Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen

Return to Kanto in the first Pokémon remakes.

Generation 3Game Freak

Overview

Pokémon FireRed and Pokémon LeafGreen launched in Japan on January 29, 2004 and reached North America that September. They are the first remakes in the main series, returning trainers to Kanto eight years after the original Red and Green, rebuilt on Game Boy Advance hardware with redrawn sprites, fuller color, and a richer overworld.

You start in Pallet Town, choose Bulbasaur, Charmander, or Squirtle, and collect eight Gym Badges on the way to the Pokémon League. Generation III adds Natures, Abilities, held items, and the revised effort-value system. Breeding is available at the two-Pokémon Day Care on Four Island after the Rainbow Pass; the Route 5 Day Care only raises one Pokémon. Ruby and Sapphire's real-time clock and Pokémon Contests are not available here.

Original GBA editions support compatible Game Link Cables and Wireless Adapters for multiplayer. Neither accessory is required for solo play. The Nintendo Switch rereleases launched on February 27, 2026 and use built-in local communication between FireRed and LeafGreen, with no GBA accessories. Switch cannot import Pokémon from other games; Pokémon HOME transfers are outbound only.

Story

The story follows the Kanto arc beat for beat. Professor Oak hands you your first partner in Pallet Town. Your rival picks the type that beats yours, and the two of you race across the region collecting Badges from Brock, Misty, Lt. Surge, Erika, Koga, Sabrina, Blaine, and Giovanni. Team Rocket is right where you left them, lurking in Mt. Moon, the Game Corner, Saffron's Silph Co., and the Pokémon Tower in Lavender Town.

The original ending still lands. You climb Victory Road, defeat the Elite Four, and find Blue waiting in the Champion's chamber. Capturing Mewtwo deep in Cerulean Cave is once again the toughest test in the Pokédex.

After the credits, the adventure keeps going. Bill's friend Celio, whom you first meet on One Island after Blaine's Gym, asks for help wiring Kanto's PC network to the Hoenn region, sending you back to the Sevii Islands. The seven-island archipelago is brand new to these remakes and adds a second Team Rocket scheme, dozens of Johto-native species, and the hardware unlock that lets you trade with Pokémon Ruby, Sapphire, Emerald, Colosseum, and XD. External trading with the Hoenn and GameCube games applies to original GBA editions only. Switch supports local FireRed/LeafGreen trading and outbound Pokémon HOME transfers, with no imports from those games.

Key features

Faithful Kanto remake

Every route, town, and Gym from the 1996 originals is rebuilt for Game Boy Advance, with redrawn sprites, fuller animations, and quality-of-life upgrades like a contextual Help System that surfaces tips at any point in the menu.

Wireless Adapter and Union Room

GBA: compatible Wireless Adapters provide local wireless trades, battles, and Union Room activities; compatible Game Link Cables support wired multiplayer. Switch (2026): local communication is built into the console and connects FireRed/LeafGreen players without GBA accessories.

The Sevii Islands

Midway through your journey, a seven-island archipelago opens up south of Kanto. The first three islands open after Blaine's Gym, and the other four after the Elite Four falls. The Sevii Islands add a fresh Team Rocket questline, dozens of Johto Pokémon that never appeared in the original Red and Blue, and the key items that unlock cross-generation trading with the Hoenn games.

Modern Generation III mechanics

Pokémon have Natures, Abilities, held items, and Generation III effort values. Dark and Steel typing changes Kanto matchups. The Four Island Day Care can produce Eggs after you obtain the Rainbow Pass; Route 5 only raises one Pokémon. Real-time clock features and Pokémon Contests from Ruby and Sapphire are absent.

Path to the National Pokédex

Once you have entered the Hall of Fame, caught 60 Kanto species, and visited One Island, Professor Oak upgrades your Pokédex to the National version, opening evolutions like Crobat, Steelix, and Blissey. Delivering both the Ruby and the Sapphire to Celio's Network Machine then authorizes trades with Ruby, Sapphire, Emerald, Colosseum, and XD: Gale of Darkness. External trading with the Hoenn and GameCube games applies to original GBA editions only. Switch supports local FireRed/LeafGreen trading and outbound Pokémon HOME transfers, with no imports from those games.

Version differences

The two games tell the same story with different wild encounters. Each version has its own set of exclusive species, listed below.

