This page covers all known prototype cards released, as well as their final Japanese and English versions across Base Set, Jungle and Fossil for comparison. Enjoy!

(99.99% COMPLETE!)

NOTES:

  • ALL Japanese card scans were rebuilt from scratch as I simply could not find a decent collection of them for me to use.
    • These cards cover Base Set, Jungle and Fossil releases, although some cards of duplicate Pokémon (like Fossil Gastly and Fossil Haunter) are ignored.
  • Wizards card scans, however, all come from PkmnCards.com; used with permission!
  • Corocoro “Early” cards originally came from Hi-res Pokémon Art
    • Note that some cards in the “Early” column are actually Alpha cards, and some cards in the “Alpha” column are Beta cards… it was just my way to compress the cards as best as possible.
  • Design Notes covers how much each card had changed through each step of the design process, but also includes “Pokémon Location” info seen on all Pokémon flavor text but ultimately removed by the final release.

 

TYPE NAME № PROTOTYPE EARLY ALPHA BETA JAPANESE WIZARDS DESIGN NOTES
ZG Bulbasaur #001 ClarisWorks Bulbasuar CoroCoro Bulbasaur Alpha Bulbasaur Beta Bulbasaur Final Japanese Bulbasaur Final Wizards Bulbasaur Forest / Grassland Pokémon –– From start to finish, Bulbasaur was basically the exact same card that was originally designed. Beta dropped to Lv.10 but that’s pretty much it.
ZG Ivysaur #002 Forest / Grassland Pokémon –– Ivysaur, on the other hand, went through a few iterations. Its original Poisonpowder (どくのこな) attack reads as: 受けたダメージの半分を次のターンにかえす、数字は切り上げ (“Half of the damage received on your next turn is returned to you, rounded up.”)… but does this mean Ivysaur only takes half-damage during your opponent’s next turn? Or does its own attack during your next turn heal damage whatever you choose to do? In any case, it’s clear they changed it to a proper poisoning attack. Even its Vine Whip attack got a minor edit (つるのムチ to つるのむち, though both are “Tsuru no muchi”)
ZG Venusaur #003 Forest / Grassland Pokémon –– Venusaur also went through a few changes… its original Pokémon Power remained the same though it was replaced with a simple ZGZC とっしん (Take Down) [30] – Venusaur does 10 damage to itself. Meanwhile its Corocoro Solar Beam attack had an extra clause: “攻撃したときにエネルギーをふたつ取り除かれる” (Discard 2 energy attached to Venusaur in order to use this attack.) Clearly this was quickly realized to be a losing proposition relative to its Pokémon Power, and given that Charizard’s Fire Spin did the exact same thing but did 100 damage instead. Finally, its level shifted from Lv.68 to Lv.32 to finally Lv.67.
ZR Charmander #004 Forest / Grassland Pokémon –– Pretty straight forward across the board. Its Ember attacks all did the same thing even though it was worded differently. Also its level was reduced from Lv.12 to Lv.10
ZR Charmeleon #005 Grassland Pokémon –– Charmeleon’s prototype form has a very unique attack: “ZC Glare – Opponent’s Pokémon below Level 15 cannot attack next turn.” It otherwise remained the same throughout.
ZR Charizard #006 Grassland Pokémon –– Oh GOODness, Charizard went through a lot of changes:
* Going from 100HP to 120HP
* having its Fire Spin attack costing either ZRZRZRZR or ZRZRZRZC
* having Fire Spin deal 100 damage and 80 damage
* having Fire Spin to either discard 1 or 2 ZR Energy
* having either a Pokémon Power or a simple ZCZCZCZC きりさく (Slash) [40] attack
* its retreat cost being either ZCZCZC or ZCZC
…Clearly it was the team trying to balance what would end up being THE MOST Expensive Pokémon TCG card ever created (at least one you can get in a pack of cards) so I don’t blame them for trying to do what they can to make is PERFECT. And despite that, it still ended up being never used, especially relative to Blastoise.
ZW Squirtle #007 Riverbank Pokémon –– No difference.
ZW Wartortle #008 Riverbank Pokémon –– No difference. Its Prototype card is pretty vanilla and thus doesn’t have much to talk about.
ZW Blastoise #009 Riverbank Pokémon –– Blastoise had only minor changes over time. Its Hydro Pump attack originally did 60 (up to 80 with two extra Energy) but also cost ZW extra; this was definitely an original design decision because it would’ve given each Starter a 4x Energy attack. But that appears to have been WAY too powerful given Rain Dance allowing you to drop enough to do 80 by turn 2 and so that probably is why it got nerfed. Meanwhile its Beta version replaced its Power (like all Beta Pokémon) with an extra attack:
ZCZCZC のしかかる (Body Slam) [20+] — Flip a coin. If heads, this attack does 20 plus 20 more damage. If tails, Blastoise does 10 damage to itself.
