Link tool · Original GBC Gold / Silver
How the Time Capsule works
Trade with Red, Blue, Yellow (and Japanese Green) from original Pokémon Gold & Silver. Unlock is Bill in Ecruteak plus one RTC day—not the Rainbow Badge and not the Elite Four. This page is a live unlock checklist, party compatibility checker, Gen 2 move filter, and import planner linked to the Trade Planner, Catch checklist, Pokédex, map, and week calendar. Original Game Boy Color only—not HeartGold/SoulSilver.
Fast answer
Bill → next RTC date → Gen I link
Walk into the Ecruteak City Pokémon Center. Bill finishes Time Capsule adjustments and the game sets a daily flag. When the cartridge clock rolls to a new day, any Center’s 2F receptionist opens the Time Capsule room for trades with a linked Generation I cart.
Party rules (engine check): every mon must be a Gen 1 species (National Dex 1–151), must not hold mail, and every move ID must be ≤ Struggle (Gen 2 moves such as Return, Shadow Ball, Attract are rejected). Gold/Silver ↔ Crystal uses the normal Cable Club, not this room.
Unlock path
Ecruteak Bill and the next-date rollover
1. Reach Ecruteak
- Clear early Johto through Goldenrod, then north via Route 35 / National Park / Route 36 into Ecruteak City.
- You can meet Bill as soon as the Ecruteak Center is accessible—no need to finish Morty first for the cutscene itself.
- Use the walkthrough if you are still routing past Sudowoodo / Whitney gates.
2. Meet Bill
- Enter Ecruteak Pokémon Center 1F for the forced Bill scene.
- He states the capsule cannot send “new” Pokémon or moves, then leaves for Goldenrod.
- After the scene, Bill can appear at his family’s house in Goldenrod, and the Time Capsule stays closed for the rest of that in-game day.
3. Cross into the next RTC date
- The “still adjusting” lock is a daily flag that clears when the cartridge clock rolls to a new calendar date; it does not require 24 elapsed hours.
- Play past midnight on the cart clock, or advance the emulator/VC day carefully so other daily events stay consistent.
- Until then, 2F says the Time Capsule is still being adjusted.
Ecruteak Center 1F
Bill’s activation cutscene runs the first time you enter.
Poké Center 2F
Link receptionists for Cable Club and Time Capsule.
Time Capsule room
Trade console after the receptionist warps you in.
Hardware / link notes
Original hardware needs a link cable and a second Game Boy with a Gen I cart. Emulators need multiplayer/link support that speaks Gen 1↔2 Time Capsule protocol. Same-gen G/S/C trades stay in the normal Cable Club rooms.
After Bill leaves
Bill returns to his family’s house in Goldenrod. That is unrelated to the daily unlock timer—the capsule opens from the 2F receptionist once the daily flag is clear.
Party gate · same rules as the receptionist
Party compatibility checker
Mirror the three rejection codes the receptionist uses before opening the link. Toggle what is in your party; the result updates immediately.
No rejection flags selected. The receptionist should proceed to the save/link prompts if the capsule is unlocked.
Species rule
Any party mon from Chikorita (#152) onward is rejected as “too new.” Keep only Gen 1 species (National Dex 1–151) in the party you bring to the capsule.
Move rule
Any move introduced in Gen 2 (after Struggle in the move list—Return, Shadow Ball, Attract, Whirlpool, Rock Smash, and more) is rejected. There is no Move Reminder—use the Move Deleter in Blackthorn, overwrite with Gen 1 TMs/HMs, or deposit the mon.
Mail rule
Remove mail at a PC or by taking the item off before talking to the receptionist. The game names the mon that still holds mail.
Magnemite note
Magnemite and Magneton gained the Steel type in Gen 2. Trades still accept them from Gen I; the games treat their type change as legal on arrival.
Gen 2-only moves (IDs 166–251)
Filter blocked moves
Living dex · external sources
What to import (and what cannot use the capsule)
Nineteen National Dex rows never appear as wild/gift sources on either Gold or Silver cart. Most arrive through Gen I + Time Capsule; Celebi is event-only and never existed in Gen I. Aerodactyl is not on this list—it is an in-game Route 14 NPC trade.
0 of 19 marked
Gen I → Gen II item mapping
Catch rate becomes a held item
Generation I party structs have no held-item field. Gold/Silver read the Gen I catch rate byte as the mon’s item. Only catch-rate bytes listed in the conversion table are replaced; every other byte remains unchanged and is interpreted as the corresponding Gen II item ID.
| Catch rate byte (hex) | Mapped held item in G/S | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| $19 | Leftovers | Famous Time Capsule Leftovers path for specific catch rates |
| $2D | Bitter Berry | Status-cure berry |
| $32 | Gold Berry | Stronger HP berry |
| $5A, $64, $78, $87, $BE, $C3, $DC, $FA | Berry | Common catch-rate band → standard Berry |
| Other values | Same byte interpreted as a Gen II item ID | No universal Berry fallback; the result depends on that numeric item ID |
Session checklist
Time Capsule run list
FAQ
Common Time Capsule questions
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| How do I trade Gold/Silver with Red/Blue/Yellow? | Unlock the Time Capsule (Bill + one day), prepare a legal party, then use Pokémon Center 2F → Time Capsule with a link to the Gen I cart. |
| Do I need the Rainbow Badge or Elite Four? | No for the capsule unlock. Bill’s Ecruteak scene and the daily flag are sufficient. Kanto badges are separate post-game content. |
| Why is it still “being adjusted”? | You have not met Bill yet, or the same-day “still adjusting” lock has not cleared since the cutscene. Wait for the next RTC day. |
| Can I Time Capsule with Crystal? | No. Use normal Cable Club trades for Gold/Silver/Crystal. The capsule is Gen I only. |
| How do I get Gen 1 starters on Gold/Silver? | Catch or obtain them in Red/Blue/Yellow, then import via Time Capsule. They never spawn on G/S maps. |
| Where is Mewtwo in Gold/Silver? | Not on original G/S maps. Import from Gen I Cerulean Cave (or a Gen I save that already has it). Power Plant in G/S is an Electric route, not a Mewtwo arena. |
| Can Celebi come through the Time Capsule? | No. Celebi is not a Gen I species. See the Celebi / Coin Case page. |
| HeartGold / SoulSilver? | Remakes use Pal Park / later transfer systems. This page covers original GBC Gold & Silver only. |
Keep exploring