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Pokémon Mini

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The Pokémon Mini[a] (officially stylized as Pokémon mini) is a handheld game console that was designed and manufactured by Nintendo in conjunction with The Pokémon Company and themed around the Pokémon media franchise. It is the smallest game system with interchangeable cartridges ever produced by Nintendo,[5] weighing just under two and a half ounces (71 grams).[4] It was first released in North America on November 16, 2001, and was only available for purchase at the Pokémon Center and via its website.[6] This was followed by releases in Japan on December 14, 2001,[7] and in Europe on March 15, 2002.[8] The system was released in three colors: Wooper Blue, Chikorita Green, and Smoochum Purple.[2]

Pokémon Mini
"Wooper blue" Pokémon mini
Manufacturer
TypeHandheld game console
GenerationSixth
Release date
  • NA: November 16, 2001
  • JP: December 14, 2001
  • EU: March 15, 2002
Introductory price
MediaROM cartridge
CPUS1C88 @ 4 MHz
Memory4 KB RAM
Storage6 "files" on-board system memory[3]
DisplayMonochrome LCD, 96 × 64 pixels[1]
Power1 AAA battery, up to 60 hours
Dimensions74mm × 58mm 23 mm (0.91 in) x 2.28in x 0.91 in)[4]
Mass70 g (2.5 oz) with cartridge and battery inserted[4]
RelatedPokémon Pikachu

Features of the Pokémon mini include an internal real-time clock, an infrared port used to facilitate multiplayer gaming, a reed switch for detecting shakes, and a motor used to implement force feedback.[9] Only ten games were released, five of which were exclusive to Japan, with only being four games released in North America.

Various hackers have reverse engineered the Pokémon mini in order to enable the creation of homebrew games, and to allow official games to be played on other platforms.

Technical details

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  • CPU 8-bit, 4 MHz Epson S1C88
  • 96 x 64[1] pixel monochrome LCD
  • Game Pak (512KiB cartridge)
  • Internal BIOS of 4kB
  • Internal RAM 4kB (shared with video subsystem)
  • 21-bit cartridge bus
  • 256 hardware register; in most cases Open-Bus registers
  • Dimensions: 74 by 58 by 23 millimetres (2.91 in × 2.28 in × 0.91 in)[4]
  • Weight: 70 grams (2.5 oz) with Game Pak and AAA battery inserted[4]
  • Power: 1 AAA battery (lasting ~60 hours)

List of games

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A total of 10 games were officially released for the Pokémon Mini. While all titles were released in Japan, only four were released in North America and five in Europe, all being launch titles. This was due to the low sales and interest in the system. The Japanese-exclusive titles would eventually receive fan translations.

The games were published in Japan by The Pokémon Company and elsewhere by Nintendo.

Title Genre Developer[10][11] Release date
JP NA PAL
Pokémon Party mini Mini games Denyusha December 14, 2001 November 16, 2001 March 15, 2002
Pokémon Pinball mini Pinball Jupiter December 14, 2001 November 16, 2001 March 15, 2002
Pokémon Puzzle Collection Puzzle Jupiter December 14, 2001 November 16, 2001 March 15, 2002
Pokémon Zany Cards Strategy Denyusha December 14, 2001 November 16, 2001 March 15, 2002
Pokémon Tetris Puzzle Nintendo March 21, 2002 Unreleased March 15, 2002
Pokémon Puzzle Collection vol. 2 Puzzle Jupiter April 26, 2002 Unreleased Unreleased
Pokémon Race mini Racing Jupiter July 19, 2002 Unreleased Unreleased
Pichu Bros. mini Mini games Denyusha August 9, 2002 Unreleased Unreleased
Togepi's Great Adventure Adventure Jupiter October 18, 2002 Unreleased Unreleased
Pokémon Breeder mini Simulation Jupiter December 14, 2002 Unreleased Unreleased

Pokémon Party mini

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Pokémon Party mini[b] is a minigame collection developed by Denyusha. It includes six minigames which all take advantage of the system's capabilities and abilities:

  • Hitmonchan's Boxing: As a Hitmonchan battling against a Machop in a boxing match, the player must shake the system to 'punch'.
  • Pikachu's Rocket Start: As a Pikachu, the player must launch off a starting line before another Pokémon (A Rattata, Eevee and another Pikachu). Pikachu can run using the buttons or shaking the system. An Elekid gives the signals which is achieved through the system's rumble ability.
  • Bellossom's Dance: A rhythm game. As a Bellossom playing against two other Bellossom, the player must match the right moves with the D-Pad, and shake the system to jump.
  • Chansey's Dribble: A simple soccer dribbling game. As a Chansey, the player must use the D-pad to position the ball, and make sure Chansey kicks it into the finish line as quickly as possible.
  • Slowking's Judge: As a Slowking, the player predicts if a tennis ball will land in or out of the court.
  • Sneasel's Fakeout: A rock paper scissors-like game for two players. As two Sneasel, the players decide who is on defense and offense in a game of Basketball.