…naturally making it rain was a better design option for Blastoise, and we all should be thankful for that.
ZG Caterpie #010 Forest Pokémon –– No difference besides Alpha having no Level
ZG Metapod #011 Forest / Grassland Pokémon –– Its first attack, Poison Bard, simply Poisons the Defending Pokémon. But its second nameless attack is probably Wrap as it does 10 damage each turn. It’s not a stasis effect or anything, it just does 10 damage every turn. Meanwhile, everything between Alpha and Final are the same, except for Alpha being at Lv.20.
ZG Butterfree #012 Grassland Pokémon –– No difference.
ZG Weedle #013 Forest Pokémon –– No difference.
ZG Kakuna #014 Forest / Grassland Pokémon –– No difference besides Alpha being Lv.20
ZG Beedrill #015 Forest / Grassland Pokémon –– This one is interesting… the attacks are all the same, name and effect-wise. However you can see the devs honing in the costs and damage of them over time.
ZC Pidgey #016 Sky Pokémon –– Most prototype cards simply have either the standard “2x” weakness or “half” resistance. However, Proto-Pidgey has a new effect: “invincible from all Ground-type attacks”. Otherwise all cards from Alpha to Final are the same, except for Beta Whirlwind costing ZC less.
ZC Pidgeotto #017 Sky Pokémon –– No difference besides Alpha being Lv.49.
ZC Pidgeot #018 Sky Pokémon –– No difference.
ZC Rattata #019 Forest Pokémon –– Basically no difference since Prototype-Rattata, however Prototype Rattata got an extra attack ひっさつまえば (Hyper Fang) which only just did 30 damage. Looks like the final version just split the difference.
ZC Raticate #020 Grassland / Forest Pokémon –– Basically the same card across the board, other than Super Fang requiring a coin flip. I mean, the attack itself is kinda underwhelming, it’s made even worse by using a coin flip. Clearly they thought it would be more powerful than it ended up being.
ZC Spearow #021 Sky Pokémon –– No difference.
ZC Fearow #022 Sky Pokémon –– No difference.
ZG Ekans #023 Forest Pokémon –– No difference.
ZG Arbok #024 Forest Pokémon –– No difference other than Beta-Arbok’s Poison Fang attack requiring a coin flip versus auto-Poisoning.
ZL Pikachu #025 Forest Pokémon –– Proto-Pikachu’s second attack, Quick Attack, has an undecipherable mechanic. It says “Deal damage to your opponent first. As a result, if the opponent is hit/attacked, they will not take damage.” Or maybe it means they can’t DEAL damage, or Pikachu will not take damage? My Japanese is iffy but this is just too vague for me to understand. … As for the other cards, only the Corocoro/Early Pikachu had a different attack, not only doing 40 damage versus 30, but it appears that if you flipped a tails it would do 10 damage to one of your Benched Pokémon versus Pikachu itself? I can’t quite tell. What do you think?
ZL Pikachu (Promo) #025
ZL Raichu #026 Forest Pokémon –– No difference.
ZF Sandshrew #027 Mountain / Grassland Pokémon –– No difference beyond the lack of a ZL resistance in the Alpha version.
ZF Sandslash #028 Grassland Pokémon –– No difference.
ZG Nidoran♀ #029 Grassland Pokémon –– Beta Nidoran♀’s second attack is still called “Call For Family” but it instead is “Flip a coin. If heads, the Defending Pokémon is Paralyzed.” I think this was a mistake.
ZG Nidorina #030 Grassland Pokémon –– No difference.
ZG Nidoqueen #031 Grassland Pokémon –– No difference.
ZG Nidoran♂ #032 Grassland Pokémon –– No difference.
ZG Nidorino #033 Grassland Pokémon –– Nidorino remained effectively the same card from Prototype to Final, with the exception that Prototype’s first attack is ZGZG どくばり (Poison Sting) [20] – Flip a coin. If heads the Defending Pokémon is now Poisoned. … Incidentally the Prototype game text also doesn’t use the actual special condition term “Poisoned” (どく) but the simple verb “poison” (毒), as well as spell out what it means to be poisoned: 毎ターン10ダメージ。(“10 damage every turn.”)
ZG Nidoking #034 Grassland Pokémon –– No difference besides going from Lv.12 to Lv.48.
ZC Clefairy #035 Wonder Pokémon –– Clefairy had Metronome for an attack since the very beginning. Sing was added in the Corocoro/Early version, doing the same thing it does in the final release version. However, the game text was slightly different, with the Alpha version actually explaining what it means to be asleep: 1ターンなにもできない状態 (Can’t do anything for one turn.) … Wait, isn’t that Paralysis??
ZC Clefable #036 Wonder Pokémon –– No difference.
ZR Vulpix #037 Grassland Pokémon –– No difference in game text. But also… you know what? After ALL THESE YEARS I just noticed that Wizards Vulpix was updated from the Japanese Vulpix: Japanese Vulpix’s artwork wasn’t masked properly and there’s a white hole in the middle. See it??
