Luck manipulation

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In software and most computer games, a pseudorandom number generator is used to handle events which rely on some form of luck. This applies to (as of now) all of the Pokémon games and is used to generate a value which can determine whether for example if the player encounters a shiny Pokémon at an approximated chance of 1 in 8192.

As its name suggests, the pseudorandom number generator is not truly random in the sense that the game or software will depend on a set of constant, initial values known as the 'state' and the 'random seed'. For this reason, several players have manipulated the pseudorandom number generator to generate a random seed which would give him or her a shiny Pokémon.

How pseudorandom number generators are used in the Pokémon games

Two pseudorandom number generators exist in Pokémon Diamond and Pearl.

The first pseudorandom number generator manages the encryption of Pokémon data in the save file (also known as the hidden ID number), the generation of the Personality Value, the Individual Values of a wild Pokémon, the species of wild Pokémon when encountered in a particular area and for determining the lottery number.

The second pseudorandom number generator creates a value, determining the species of a Pokémon swarm, the species of Pokémon found in the telescopes within the Great Marsh and the Pokémon found in the Trophy Garden. The algorithm specifically ensures that Mystery Gift Pokémon and a Manaphy hatched from an Egg from Pokémon Ranger is not shiny. This pseudorandom number generator instead uses the algorithm (0x6C078965 * Seed) + 0x1, where 0x6C078965 is the integer 1822919013 and 0x1 is the integer 1.

Before the pseudorandom number generator is used the game will use generate a 'random' number based on the value of a dword (known as the random seed or 'seed state'). The seed can range from any value between 1 and 4294967295 and is usually generated after the player chooses 'Continue' on the title screen, except in Pokémon Emerald. The random seed changes depending on variables which are 'almost random', such as the game clock time or the amount of recent coin tosses. To determine a 'random' number the game will then use the algorithm (0x41C64E6D * Seed) + 0x6073, where 0x41C64E6D is the integer 1103515245 and where 0x6073 is the integer 24691.

Random seed oversight in Pokémon Emerald and Pokémon Platinum

Presumably an oversight by the game developers in Pokémon Emerald and Pokémon Platinum has meant that a random seed will no longer change after the player selects Continue, therefore this has made catching shiny in-game event Pokémon more predictable. If a player does not encounter a shiny Pokémon the first time he or she can soft-reset and it will be presumable that the random seed would have remained the same after exiting the title screen, hence it is easier to track changes to the random seed.

Abuse of the generated characteristics of a hatched Pokémon in Pokémon Platinum

Several players have taken advantage of the fact that a different random-seed will not be generated in Pokémon Platinum when the player selects 'Continue' on the title screen and will only depend on other main game variables such as game time. In this way, the random seed is more predictable and can be tracked via a game-altering device or knowledge of the relevant pseudo-random number generation algorithm and an additional algorithm determining how the random seed changes after performing simple actions like tossing a coin on the Coin Toss Pokétch application.

Requirements:

1. The player will need the Happiness Application for his or her Pokétch (the sixth application).
2. The player will need the Coin Toss Application for his or her Poketch (the fifteenth application).
3. Parents to produce the Pokémon Egg should either be ready in party or in the box.
4. Five Pokémon should be in the party.
5. A clock to be synchronized with the DS clock.
6. The player needs to be on a patch of grass and should save the game.
7. A Pokémon with Sweet Scent.
8. Any type of Pokéball, preferably the player should have a few of them incase he or her fails to catch the Pokémon.
9. Knowledge of a SID (Shiny Identification) which will allow the player to obtain a Shiny Pokémon (through calculation the player can use the SID of a shiny Pokémon which he or she already knows.

Method:

1. Select the fifth Pokétch application (a summary of the player's party and their current hitpoints) and reset the game.
2. Note the time in hours and minutes after selecting Continue.
3. Use Sweet Scent and catch the Pokémon that appears.
4. Through the use of an equation, estimate the Individual Values of that Pokémon by taking into account its stats, its nature and its Effort Values (those should all be zero if first captured)
5. Perform a relevant amount of coin flips based on information about the date, the time in hours and minutes, the Pokémon's nature, the Pokémon's ID and the Pokémon's SID.
6. Deposit the parents into the Day-Care center.
7. The Egg which hatches should be shiny.

Rumors of increasing the initial catch rate of Pokéballs

Main article: Glitch Myths

There have been rumors that if the player holds the B button before throwing a Pokéball it will apparently increase the chances of catching that Pokémon; however those rumors have been proven to be false.

External Links

[1] - A player manipulates the pseudorandom number generator so that he or she can hatch a shiny Cyndaquil.

[2] - A calculator to help players find the SID of a Pokémon, and the relevant amount of coin tosses required for the next Pokémon egg to be shiny.

[3] - An article on Wikipedia about pseudorandom number generators in general.