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One of the most exciting new features in Pokemon HeartGold and SoulSilver is the PokeWalker device, an updated Pokemon Pikachu which connected with the original Pokemon Gold Version and Pokemon Silver Version. The device is accentually a pedometer, it counts the number of steps you take (or shakes) and then rewards you with both battle experience and Watts but more about that later.

The first thing you'll need to do to get your PokeWalker started is transfer a Pokemon from your HeartGold and SoulSilver games, only one Pokemon can be sent to the PokeWalker at a time. The menu to transfer over a Pokemon is found on the start menu before you start up your last save, select it and enter the menu. Here you'll be able to send over one Pokemon from your PC, if you have a Pokemon in your team that you want to walk with then be sure to send it to a box prior.

The next step is to select a course you would like to walk in, there are various courses available with more to be given away via Mystery Gift in the near future. Each course will allow you to encounter different Pokemon and items as you walk so selecting a course plays a big part in what you'll find on your journey.

Now that a Pokemon is in your PokeWalker it will gain one experience point per step you take, it will also grow more fond of you the longer you walk with it. As you walk you will earn Watts (fifteen steps get you one Watt) and on rare occasions your Pokemon will sometimes give you Watts when they're happy. Watts are the PokeWalker's form of currency and allow you to use the various features which are detailed below.

You can use your PokeRadar which costs 10 Watts to try and encounter a wild Pokemon, you'll be presented with four grass patches and one has a Pokemon behind it. Once you've selected the right grass patch you will either see "!" "!!" or "!!!" in a speech bubble, this indicates the Pokemon's level or rarity, this all depends on the amount of steps you've taken. In a battle you can Attack which will cause the opponent to lose one HP bar, your attacks can sometimes be a critical hit doing double damage or miss doing nothing. You can also Dodge attacks which causes the opponent to get hurt instead however dodging can sometimes fail or cause your opponent to flee. The final option is to capture the Pokemon, the lower the HP, the more easier they'll be to catch. If the Pokemon breaks free then they'll flee however if successful you'll be able to keep the Pokemon. You can only hold three caught Pokemon at a time so if you catch a fourth, you'll need to release it or one of your previously captured ones.

Next is the Item Dowsing Machine, this costs three Watts per try and presents you with six patches of grass. Select one and if the item isn't there you will be told if the item is next to or far away from the grass patch you just selected. You only get two shots to find the item or you'll get nothing, you can store up to three items on the PokeWalker at a time. The rarity of the item all depends on the amount of steps you take and what course you selected.

PokeWalkers can communicate with each other too, simply point them at each other and you'll both receive an item as a gift. You can receive up to ten gifts from friends but only one per person per day.

When you send back your Pokemon with increased experience and happiness, your captured Pokemon and discovered items, they will all be loaded onto your HeartGold or SoulSilver game card. Your PokeWalker Journal will also recap everything that you've done so you can see who you captured and what items you found on what days. Your Journal also tells you how your Pokemon behaved in the PokeWalker on your last trip. Finally if you lose/break your PokeWalker or it runs out of batteries, you can cancel your current trip sending your Pokemon back to the game as though it was never transferred in the first place. This is like a safety backup so you never can lose any of your Pokemon between transfers.
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