Now begins the journey through the Johto region, the region traveled through in the second generation of Pokemon, Pokemon Gold and Silver. The first town of the Johto region is New Bark Town. It has many similarities to Pallet Town from Pokemon Red and Blue. It is the hometown of the trainer and it is the location of this generation’s Professor’s lab. This town has four buildings and only 10 people living in it. The town’s motto is “The Town Where Winds of a New Beginning Blow.”
The first building encountered in New Bark Town is the trainer’s home. The trainer’s home is a two story house with the trainer’s room being upstairs, and the downstairs being a kitchen and living area. The trainer’s room has a PC which can be used to access the item box functions and allow the trainer to decorate their room. This is a new feature in generation 2 where the trainer can acquire Pokemon dolls, beds, posters, and other assorted decorative items. These items can be placed in the trainer’s room to decorate it. Downstairs, the trainer can speak with their mother to acquire the Pokemon Gear. This item, which is abbreviated as PokeGear, contains a clock, a map, a phonebook, and a radio. The trainer’s mother helps them set up the clock with a day of the week and time, which affects many events in the game. The map serves the function of the Town Map from other Pokemon games, though it is not turned on until the next town. The phone stores the phone numbers of important characters, such as the trainer’s mother and Professor Elm, and many random trainers throughout the journey. The random trainers can call about giving out free items, rematches, and when swarms of Pokemon occur. They can also call about random things that happen to them that tend to just be filler. Note that the phone book can only hold a certain amount of contacts, so some may need to be deleted later on. The radio portion is not activated until Goldenrod City, and will be explained then. Finally, after returning to town the first time, the trainer can ask their mother to take some of the money won during trainer battles. The trainer's mother will use this money to buy some nice items, including some of the decorations mentioned before, that she will give to them.
The building south of the trainer’s home is Professor Elm’s home. Inside are his wife and child. His wife mentions how he sometimes forgets to eat when doing his research, and his child wants to be a Pokemon professor when he grows up. The PC in the house contains some of Professor Elm’s research notes, and explains that he is trying to discover how Pokemon are born.
The building in the southwest part of town is a house with a nameless NPC inside. She says that Pikachu is now known to be an evolved Pokemon, unlike in Generation 1. This is due to the addition of baby Pokemon in Generation 2. Pikachu now has a baby form known as Pichu, which can only be acquired by breeding.
The large building in the north part of town is Professor Elm’s Lab. Trainers will likely notice the red-haired character to the left of the lab. This person appears to be looking inside the lab, plotting something. This person turns out to be important later on. Like other Pokemon labs, this is the location where the trainer acquires their starter Pokemon. Professor Elm will say that he is trying to complete some research he is doing, and needs the trainer to visit Mr. Pokemon and bring him back something that Mr. Pokemon says will interest him. After the trainer agrees to help, Elm gives them their first Pokemon. Like the first generation, there is a Grass, Fire, and Water-type Pokemon to choose from. The Grass-type is Chikorita, the Fire-type is Cyndaquil, and the Water-type is Totodile. After choosing a Pokemon, the trainer is given a free Potion. After the trainer gets the item from Mr. Pokemon and returns to the lab, they are given 5 PokeBalls for free. There are three other items that Elm gives the trainer much later. After the trainer hatches their first egg, Elm will give them an Everstone, which stops a Pokemon from evolving if they are holding it. After getting the eight Johto badges, he will give the trainer the Master Ball, which catches any Pokemon without failing. Finally, after defeating the Elite Four and Champion, Elm will give the trainer the S.S. Ticket, which gives the trainer access to the Kanto region from the first generation games.
New Bark Town has two exits, one to the west and one to the east. The west exit leads to Route 29 and the rest of the Johto region and is the exit the trainer must take at the beginning of the journey. The east exit leads to Route 27, the Kanto region, and the Elite Four much later in the journey. Just like in Pallet Town, the route is blocked by water and can only be accessed by using Surf. An interesting fact is that New Bark Town is the only starting town that does not have a north exit.
New Bark Town is another small town from which a young trainer begins their journey to become a Pokemon Master. The town represents the simple beginnings that all Pokemon trainers come from.
The information in this article is most relevant to the original generation two games, Pokemon Gold and Silver. For more information on New Bark Town and how it differs in other generations, visit the website:
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