Pokemon Radical Red Guide (2025)

Regarding Pokémon game experiences, the classic Pokémon Red experience is one of the more accessible and easy games for new Pokémon trainers to hop into. This is mainly due to the fact that the game has been around for so long and has been subject to so many remakes that the path of progression is second nature to most at this point. However, if you're a Pokemon veteran and want a little more bite to your Kanto adventure, there are some options out there to spice things up, and arguably, the toughest of the bunch is Pokemon Radical Red.

This Pokemon ROM hack allows you to experience Kanto like never before, and will put your skills to the test as it pins you against AI with much more tactical nous, Pokemon trainers with much stronger teams, and adds in all the modern Pokemon mechanics present in later iterations in the series. It's a genuinely brutal challenge, especially on the highest of the built-in difficulty settings, but hopefully, with the help of this guide, you'll be able to hit the ground running.

How To Download and Play Radical Red

Before we get started, you'll need to know how to download Radical Red. Downloading ROMS may seem a little daunting, but it's actually easier than you might think. Here's what you need to do:

• Download a Pokémon Fire Red (UX Squirrels) ROM
• Unzip the Pokémon Fire Red Squirrels file (Using 7Zip or WinRar)
• Head over to Pokemon Rad Red Patcher and add the latest 4.1 patch
• Load ROM using your emulator of choice

Which Starter Is Best In Radical Red?

Okay, let's get started with this guide, shall we? When it comes to the beginning of the game, not much has changed here. Head out into the tall grass, and Professor Oak will reprimand you for heading out there alone, which will then prompt you to choose your starter.

You can either choose the default settings when beginning your game, which will allow you to choose between the standard trio of Charmander, Squirtle, and Bulbasaur. Or, you can choose custom settings and change the starting trio to any other generation from the series.

This will mainly come down to a matter of preference, as no matter what you do, your rival will still choose a Pokemon that is super-effective against yours. However, if I were to give you a nudge towards any of the starters, I would push you toward objectively stronger final evolutions like Greninja, Swampert, or Cinderace.

How to Beat Brock's Gym Challenge

If you took my advice and decided to choose a water-type starter, this shouldn't be that tough of a fight, as water moves well against most Pokemon here. There are some counters to be wary of though, as his Geodude has access to Spark. Not to mention, Archen knows how to use Roost, and this will really stretch out the fight if you let it. But keep these little pain points in mind and you'll nab your first Gym Badge.

How to Beat Misty's Gym Challenge

Misty is a tougher test than Brock because she has a way to nullify a lot of the obvious tactics to take her down. You won't really be able to use Grass Types, as each of her Pokemon has an Ice-Type move. Plus, if you go for an electric type to sweep her team, she'll pull out Lanturn, who is immune to all-electric attacks thanks to Volt Absorb.

Electric moves are still the best way to take her down despite this, but you will need to bring along a decent counter for Lanturn, such as a ground or grass Pokemon, but be wary of moves like Scald and Icy Wind if you do take that approach. Keep your nerve, and you can hold her water-types under the water until the bubbles stop.

How to Beat L.T. Surge's Gym Challenge

Looking at L.T. Surge's line-up, you would immediately think that ground types would carry you through with little issue, but it's not quite that simple, as almost all Pokemon here have at least one Water, Grass, or Ice move to counter you, and the one that doesn't (Vikavolt) has levitate which renders your Ground moves useless.

So, it would be good to try to exploit their secondary typing here where possible. For example, Raichu is weak to Dark and Ghost-type moves, and Vikavolt is weak to Fire, Rock, and Flying moves. Also, be wary of Manectric's Mega Evolution, as they will hit harder than you would expect when this kicks in. Play it smart, bring a balanced team with a counter for all listed above, and you'll be fine.

How to Beat Erika's Gym Challenge

Once again, you'll be up against a team with a counter for all the main weaknesses to the gym's signature typing, which, in this case, is Grass Type Pokemon. Along with a strong Mega-Evolution in the form of Venasaur.

If you have access to a Dragon-Type Pokemon by this point, they tend to work really well here, as only Serperior and Meganium have direct counters for this, and then you can fill the rest of the slots up with other grass counters tailored toward beating them, like a few fire-types. Then also watch out for a few dirty tricks like Electrode's Explosion attack and Venasaur's Sleep Powder. Get through this one, and you're halfway to the Elite Four!

How to Beat Sabrina's Gym Challenge

To make it through this fight with Sabrina, Kanto's Psychic Pokemon specialist, you'll need to make a handful of thoughtful inclusions to your line-up targeting specific members of her team. You'll want a Ghost-type to deal with Hatterene right off the bat, as they have no counter.

Then you'll want to bring along a Steel-type that can handle Indeedee. For Ursalana and Crawdaunt, a water type with a suitable secondary typing to handle both is ideal, like a Ludicolo, for example. Then, you can swap back to your steel type to deal with Porygon 2 and Gardevoir. This is a hard fight, but if you take this advice, you'll find they all go down a little easier, and you can jet off to Fuschia City.

