The Expensive Truth of Completing Gen 3’s National Dex

Let’s face facts: completing the Pokédex was often a daunting and tedious task. It forced players everywhere to either socialise or buy two copies of the same game. This remained consistent between the first two generations, but when they announced Ruby and Sapphire, something changed. Due to the functionality between the first two generations being severed, trainers were forced to start from zero. What exacerbated matters was that only 200 or so Pokémon were available to be captured in the original release. So trainers quite literally could not “catch ’em all”, which was reflected by dropping the moniker from the game’s box.

Theoretically, this would be resolved during the Kanto remakes later that same generation, but you’d be wrong. Unfortunately, even after Fire Red and Leaf Green were released, the national dex completion certificate was still a distant dream. By the time the generation ended with Emerald, completion was achievable — but at what cost? Well, during a recent run of Generation 3 to obtain ribbons, I decided to take this challenge on. This is what I found out.

Journeying through Hoenn

All projects have a beginning, and whether you start that in Hoenn or Kanto is up to you. I started this journey with the Emerald version, choosing this over Ruby or Sapphire as it includes far more Johto Pokémon. Naturally, beating the game was the priority here, as this unlocks the majority of the available monsters. Once the journey is complete, it’s time to start capturing, evolving and breeding. Thankfully, Ditto is easily obtainable in Emerald in the post-game, found in the Fossil Maniac’s house, so breeding is inconsequential.

Notably, you’re going to need another copy of a Hoenn title for extra starters and the other member of the Eon duo that you didn’t choose. And, to complicate things further, Game Freak omitted a few Hoenn Pokémon from Emerald that you’ll need to trade in from Ruby and Sapphire. At this point in your journey, you should have most of the Hoenn Dex completed and a small chunk of Johto filled up.

You’re now going to hate Surskit.

One important thing to note, the only way to get Surskit is from Ruby or Sapphire, so you will absolutely need access to one copy of one of these games. Also, without events, you’ll also need one to get Latios or Latias, so consider your choice carefully.

It is worth considering that although most of the Hoenn Dex is available in Emerald, a lot of encounters are 1% likely to appear and will take a lot of patience. These Pokémon may be better off traded from other versions that have higher encounter rates. I figure if you’re trying to complete this task, you’re likely the patient type, so happy hunting!

Returning to Kanto

Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald aren’t the only RPGs in Generation III; Game Freak decided to remake Red and Blue into Fire Red and Leaf Green. This was mostly to mitigate the lack of ability to transfer from Game Boy carts to Game Boy Advance, and to fill the massive Kanto void in Hoenn. I’ve written a whole article on the intricacies of these titles here, so I’ll keep this brief.

Due to there being no third version, a big chunk of Pokémon are version exclusives. On the surface, it may look like two full playthroughs may be required. Well, thankfully, if you are planning on completing the Dex, you only actually need access to one. All of the exclusives are available in games that are required playing, so good news for your time and wallet! The only complicated element of this is the Legendary Beasts, as only one is available per playthrough. So, without access to the GameCube titles, you’ll have a lot of replays to do to get all three. See the table below for where to get version exclusives:

The Side Quest of Orre

So, if all the Pokémon are obtainable via the 5 core titles, then why bother with the GameCube entries? Well, unfortunately, Ho-Oh is only available in Pokémon Colosseum as a reward once you have completed the main story, purified all the Shadow Pokémon and defeated Mt. Battle in Battle Mode. Only then will Ho-Oh be bestowed upon your save file, ready to trade into the GBA titles. There are 48 Shadow Pokémon, so catching and purifying them will take quite a bit of time.

There is a benefit to playing through Colosseum, though; you won’t need to play through Fire Red and Leaf Green three times, as all three beasts are available and required catching. In addition to this, a few Pokémon you need from version exclusives will be filled up here, too. Saving you more time and money by making an easier bypass route (see tables above for more details).

What do you mean I have to play XD too?

Yep, Shadow Lugia is the only one you can get across all of the Generation 3 games (outside of events). That means another round trip around Orre, and this one is a bit lengthier than Colosseum‘s iteration. There are benefits to XD, though, that massively outweigh Colosseum beyond the Lugia. Firstly, you just need to beat the story to get Lugia (much easier than Ho-Oh). Secondly, there’s a tonne of rare Kanto Pokémon and Hoenn version exclusives. Chansey, Tauros, Dragonite and Lunatone are all here and significantly easier to get than from the Kanto safari zone or obtaining a copy of Sapphire.

