Pokémon Polished Crystal

About

Pokémon Gold Version and Pokémon Silver Version are 1999 role-playing games developed by Game Freak and published by Nintendo for the Game Boy Color, the first installments in the series' second generation. Pokémon Polished Crystal is a fan-made hack built on top of an open-source disassembly of Pokémon Crystal, aiming to be an improved, bug-fixed version of Crystal with modern mechanics (the Fairy type, a Physical/Special split, Natures, Abilities), a redesigned battle engine and HUD, a 60fps overworld, and quality-of-life features like unlimited TMs and Running Shoes. The current release, v3.2.3, is described as fully playable from start to finish.

How it differs from the original

It adds content beyond the original Crystal, including new characters (Lorelei, Agatha, Lyra, the Team Rocket Executives), extra post-game content like Gym Leader rematches, new and reworked maps, dozens of new moves, and additional cosmetic Pokémon forms and regional variants — none of which required the original game's assets, since it's built from the open-source disassembly.

Getting started

The current release can be downloaded from the project's GitHub releases page and is playable from start to finish; a written FAQ is included in the repository for setup and patching questions.

History

The project follows an earlier official release, v3.1.1 (February 2025), with v3.2.3 as the current release; the author describes the goal as creating a polished, bug-fixed version of Pokémon Crystal after being impressed by the open-source disassembly it's built on.

Media

Additional notes

Trivia

The README opens with a quote from Pokémon director Junichi Masuda about Game Freak's philosophy of continually reworking games to make them more fun.

External link

PolishedDex is a separate companion website offering a searchable Pokédex, move list, and team builder for this hack.