Pokéwalker

The Pokéwalker

The Pokéwalker (Japanese: ポケウォーカー Pokéwalker) is a pedometer device bundled with Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver that can interact with the games in various manners.

Much as HeartGold and SoulSilver are remakes of the original Gold and Silver, the Pokéwalker could be considered to be somewhat of a remake of the Pokémon Pikachu 2, which interacted in much the same way with the Generation II games. Unlike the Pokémon Pikachu 2, however, Pikachu is not the only Pokémon that can be interacted with, and Pokémon can actually be transferred to and from the Pokéwalker at any given point in time.

Like the Pokémon Pikachu and its successor, the Pokéwalker uses a currency known as "watts" (shortened to w), which are obtained as the player walks with the device. Every 20 steps will earn the player one watt.

Alongside the Johto Safari Zone, the Pokéwalker allows for Pokémon normally unavailable until after the player has traveled to Kanto, such as Murkrow, to be available before defeating the Elite Four.

Technical specs

File:Pokewalker artwork.png

Artwork and features of the Pokéwalker

The Pokéwalker is a small device, 4.8 centimeters (1.9 inches) in diameter and 13.9 millimeters (0.5 inches) thick, weighing in at only 21 grams (0.75 ounces). It is portable, with an optional belt clip included with the system; a plain backing is installed out of the package and must be replaced using a Phillips-head screwdriver.

Gameplay

Pokéwalker gameplay boils down to simply walking around with the device so as to charge up watts, then utilizing the watts to purchase use of the Poké Radar and Dowsing MCHN. Up to three caught Pokémon and up to three found items may be stored at once: any more than that, and the player will have to decide which to get rid of. The step counter resets at midnight each day. The Pokéwalker's clock is synchronized with the game's clock every time the Pokéwalker connects to the game. Although the clock can be viewed on the Pokéwalker under the "Trainer Card" menu option, it can not be directly altered on the Pokéwalker device. The Pokéwalker's clock is set in military time and can not be changed to 12-hour style.

From time to time, typically during the Pokéwalker's hibernation, the Pokémon stored in the Pokéwalker may react to something, displaying a face, a musical note, a heart, or an exclamation mark above the background of the route it's taking a stroll on. When that happens, the player must press the center button. Upon doing so, the player will receive either 10 watts (if it is a face), 20 watts (if it is a musical note), 50 watts (if it is a heart), or a random item from that route (if it is an exclamation mark). If there is no Pokémon stored in the Pokéwalker, the player might see a similar notice on the screen. If the middle button is pressed, a wild Pokémon might befriend the Trainer, which means it is instantly captured.

Poké Radar

File:Pokewalker battling.png

The battle screen

Each time the Poké Radar is used will cost the player 10 watts, and brings them to a screen containing four patches of grass. After a short period of time, an exclamation mark will appear above one of the patches. The player must then use the side buttons to align the arrow with that bush and push the center button to look in that bush before time expires. If the player successfully selects the bush with the exclamation mark, either a battle will begin or after a short random period of time an exclamation mark will appear above a bush again. Again the player must select the bush at which time either battle will begin or after a short random period of time two exclamation marks will appear above a random bush. If battle does not begin this time, finally three exclamation points will appear above one of the bushes. Successfully selecting that bush will always begin a battle. Taking too long to select the correct bush will instantly result in failure and the Poké Radar will need to be reused with 10 more watts to try again.

Exclamation Point	Pokémon Group
!	Group C
!	Group C or Group B
!!	Group B or Group A
!!!	Group A

The battle system of the Pokéwalker is quite primitive, even compared to the Generation I games; each Pokémon utilizes their in-game menusprite in the battle, while each has only 4 HP. Only three choices are offered: Attack, Evade, or Catch. Attacking will cause the player's Pokémon to perform a basic tackle on the opponent (note that this is not the move itself, and that type advantages and disadvantages play no role), while evading may cause the opponent's attack to miss. Evading successfully will result in attacking the opponent for one damage without receiving any. If the player's Pokémon evades but the opponent does not choose to attack, it will result in a "Stare down" between the two Pokémon. If multiple stare-downs occur in succession, it is likely the opponent will flee, though this is not always the case. The catch option will throw a Poké Ball at the wild Pokémon, which, if it is sufficiently weak enough, may be caught. Critical hits sometimes occur: these will take away 2 HP rather than the standard 1. If a Poké Ball is not successful in capturing the opponent Pokémon, it will flee, and the player's 10 watts will have been in vain. The same is true if the player's Pokémon defeats its opponent, while if the opponent defeats the player's Pokémon, up to ten watts will be lost (much as money is in the main series games after the defeat of the player's Pokémon).

Player Action	Wild Pokémon Action	Result
Attack	Attack	Player's Pokémon	Receive one damage
	Attack	Wild Pokémon	Receive one damage
	Evade	Player's Pokémon	Receive one damage
	Evade	Wild Pokémon	---
	Run	Player's Pokémon	Receive one damage
	Run	Wild Pokémon	Receive two damage (critical hit)
Evade	Attack	Player's Pokémon	---
	Attack	Wild Pokémon	Receive one damage
	Evade	Player's Pokémon	---
	Evade	Wild Pokémon	---
	Run	Player's Pokémon	---
	Run	Wild Pokémon	Run away
Catch	Succeed	Wild Pokémon is caught
Catch	Fail	Wild Pokémon runs away

Dowsing MCHN

File:Pokewalker items.png

Finding an item

Much like in the main games, the Dowsing MCHN will help the player find items in the wild. Each use of this function costs 3 watts, and the player has two chances to find an item hidden among six grass tufts. If the item is not found the first time, the Dowsing MCHN will tell the player if the item is close by or far away. If the item is close by then it is likely either to the direct right or the direct left of the first checked grass tuft. Likewise if the item is far away then the item is at least two grass tufts away in either direction. If the item is not found on the second search, the player will be out of luck and will have to pay an additional 3 watts to try again.

Advantageous types

Each Pokéwalker route has three advantageous elemental types which vary between routes, and have influence over the Pokéwalker's Poké Radar and Dowsing MCHN. When a Pokémon of an advantageous type is brought into a route, then the chance of finding rarer Pokémon when using the Poké Radar and items when using the Dowsing MCHN will slightly increase. In addition to making rarer Pokémon easier to find when using the Poké Radar, an advantageous type will lower the required step count for each Pokémon by 25%. This effect does not seem to apply to the Dowsing MCHN.

Routes

File:Pokewalker areas.png

Selecting a route before sending a Pokémon

The Pokéwalker has 27 distinct routes that a player can have their Pokémon visit on sending them from HeartGold or SoulSilver. The main difference between them is the species of Pokémon that can be found using the Poké Radar. Two routes are unlocked from the start, while more can be unlocked by various means.