ZR Ninetales #038 Grassland Pokémon –– Alpha-Ninetales was slightly different but also super powerful, maybe even broken! Lure remains the same (although its wording is different) but Fire Blast originally was “Discard 2 Energy cards attached to Ninetales and the Defending Pokémon.” ON TOP of its original 100 damage done. Clearly the developers realized this was overkill and updated Beta Ninetales to what we got in the final version.
ZC Jigglypuff #039 Wonder Pokémon –– No difference.
ZC Wigglytuff #040 Wonder Pokémon –– No difference.
ZG Zubat #041 Mountain Pokémon –– No difference.
ZG Golbat #042 Mountain Pokémon –– No difference.
ZG Oddish #043 Shallow Water Pokémon –– Basically no differences between Alpha-Beta-Final, other than the different cost for Beta-Oddish’s Sprout attack. Prototype Oddish, is even more basic: its first attack is technically also Stun Spore, but in name only. Its second attack is ZG ねむりごな (Sleep Powder) – Defending Pokémon is now Asleep.
ZG Gloom #044 Shallow Water Pokémon –– No difference.
ZG Vileplume #045 Shallow Water Pokémon –– Beta-Vileplume’s first attack is しびれごな (Stun Spore), allowing you to Paralyze the Defending Pokémon with a coin flip. But I kinda like the final version; it has more style and personality.
ZG Paras #046 Mountain Pokémon –– No difference.
ZG Parasect #047 Forest Pokémon –– No difference beyond Beta-Parasect’s Spore attack costing ZG less.
ZG Venonat #048 Grassland Pokémon –– No difference.
ZG Venomoth #049 Forest Pokémon –– Venomoth’s Pokémon Power didn’t exist in the Beta version; it doesn’t look like one that could’ve been converted into an attack (like with Gengar’s Curse or Ditto’s Transform) so they just gave Venonat a boring ol’ attack: ZG ねむりごな (Sleep Powder) – Defending Pokémon is now Asleep.
ZF Diglett #050 Mountain Pokémon –– No difference.
ZF Dugtrio #051 Mountain Pokémon –– Minor shifts between version: Alpha’s Earthquake just did 70 damage, but the nerf was added in Beta. Meanwhile Beta’s retreat cost was reduced by ZC before going back in the final version.
ZC Meowth #052 Grassland Pokémon –– No difference.
ZC Persian #053 Grassland Pokémon –– No difference.
ZW Psyduck #054 Shallow Water Pokémon –– No difference.
ZW Golduck #055 Shallow Water Pokémon –– No difference.
ZF Mankey #056 Mountain Pokémon –– Beta-Mankey is one of the lot of Pokémon that had its Power turned into an attack (or vice versa). The card is otherwise the same as the final version.
ZF Primeape #057 Grassland Pokémon –– No difference.
ZR Growlithe #058 Grassland Pokémon –– No difference besides going from Lv.8 to Lv.18
ZR Arcanine #059 Legend Pokémon –– No difference.
ZW Poliwag #060 Sea Pokémon –– Early Polywag’s first attack was さいみんじゅつ (Hypnosis), so while technically its game text is illegable, it most likely had you flip a coin to put the Defending Pokémon to sleep. Meanwhile its Water Gun attack did 10 damage. The idea of doing more damage per ZW energy was added to the Alpha version, but changed to “Flip 3 coins. This attack does 10 damage times the number of heads.” in the Beta version. The final release stuck with the Alpha version.
ZW Poliwhirl #061 Sea Pokémon –– No difference. I mean, its Prototype form is about as vanilla as it gets, and has only 50HP versus 60HP. So… meh?
ZW Poliwrath #062 Sea / Shallow Water Pokémon –– Basically no difference beyond Alpha Poliwhirl having Lv.30 vs Lv.48 and its Whirlpool attack doing 20 damage.
ZP Abra #063 Wonder Pokémon –– No difference.
ZP Kadabra #064 Wonder Pokémon –– Proto-Kadabra is pretty straight forward: its second attack is Recover, however the cost of removing all damage counters is that you can’t attack next turn. Meanwhile, Alpha-Kadabra lets you remove all damage counters at the cost of TWO Psychic energy. Beta-Kadabra brought it down to ONE, which is ultimately the final version.
ZP Alakazam #065 Wonder Pokémon –– Beta-Alakazam’s first attack is the same “Damage Swap” as you expect it to be, but done only as an attack. This is just part of the Beta design where ALL Pokémon Powers were removed or turned into attacks.
ZF Machop #066 Mountain Pokémon –– No difference.
ZF Machoke #067 Mountain Pokémon –– Machoke has two low quality cards, but their designs are similar to the Starter Pokémon where one has the full background while the other has proper Energy symbols. As soon as I can find some clearer scans, I’ll add them in.
