Pokemon Heart & Soul Overview
Pokemon Heart & Soul stands as an open-source Pokemon Emerald ROM hack that rebuilds the entire Johto journey on the GBA. This project pulls inspiration from the original Gold, Silver, and Crystal titles while also incorporating elements from the later HeartGold and SoulSilver remakes.
The full Johto storyline leads into a Kanto postgame, complete with recognizable characters and moments including the Kimono Girls and Eusine. This ROM hack preserves many beloved Heart & Soul features, such as following Pokemon, Pokemon roaming across the overworld, day and night encounters, dynamic palettes, HGSS-inspired soundtracks, dual Safari Zones, distinctive surfing sprites, and every one of the 16 Gym Leader rematches.
Heart & Soul does not lock players into a single fixed difficulty setting. This is a game where players can either follow the intended experience closely or reshape a wide range of rules, covering movepools, Physical/Special mechanics, Fairy typing, EXP rates, level caps, shiny odds, Randomizer configurations, Nuzlocke rules, IVs, EVs, party restrictions, and unique challenges.
Core Pokemon Heart & Soul Features
Heart & Soul functioned as a content-packed Johto remake and demake well before v2.0 arrived, and this is because many of those original systems continue to form part of the game today.
Johto Story and Kanto Postgame
The Johto journey is faithfully recreated alongside the Kanto postgame, bringing back major HGSS-inspired narrative moments such as the Kimono Girls and Eusine.
Kanto continues to be a central portion of the experience in v2.0, though many of its maps, tilesets, encounters, trades, rematches, and additional systems have been enlarged or redesigned.
Following and Overworld Pokemon
Your lead Pokemon can walk behind you throughout the overworld. Routes may also display background Pokemon that signal notable encounters within an area, while Pokemon positioned around towns and other non-encounter spots sometimes exist purely to breathe life into the world.
For accurate encounter tables and precise locations, try to use the Pokemon Locations & Wild Encounters guide rather than depending solely on overworld sprites.
Day and Night System
Heart & Soul maintains its day and night system, which includes shifting overworld palettes and encounters that could differ based on the hour of the day.
v2.0 additionally grants players the ability to select between their platform's real-time clock or a sped-up in-game clock. The complete clock settings receive further explanation lower on this page.
Trainer Teams and Level Curve
Trainer teams and encounters have been crafted to deliver a smoother and more diverse Johto experience without transforming the standard game into a pure difficulty hack.
Players seeking a tougher run must explore the built-in difficulty and challenge settings, which push the game much further. For detailed boss and trainer rosters, consult the Trainer Teams guide.
HMs Without Wasted Slots
A Pokemon capable of learning the required HM does not actually need that move sitting in its moveset to activate the matching field move.
This keeps exploration aligned with the original games and does not force you to clutter your team's movesets with field moves.
Gym Leader Rematches
All 16 Gym Leader rematches stay as part of Heart & Soul. v2.0 also brings back a separate system that handles regular trainer rematches through the Pokégear.
For the Gym-specific system, visit the Gym Leader Rematches guide.
Returning Quality-of-Life Features
Heart & Soul brings back a wide set of quality-of-life additions that make the game smoother to play:
- Two Safari Zones remain available for expanded catching opportunities.
- Unique surfing Pokemon sprites give the water traversal its own visual identity.
- Customizable shiny rates let players tune their hunting experience.
- Toggleable Physical/Special mechanics allow modern or classic combat styles.
- Toggleable Fairy type can be switched on or off depending on preference.
- AutoRun and FastSurf options speed up general movement across the map.
- Quick escapes from wild battles work with a simple button combination.
- Quick Poké Ball prompts streamline the catching process.
What v2.0 Adds and Improves
Pokemon Heart & Soul v2.0 represents a major reconstruction built on pokeemerald-expansion. This version retains the core Heart & Soul experience while restoring several absent Johto systems, modernizing portions of the game, and introducing a far deeper customization framework.
Pokégear and Trainer Rematches
The former standalone Radio item has been swapped out for a more complete radio system housed inside the Pokégear.
The Pokégear now carries the radio channels from Crystal together with extra functionality, including Buena's Password and Hoenn Sound in Kanto. Regular trainer rematches from GSC make their return as well, joined by additional Kanto rematches. Match calls could be disabled if you would rather not use them.
