Back in the day...

[Leonhart]

I'm pretty sure it was just one year before G/S/C had been released in America since that movie came out in America in 1999, and G/S/C was released in America in 2000.

That timeline seems accurate. And the first time we ever saw a 2nd Generation Pokemon was in 1997 I believe, at a convention that showcased the beta versions of Gold and Silver.

 

[Spock]

What a time to be a Pokemon fan.

Togepi and Ho-oh were always rumoured to be in Red and Blue, tucked away somewhere. Usually the same spot you could catch starters and Eevees, like beside Pallet Town or in Bill's Secret Garden. Missingno. and its kin compounded such stories. Not long after these developed into straight up fiction about PokeGods and other things you'd read about on the internet, along with ways on how to get Mew. The first real news that I remember hearing in the schoolyard was about Pikablu, which of course is Marill, and other kids talked about a Togechikko, who Togepi evolved into (look at Togetic's Japanese name, it's the kind of mispronunciation you'd expect of ten year olds). Remember, this was the early internet - Google was still new and there weren't a lot of reliable connections for this type of thing with Japan yet. You might have the odd lucky fan who posted legitimate news but pictures were a lot smaller, and lower quality. Anyways, I digress.

Before Pokemon: TFM there was still a lot of unconfirmed hearsay about what the next generation of Pokemon would be like. I remember being in a friend's basement reading with him and his sister about how Pokemon would have genders (and funny enough the site said the genders would look different, which wasn't the case until Gen IV), there was going to be a skateboard, and some other stuff. Then there was nothing until the movie came out, and Pikablu was now Marill. We saw Donphan and Snubbull too. It was around this time that I received a Japanese starter deck featuring Slowking and a bunch of other Neo Genesis cards and the world of Pokemon expanded big league for me. Pokemon 2000 was later announced, and Gen II Pokemon started popping up all over the place: there was a cereal with Hoothoot and Ledyba on the box even. After that I found out about Gold and Silver through a Japanese ROM a guy who owned a comic book store hooked my parents up with, but they didn't include an emulator and so they tried opening it in Notepad. It was a garbled mess.

 

[Vroomer]

I remember pre ordering Gold/Silver through the internet. I was in college at the time. To my surprise, 3 days before street release, my copies showed up at my PO Box. I was blown away.

Sadly, the epic grind of RBY for the elite four had burnt me out. And, yes, to this day, my copy of Gold is still in the shrink wrap.

Thankfully, Gen 3 snapped me out of a funk for a little bit. Then asleep until XY.

 

[EspNeon]

I was only young when Crystal, Silver and Gold were all released but I vaguely remember bits and pieces.

I know for certain there was some hype through the Anime and Movies. At that point in time, Pokemon films were released in the cinema in the Uk and I remember the excitement of seeing Marill/Snubull/Donphan for the first time.

I also remember previews being in gaming magazines, more specifically the anticipated introduction of Togepi in games. And I also remember the Pokemon Handbook #2 being released. It didn't have all of the Johto Pokemon...if anything it had a select few, and it wasn't exactly prior to the release of the games, but it certainly did promote the games.

 

[Wednesdayz]

And, yes, to this day, my copy of Gold is still in the shrink wrap.

Huh, that's cool yet it makes me wonder if that cartridge's internal battery would still work if it hasn't been used.

 

[Shayuin]

I also remember previews being in gaming magazines, more specifically the anticipated introduction of Togepi in games. And I also remember the Pokemon Handbook #2 being released. It didn't have all of the Johto Pokemon...if anything it had a select few, and it wasn't exactly prior to the release of the games, but it certainly did promote the games.

I remember buying a handbook which showed all of Johto's Pokemon minus Celebi. I think it was around the time that G/S came out. I wonder if it was this Pokemon Handbook #2.

 

[Kalosian]

My situation might be a bit different since I'm from Europe, but I do remember some things. Pretty sure I saw the new Pokemon in the first movie, but I can't remember my thoughts about them. Chances are I didn't see the movie until after I knew about Gen 2. Anyway, I remember there being a teaser for the second generation in a Pokemon guidebook I had. Then one of my classmates managed to get some information about new Pokemon that were supposed to appear in the future, though it wasn't for free as he had to give away a rare TCG card to some dude who had the information. This info later turned out to be about the Gen 2 Pokemon. At this point, things were centered around the TCG as it was the main big thing when I first got into Pokemon, we simply knew the new Pokemon under the name "Neo" as that's what the first TCG sets that featured Johto Pokemon were named. Once the GSC games were out, I remember that I believed another classmate was an expert on the new games since he had one of them. But he did actually not know that much since he hadn't even beaten the game, and I eventually became much better than him at Pokemon once I started playing the games myself. There's probably a lot more but this was what I could remember right now.