ZF Machamp #068 Mountain Pokémon –– Alpha-Machamp’s Power is essentially the same as the final version, just called Counter (カウンター), plus it was dropped from Lv.90 to Lv.67. Its Beta version replaced its Power with a more generic attack: ZCZCZCZC れんぞくパンチ (Continuous Punch) [20x] – Flip 4 coins. This attack does 20 damage times the number of heads.
ZG Bellsprout #069 Shallow Water Pokémon –– No difference other than Vine Whip doing 20 damage versus 10.
ZG Weepinbell #070 Shallow Water Pokémon –– No difference.
ZG Victreebel #071 Shallow Water Pokémon –– No difference.
ZW Tentacool #072 Sea Pokémon –– Beta Tentacool’s attacks are completely different; they are: ZW ふしぎなビーム (Mysterious Beam) [10] – Flip a coin. If heads, the Defending Pokémon is Paralyzed. / ZWZC ようかいえき (Acid) [30] … One of the only Pokémon that just didn’t bother trying to convert its Power to an attack.
ZW Tentacruel #073 Sea Pokémon –– No difference.
ZF Geodude #074 Mountain Pokémon –– No difference beyond the lack of a ZL resistance in the final version.
ZF Graveler #075 Mountain Pokémon –– No difference beyond the lack of a ZL resistance in the final version, and that Beta Graveler’s Rock Throw did 70 damage… most likely an error as 7 is above 4 on a keypad.
ZF Golem #076 Mountain Pokémon –– No difference beyond the lack of a ZL resistance in the final version.
ZR Ponyta #077 Grassland Pokémon –– Alpha Ponyta’s second attack originally was an Ember attack (Discard 1 ZR energy to use this attack), but later that requirement was removed in the Beta version, then its cost increased from ZRZC to ZRZR in the final Base Set version.
ZR Rapidash #078 Grassland Pokémon –– No difference.
ZP Slowpoke #079 Shallow Water Pokémon –– No difference.
ZP Slowbro #080 Shallow Water Pokémon –– I’m starting to notice a trend: if a Pokémon’s final version has a Pokémon Power that doesn’t fit neatly into an attack, it’s given a simple ZCZC for 20 damage attack. (See Muk)
ZL Magnemite #081 Town / Sky Pokémon –– The “Self-Destruct” (じばく) attack basically does the same thing across all forms, but the Alpha version of Magnemite words it as simply knocking itself out versus doing 40 damage to one self (I guess it allows for something like Defender or any other damage-affecting effects to manage things versus just outright knocking itself out).
ZL Magneton #082 Town / Sky Pokémon –– No difference other than Beta-Magneton’s Thunder Wave attack costing ZL less. Yeah that would’ve been a bit too broken, relatively speaking.
ZC Farfetch’d #083 Sky Pokémon –– No difference. Note, due to weird color shifting, Alpha-Farfetch’d’s ZL weakness looks green and its ZF resistance looks yellow.
ZC Doduo #084 Sky Pokémon –– The final version went through a few changes relative to the original Prototype design: dropping a ZC cost and getting +10 HP. It’s level also dropped from Lv.24 to Lv.20 then Lv.10
ZC Dodrio #085 Sky Pokémon –– So this is an interesting one… Alpha Doduo had two attacks, but in the end its first attack ended up appearing on both the Beta and Base Set Doduo card. Its second attack, on the other hand, Tri-Attack, would later appear on a Vending and FRLG Dodrio card. That said, Alpha’s Rage attack originally did 10 times damage counters on it versus 10 plus 10 per damage counters on it. And then Beta’s first attack is just こうそくいどう (Agility), letting you flip a coin to prevent damage on the next turn (see Fearow and Raichu)
ZW Seel #086 Sea Pokémon –– No difference between Beta-Seel’s Headbutt attack changing to ZC
ZW Dewgong #087 Sea Pokémon –– Dewgong’s attacks are basically the same beyond the obvious shifts in attack costs and damage done. I feel like this one was played a lot to understand how to balance it properly.
ZG Grimer #088 Town Pokémon –– No difference other than a buff of Nasty Goo from ZG to ZC
ZG Muk #089 Town Pokémon –– No difference other than not having a Power, like all Beta Pokémon. However, I’m unsure if maybe it was given a boring attack in lieu of a better one, or that they couldn’t figure out how to turn Toxic Gas into a useful attack (like they did with Gengar’s Curse or Ditto’s Transform)
ZW Shellder #090 Shallow Water Pokémon –– Proto-Shelder’s first attack Hypnosis (さいみんじゅつ) says “Flip a coin; if heads, this attack does 10 damage and the Defending Pokémon’s attack does half damage next turn.” I mean, OK, but why is it called “Hypnosis”? … Meanwhile, Beta Shellder was shifted in its Final release: Supersonic does 10 less damage but Hide in Shell also cost ZC less. The drop in damage from Confusion attacks seems to be a conscious effort across the board (see Lickitung and Lapras for example)
ZW Cloyster #091 Shallow Water Pokémon –– No difference.