Additional modes include "Battlefield", where two to six players battle for the highest score in the aforementioned minigames, and "Celebi's Clock", a clock with date, alarm and stopwatch function.[2]

Pokémon Pinball mini

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A screenshot of Pokémon Pinball mini. The player must use the Diglett plunger, seen at the bottom, to bounce the Poké Ball into each of the open holes above.

Pokémon Pinball mini[c] is a pinball game developed by Jupiter. The player uses Pokémon such as a Diglett or a Pikachu as the 'bumping' mechanism. Along the way, players can catch more Pokémon for use, and other Pokémon can function as level obstacle elements. There are 70 "Quest" levels, and 10 levels each in Time Attack and Score Attack modes.

Pokémon Puzzle Collection

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Pokémon Puzzle Collection[d] is a puzzle minigame collection developed by Jupiter. It features four different game types, which can unlock over 80 Pokémon in the game's "Minidex".

  • Motion Puzzle: A sliding game where a moving image of a Pokémon has to be unscrambled by the player.
  • Shadow Puzzle: The player must find different shapes and put them together to make an image of a Pokémon.
  • Rescue Mission: A Pokémon is trapped, and the player must remove the blocks so they can access the rest of the maze.
  • Power On: A Pipe Dream-like game where one has to connect a Pikachu to a light bulb, creating a circuit.

Pokémon Zany Cards

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Pokémon Zany Cards[e] is a card game compilation developed by Denyusha. It includes four playing card games featuring Pokémon-themed cards and characters from the Pokémon anime.

  • Wild Match: The player battles against other characters from the Pokémon anime by making the most evolutionary matches, which at turn gives out coins, with the player who has the most coins winning.
  • Special Seven: The player battling with other Pokémon anime characters must get rid of their hand of cards, which can be determined by suit or matching Pokémon.
  • Card Duel: A two-player only game where the players must attempt to get each other's deck with the highest valued card.
  • Four Kings: A single-player Solitaire-type game where cards must be stacked into a specific order, while Magikarp (which functions as the "King") must top the deck off.

Pokémon Tetris

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Pokémon Tetris[f] is a Puzzle game developed by Nintendo. It plays like most versions of Tetris, but in addition to traditional piece rotation, shaking the system will cause falling pieces to flip horizontally. All of the Pokémon from Pokémon Gold and Silver can be "caught" and added to the in-game Pokédex, although rarer Pokémon can only be found on higher difficulty levels.

The game was not released in North America, but was rated by the ESRB under the title Pokémon Mini Shock Tetris, suggesting it was planned for release.[12]

Pokémon Puzzle Collection vol. 2

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Pokémon Puzzle Collection vol. 2[g] is a puzzle minigame collection developed by Jupiter, and is the sequel to Pokémon Puzzle Collection. In addition to the returning "Motion Puzzle" and "Shadow Puzzle" modes, two new modes have been added:

  • Pick-Up Puzzle: The player clears Poké Balls on the field in a forward-only position, and can only move if Poké Balls are faced in the respective direction.
  • Stretch Puzzle: The player, through a given number, must fill gaps in a grid by stretching bars.

The game was not released in Europe or North America, but was rated by the ESRB under the title Pokémon Mini Puzzle Collection Vol. 2, suggesting it was planned for release.[13]

Pokémon Race mini

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Pokémon Race mini[h] is a platform racing game developed by Jupiter. Similar to the later-released Pokémon Dash, the player controls a Pikachu and races against other Pokémon including a Chikorita and a Hoppip in a competition for the fastest Pokémon.

Pichu Bros. mini

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Pichu Bros. mini[i] is a minigame compilation developed by Denyusha, and is the sequel to Pokémon Party mini. It features six new minigames based on the Pichu Bros. specials:

  • Skate Pichu:- An Endless runner game where as one of the Pichu Bros., the player must avoid obstacles by shaking the system.
  • Magby's Hot-Air Balloon: As Magby, the player must land a hot-air balloon on an island without falling into the sea.
  • Hoppip's Jump: The player must press the C button at the right time to make Hoppip jump.
  • Teddiursa's Shaking Fruits: By shaking the system, the player must make Teddiursa eat a piece of fruit in the shortest amount of time.
  • Smoochum's Angel Kiss: A Whack-A-Mole-type game where the player, as Smoochum, must attempt to kiss the Diglett that pop out of the holes by pressing the buttons at the right time.
  • Cubone's Bone Club Fight: As Cubone, the player must shake the system to throw the bone and make sure it hits the target.

The "Battlefield" and "Clock" modes also return from the original.

Togepi's Great Adventure

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Togepi's Great Adventure[j] is a top-down action puzzle game developed by Jupiter. The player guides Togepi out of maze-like levels in a tower while avoiding obstacles and other Pokémon. The game features over 200 levels spread across three towers.

