Pikachu, Kanto Trainers and Team Rocket's Jessie and James
Meet the partner, rival, mentor and villains of Pokémon Yellow and see how they differ from Red and Blue.
International Game Boy Pokémon Yellow Version: Special Pikachu Edition, released in North America in 1999 and Europe in 2000. It plays in colour on Super Game Boy and Game Boy Color. This guide covers the original cartridge, not Let's Go, Pikachu! or the Virtual Console notes.
Character reference
Pikachu
Professor Oak gives you a Pikachu that follows you around Kanto. Talk to it to see how it feels about you; its mood affects whether some gift Pokémon are offered. It refuses to evolve with a Thunder Stone.
Pikachu's front sprite from Pokémon Yellow, shown with its Super Game Boy palette.
Red
The young Trainer you name at the start leaves Pallet Town with Pikachu and travels to the Pokémon League. The rest of the team is up to you.
The player's back-and-front battle picture from the Yellow game data, shown in grey.
Blue
Oak's grandson snatches the Eevee meant for you. Its evolution depends on your first rival battles, so his Champion team ends with Jolteon, Flareon or Vaporeon.
Blue's early rival picture from the Yellow game data, shown in grey.
Jessie and James
Borrowed from the anime, the pair challenge you several times during Team Rocket's schemes with Ekans, Koffing and Meowth.
Jessie and James's trainer picture, added for Pokémon Yellow.
Professor Oak
Oak hands over Pikachu and the Pokédex, and his aides give rewards as your Pokédex count grows.
Professor Oak's trainer picture from the Yellow game data, shown in grey.
Brock
Brock's Geodude and Onix are immune to Pikachu's Electric attacks, so the first Gym is a lesson in building a team beyond your partner.
Brock's trainer picture from the Yellow game data, shown in grey.
Partner and rival
Pikachu replaces the choice of three starters and stays visible on the map. Blue's Eevee replaces his Red and Blue starter, which is why his final team is built around one of three Eevee evolutions rather than a Kanto starter.
Team Rocket's new faces
Jessie and James from the animated series join Team Rocket's operations in Yellow. They battle you at several points in the story with Ekans, Koffing and Meowth before you finally reach Giovanni.
Gym Leaders and the League
The eight Gym Leaders and the Elite Four return from Red and Blue, but many of their teams were rebuilt for Yellow. Lt. Surge relies on a single Raichu, Sabrina uses Abra, Kadabra and Alakazam, and Blaine opens with Ninetales. The Gym Leaders, Elite Four and Champion pages list every team with moves.
Check the Gym Leaders page before each badge: several Yellow teams differ from the Red and Blue versions you may remember.
Picture details
Game artwork belongs to its respective rights holders.
References
Covered edition: International Game Boy Pokémon Yellow Version: Special Pikachu Edition, released in North America in 1999 and Europe in 2000. It plays in colour on Super Game Boy and Game Boy Color. This wiki covers the original cartridge, not Let's Go, Pikachu! or the Virtual Console notes.