ZP Gastly #092 Town Pokémon –– Prototype Gastly basically got split into two: it’s general stats remained through to the final Base Set Gastly, while its attacks got moved over to Haunter. Its new attacks, however, remained the same.
ZP Haunter #093 Town Pokémon –– No difference… at least, apart from the fact that Haunter’s attacks originally came from Prototype Gastly, and the boost from Lv.12 to Lv.17 to finally Lv.22
ZP Gengar #094 Town Pokémon –– Beta Gengar’s Curse attack does the same as its power. Clearly they were thinking that Powers might work better as attacks with the Beta version.
ZF Onix #095 Mountain Pokémon –– Alpha Onix’s Harden attack originally prevented 40 or less damage, but got nerfed down to 30 or less (well, technically Beta and Final Onix says “40 or more damage still happens.”)
ZP Drowzee #096 Wonder Pokémon –– Alpha Drowzee was originally 40HP, Lv.10, and its first attack was ZP ねんりき (Confusion) [10] – Flip a coin. If heads, the Defending Pokémon is Paralyzed. …. Wait, Confusion paralyzes?
ZP Hypno #097 Wonder Pokémon –– Proto-Hypno’s first attack Hypnosis (さいみんじゅつ) basically prevents an opponent’s Pokémon of your choice from attacking. Beta-Hypno, however, is no different than the final version.
ZW Krabby #098 Shallow Water Pokémon –– No difference.
ZW Kingler #099 Shallow Water Pokémon –– No difference.
ZL Voltorb #100 Town Pokémon –– No difference.
ZL Electrode #101 Town Pokémon –– Alpha Electrode definitely is what was released in Base Set. Beta Electrode, which—like all Beta cards has no Pokémon Power—ended up being just different enough such that it wound up appearing in Jungle instead. Beta and Jungle Electrode share HP, Level and first attack.
ZG Exeggcute #102 Grassland Pokémon –– Proto-Exeggcute’s attacks are: ZG Egg Toss 10x (Flip three coins, 10 damage per head.) / ZGZGZG Solar Beam 50 (Rest on the first turn, attack on the next turn.) … Your guess is as good as mine as to what Solar Beam is meant to do.
ZG Exeggutor #103 Grassland Pokémon –– No difference.
ZF Cubone #104 Grassland Pokémon –– No difference.
ZF Marowak #105 Grassland Pokémon –– No difference.
ZF Hitmonlee #106 Grassland Pokémon –– No difference.
ZF Hitmonchan #107 Grassland Pokémon –– No difference besides going from Lv.12 to Lv.33.
ZC Lickitung #108 Grassland Pokémon –– WOW they really nerfed Lickitung by removing Supersonic’s 20 damage in the final version. At least Lapras had it bumped down to 10 damage. But I feel like the idea of a single Double Colorless Energy giving an easy 10 + Confusion was just TOO powerful. /sarcasm
ZG Koffing #109 Forest / Town Pokémon –– Proto-Koffing’s attack Sludge Attack (ヘドロこうげき) costs 2 Poison (毒) Energy and 20 damage, and has “Flip 3 coins. If at least two of them are heads, this attack does 10 more damage.” How unique!
ZG Weezing #110 Town Pokémon –– Self-Destruct got nerfed in the final version by an additional ZC but otherwise it’s the same.
ZF Rhyhorn #111 Grassland Pokémon –– No difference, tho the final version got nerfed by having 3 retreat cost versus 1.
ZF Rhydon #112 Grassland Pokémon –– No difference beyond a slight shift in the final version where Horn Attack dropped by ZC and 10 damage.
ZC Chansey #113 Wonder / Grassland Pokémon –– No difference.
ZG Tangela #114 Grassland Pokémon –– No difference.
ZC Kangaskhan #115 Grassland Pokémon –– No difference.
ZW Horsea #116 Sea Pokémon –– No difference.
ZW Seadra #117 Sea Pokémon –– No difference. Its Prototype card is a one-off bespoke design done to give everyone behind the scenes an idea of what a Pocket Monsters Card Game card could look like. I’m glad they went with a more sophisticated design in the end, but I definitely respect what they were going for!
ZW Goldeen #118 Sea Pokémon –– No difference.
ZW Seaking #119 Sea Pokémon –– No difference.
ZW Staryu #120 Sea / Shallow Water Pokémon –– No difference beyond going from Lv.10 to Lv.15.
ZW Starmie #121 Sea / Shallow Water Pokémon –– Slight buff for Beta Staryu; its attacks were made cheaper by 1 Energy each… obviously this was WAAAY too useful so they switched it back.
ZP Mr. Mime #122 Wonder Pokémon –– Another Beta Pokémon that had a Power swapped with a boring old attack. Maybe its power wasn’t something that could easily be converted into an attack so they didn’t bother?