The Hoenn Sound channel proves especially valuable in Kanto, where it can boost the odds of encountering the Hoenn Pokemon that show up along Kanto routes.
Modern Abilities and Items
v2.0 refreshes abilities all the way through Gen 9 and folds in Hidden Abilities.
The game additionally features selected items from later generations up to Gen 9, including the Shiny Charm. This does not imply that every modern item has been included.
For species data and abilities, use the Pokemon Heart & Soul Pokedex. Item locations and their uses belong within the Items Location guide.
All 92 HGSS TMs
The former Emerald-style 50-TM list has been retired in favor of all 92 HGSS TMs, with TM locations reworked to suit Heart & Soul.
Whether those TMs behave as finite or reusable is one of the settings you can select while configuring your game.
Check the TMs & HMs Location page for the complete current list once you need a specific move.
Hidden Items and Itemfinder
Hidden ground items now belong to the game, and the Itemfinder becomes obtainable in Ecruteak.
This addresses one of the significant shortcomings of older Heart & Soul versions, where hidden items and the Itemfinder simply did not exist.
Kanto Expanded
v2.0 delivers fresh tileset work to Kanto and reworks numerous maps. Kanto additionally gains rematch trainers, in-game trades, higher-level wild encounters, expanded roaming Pokemon systems, and the Hoenn Sound radio feature.
Wild Pokemon throughout Kanto are now generally leveled into the 40s. You can locate the actual current encounter data within the Wild Encounters guide.
Roaming Pokemon Reworked
Entei and Raikou now roam separately, alongside a brand-new Kanto roamer.
You could also assign one Lati to roam Kanto while the other surfaces at Southern Island. Roamers no longer deliberately dodge the route you occupy, and the game supplies a sound cue plus animation the moment you step onto the same route as one.
Static, gift, trade, special-event, and roaming Pokemon are all detailed in the Static, Gift & Trade Pokemon guide.
GB Player and Restored Music
The GB Player Key Item lets you flip to Gen 2-style music and sound effects.
Surf and Bike music have likewise been reinstated, with an option to switch them off if you prefer silence.
Voltorb Flip and Decoration
v2.0 restores or introduces more familiar Johto-style systems, including Voltorb Flip and Mom's savings.
You could also decorate the player's bedroom in New Bark Town using dolls.
Berry Balls Expanded
Heart & Soul still swaps Apricorns for berries in Kurt's special Poké Balls, but this system has grown broader in v2.0.
Kurt's Berry Balls can apply the custom Heart & Soul type-affinity catch boost whenever that proves more effective than the matching standard boost.
For berry effects and locations, see the Berries Location & Info guide.
Shiny Hunting and Accessibility
v2.0 introduces clearer shiny indicators to assist with shiny hunting and colorblind accessibility. Shiny markers surface in spots such as wild battles and the naming screen, while starter preview images could also reveal when a starter is shiny.
More Everyday Improvements
Additional v2.0 changes include extra Fly destinations, a clock inside the Start menu, more Bag pockets, tutors and trades gaining the ability to pull Pokemon from the PC, new battle backgrounds, a Spiky-eared Pichu event in Viridian, adjustments to the Ice Path puzzle, and fresh postgame content.
The detailed version history lives in the Changelog, where v2.0 changes can be measured against older releases without cluttering this page into a patch-note list.
Recommended or Custom Settings
Heart & Soul lets you pick between the game's Recommended preset and a Custom configuration.
The Recommended option is the simplest choice if you just want to start playing. Custom settings serve players who crave greater control over mechanics, difficulty, Randomizer rules, Nuzlocke rules, or special challenge runs.
Some challenge settings could also be modified from a Pokemon Center after launching the game, though certain settings can only be shifted toward the easier direction.