Pokémon Breeder mini

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Pokémon Breeder mini[k] is a virtual pet game developed by Jupiter. The player is given an egg that hatches into a Treecko, Torchic or Mudkip. The player must keep the Pokémon happy by feeding it, playing with it, and using toys. Feeding the Pokémon with special Pokéblocks can improve its stats.

Legacy

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The 2002 GameCube game Pokémon Channel has an in-game Pokémon Mini that can be unlocked.[14] By purchasing new games from the in-game store, the player can play emulated demo versions of multiple Pokémon Mini games. One of these games, "Snorlax's Lunch Time", was never part of any commercial Pokémon Mini release.[15]

By reverse engineering the Pokémon Channel emulator, hobbyist software engineers were able to gain a better understanding of how the system worked. This allowed them to build new emulators to run the games on other devices, such as the PC, Dreamcast, Nintendo 3DS, and Analogue Pocket, among others.[16] These efforts also led multiple programmers to create homebrew applications for the system, such as original games and tech demos.[15] A demo, SHizZLE, was released at Breakpoint in 2005 and caused some excitement within the demoscene and media.[5] In 2022, independent developer Sungrand Studios launched a Kickstarter campaign to develop a port of their horror game Silver Falls for the system.[17]

Notes

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  1. ^ Japanese: ポケモンミニ
  2. ^ Japanese: ポケモンパーティミニ
  3. ^ Japanese: ポケモンピンボールミニ
  4. ^ Japanese: ポケモンパズルコレクション
  5. ^ Japanese: ポケモンアニメカード大作戦, Hepburn: Pokemon Anime Kādo Daisakusen, lit. Pokémon Anime Card Great Strategy
  6. ^ Japanese: ポケモンショックテトリス, Hepburn: Pokemon Shokku Tetorisu, lit. Pokémon Shock Tetris
  7. ^ Japanese: ポケモンパズルコレクションVol.2
  8. ^ Japanese: ポケモンレースミニ
  9. ^ Japanese: ピチューブラザーズミニ
  10. ^ Japanese: トゲピーのだいぼうけん, Hepburn: Togepī no Daibōken
  11. ^ Japanese: ポケモンそだてやさんミニ, Hepburn: Pokemon Sodateyasan mini

References

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  1. ^ a b c "Pokemon Mini". IGN. September 4, 2001. Retrieved May 6, 2024.
  2. ^ a b c "Pokemon Mini In-Hand". IGN. November 22, 2001. Retrieved May 6, 2024.
  3. ^ Pokémon mini Instruction Booklet. Nintendo of America. 2001. p. 20.
  4. ^ a b c d e Pokémon mini Instruction Booklet. Nintendo of America. 2001. p. 27.
  5. ^ a b Diver, Mike (September 10, 2015). "Rediscovering Nintendo's Forgotten Console, the Pokémon Mini". VICE. Retrieved May 6, 2024.
  6. ^ "Pokemon Mini Hits the US". IGN. November 15, 2001. Retrieved May 6, 2024.
  7. ^ ハマるゲームが目白押し！ ポケモンミニ体験レポート (in Japanese). Nintendo. Archived from the original on 2002-12-16. Retrieved 2009-02-25.
  8. ^ "Nintendo History". Nintendo of Europe. Archived from the original on 2012-09-04. Retrieved 2009-08-19. 2002: [...] Pokémon mini, the world's smallest console, was launched on 15 March across Europe with four titles, including Pokémon mini Party and Pokémon mini Pinball.
  9. ^ "Pokémon Mini". Retro Magazine. No. 81. Imagine Publishing. October 2010.
  10. ^ "Denyusha Consumer Games". Denyusha. Archived from the original on 2013-01-16. Retrieved 2009-02-24.
  11. ^ "Jupiter Game Software-Pokémon mini". Jupiter. Archived from the original on 2013-05-02. Retrieved 2009-02-24.
  12. ^ "Pokemon Mini Shock Tetris - ESRB".
  13. ^ "Pokemon Mini Puzzle Collection Vol. 2 - ESRB".
  14. ^ Irwin, Mary Jane (December 4, 2003). "Pokemon Channel: Watch TV thanks to your GameCube". IGN. Archived from the original on March 3, 2012. Retrieved January 27, 2014.
  15. ^ a b McFerran, Damien (June 30, 2016). "Hardware Classics: Pokémon Mini". Nintendo Life. Retrieved May 6, 2024.
  16. ^ Hagues, Alana (October 12, 2022). "You'll Be Able To Play Pokémon Mini On The Analogue Pocket Soon". Nintendo Life. Retrieved May 6, 2024.
  17. ^ Hagues, Alana (May 16, 2022). "Random: Indie Horror Dev Launches Kickstarter To Create A Game For Pokémon Mini". Nintendo Life. Retrieved May 6, 2024.
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