Downstairs, my mom stops me to talk and gives me the Shiny Charm. At this point, I only know that it is related to shiny Pokémon, but I do not understand how it works yet, and I do not have any Pokémon to test it with.

She tells me to go to Professor Oak’s lab. When I arrive, only Green is there. Oak has not appeared yet. Out of habit from previous Pokémon games, I instinctively try to leave the town to see what would happen.

At the exit, I run into Serena from Vaniville Town in the Kalos region. She briefly introduces herself, says we will meet again in Viridian City, and then leaves. After walking a bit further, Professor Oak appears and calls me back to the lab.

Inside the lab, I choose my starter Pokémon. The options are Grookey, Sobble, and Scorbunny. I choose Scorbunny mainly for personal reasons. I do not like Sobble’s final evolution, and Grookey feels slower despite its physical strength. I want better speed for the early game.

Green chooses Sobble and immediately challenges me to a battle. I lose, but the game lets me continue, so I do not think too much about it. Around this time, I also notice that auto-run is available from the start using the L button on my emulator, unlike Fire Red where running is locked behind the first gym.

After getting my first Pokémon, I try to give the Shiny Charm to Scorbunny, but the game says it cannot be held. After checking further, I realize that the item only needs to be registered.

I fight on instinct, relying on physical moves. It only takes one Static activation for Scorbunny to become paralyzed for the entire battle. In that state, I can barely do anything meaningful and end up losing very quickly.

After that, I go back and train Scorbunny to around level 9. By then, it learns Ember. When I challenge Ritchie again, I deliberately use a special move instead of physical attacks. Pikachu still has Static, but the battle becomes much easier to control, and I manage to win.

Route 1 no longer feels like a filler path. The game deliberately blocks the player early on and forces an adjustment to a different rhythm.

Green suggests that I visit his house to receive the Town Map from his sister. After getting the Town Map, I return to Viridian City to continue.

Inside the Pokémon Center, I meet Serena again, but the entrance is blocked by a Magma Grunt and an Aqua Grunt. I team up with Serena to battle them. Their Pokémon are Poochyena Lv4 and Ekans Lv4, and the fight mainly serves as an introduction rather than a real challenge.

After winning, Serena gives me the Z-Ring, which allows the use of Z-Moves in battle, and then leaves. This is the first time the game formally introduces the Z-Move mechanic, but at this stage I cannot really make use of it yet.

The Pokémon Center also sells Ability Capsules for $10,000. I take note of this but do not seriously consider it, since my team is still unstable and I have no intention of adjusting abilities this early.

Encounters inside the cave are packed tightly together. Even when individual battles are manageable, they begin stacking up, slowly draining HP and resources. I stop thinking in terms of efficiency and start paying attention to how far I can safely push before needing to retreat.

At one point, I discover a side area with Chansey that can heal my team. This immediately changes how I approach Mt. Moon. Instead of forcing my way forward, I accept that moving back and forth is part of progressing through the cave.

As I go deeper, multiple factions appear at once. Team Rocket, along with Aqua and Magma grunts, turn Mt. Moon into a chaotic space rather than a simple hideout. The sheer number of encounters reinforces the feeling that this dungeon is designed to wear the player down over time.

Eventually, I reach the fossil area and make a choice without overthinking it. At that moment, getting through the cave intact feels more important than the long-term outcome of the decision.

After choosing the fossil, I move forward assuming Mt. Moon is nearly finished, only to realize that a battle with Brendan is waiting ahead. Instead of pushing through unprepared, I go back to Chansey to fully recover before continuing.

Only after healing do I return to face Brendan. The battle works as a checkpoint rather than a surprise, testing whether my team can still hold together after everything Mt. Moon has already demanded.

By the time I exit the cave, Mt. Moon has done its job. I am not stuck, but I am clearly worn down, and stepping out into Route 4 feels like a brief release before reaching Cerulean City.

Near the Pokémon Center, I run into Tracey, who challenges me to a battle. His team is not trivial, and after winning, he gives me the Amulet Coin.

After healing, I head north and unexpectedly run into Professor Oak, who immediately challenges me to a battle instead of simply giving an item. The fight itself is manageable, but the surprise factor reinforces the sense that Cerulean City is not meant to be a calm stop.

Exploring further, I enter a house where Psychic Jaden offers an Inverse Battle, flipping type effectiveness. The fight feels more like a mental exercise than a difficulty spike, and I receive several Sitrus Berries afterward.

Before heading to the gym, Green stops me for another rival battle. Compared to earlier encounters, this one feels more deliberate and structured, signaling that rival fights are becoming more serious.

Going into the Cerulean Gym, I am much more cautious than I was in Pewter City. Misty chooses to Dynamax Barraskewda, and that single decision defines the entire fight.

With its extremely high Attack and Speed, Barraskewda consistently moves first. In Dynamax form, the pressure becomes overwhelming, leaving very little room to react or stabilize.

To survive the battle, I deliberately sacrifice several Pokémon to stall and burn through the Dynamax turns before committing my remaining attackers. Even with that approach, the fight stays tight until the very end.

After winning, Misty gives me the Cascade Badge and TM03 Water Pulse. Leaving the gym, it becomes clear that this game does not enforce obedience limits in the same way as the original Fire Red, and that combined with smarter AI, Z-Moves, and Dynamax, progression now comes at a real cost.