FireRed-exclusive Pokémon include Ekans, Arbok, Oddish and its line, Psyduck and Golduck, Growlithe and Arcanine, Shellder and Cloyster, Scyther, Scizor, Electabuzz, Elekid, Wooper, Quagsire, Murkrow, Qwilfish, Skarmory, Delibird, and Deoxys in its Attack Forme.
LeafGreen-exclusive Pokémon include Sandshrew and Sandslash, Vulpix and Ninetales, Bellsprout and Victreebel, Slowpoke, Slowbro, Slowking, Staryu and Starmie, Magmar, Magby, Pinsir, Marill and Azumarill, Misdreavus, Sneasel, Remoraid and Octillery, Mantine, and Deoxys in its Defense Forme.

Either version delivers the same campaign. Trading is the intended path to a complete Pokédex.

New Pokémon

FireRed and LeafGreen introduce no new species. Their game data supports the 386 Generation III species, but the native encounter, breeding and evolution roster is smaller. Completing the original GBA reference roster depended on compatible external games and historical event distributions. Switch has no incoming transfers and adds native access to the AuroraTicket and MysticTicket encounters after the Hall of Fame.

The Kanto journey

The main campaign is the original Kanto adventure, rebuilt. You travel Routes 1 through 25, train through eight Gyms, foil Team Rocket at every turn, and finish on Indigo Plateau against the Elite Four. The structure is unchanged from the 1996 games, so longtime fans know the geography by heart. What is different is the texture: animated overworld sprites, a Help System tied to the L and R buttons, the VS Seeker for trainer rematches, and a Fame Checker that tracks lore about famous Kanto characters.

Sevii Islands

The first three Sevii Islands open mid-game, after you beat Blaine, and the other four form the heart of the post-game. Helping Celio repair the inter-region trade network sends you across seven islands inspired by Japan's Izu archipelago. Along the way you confront a remnant of Team Rocket, encounter Johto species like Yanma, Phanpy, and Heracross in the wild, and earn the Rainbow Pass that lets your tickets work on every island. Clearing the questline activates trading with the Hoenn games, the final step toward a complete National Pokédex. External trading with the Hoenn and GameCube games applies to original GBA editions only. Switch supports local FireRed/LeafGreen trading and outbound Pokémon HOME transfers, with no imports from those games.

Reception and legacy

Critics treated the remakes warmly. Aggregate scores landed around 81 on Metacritic, with IGN scoring 9.0 of 10 and Famitsu giving 33 of 40. Lifetime sales reached 12 million copies by March 31, 2013, making FireRed and LeafGreen the second best-selling Game Boy Advance Pokémon titles after Ruby and Sapphire. Their bigger legacy is the template they established. Every later remake, from HeartGold and SoulSilver through Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl, traces its structure back to what Game Freak proved here: a faithful return to a classic region, rebuilt on modern hardware, with a fresh post-game stitched onto the back end.

FAQ

Are FireRed and LeafGreen the same game?

They tell the same story across Kanto and the Sevii Islands. The difference is which Pokémon appear in the wild. About two dozen species are exclusive to each version, so most trainers pair up with a friend on the opposite cartridge to fill out the Pokédex.

Do I need a Wireless Adapter to play?

No accessory is needed for solo play. Original GBA multiplayer uses a compatible Game Link Cable or Wireless Adapter, depending on the games and activity; check the specific package rather than assuming every copy includes an adapter. Switch uses built-in local communication and requires no GBA accessory.

How many Pokémon can I catch?

The National Pokédex represents 386 Generation III species, not 386 native catches. After entering the Hall of Fame, catching 60 Kanto species, and visiting One Island, you can receive the National Pokédex. Original GBA editions can acquire additional species through compatible external trades and historical distributions. Switch cannot import Pokémon from other games. On Switch, AuroraTicket and MysticTicket are supplied after the Hall of Fame, enabling Deoxys, Lugia and Ho-Oh encounters; those tickets do not unlock the other external or event-only species.

How do I unlock the Sevii Islands?

After you earn the Volcano Badge from Blaine on Cinnabar Island, Bill meets you as you leave the Gym (or waits in the Cinnabar Pokémon Center) and takes you on the Seagallop ferry to One Island, where Celio gives you the Tri-Pass. One, Two, and Three Island are open before you face the Elite Four. After you enter the Hall of Fame, delivering the Ruby to Celio earns the Rainbow Pass, which opens Four through Seven Island. Later trips on the Seagallop leave from Vermilion City.

Can I trade with Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald?

Original GBA editions: yes, after delivering the Ruby and Sapphire to Celio on One Island and meeting the trading prerequisites. Switch editions: no connection to Ruby, Sapphire, Emerald, Colosseum or XD is supported. You can trade locally between Switch FireRed/LeafGreen games; transfers to Pokémon HOME are one way and cannot bring Pokémon back or import Pokémon from other games.

FireRed

Mascot: Charizard

LeafGreen

Mascot: Venusaur