Gamemode Options
These options govern several of the primary battle and progression mechanics applied throughout the game.
| Setting | Options | What It Changes |
|---|---|---|
| Pokemon Movepool | Vanilla Gen 3 / Gen 7 + H&S changes | Chooses which level-up learnsets your Pokemon use. |
| Physical/Special Split | Gen 1-3 / Gen 4+ | Choose the old type-based damage categories or the modern move-by-move split. |
| Add Fairy Type | Off / On | Applies newer Fairy typing to both Pokemon and affected moves when enabled. |
| Reusable TMs | Finite / Infinite | Determines whether TMs are consumed or can be used repeatedly. |
| Nature Mints | After Badge 3 / Postgame | Controls when Nature Mints become purchasable at the Goldenrod Flower Shop. |
| Recharge Moves | Gen 1 / Gen 3 | Controls whether recharge is skipped after knocking out the opposing Pokemon. |
| Synchronize | Gen 3 / Gen 8+ | Uses either the 50% Gen 3 effect or the later 100% nature-forcing behavior for wild Pokemon. |
| Sturdy | Gen 3 / Gen 5+ | Chooses between the older and newer behavior of Sturdy. |
| Sitrus Berry | 30 HP / 25% HP | Choose the Gen 3 fixed healing value or the Gen 4+ percentage-based healing. |
| Legendary Abilities | Gen 3-style / Improved | Determines whether certain legendary Pokemon keep Pressure or use a stronger alternative ability. |
| Survive Poison | Faint / Survive at 1 HP | Controls whether overworld poison damage can knock a Pokemon out. |
Because movepools could shift depending on this setting, always verify the setting used by your playthrough before trusting the Pokemon Learnsets documentation.
General Feature Options
Clock Type
You can rely on your platform's real-time clock or the game's fake RTC. With the fake RTC, one in-game day elapses for every single hour of gameplay.
Shiny Chance
The available shiny-rate settings cover a broad spread of odds you could select:
- 1/8192 offers the classic hardcore hunting rate.
- 1/4096 matches the modern base odds.
- 1/2048 doubles your chances over the modern default.
- 1/1024 speeds hunts up considerably.
- 1/512 delivers the most generous shiny frequency.
You could also switch between the normal shiny palettes and the custom Modern Emerald alternate shiny palettes.
Item Drops
When Item Drops are switched on, defeated wild Pokemon can automatically hand you their held item. You do not have to catch the Pokemon or rely on Thief or Covet to acquire it.
Battle Frontier Bans
You can decide whether legendary and mythical Pokemon are banned or permitted within the Battle Frontier.
Heart & Soul v2.0 keeps the Modern Emerald Battle Frontier and Battle Tents. Battle Tents now award BP as well.
Built-In Randomizer
Pokemon Heart & Soul packs a built-in Randomizer offering far more control than merely swapping wild encounters.
You could enable only the portions you wish to randomize and leave the remainder of the game untouched.
| Randomizer Option | What It Does |
|---|---|
| Starter Pokemon | Randomizes the three starter choices. |
| Wild Pokemon | Randomizes wild encounter tables. |
| Map Seeded | Makes randomized wild encounters consistent for each map rather than constantly changing. |
| Trainer | Randomizes trainer parties. |
| Static Pokemon | Randomizes static encounters triggered through overworld interactions. |
| Balancing | Limits replacements to Pokemon at a similar evolution stage. |
| Legendaries | Controls whether legendary Pokemon can replace normal base-game Pokemon. |
| Type | Randomizes Pokemon types. |
| Moves | Randomizes moves and therefore learnsets. |
| Abilities | Randomizes abilities. |
| Evolutions | Randomizes evolution methods. |
| Evo Lines | Randomizes what each species evolves into. |
| Effectiveness | Randomizes the type chart. |
| Items | Randomizes obtainable items. |
| Chaos Mode | Rerolls the seed whenever a randomized value is generated, making results intentionally inconsistent and unpredictable. |
Important: The Randomizer must be understood as capable of pulling Pokemon from Generations 1 through 9. This does not mean that every Gen 1-9 Pokemon is normally obtainable during a standard Heart & Soul playthrough.
If you randomize trainers, moves, abilities, encounters, or evolutions, normal reference pages such as the Trainer Teams, Learnsets, Wild Encounters, and Evolution & Breeding pages will describe the standard game rather than your randomized results.
Built-In Nuzlocke Mode
v2.0 supplies built-in Nuzlocke rules, so players no longer must enforce every single rule by hand.
Nuzlocke Difficulty
| Setting | Rule |
|---|---|
| Off | No built-in Nuzlocke rules. |
| Easy | Adds permadeath. |
| Normal | Adds catch limits in addition to the Nuzlocke rules. |
| Hard | Deletes the save if your run ends in a wipe. |
Additional Nuzlocke Rules
Heart & Soul layers several extra Nuzlocke rules on top of the core difficulty settings:
- Dupes Clause: Pokemon species you have already caught do not count against the catch limit.