ZG Scyther #123 Grassland Pokémon –– No difference.
ZP Jynx #124 Wonder Pokémon –– Only minor changes: Alpha has Lv.12, while Beta got slightly buffed as its first attack changed from ZP to ZC and its retreat cost dropped by ZC.
ZL Electabuzz #125 Grassland / Town Pokémon –– No difference.
ZR Magmar #126 Mountain Pokémon –– No difference beyond going from Lv.20 to Lv.24.
ZP Pinsir #127 Grassland Pokémon –– No difference.
ZC Tauros #128 Grassland Pokémon –– No difference.
ZW Magikarp #129 Beta Magikarp; note the increased energy costs Sea / Shallow Water Pokémon –– Clearly by the Beta stage of development, the team felt Magikarp was just TOO OP with its attacks costing ZC and ZW energy that they HAD to nerf them to ZW and ZWZC respectively. Thankfully the came to their senses later.
ZW Gyarados #130 Sea / Shallow Water Pokémon –– No difference.
ZW Lapras #131 Sea Pokémon –– Confuse Ray went from 20 damage to 10 by the final version, but otherwise it’s the same card.
ZC Ditto #132 Wonder Pokémon –– This is interesting; Beta Ditto’s attack is KINDA like the Final Version… it attacks and, by doing so, not only turns into the Defending Pokémon but it also immediately uses the Defending Pokémon’s attack of your choice. Ditto then goes back to normal at the end of your Opponent’s turn, meaning it only needs to hit it for 50 to knock it out. I get the impression this whole “Beta Pokémon don’t get Powers” thing was an experiment that didn’t work out.
ZC Eevee #133 Grassland Pokémon –– No difference.
ZW Vaporeon #134 Grassland Pokémon –– No difference.
ZL Jolteon #135 Grassland Pokémon –– No difference.
ZR Flareon #136 Grassland Pokémon –– No difference.
ZC Porygon #137 Town Pokémon –– Corocoro Porygon was somewhat different: it was 60HP, was Lv.18, and its second attack was: ZCZCZC トライアタック (Tri Attack) [10x] – Flip three coins. This attack does 10 damage times the number of heads. Super awful and expensive, but it wasn’t replaced by anything better. … Meanwhile its first attack was still the same as “Texture 1”, just without the “1”.
ZW Omanyte #138 Extinction Pokémon –– Beta-Omanyte’s first attack からにこもる was a simple Withdraw attack: Flip a coin. If heads, prevent all damage done to Omanyte done during your opponent’s next turn. Oh, and its Weakness switched from ZL to ZG
ZW Omastar #139 Extinction Pokémon –– No changes beyond its Weakness switched from ZL to ZG
ZF Kabuto #140 Extinction Pokémon –– While all Beta Pokémon had their Powers removed, some just had them completely removed and not replaced with something else. Kabuto thus had a HORRIBLE ZCZCZC attack for 30. Ew. But at least it got an ZL Resistance!….which its Beta Evolution removed. Weird!
ZF Kabutops #141 Extinction Pokémon –– No changes.
ZF Aerodactyl #142 Extinction Pokémon –– As mentioned many times, Beta Pokémon had no Pokémon Power. But some Powers were turned into attacks (or vice versa); in this case Aerodactyl’s Pokémon Power was a ZFZF attack that did the same effect, only this time it only affected the opponent. That’s actually kinda… broken? Its level also dropped from Lv.30 to Lv.28
ZC Snorlax #143 Mountain Pokémon –– After all these years I never noticed that Jungle Snorlax was only Lv. 20. Anyways, Beta Snorlax only had a simple ZCZC 20 damage attack. Yawn.
ZW Articuno #144 Legend Pokémon –– No changes.
ZL Zapdos #145 Legend Pokémon –– No changes to gameplay, though Beta’s Resistance to Fighting was accidentally switched to Weakness, and its levels went from Lv.8 to Lv.40 to finally Lv.64. … I want a level 8 Zapdos!
ZR Moltres #146 Legend Pokémon –– Basically no changes, except for the fact that its second attack went from かえんほうしゃ (Fire Blast) and 50 damage to ゴットバード (God Bird) and 80 danage,
ZC Dratini #147 Legend Pokémon –– No changes.
ZC Dragonair #148 Legend Pokémon –– No changes.
ZC Dragonite #149 Legend Pokémon –– Like with all Beta Pokémon, Dragonite has no Pokémon Power. It’s attack originally was: ZCZCZC のしかかり (Body Slam) [30] – Flip a coin. If heads, the Defending Pokémon is Paralyzed.
