Reminder
Introduced: Pokemon Ruby and Sapphire (2002)
While it may seem an obvious inclusion to have with the Move Deleter, it wasn’t until the next generation that Game Freak thought to throw in a Move Reminder too.
This was an amazing option. For the price of a mere Heart Scale, you could unlock so many moves, especially those you’d accidentally deleted by mashing A too many times while grinding. Sword and Shield made this even more convenient by combining the Deleter and Reminder into one person, located in every single Pokecentre, at no charge too.
Be sure to check the next page to see the rest of the Pokemon features we can’t believe weren’t always in the games!