- Shiny Clause: Shiny Pokemon can always be caught regardless of restrictions.
- Nicknames: Forces every caught Pokemon to receive a nickname.
- Fainting: Choose whether fainted Pokemon are trapped in the PC Cemetery or automatically released.
- Infinite Rare Candy: Available only when Nuzlocke mode is enabled.
These belong to the normal v2.0 customization system and must not be confused with the separate Pokemon Heart & Soul Hard Mode mod, which stands as its own project.
Difficulty Options
You do not have to convert Heart & Soul into a difficulty hack to make use of its difficulty settings. Each option could be adjusted on its own, letting you reshape only the parts of the game that matter to you.
| Setting | Available Choices |
|---|---|
| Party Limit | 1 to 6 party slots |
| Level Cap | Off, Easy, or Hard |
| EXP Multiplier | x0, x1, x1.5, or x2 |
| Player Items | Allow or block player item use during battles |
| Trainer Items | Allow or block enemy trainer item use |
| Player IVs | Normal, perfect IVs, or 30-31 IVs for different Hidden Power combinations |
| Trainer IVs | Off, Scale with Gym Badges, or Hard |
| Player EVs | Enable or disable player EV gain |
| Trainer EVs | Off, Scale with Gym Badges, or Hard |
| Less Escapes | Makes escaping from wild battles more restricted |
| Escape Rope / Dig | Allow or prevent using them to leave dungeons |
How Level Caps Work
Easy fixes the cap at the next Gym Leader's highest-level Pokemon.
Hard fixes the cap at the next Gym Leader's lowest-level Pokemon.
Turning level caps off keeps normal leveling free of restrictions.
Special Challenge Options
For players craving something less conventional, Heart & Soul additionally packs several separate challenge settings.
No Pokemon Centers
Disable standard healing locations to create a run where recovery must be handled far more carefully.
Ultra Expensive Shops
Shop prices could be dialed up to several steep multipliers that reshape your entire economy:
- x1 keeps prices at their normal baseline.
- x5 makes purchases meaningfully harder to afford.
- x10 forces careful spending on every item.
- x50 turns shopping into a serious economic challenge.
Evolution Limits
You could leave evolution untouched, permit each Pokemon to evolve only once after being obtained, or block evolution completely.
One Type Only
Choose a specific type or let the game pick one at random. Only Pokemon belonging to that type can be caught and fielded for the run.
BST Equalizer
The BST Equalizer could be switched off or set to 100, 255, or 500.
Mirror Mode
Mirror Mode hands the player a copy of the opposing trainer's party during trainer battles.
Mirror Mode Thief takes this further by letting you retain the party from the most recently battled trainer between battles.
Pokemon Availability and the Randomizer
This distinction must be understood when reading guides for Pokemon Heart & Soul.
The normal game centers around Generation 1-3 Pokemon plus their later-generation evolutions, with the Regis kept out of the standard feature list.
The built-in Randomizer, on the other hand, could pull Pokemon from Generations 1 through 9.
This means spotting Gen 1-9 support inside the Randomizer does not mean every modern Pokemon has been slotted into the normal Johto and Kanto encounter tables.
For Pokemon that are genuinely available through the standard game's normal encounters, use the Wild Encounters, Static, Gift & Trade Pokemon, and Pokedex pages.
Differences from GSC and HGSS
v2.0 restores several systems that were absent from earlier Heart & Soul versions, so the differences now sit much smaller than they once did.
Several notable differences that continue to exist include the following changes:
- The level curve has undergone significant rebalancing throughout the game.
- Apricorns are replaced with berries, which Kurt uses to craft special Poké Balls.
- Traditional swarms give way to a 5% Hoenn Pokemon encounter chance on Kanto routes, which could be raised through the Hoenn Sound radio channel.
- Some Ruins of Alph back-room requirements have been altered.
- The Pokéathlon Dome is not part of the package.
- The game runs on the Modern Emerald Battle Frontier and Battle Tents.
Battle Frontier level handling also diverges from vanilla Emerald: the Level 50 format can set Pokemon from levels 1-100 down to level 50, while Open Level accepts them at their current level.
