How to beat every Pokémon game

Get your starter from Prof. Oak, beat your rival, and deliver Oak's Parcel from the Viridian Mart to unlock Route 2.

• Walk north into Route 1 — Oak stops you and brings you back to his lab. Pick a starter; rival picks the type that beats yours.
• First rival battle is unwinnable to lose — your starter is one level higher, so just spam your strongest move.
• In Viridian Mart, grab the Parcel and bring it back to Oak in Pallet. He gives you the Pokédex and 5 Poké Balls.
• Catch a Pidgey and a Rattata on Route 1/2 for a 3-mon team before Viridian Forest.

Catch a Mankey or Caterpie/Metapod for Confusion. Bulbasaur sweeps with Vine Whip.

• In Viridian Forest, hug the right side to skip most Bug Catchers; pick up the Antidote and Potion in the grass patches.
• Catch a Pikachu (rare) — sets up Surge later. Always grab a Caterpie/Weedle and evolve it for a free Confusion user.
• Brock: Geodude (Lv. 12) → Onix (Lv. 14). Onix has Bide — switch out turn it lights up, or KO it before it fires.
• Counters: Squirtle (Bubble), Bulbasaur (Vine Whip), Mankey (Low Kick), Butterfree (Confusion).
• Reward: Boulder Badge + TM34 Bide.

Pick the Helix or Dome Fossil (you can't get both). Beat your rival on Nugget Bridge.

• Buy 8+ Poké Balls and a couple of Repels in Pewter — Mt. Moon is long and dark with Zubats.
• Fossil choice: Helix → Omanyte (Water/Rock), Dome → Kabuto (Water/Rock). Both are good; Omanyte has higher SpA.
• Catch a Clefairy on B2F (rare) — solid Normal type for the mid-game.
• Nugget Bridge: 5 trainers in a row, then a Rocket gives you the Nugget. The man at the end offers to join Team Rocket — refuse.
• Heal between fights — there's no PC mid-bridge.

Pikachu, Bellsprout, or Oddish handle her Starmie. Bring a Paralyze move to slow it down.

• Misty: Staryu (Lv. 18) → Starmie (Lv. 21, Water Pulse + Harden + Swift).
• Bring an Electric or Grass attacker at Lv. 20+. Pikachu (Route 2 / Viridian Forest) with Thunder Shock works well.
• If you took Charmander, grab a Mankey from Route 22 and use Low Kick — slow but doable.
• Reward: Cascade Badge + TM11 BubbleBeam. Now you can use Cut outside battle.

Get HM01 Cut from the captain. Vermilion Gym uses a switch puzzle in the trash cans.

• On the S.S. Anne, fight every trainer for ~3,000 in prize money. The captain in the back gives you HM01 Cut — heal his seasickness.
• After the boat leaves you can't return. Use Cut on the bush blocking Diglett's Cave (north of Vermilion).
• Diglett's Cave → catch Diglett or Dugtrio: Ground type is immune to all Electric attacks.
• Trash-can puzzle: the second switch is always adjacent to the first. Find the first in any can, then check the four neighbors.
• Surge: Voltorb (Lv. 21) → Pikachu (Lv. 18) → Raichu (Lv. 24, Thunderbolt). Lead Diglett, Earthquake, done.
• Reward: Thunder Badge + TM24 Thunderbolt. Now you can Fly with HMs you'll get later.

Bring a Pokémon with Flash. Lavender Town Tower is locked until you beat Erika.

• Get HM05 Flash from the kid in the house at Route 2 (Oak's Aide) — needs 10 Pokémon caught.
• Teach Flash to a Pidgey or Bellsprout (a 'HM slave' so you don't waste a slot).
• Rock Tunnel is dark without Flash. Stick to the southern path on B1F to skip most trainers.
• Pokémon Tower in Lavender is blocked — the Ghosts are unidentifiable until you have the Silph Scope (Celadon Rocket Hideout).

Buy an Eevee and the Fire Stone in Celadon Department Store. Vulpix or any Fire-type clears the gym.

• Celadon Department Store: 5F has TMs (Mega Punch, Mega Kick), 4F has Evolution Stones, roof has free vending drinks (give to gym guards in Saffron later).
• Free Eevee on the right side of the building (talk to the guy on 5F). Use Fire Stone → Flareon, or save for Vaporeon.
• Erika: Victreebel (Lv. 29) → Tangela (Lv. 24) → Vileplume (Lv. 29, Sleep Powder + Mega Drain).
• Counters: Charmeleon, Flareon, Pidgeotto (Wing Attack), Butterfree (Psybeam).
• Reward: Rainbow Badge + TM21 Mega Drain.

