Kanto

Kanto is a region in the Pokémon universe and was the first to be featured in the popular series of games; it was followed by Johto, Hoenn, Sinnoh, Unova, Kalos and Alola. It is modeled and named after the Kantō region of Japan, which includes, amongst other cities, the Japanese capital Tokyo and as all the other regions weren't named after somewhere Kanto is the only one that shares its name with a real world location. It was the first region released. The resemblance between the bay formations seen on the in-game map and the actual Sagami Bay, Suruga Bay, and Tokyo Bay formations is particularly striking.

Kanto lies to the east of Johto; they presumably make up a small continent. South of Kanto are the Sevii and Orange Islands. Hoenn, introduced in Pokémon Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald, is supposedly further to the southwest. Routes located wholly within Kanto are numbered 1 to 25; routes 26, 27, and 28 connect Kanto with Johto. Supposedly to the north of this continent is the Sinnoh region. Unova is a considerable distance away and it's unknown where both it and Kalos are in relation to Kanto.

In the first generation of games, Pokémon Red, Blue, and Yellow, Kanto was the only explore region, featuring a variety of environments, such as urban locales and mountainous, wooded and oceanic routes. In Pokémon Gold, Silver and Crystal, which introduced Johto, players were able to travel to Kanto (by either steamboat, surfing or the magnet train) travelling between Goldenrod City in Johto and Saffron City in Kanto after completing their journeys through Johto. Since these games occupied an in-universe timeline a few years after their predecessors, some changes were introduced. In late 2004, Pokémon Red, Pokémon Green, and Pokémon Blue were remade as new titles for the Game Boy Advance called Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen, incorporating new elements.

Two areas of the Kanto region, Saffron City and the Pokémon Stadium, are playable in HAL Laboratory's popular Super Smash Bros. fighting games. In the Nintendo 64 version, Saffron City is a cityscape battlefield while the Pokémon Stadium is a basic arena and transforms to water, grass, rock and fire type battlefields in Super Smash Bros. Melee. With the release of Super Smash Bros. Brawl comes a new Pokémon stadium 2 to play on.

In the anime, the protagonist Ash Ketchum is a resident of Pallet Town and began his journey by touring Pokémon gyms in Kanto with Misty and Brock. Season 1 and Season 9 of the anime are set in Kanto. Location names in the anime sometimes differ from those in the games.

Cities and towns
Most of the cities in Kanto are named after colors, such as Pewter City, Viridian City, Saffron City, and so on. Pallet Town is the kickoff to the series of colors, as Pallet (Palette) is a collection of colors.

Pallet Town
Pallet Town (マサラタウン) is the hometown of the protagonist Ash Ketchum, of the Pokémon anime, and the Red of Pokémon Adventures. It is also the home of Professor Oak, who gets them started with their first Pokémon, as well as Professor Oak's grandson (the player-named rival in the games, Gary Oak in the anime, and Blue in Pokémon Adventures). It is based on Satoshi Tajiri's hometown.

Viridian City


Viridian City (トキワシティ) is the first major city the player visits in the games. It has the first Pokémon Centers and Poké Marts found in the game. At the Poké Mart, the player will receive a package to deliver to Professor Oak in exchange for the Pokédex. When the player first arrives, the gym is locked. Once the other seven gym leaders are defeated, the Gym Leader Giovanni, who specializes in Ground-type Pokémon will re-open his gym.

Pewter City
Pewter City (ニビシティ) is located northwest of the region, between Viridian Forest and Mt. Moon. Pewter City is the first available city with a Gym Leader. Brock is the Pewter City Gym Leader, and specializes in Rock-type Pokémon.

Cerulean City
Cerulean City (ハナダシティ) is the third city visited in the region by the protagonist, and the location of the second Gym Leader, Misty. She is a Water-type trainer, who is in charge of a swimming pool-style arena.

Vermilion City


Vermilion City (クチバシティ) is a large port city that is home to the Electric-type gym leader Lt. Surge. Vermilion City is the only Kanto city to have a port, which houses a luxurious ship known as the S.S Anne. There, the player will encounter the rival again and battle him. After the player exits with the HM Cut, the ship will sail away. In FireRed and LeafGreen, after the player earns the seventh gym badge, the port will be reopened again; it is used to connect the Kanto region with the Sevii Islands.

Lavender Town
Lavender Town (シオンタウン) is one of the smallest towns in the region. The town is believed to be haunted by -type Pokémon. Residents of the town include the kindly Mr. Fuji, and the Name Rater, who allows the player to change the nicknames of his or her Pokémon (provided that you caught the Pokémon).

Celadon City
Celadon City (タマムシシティ) is the second largest city in the Kanto Region. It is home to a department store (the largest Poké Mart in Kanto), a hotel, a Game Corner and a mansion. The fourth Gym is found in Celadon City, and houses Erika and her trainers, who use mainly Grass-type Pokémon.

Fuchsia City
Fuchsia City (セキチクシティ) is the southernmost city on the Kanto mainland. It houses the Safari Zone and a Pokémon zoo. Koga is the Fuchsia City Gym Leader, and he uses Poison-type Pokémon. His gym contains invisible walls that force the player to go around while battling trainers. In Gold, Silver, and Crystal, he is replaced by his daughter, Janine, since Koga was accepted into the Elite Four.

Saffron City
Saffron City (ヤマブキシティ) is largest city of Kanto, possibly based on Tokyo. It is most notable for housing Silph Co., a massive office complex that spans 11 floors. It is also notable for having two separate gyms, though one is unofficial.

Cinnabar Island
Cinnabar Island (グレンじま or グレンタウン) is home to a laboratory and an old, abandoned mansion. You can go to the laboratory to trade some Pokémon and identify the fossils found in Pewter City and Mt. Moon. The Gym is initially locked; after retrieving the key from the Pokémon Mansion, the player can challenge the Gym Leader Blaine, a Fire-type Pokémon trainer.