ZP Mewtwo #150 Legend Pokémon –– No differences gameplay-wise, though it did drop from Lv.70 to Lv.53
ZP Mew #151 Illusion Pokémon –– Mew is the only Pokémon of the 151 with a Alpha Type of “Illusion Pokémon”. Its only difference between Beta and Final is Psywave costs ZC extra
I’ll Give Up A Pokémon N/A One of four known cards that never made it past the Alpha stage, “I’ll Give Up A Pokémon” bascially says: “Instead of showing one Pokémon card from your hand to your opponent, you can take one from your opponent’s hand and add it to your hand. (If this proposal is rejected by your opponent, you may draw two cards.)” Now I don’t know what they mean by “Instead of showing one Pokémon card from your hand…”, but this definitely comes off as a prototype version of “Challenge!”, which was later released in the Team Rocket set (see pictured).
Pokémon Trade N/A This is “Pokémon Trade”, not “Pokémon Trader”. This one basically says: “Both players will search their decks for Pokémon cards and place them face down in front to them. Afterward, the other player adds those cards to their hand, then both players shuffle their decks.” I’m not sure if you trade one or more cards, but either way this comes off a little bit like a Magic the Gathering card managing ante, or lets you switch stuff with your opponent like Mirror Universe. I can imagine that there would’ve been too much of a headache trying to return cards, especially since the Pokémon TCG has yet to allow gaining control of someone else’s Pokémon to this very day (…right?)
Speeder N/A Speeder is a wonderful card, and I’m sad to see that it was never made. Technically the original text says: “(Increases “Speed”.) Remove 2 energy cards in order to attach Speeder to one of your Pokémon. Prevent all effects of attack, including damage, done to the Pokémon Speeder is attached to. Discard this card at the start of your next turn.” The problem is that it doesn’t specify where the energy needs to be removed from—either discarded from the Pokémon you’re attaching it to, or discarding it from your hand? It also doesn’t specify which Pokémon you can attach it to, but I think this is a Japanese ruling thing because PlusPower and Defender can be attached to any Pokémon under Japanese rules but it was Active-only in Wizards ruling. In any case, this would’ve been an interesting card to see exist… except for the fact that Haymaker and Rain Dance decks would be even MORE protected than they actually were. So that would’ve been fun…
Poison Removal N/A Finally, Poison Removal is the one card I’m glad got the axe, because of how pointless it is. What it does is: “Your Active Pokémon is no longer Poisoned.” Which is… kinda fine given that Alpha Full Heal required you to pitch an Energy card from the Pokémon being healed. This means that once the devs decided to make Full Heal free, Poison Removal had zero play utility.
Pokémon Communication N/A So here’s what’s curious… this card name was finally used in the HGSS set, but its card text ultmately would not be used. Unfortunately, since it’s cropped, it’s hard to know exactly what it says, but here’s my guess:
。。。ている相手のポケモンと (…your opponent’s Pokémon and)
。。。 ポケモンを1つずつ選び、(…select one Pokémon at a time)
。。。 ることかできる。(…can be done)
So… it looks like it says that you and your opponent trade Pokémon in play? In any case, it doesn’t resemble what would end up being “”Pokémon Communication””, meaning that either the original card design went through many changes over a decade to become the final card, or they just used the original name on a totally new card idea. Your guess is as good as mine!
Clefairy Doll T As you can see, Clefairy Doll’s design evolved over time… it didn’t even have any HP in its first iteration. As time went on, more and more text got added, until you get to the final Japanese release. Each step basically is:
* COROCORO: “You can play this as a Pokémon card. Even if it’s Knocked Out, it doesn’t count as a Knocked Out Pokémon.”
* ALPHA: Added “HP10”
* BETA: Added “You can discard it at any time during your turn.”
* FINAL: Added “When it’s not in play, it counts as a Trainer card.”
Computer Search T The Corocoro version didn’t have you discarding any cards, while the Alpha version had you discarding only 1 card. Obviously this was still too powerful so the final version upped it to 2. And, frankly, even THAT was still a bit too powerful, which is why they ACE SPEC’d it.
Devolution Spray T The Alpha version included some extra rulings that pointed out that if you have extra damage than its HP (like going from 90HP to 40HP and it originally had 60 damage) then it’s going to be Knocked Out… but that’s kinda implied anyways. Curiously, the Wizards release added text from the original Japanese card (specifically that it loses any Special Conditions or effects).
Imposter Professor Oak T The Alpha card art just took Oak and gave him angry eyes.
Item Finder T Corocoro Item Finder had no cost, while Alpha Item Finder made you pitch two Energy cards instead of just 2 of any cards.
Lass T Alpha Lass had each player discard all Trainer cards instead of shuffling them into your deck.
Pokémon Breeder T Alpha Breeder has extra text pointing out that both the Stage 2 Pokémon card AND this card need to be played at the same time. But that’s a kinda pointless timing ruling that never made it to the final game. Incidentally, the Pokémon Breeder on the Alpha card is saying 「そだってないポケモンいたら, そだてますよ」 or “If there is a Pokémon that has not yet evolved, I will evolve it for you.”
Pokémon Trader T Pretty much as it is in the final Japanese card, except for the final Japanese card mentions to show all cards to your opponent.
