!
Error prevention and placeholders in the Pokémon games:
?????????? | ????? | ! | Abnormal Pokémon | Bad Egg | Enigma Berry (Generation III) | Error! | Error codes (Generations I and II) | Error traps for damaged save data | Error traps to prevent impossible progress | Event data debugging messages | Instant victory effect (Generation II) | Mystery Zone | N/A | Pokégear instruction booklet trap | Rhydon trap | Special (location) | This Game Pak is designed only for use on the Game Boy Color. | This Pokémon cannot be traded.
?????????? | ????? | ! | Abnormal Pokémon | Bad Egg | Enigma Berry (Generation III) | Error! | Error codes (Generations I and II) | Error traps for damaged save data | Error traps to prevent impossible progress | Event data debugging messages | Instant victory effect (Generation II) | Mystery Zone | N/A | Pokégear instruction booklet trap | Rhydon trap | Special (location) | This Game Pak is designed only for use on the Game Boy Color. | This Pokémon cannot be traded.
"!" (also appearing in the Japanese versions) is placeholder text that appears in Pokémon Red, Blue and Yellow for when the player attempts to talk to the other player in the Cable Club room (either the Trade Center or the Colosseum), or one of the Pokémon in the Fuchsia City zoo through a walk through walls glitch or cheat.
In Generation III
This message also appears in the Generation III main series games when the player tries to examine a berry plant while the plant is changing its phase of growth.