Pokémon Crystal Version

"Vietnamese Crystal" Bootleg

A pirated version of the game, colloquially called Pokémon Vietnamese Crystal due to the country in which it was first known to be sold, became infamous after being featured in a Let's Play series on YouTube. The game is based on the official Japanese release, and seems to have been translated to at least one intermediate language before being translated into English. This has resulted in numerous mistranslations that are widely regarded to be comedic, as well as several severe bugs that make it difficult to play the game to completion.

Virtual Console Alterations

Since the Nintendo 3DS isn't compatible with the long-obsolete Game Link Cable, Virtual Console releases of this game use the system's local wireless features for link trades and battles. Several attack animations have also been toned down for the safety of players with photosensitive epilepsy or other sensory conditions, and Jynx's sprite in the Japanese release was changed to match its depiction in international versions.

In addition, one particular in-game event is significantly altered for the Virtual Console version. In the Game Boy Color version, capturing Celebi required use of the Pokémon Mobile System GB service, which was only available in Japan until the end of 2002. Although data for the sidequest was left in international releases, it was inaccessible through normal gameplay. The Virtual Console release makes this sidequest available to all regions without use of an outside event or service, and alters or removes several aspects of the quest to make it accessible much earlier in the story.

Regional Differences

In addition to the Celebi sidequest mentioned above, the Japanese Game Boy Color release of Crystal Version allows players to access wireless features through a peripheral called the Mobile Game Boy Adapter. These include trading and battling with other players online, shared details about other players' activity, and the ability to download event-exclusive content. The peripheral was not sold outside of Japan, so only a single event download was fully localized and implemented in international releases, where it was available through a slightly different method. None of these mobile features are functional in the Japanese Virtual Console release.

Awards

• Retro Gamer
  • October 2004 (Issue #9) – #3 Best Game Boy Game (together with Pokémon Gold Version and Pokémon Silver Version)