Viridian Forest
Viridian Forest (トキワのもり) is a forest that lies between Viridian City and Pewter City. The woods are filled a large quantity of Bug Pokémon and Bug-using Trainers. Inside, the Pokémon franchise's mascot, Pikachu, can be found. In Gold, Silver, and Crystal, the forest has been cut down and the tall grass removed, so wild Pokémon cannot be caught there anymore. In HeartGold and SoulSilver, Viridian Forest made a return.

Mt. Moon
Mt. Moon (オツキミやま) is a mountain that lies between Pewter City and Cerulean City. As it cannot be climbed, players must hike through the cave area. It is a three-floor dungeon with multiple paths. At the end of the path, a Super Nerd holds two fossils. After the player defeats him, he concedes and lets the player take one fossil, which can become either Omanyte or Kabuto.

Cerulean Cave
Near the city is the Cerulean Cave (ハナダのどうくつ), popularly known as the "Unknown Dungeon" (ななしのどうくつ). It is an optional dungeon filled with high-leveled Pokémon, and is the home to the strongest legendary Pokémon in Kanto, Mewtwo. The dungeon is so fearsome that a guard blocks the entrance, and will not let the player through until he or she has beaten the Elite Four. In FireRed and LeafGreen, it cannot be accessed until the player has repaired the machine on One Island.

In Gold, Silver, and Crystal, the entrance has been flooded, and the player cannot access the location. However, there is an item located in the water where the cave used to be. In HeartGold and SoulSilver, it returned, but only to those who got all 16 badges.

Rock Tunnel
Rock Tunnel (イワヤマトンネル) lit. "rock mountain tunnel" is a pitch-black cave that connects Cerulean City and Lavender Town. Unlike later games, the cave is not completely dark. The walls of the cave can still be seen which allows the player to go through without the use of the HM Flash.

Diglett's Cave
Diglett's Cave is a long tunnel that was dug by wild Diglett and Dugtrio. Its entrances are south of Pewter City and east of Vermilion City. After the trainer enters Cerulean City, the only foot-path back to Pewter City, Viridian City, and Pallet Town is through this cave. Wild Diglett and Dugtrio can be found in here.

Safari Zone
The Safari Zone (サファリゾーン) is a wide-open area in Fuchsia City where the player can play a Pokémon-catching game. For a small fee, the players are given thirty Safari Balls (a special type of Poké Ball) and may capture Pokémon in the Safari Zone until they have walked 500 steps. Players may not use Pokémon of their own to battle the wild Pokémon in the Safari Zone. Several species of Pokémon are found nowhere else. In Gold, Silver, and Crystal, the Safari Zone is not available because Baoba is on vacation. It reappears in FireRed and LeafGreen, the option to save while there is removed; this could have been because of the Glitch City bug.

In HeartGold and SoulSilver, the Safari Zone was replaced with PalPark and Baoba's granddaughter took over his office.

Seafoam Islands
The Seafoam Islands (ふたごじま) are a set of caves between Fuchsia City and Cinnabar Island. The legendary Pokémon Articuno resides in this area. During the second generation, as Cinnabar Island was destroyed by a volcano, Blaine moved his gym to the Seafoam Islands. Articuno has fled. In HeartGold and SoulSilver, Seafoam Islands returns and Articuno returned.

Power Plant
The Power Plant (むじんはつでんしょ) lit. "unmanned power plant" is an abandoned building found at the end of a waterway just before the entrance to Rock Tunnel. At the end of the building is the legendary Pokémon Zapdos. In Gold, Silver, and Crystal, the Power Plant has been reactivated and is used to run the Magnet Train. Zapdos is no longer there.

Victory Road
Victory Road (チャンピオンロード) is a cave that holds the only way to the Indigo Plateau, accessed to the west and north of Viridian City. The protagonist must have all eight badges to enter. Victory Road contains many high-level Pokémon, including the legendary Pokémon Moltres in the original Red and Blue versions of Pokémon. However, in the FireRed and LeafGreen remakes, Moltres has been moved to the Mt. Ember on the Sevii Islands.

Indigo Plateau
The Indigo Plateau (セキエイこうげん) is the headquarters of the Pokémon League, located in northwest Kanto. In order to reach Indigo Plateau, trainers must collect all eight Gym Badges of Kanto or Johto and pass through Victory Road, a cave located at the foot of the Plateau.

Trainers face off with the Elite Four and the current Champion to become the new Champion. The Elite Four are considered to be the strongest trainers in the land, and each trainer specializes in a different type of Pokémon. The player must defeat all four trainers and the Champion consecutively to defeat the game and be crowned as the new Champion.

In the anime, an annual Pokémon League tournament is held in Indigo Stadium; the last trainer standing is crowned Champion. It is unknown whether or not the Champion faces off against the Elite Four afterward. The Pokémon Village, a resort which caters to the Pokémon trainers and other people who have come to watch the competition, is located at the center of the Plateau. Once Pokémon Contests come to Kanto, the yearly Grand Festival is held here as well.

Map


Trivia

 * Strangely, Kanto is named after the Japanese region of the same name, probably because Tokyo is in Kanto. Thus, Kanto is the only region that shares its name with a real world place, all other regions to date do not.
 * All locations in Kanto are named after colors with the exception of Pallet Town, as a palette is a group of colors.
 * Another name for Kanto is Indigo. This is due to when the English speaking versions of Red and Blue were released the name of the region was completely absent from the games and many fans assumed the name was Indigo not Kanto, the name Indigo comes from the Indigo Plateau where the Elite Four and Champion are.
 * Kanto is in every Generation before Generations V.