TheTime Capsule (Japanese:タイムカプセルTime Capsule) is a mechanic inPokémon Gold, Silver, andCrystal that allowsplayers totradePokémonback in time toPokémon Red, Green,Blue, andYellow. It is not present inPokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver.

In the core series games

Pokémon Gold, Silver, and Crystal (Japanese and Western versions)

InPokémon Gold, Silver, andCrystal, the Time Capsule is located on the second floor of eachPokémon Center. However, it will be under repair and unavailable until theplayer has metBill inEcruteak City. Even then, the player has to wait for another 24 hours in the game's internal clock before being able to use the Time Capsule.

After this point, it is possible totrade with thecore seriesGeneration I games; however, there are still some restrictions:

• The player cannot have anyGeneration II Pokémon orEggs in theirparty.
• The player cannot have any Pokémon holdingMail in their party.
• None of the Pokémon in the party can know anymoves introduced in Generation II.

When linked up to a Generation I game, the trade will happen as it did in Generation I, and theGeneration II game will act as if it is a Generation I game.

If the Pokémon traded from the Generation I game changes its type during the trade (unless it’s aMagnemite orMagneton), the trade is immediately cancelled.

Held items of Pokémon traded from a Generation I game are determined bythat Pokémon's catch rate in said game. This is whyPikachu holds aLight Ball andKadabra holds aTwisted Spoon if traded fromPokémon Yellow, but not fromPokémon Red, Green, andBlue. For more information on this subject and a complete list of the items, seeList of Pokémon by wild held item (Generation II).

Limitations and their consequences

Because of the restriction that moves introduced in Generation II cannot be traded back to Generation I, aMove Deleter inBlackthorn City will delete moves that are incompatible with earlier games. While trades with previousgenerations were not supported in any games afterPokémon Gold, Silver, andCrystal, the concept of a Move Deleter was retained as part of gameplay, as otherwise it would be impossible to make a Pokémon forget anHM move, other than putting it in thePokémon Day Care and having it level up so it only retains the last 3 moves, and the new move.

AHaunter,Kadabra,Graveler orMachoke holding anEverstone won'tevolve when traded to the Generation II games but will evolve when traded to the Generation I games.

APoliwhirl,Slowpoke,Scyther,Onix orPorygon holding the item they need to trigger atrade Evolution won't evolve when traded to the Generation II games from a Generation I game.

Glitches

The Time Capsule's limitation that prevents Generation IIPokémon from entering can be bypassed with theTime Capsule exploit, though Generation II Pokémon brought in this way must still only knowGeneration I moves. When traded to a Generation I game, they will becomeglitch Pokémon. The four Pokémon that evolve by trade in Generation I (Haunter,Kadabra,Machoke, andGraveler), if traded from a Generation I game to a Generation II game at the correct level, will learn a Generation II move afterevolving, but can be traded back to Generation I immediately after. This gives access toglitch moves in the Generation I game.

Pokémon Gold and Silver (Korean version)

This section is incomplete. Please feel free to edit this section to add missing information and complete it. Reason: Needs research

Although no Generation I games were released in South Korea, the Time Capsule is still present in the Korean versions ofPokémon Gold and Silver. The Time Capsule is officially unsupported, but it is enabled by linking with aGeneration I game using the regular trading room of theGeneration II games. The attempt to trade will be cancelled andBill will appear as soon as the player attempts to leave thePokémon Center inEcruteak City.

After unlocking it, the player can use Time Capsule with Western versions of the Generation I games. However, like when trading between Korean and Western Generation II games, because the Western games do not supportKorean characters, Pokémon names and Original Trainers will not display properly in the Western games; if a Korean character corresponds to a control character in the Western games, this can have other unexpected effects.

In the side series games

Pokémon Stadium 2

InPokémon Stadium 2, the trade machine at thePokémon Lab can be used to trade Pokémon betweenGeneration I and/orGeneration II games.

Much like in the Time Capsule, if a Pokémon was introduced in Generation II, or it has amove introduced in Generation II, it may not be traded to a Generation I game.

Comparison with other games

The Time Capsule is the only facility in thecore series which allows direct inter-generational trades. Starting withPokémon Ruby and Sapphire inGeneration III, this is no longer possible in the games, although it is possible to migrate Pokémon forward a generation through use ofPal Park (from Generation III toGeneration IV), thePoké Transfer (from Generation IV toGeneration V), thePoké Transporter (from Generation V to GenerationsVI andVII), andPokémon HOME (from GenerationsVI andVII to GenerationsVIII andIX). Pokémon HOME is also the only other method for sending Pokémon back a generation, as of version 3.0.0 (i.e. Pokémon originating from Generation IX can be transferred to compatible Generation VIII games and back, though not to Generation VII games).

In the manga

Pokémon Adventures

Gold, Silver & Crystal arc

While the Time Capsule has not appeared inPokémon Adventures, it was hinted at inThe Last Battle XIV, whereBill, after learning about theMasked Man's attempt tocontrol time, began researchingtime travel in order to improve thePokémon Storage System.

Pokémon Gold & Silver: The Golden Boys

The Time Capsule was first mentioned byProfessor Oak inThe Legendary Pokémon Appears!, when a time tunnel appeared above theViolet Gym duringGold's Gym battle withFalkner. Out of the time tunnel came aPikachu, which joined Gold's team. InFarewell To Pikachu?!,Eusine revealed how he andBill had used Bill's Time Capsule to send Pikachu back in time in order to help it lead him to aLegendary Pokémon he was looking for.

Pokémon Pocket Monsters

The Time Capsule appeared inFind the Legendary Pokémon!!, where Bill demonstrated it toRed.Clefairy became interested in it, and Bill agreed to send Red and his Pokémon back in time.

In the TCG

This listing is of cards mentioning or featuring the Time Capsule in thePokémon Trading Card Game.

Time Capsule Cards listed with ablue background are only legal to use in the currentExpanded format. Cards listed with agreen background are legal to use in both the currentStandard andExpanded formats.
Card	Type	English Expansion	Rarity	#	Japanese Expansion	Rarity	#
Time Capsule	T	Neo Genesis		090/111	Gold, Silver, to a New World...

In other languages

Related articles

• Trade
• Pal Park
• Poké Transfer

This game mechanic article is part ofProject Games, aBulbapedia project that aims to write comprehensive articles on thePokémon games.

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