Pokéwalker FAQs
Q: I LOST my Pokéwalker! Are my Pokémon gone forever? :(
A: Nope. At the Pokéwalker connection screen, press and hold Up, Select, and R! Your Pokémon will go back to the PC with the same level and happiness.
Q: I want to purchase another Pokéwalker! Do I have to buy the entire HG/SS game?
A: Absolutely not. For $14.99USD, you can purchase a brand new Pokéwalker directly from Nintendo. NOTE: The clip cover is separate, but available for $1.00USD here.
Q: How does this all work?
A: 20 Pokéwalker steps = 1 watt (about 1 calorie burned)! The daily max/limit of recorded steps is 99,999.
Q: What particular things should I BE AWARE OF?
A: While leveling up your Pokémon, they will NOT learn new attacks. The only way to "go back" and learn something is through the Blackthorn Move Re-Learner... but the price is one Heart Scale per move.
In addition, EVs are NOT gained through step leveling. See http://community.livejournal.com/pokemon/3576547.html for more info.
And for more fun, those 10,000+ required steps for your Flychu are from a single day. The steps needed to catch rarer Pokémon are NOT cumulative/total steps, but daily steps!
Q: What happens if I reset my HG/SS file...?
A: Your Pokéwalker is directly linked to your specific file, so when you restart it, you have to reset the entire Pokéwalker as well. See this thread for more details!
Q: IT'S MAKING TOO MUCH NOISE IN CLASS!
A: That's not a question, but you can mute it! The Pokéwalker Settings menu is the far right icon--you can change the sound and shade. :)
Q: What's the best way to rack up steps?!
A: You'd be surprised by how many steps will be recorded if you just walk around a bit! The Pokéwalker seems to be pretty sensitive (to your advantage). :) If you really CANNOT walk much, many people attach theirs to a shoe and steadily tap the foot! If you do use this technique, don't tap too rapidly--it won't register your motions.
Q: I've gotten [Town Outskirts / "X"], but I want to UNLOCK more routes. How do I do this?
A: Walk walk walk, collect more and more watts, and return from your stroll! Once you've defeated the Elite Four, visit the Olivine City harbor and talk to Professor Oak to receive the National Pokédex! For a complete listing of the routes and watts needed, check out BULBAPEDIA!
SEREBII is a good resource, too, for the "visual learners"!
Q: I'm trying to get Surfchu/Flychu in Yellow Forest, but it's not working...
A: That's not a question, either, but here's what you need to do:
( 0] This is optional, but tends to help out a lot. Bring an advantageous type on your stroll! These are area-specific, so check BULBAPEDIA before you go walking! )
1] First and most importantly, you need a lot of steps in your Pokéwalker. For Surfchu, it's at least 9,500 steps. For Flychu, it's at least 10,000 steps.
**KEEP IN MIND: Your step counter resets every midnight. When I say 10,000 steps, that's from ONE DAY (not total steps since you've turned it on)! It's doable, so don't beat yourself up over it.
2] You need to expect to spend lots of watts in search of a Fly/Surfchu. Beat around the bushes and keep trying to find the "!!", or even better, the "!!!" marks. The more exclamations, the rarer and better the Pokemon will be. For more details, see the PokéRadar BULBAPEDIA page!
3] A strategy that works well for me:
Turn 1, attack. This will prevent you from getting hit with a critical (-2 HP) from trying to evade. If you DID land a critical on the wild Pokémon (2 HP left), go ahead and try attacking one last time on Turn 2. The best goal is to reduce it down to 1 HP before attempting to catch.
*I generally do NOT evade unless the wild Pokémon has MORE HP than me (it has 3, I have 2, etc.). If you end up with too many stare downs, you risk the chance of it fleeing from you!
**If you end up with 1 HP (and the wild Pokémon has 2 or 3 HP), I recommend CATCH or EVADE. Do not bother trying to attack at this point!
TURN 1 - ATTACK
[1A]* if evaded --> [2A]
[1B]* if regular hit --> [2B]
[1C]* if critical hit --> [2C]
TURN 2
[2A]* repeat Turn 1 (attack) until 3 or 2 bars of HP remain
[2B]* repeat Turn 1 (attack) and hope for a critical hit (1 bar of HP remaining) --> [3]
[2C]* repeat Turn 1 (attack) and hope for a regular hit (1 bar of HP remaining) --> [3]
TURN 3 - CATCH
[3]* Catch! Best if wild Pokémon has 1 HP, but it's do-able with 2. Make sure you have enough HP**.
Q: How is HAPPINESS factored in?
A: Not much is known about this, but dreyksune has experimented with it. Check out these posts: here and here
Q: Where can I go to see how everyone is doing on their Pokéwalkers? :D
A: The POKéWALKER STATUS POST is your best bet! :)
*Disclaimer: I am NOT an expert with the Pokéwalker. I just did my homework and Googled to compile this list of information. :O