 

[CrimsonAce777]

Iirc there was a comercial that advertised them that came out right after (possibly the same time as?) Movie 2000, that advertised the games. It featured a kid walking through a forrest playing pokemon on a gameboy, with animated pokemon popping up all around him. It featured a few screenshots of gameplay too I think.

 

[Leonhart]

Iirc there was a comercial that advertised them that came out right after (possibly the same time as?) Movie 2000, that advertised the games. It featured a kid walking through a forrest playing pokemon on a gameboy, with animated pokemon popping up all around him. It featured a few screenshots of gameplay too I think.

I remember a commercial like this, and I also recall Burger King running a promotion around the time that Gold/Silver came out. They were selling little Game Boy Color-shaped toys with tiny plastic cartridges that resembled the Gold/Silver cartridges, but I can't find the commercial online.

 

[Alloutℯ]

I remember when Pojo magazine showcased each Johto Pokemon's official English names as well as how they designed their own Gen 2 artwork. Good times.

 

[Nafsika]

I can say for sure that none of pokemon games have been advertised in my country! Actually it's one of the things that surprised me! In all the other countries the last pokemon game have been heavily advertised in Greece nor one commercial about it. The only game that have been advertised threw the news was pokemon go!

 

[CraigTPM]

What a time to be a Pokemon fan.

Togepi and Ho-oh were always rumoured to be in Red and Blue, tucked away somewhere. Usually the same spot you could catch starters and Eevees, like beside Pallet Town or in Bill's Secret Garden. Missingno. and its kin compounded such stories. Not long after these developed into straight up fiction about PokeGods and other things you'd read about on the internet, along with ways on how to get Mew. The first real news that I remember hearing in the schoolyard was about Pikablu, which of course is Marill, and other kids talked about a Togechikko, who Togepi evolved into (look at Togetic's Japanese name, it's the kind of mispronunciation you'd expect of ten year olds). Remember, this was the early internet - Google was still new and there weren't a lot of reliable connections for this type of thing with Japan yet. You might have the odd lucky fan who posted legitimate news but pictures were a lot smaller, and lower quality. Anyways, I digress.

Before Pokemon: TFM there was still a lot of unconfirmed hearsay about what the next generation of Pokemon would be like. I remember being in a friend's basement reading with him and his sister about how Pokemon would have genders (and funny enough the site said the genders would look different, which wasn't the case until Gen IV), there was going to be a skateboard, and some other stuff. Then there was nothing until the movie came out, and Pikablu was now Marill. We saw Donphan and Snubbull too. It was around this time that I received a Japanese starter deck featuring Slowking and a bunch of other Neo Genesis cards and the world of Pokemon expanded big league for me. Pokemon 2000 was later announced, and Gen II Pokemon started popping up all over the place: there was a cereal with Hoothoot and Ledyba on the box even. After that I found out about Gold and Silver through a Japanese ROM a guy who owned a comic book store hooked my parents up with, but they didn't include an emulator and so they tried opening it in Notepad. It was a garbled mess.

You did a really good job of capturing the energy that was present when people were hotly anticipating any news... I think that Gen 2 was actually how I originally discovered Serebii.net. I browsed other Pokemon forums back then but it was Serebii's news section that caused me to come check it out.
https://www.serebii.net/gs/pokemon.shtml This link (or maybe an older form of it?) would periodically get updated with new announced/confirmed Pokemon. I would basically check it every day after school, and just sit there stewing in anticipation for the day that I could start up my Silver adventure with my new Chikorita. It was really exciting that it was going to be LEGIT for the Gameboy Colour. Pokemon eggs were a new idea and when you got that first one from Mr. Pokemon it really did feel like you were playing the next generation of Pokemon. Finally, the ability to go back to Kanto really just sealed the deal. What a time to be a Pokemon fan indeed

 

[Steven of Venus]

The illusory folder of care and wonder draped across the nebula of Pikachu's face at the center of the galaxy reminds me of Mewtwo, with a lasar flushed wild window of Erika's perception, making mind more alive with climbing rising fears of Tyranitar.

Ash could be the dinosaur Meganium for being silly, goofy, whimsical, and erotic with his passions, but also Tyranitar, for being heroic, seizing, glorified, and resent back in the wing span of Lugia, truly the acentric demon of all cinderblocks and chronicles rumbling the ocean skin above the pause button to stand in awe, rapture, wonder, and arousal.

Ash though should always be remembered way before the coming of the jurassic age, for being both inspiring, and reaching those intangible spaces of true love with Pikachu!

 

[Daizy]

Iirc there was a comercial that advertised them that came out right after (possibly the same time as?) Movie 2000, that advertised the games. It featured a kid walking through a forrest playing pokemon on a gameboy, with animated pokemon popping up all around him. It featured a few screenshots of gameplay too I think.

That was the first G/S commercial and I remember it because I asked my parents to buy Silver for me the same day that I saw it. I even have the box that the game came in still.