26 Years Later, Pokemon Gold Just Got An Unexpected Port

Aug 13, 2026 - 16:13

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26 Years Later, Pokemon Gold Just Got An Unexpected Port

Published Aug 13, 2026, 8:00 AM EDT

James is a gaming writer from London who has spent thousands of hours exploring titles from every genre. Though he has a particular affinity for multiplayer titles like World of Warcraft, Destiny 2 and League of Legends, he has also put thousands of hours into single-player experiences, from deep RPGs to epic PC strategies. When he's not playing or writing, he can usually be found supporting his beloved Brentford FC.

Though there have been plenty of overall improvements across the course of the series, those early Pokémon games really were a bit different. Playing them for the first time as a child was an experience that many of us are never likely to replicate, even if we return to the same games as universally jaded adults.

The definitive game from that era, for this writer at least, was Pokémon Gold, the first installment in the second generation of the video game series (alongside Silver). Now, the classic release is about to make a return for the first time in a long time, and it should gives players more ways to return to that special time than ever.

Player standing next to a Snorlax plush in Pokemon Gold & Silver

Over on the DSO Gaming website, developer bryanthaboi has released a new version of gen1recomp that adds support for Pokémon Gold. What that essentially means is that there is now an unofficial PC port of the Game Boy Color classic, opening it up to a world of additions and changes from fan developers.

That brings the total for gen1recomp support up to an impressive four games so far, with Red, Blue, Yellow, and now Gold, available to players. The overall goal of the project is almost certainly to get as many of the classic games sorted as possible, with Silver the likely next target, given its similarities to Gold.

The latest version of gen1recomp is available via the creator's GitHub right now, though you will have to secure ROM copies of the earlier games you want to play to get it to work. Just make sure you have a legitimate copy of the release somewhere at home, just to keep everything above board from a legal perspective.

Pokemon Winds and Waves Pikachu with sunglasses-1

It really does feel that 2026 has been a bit of a momentous year for the Pokémon franchise as a whole, with the 30th anniversary celebrations still continuing in earnest. The next big thing to look forward to on that front is the arrival of the special TCG run, which includes some genuinely exciting chase cards and a bunch of other fun trinkets and collectibles across the set.

Not only that, but we now also know that Pokémon Winds and Waves will be the first game of the tenth generation, with that title set to land towards the back half of next year. Happily, with these older titles returning all the time, we should have plenty to do while we wait.