Scoop Up T Alpha Scoop Up adds a clause that you can’t use it to scoop up a Pokémon that has been Knocked Out. Another timing issue, almost perhaps a remnant of the dev’s history with Magic (like, they’re trying to ensure Scoop Up isn’t used like an Instant spell).
Super Energy Removal T Alpha Super would’ve had you pitch TWO energy cards instead of the final release’s one to use the card.
Defender T Like Speeder and PlusPower, Defender’s text opens with a statement that has no game value: “Increases ‘Defense'”. It’s otherwise the same as the final version.
Energy Retrieval T The final version of Energy Retrieval was nerfed from the Corocoro/Alpha version, which allowed you to grab two Energy cards without having to trade a card from your hand for it.
Full Heal T Menawhile, the final verison of Full Heal was buffed from the Alpha version, which removed the Alpha version’s requirement for the player to discard an Energy card from the Pokémon being healed. I guess it ends up being a cousin of Pokémon Center, which required you to remove ALL Energy from each Pokémon being healed.
Maintenance T Alpha Maintenance was just slightly different: you could shuffle only ONE card into your deck to draw one, versus the final version’s TWO.
PlusPower T Like Speeder and Defender, PlusPower’s text opens with a statement with no game value: “Increases ‘Attack Power'”. The card functions the same way, but with an added bonus: you DON’T have to remove the effect at the end of turn. Rather, the effect is removed after you attack next… and if you don’t attack for a few turns, then you’ll get to keep the effect going. Interesting!
Pokémon Center T Basically the same as the final version, just with stuffier text. The CoroCoro version, however, had no cost to use it. I feel like this got squashed quickly in playtesting once someone slapped four of them plus four Item Finders in their deck.
Pokémon Flute T Basically the same as the final version, just with more streamlined text.
Pokédex T The Corocoro and Alpha versions had you look at and rearragne the top five cards of your OPPONENT’s deck. Interesting! And quite evil. I’m willing to bet they based Pokédex on the MTG card Cruel Fate, although that let you pitch one of the cards you find in your opponent’s top five cards.
Professor Oak T Literally the same card. That’s right, it’s literally just a Wheel Of Fortune for only you.
Revive T This card underlines the language difference between Alpha and Final versions: Basic Pokemon were “pre-Evolution Pokemon”, and the Discard (Trash) Pile was actually where your “fainted Pokemon” went. Clearly the game text was top-down initially.
Super Potion T This is another buffed card in the final; the Alpha version let you heal 4 damage for 2 energy cards, and apparently a fifth damage for one more. The added text in the corner (probably) says “4 recovery” (4回復)
Bill T It’s Bill. Always has been, always will be.
Energy Removal T Energy Removal is also the same from the beginning.
Gust of Wind T Same with Gust of Wind. The wording is different but the jist is the same. The ヒエー (Hieeee) is actually the Weedle saying “Eep!”
Potion T This is also the same, removing 2 damage. The upper corner text (probably) says “2 Recovery” (2回復). Curiously, both names are “Kizu-gusuri” but the Alpha spells “Kizu” using Katakana versus the final version’s Hiragana.
Switch T Seems like all the common cards were never changed from their original designs. The only difference with Alpha Switch is that its name is is spelled with Kanji and has an extra の (NO) in it: ポケモンの入れ替え vs. ポケモンいれかえ
Poké Ball T
Mr. Fuji T
Energy Search T
Gambler T
Recycle T
Mysterious Fossil T
Double Colorless Energy E You can see the arrowhead shape used in the Alpha design in the final card… sorta. You see what I mean…!
(Basic Energy) E And last but not least… Basic Energy cards. I imagine the Alpha version would look like the one for Double Colorless Energy (just colored appropriately) but I can only guess at the moment.

…

So what’s all this about Pokémon types? Well, on all pre-Final cards, as part of each Pokémon’s flavor text, each Pokémon was given a unique location where it’s said that they could be found and caught. I can imagine the reason why it was left out was that it was just extra unnecessary text, and it was kinda boring (one third were just “Grassland”) and didn’t add anything to the game or actual flavor, so it was probably the first to go when they were slimming things down.

Anyways, here’s the final count; they may not add up to 151 as some Pokémon had multiple types depending on the version (like Raticate was first Grassland, then changed to Forest).

Japanese English Count Notes
森 Forest 17
草原 Grassland 48 Also implies Steppe
水辺 Shallow Water 19 Technically it’s just “waterside” but it implies either the bank of a river or a beach near the sea/ocean. So “Shallow Water” seems best in English.
空 Sky 10
山 Mountain 16
不思議 Wonder 13
伝説 Legend 8 Legend, as in folklore, not Legendary (proper)
海 Sea 16
町 Town 13
絶滅 Extinction 5
幻 Illusion 1 The only Illusion Pokémon? Mew.

…

Much more to come! Keep an eye out for updates as they happen.