Pokemon Player Shares Crazy Stat About How Slow Some Games Are

A Pokemon player has crafted a chart that shows how much time trainers spend in each mainline game’s tutorials before catching their first wild Pokemon after getting a starter. The Pokemon chart maker assembled each entry by game release date, starting with Pokemon Red and Blue and going through Pokemon Legends: Z-A.

In each mainline Pokemon game to date, trainers start with no Pokemon. After learning the primary controls, trainers can then explore their hometown, though some games will prevent them from venturing too far into tall grass. In Pokemon Red and Blue, Professor Oak will immediately take trainers to his laboratory and allow them to select Bulbasaur, Charmander, or Squirtle as their first Pokemon. In later Pokemon games, trainers receive both their starter and some Poke Balls to catch wild Pokemon with. Though it is possible to beat some Pokemon games without throwing a single Poke Ball, that challenge is easier said than done.

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A Nifty Chart Shows How Long Pokemon’s Tutorials Can Take

Given that each Pokemon game has its own tutorial sequence, a fan took it upon themselves to note down how long it would take before players were turned loose in the wilds. A content creator named Xalem shared a chart that listed how long, in minutes and seconds, it would take to catch a single wild Pokemon in almost every main and side game in the Pokemon franchise. The fastest time on Xalem’s chart went to Pokemon: Let’s Go, Pikachu and Eevee, which clocked in at three minutes and 36 seconds. Xalem said that the times were calculated by letting all cutscenes play in their entirety, and by going through all the mandatory text boxes as quickly as possible. Given how beginner-friendly Pokemon: Let’s Go Pikachu and Eevee are, the fact that trainers can immediately catch their first critter shortly after booting up the game is a testament to its reputation.

Other games that have fast tutorials, based on Xalem’s calculations, are Pokemon Legends: Arceus, Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen, and Pokemon Red and Blue. Xalem noted that Pokemon Legends: Arceus was a diversion from the mainline series, where trainers had to actually catch their starter as part of the tutorial. However, since the onset of Pokemon‘s seventh game generation, tutorial times have crossed the 20-minute mark. The longest time listed on Xalem’s chart was from Pokemon Legends: Z-A, which took 28 minutes and 50 seconds before trainers were allowed to go to the first Wild Zone and catch a Pokemon.

By converting each listed time to seconds, adding them all up, and dividing them by the number of game entries, it was determined that the median tutorial time in most main and side Pokemon games is roughly 13 minutes and 16.51 seconds. Though no games had that exact time, the closest entry on Xalem’s list was Pokemon Platinum at 14 minutes and 47.96 seconds. Alhough Pokemon Platinum is considered the definitive Gen 4 experience, its tutorial segment is three minutes longer than Pokemon Diamond and Pearl.

Scratch & Peek

Identify the cover art while scratching off as little foil as
possible.

Scratch & Peek

Identify the cover art while scratching off as little foil as possible.

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However, Pokemon GO was a notable omission from Xalem’s list. With Pokemon Winds and Waves in development, it remains to be seen how long it will take before trainers can catch a wild Pokemon once Gen 10 arrives in 2027.