Get the Silph Scope from the Rocket Hideout, clear Pokémon Tower, then storm Silph Co. for the Master Ball.

• Rocket Hideout entrance: poster behind a Rocket grunt in the Game Corner — talk to him, fight, then press the switch.
• B4F has Giovanni's first fight (Onix Lv. 25 / Rhyhorn Lv. 24 / Kangaskhan Lv. 29). Earthquake or Water moves win.
• Pokémon Tower: heal at the rest floor on 2F. Marowak ghost (Lv. 30) must be calmed — fight it normally with Silph Scope on.
• Save before catching the wild Cubone here — solid Ground type.
• Silph Co. (Saffron): get the Card Key on 5F, ride elevators. Talk to the man on 7F before the rival fight for a free Lapras.
• On 11F: Master Ball from the Silph president after beating Giovanni. Save it for Mewtwo.

Use Psychic-types — Abra/Kadabra dominates this entire mid-game.

• Maze of invisible walls — walk into them to map the path; the route loops left-around to Koga.
• Koga: Koffing → Muk → Koffing → Weezing (Lv. 43, Sludge + Smog + SelfDestruct). Switch out of SelfDestruct.
• Counters: Alakazam (Psychic), Dugtrio (Earthquake), Sandslash.
• Safari Zone is here — get HM03 Surf from the Warden after delivering his Gold Teeth (in the Zone). Catch Chansey/Tauros if you have time.
• Reward: Soul Badge + TM06 Toxic.

Bug moves are weak in Gen 1. Use a strong physical attacker like Tauros, or hit her with Gengar (immune to Psychic via the bug-type bug).

• Warp-tile maze: each tile teleports to a fixed pair. Try the bottom-left first to reach Sabrina quickly.
• Sabrina: Kadabra (Lv. 38) → Mr. Mime (Lv. 37) → Venomoth (Lv. 38) → Alakazam (Lv. 43, Psychic + Recover).
• Counters: Gengar (immune to Psychic in Gen 1), Persian (Slash crits), high-level Tauros.
• Reward: Marsh Badge + TM46 Psywave.

Find all the gym keys in the Mansion. Any Water-type one-shots his team.

• Surf to Cinnabar. Pokémon Mansion holds the Secret Key — read every diary for Mew/Mewtwo lore, and grab the Rare Candy.
• Step on the floor switches (Pikachu statues) to open paths. The key is on B1F south.
• Blaine quizzes you between battles — answer right to skip a fight. Sample: 'Caterpie evolves into Metapod?' = YES.
• Blaine: Growlithe → Ponyta → Rapidash → Arcanine (Lv. 47, Take Down + Fire Blast).
• Counters: Blastoise/Vaporeon/Lapras/Omastar with Surf — ohko range.
• Reward: Volcano Badge + TM38 Fire Blast.

Water or Grass moves only. He's a pushover compared to your rival.

• Spin-tile maze leads to Giovanni — follow the arrows; you can only stop on regular tiles.
• Giovanni: Rhyhorn → Dugtrio → Nidoqueen → Nidoking → Rhydon (Lv. 50, Earthquake + Rock Slide).
• Counters: Surf one-shots almost his entire team. Bring Vaporeon/Blastoise.
• Reward: Earth Badge + TM27 Fissure. Now your traded Pokémon obey up to Lv. 100.

Lorelei (Ice) → Bruno (Fighting) → Agatha (Ghost) → Lance (Dragon) → Champion. No healing between battles!

• Victory Road: 3 boulder puzzles needing Strength + Switch tiles. Push each boulder onto its switch to open the next gate. Catch Moltres on 3F.
• Stock 25+ Hyper Potions, 6+ Full Restores, 12+ Revives, status heals. There is NO PC between Elite Four fights.
• Lorelei: Dewgong/Cloyster/Slowbro/Jynx/Lapras — Electric + Fighting wreck her.
• Bruno: Onix/Hitmonchan/Hitmonlee/Onix/Machamp — Psychic + Water + Flying.
• Agatha: Gengar/Golbat/Haunter/Arbok/Gengar — Psychic spam (with high SpD to tank her Psychic too).
• Lance: Gyarados/Dragonair x2/Aerodactyl/Dragonite — Ice Beam ohkos his dragons; Electric for Gyarados/Aerodactyl.
• Champion (rival): full team scaling to Lv. 65, including a Mega-evolved starter that beats yours. Save your strongest sweeper for last.