XD and Colosseum are incredible games and are well worth playing, but they have a steep cost (which we’ll get into later). While they do save time for select Pokémon, playing two whole console-sized RPGs just to get two Pokémon is a big ask. But, if you’re up to the task, you’ll be one step closer to that beautiful certificate.

Mythical Madness

Ah, mythical Pokémon, how frustrating you’ve been for the last 30 years. Generation 3 was no stranger to bizarre methods of distribution. There are four mythical Pokémon, all with their own complicated ways to obtain, with very few still being accessible to this day.

Mew was available for a few temporary events, but to obtain it in the modern age, you will need a Japanese copy of Emerald and will need to mix records with another player who already has the map. Good luck with that!

Celebi was never distributed in English, and the only modern way to obtain it is to get a Japanese Bonus Disk for Pokémon Colosseum and a Japanese copy of Emerald to transfer it to. Not really worth it in my opinion.

Jirachi is easily the most obtainable Pokémon in Generation 3 in the modern age. In NTSC regions, you can transfer it from the Pokémon Colosseum Bonus disk and in PAL regions, you can send it from copies of Pokémon Channel with completed save files, but only to Ruby and Sapphire.

Deoxys is similar to Mew; it was only obtainable for a brief period in the 2000s. If you can find someone with the event on their cartridge, you can obtain an Aurora ticket. These are few and far between, but a little more doable than the Old Sea Map.

The Cost Factor

Pokémon games are some of the most expensive titles on the second-hand market, you’d see them racking up numbers in any used games store. So, consider that to complete the Dex fully, it’s quite a commitment in time and money. Let’s break down the absolute minimum requirements, assuming you don’t want to buy every title for this task.

1. Nintendo GBA console
   Yes, you cannot use a DS as it lacks the capability to link other GBA games together, nor can it connect to the GameCube. You can also do trade evolutions to GameCube to avoid purchasing a second GBA.
2. Pokémon Emerald
   Unfortunately, there are several Pokémon that are only available in Emerald.
3. Pokémon Ruby or Sapphire
   Due to Surskit, you need a copy of these titles. You’ll also need them to get the other Eon duo you missed from Emerald and to obtain Jirachi if you go for mythicals
4. Pokémon Fire Red or Leaf Green
   Fortunately, thanks to Emerald, XD and Colosseum, you only need one copy of these titles. Yay?
5. Nintendo GameCube console and Memory Card
   Yep, it’s starting to get expensive now, huh?
6. Gamecube to GBA Link Cable
   This is the only way to trade between the two systems’ games
7. Pokémon Colosseum
   For Ho-Oh and a few version exclusives
8. Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness
   For Lugia and easier access to specific Pokémon and version exclusives

So, what’s the damage?

If you want the mythicals too, you’re going to need to invest in a Japanese Ruby or Sapphire cartridge, a Japanese GameCube, the Japanese Colosseum Bonus Disk and a copy of the Colosseum bonus disk or Channel, depending on your region. Naturally, prices will vary depending on whether you thrift, partially own systems and where you live in the world. For an estimate, I took the lowest prices from the UK Cex site and totalled them up, and the total will make you feel physically sick.

Yep, and that’s before we get into Mythical Pokémon.

Nintendo Switch Ports

Now, some of you may be here due to the recent releases of Fire Red and Leaf Green on Nintendo Switch. Well, unfortunately for you XD and Colosseum are not options, but Game Freak were kind enough to inject the events into the game. What does this mean? Well, now that Lugia and Ho-Oh are just built into the game, you can just go and catch them. This makes the Orre side quest redundant, but you’ll still need to play all five games to get all the Pokémon. My suggestion is to work with your friends and get different versions and trade, the way Game Freak intended. Just don’t fight too much over Emerald when that releases.

So, why did I write this? Well, I did it back in 2022, and it was exhausting. I collect Pokémon games anyway, I had a lot of these games and consoles from playing and buying them years before. The cost factor didn’t really come into play for me, which I am immensely grateful for. The thought of starting this from scratch now, in modern years, is intimidating. I cannot recommend this to anyone, unless they are already invested in the ecosystems and have the games. Just get the Switch ports and have fun, it’s a much better reality than spending an inordinate amount of money on a poorly optimised generation.

All the other generations are significantly easier at completing the Pokédex, but how much easier? Guess we’ll find out in the future. Thanks for reading, and be sure to check out my quest to obtain all the ribbons in the Gen 3 games, too. It’s not as nonsensical as the Dex, but it’s still pretty gruelling.

Riley

Video game completionist and 3D platformer connoisseur, Riley is a fan of the whimsical frenzy of bright and colourful characters that blessed us in the late 90's. Their favourite game's are Spyro, Persona 5 and Super Mario Sunshine.