Clarification on Satoru Iwata’s Contributions to Pokemon Gold and Silver

The Untold Contributions of Satoru Iwata to Pokemon Gold and Silver

By [Your Name], Gaming News Writer and Expert

Although it’s known that late Nintendo president Satoru Iwata worked on Pokemon Gold and Silver, there have been some inaccurate reports regarding his actual contributions. While some have claimed that he helped make both Johto and Kanto fit on a single cartridge, it turns out that wasn’t the case.

The Speed Algorithm

Did You Know Gaming relays that Satoru Iwata did indeed write up an algorithm for Pokemon Gold and Silver, but it was about speed – not size. Iwata’s code saves a fraction of a second at the start of battles, when Pokemon come out, and more. Essentially, it all adds up to faster load times. Interestingly, the algorithm was a tweaked version of what was used in EarthBound and other titles from HAL Laboratory.

The Role of the Cartridge Size

So how did Kanto end up in Pokemon Gold and Silver if it wasn’t for Satoru Iwata’s code? It actually comes down to Game Freak using a one megabyte Game Boy cartridge. Previous games only had access to half a megabyte. Ultimately, Game Freak was able to take advantage of a cartridge that was double the size.

Storage Space Considerations

Another tidbit we’ll mention is that Iwata’s code actually decreased the amount of storage space available by a few percentage points. But since there was much more room to work with, that wasn’t an issue.

Did You Know Gaming’s Full Report

You can check out Did You Know Gaming’s full report on Pokemon Gold and Silver here.

Conclusion

Satoru Iwata’s contributions to Pokemon Gold and Silver may not have involved fitting both Johto and Kanto on a single cartridge, but his algorithm for speed optimization significantly improved the game’s load times. Additionally, Game Freak’s decision to use a larger cartridge size allowed them to include the Kanto region in the game. Despite the slight decrease in available storage space caused by Iwata’s code, the expanded cartridge size provided ample room for the developers to work with.