How to Beat Koga Gym Challenge

This fight is actually a lot more manageable than it looks if you bring along some counters for each specific Pokemon here. Opening up with a strong electric type takes care of Swellow, a fire-type will make short work of Accelgor, and then a fighting type will take care of Drapion and Greninja.

A dark type will be best suited for Dragapult, and then you can handle Koga's mega evolution, Toxtricity, by packing a strong ground type. Follow this formula, and you shouldn't have much of an issue defeating Koga. He was a pushover in the vanilla game, and that remains the case here, as much as any trainer is a pushover in this brutal ROM.

How to Beat Blaine's Gym Challenge

Things get fiery after you sort out everything in the Pokemon Mansion and take on Cinnabar Island's Gym Challenge. As much as you would expect Blaine to have a lot of counters to water types, he actually doesn't have a lot, meaning you'll get a lot of joy running a water-dominated team here. The main sticking point is their Pokemon's Drought abilities that weaken water's power, but if you have a Pokemon with Rain Dance you can change the weather to suit you.

The only caveat to this is that they do have some Grass Pokemon to mix things up, so you will need to bring either some strong rock types or some fire-type Pokemon of your own. However, due to these very fire-oriented movesets, he won't pose too much of a challenge if you set it up correctly, so drown the flames and walk away with another Gym Badge!

How to Beat Clair's Gym Challenge

Radical Red offers some new story beats involving Rocket Leader Giovanni, and long story short; when you loop back around to Viridian, you'll face a new leader in his place, the dragon expert Clair. This is a team packed to the gills with hard-hitters with powerful moves, but Fairy types are like a cheat code for this fight, as they can cut through Dragons for fun, and aside from Duraludon, none of Clair's team has a super-effective counter.

Then, for all those that aren't dragon types, bring along a suitable counter, like a water-type for Aerodactyl and a fire or ground-type for Magearna. After this, you'll have all the badges to take on Victory Road and make a start on your Elite Four Challenge.

How To Beat Lorelai's Elite Four Challenge

Alternate Team: Poliwrath, Politoed, Swampert, Kingdra, Kyogre Dracovish

Because the Elite Four challenge is a non-stop onslaught of battles, realistically, you need to have a plan to sweep the competition with one specific Pokemon, and on this occasion, you'll want to have a strong fire type on hand to do a lot of the heavy lifting.

Ideally, you want a Pokemon with the Drought ability, which means that it'll cut through the Ice types, and then weaken the attacks of the water Pokemon so much that they won't stand a chance anyway. Plus, I would suggest having Sunny Day on hand as well, as this team likes to make it Hail.

How to Beat Bruno's Elite Four Challenge

Alternate Team: Infernape, Kommo-O, Urshifu (Single Cycle), Zacian (Crowned Sword), Conkeldurr, Lucario

There's not a lot of difference between Bruno's first team and his alternate, so you won't need to change tactics drastically from one attempt to another. Your best bet here is to run either a Flying sweeper, or go with a psychic sweeper. Of the two, a flying type is preferable as there are fewer direct counters.

In particular, a Pokemon like Hawlucha that has a fighting/flying typing offers both excellent offensive options and defense against Bruno's slew of fighting and ground-type moves. The only additional advice I would offer is not to let Scizor get set up with multiple Swords Dances, and watch out for Conkeldurr's Ice Punch and Lucario's Flash Cannon.

How To Beat Agatha's Elite Four Challenge

Alternate Team: Grimmsnarl, Spectrier, Marshadow, Dragapult, Hydreigon, Gengar

This one is actually pretty straightforward here. What you'll want to do is run a dark type that can sweep the competition, or go at Agatha with your own team of bigger, stronger ghost types. The former is the preferred option, and Alolan Muk is an amazing Pokemon to bring to the party.

Their Poison typing makes them resistant to Ghost-type attacks, but they also have a deep pool of Dark-Type moves to call upon. The only thing you would potentially need to worry about here would be if any of Agatha's team knew a psychic move, but they don't, so you're in the clear. Onto Lance and his big ol' dragons!

How To Beat Lance's Elite Four Challenge

Alternate Team: Aerodactyl, Melmetal, Primal Dialga, Dracovish, Dragonite, Salamence

Then, before we take on the Champion, you'll need to best Lance. The best way to do this is by going in with a selection of ground or Dragon-type Pokemon, which makes Garchomp the ultimate Pokemon for the task at hand, as they are a little bit of both. This setup works well, as a lot of the Pokemon here have a secondary flying or electric typing, making you a little better equipped for what they have up their sleeve. Plus, it makes you better equipped to take down the Steel Pokemon in the team.

You can also take along a Fairy-type to help you land super-effective hits, but just be sure to swap them out when the Steel types come out to play. With Lance dealt with, only one battle stands between you and the coveted hall of fame.

How To Beat Pokemon Champion Gary

As you would expect, Gary's line-up is a true test with a very well-rounded team including several legendary Pokemon. Fire will serve you extremely well in the opening stages of this fight against Pheromosa and Metagross, but then you will have to change tactics a little.

You'll likely want to swap out to a Pokemon with access to rock and ground-type moves, as this will give you a one-up on Yveltal and Eternatus while making you super resistant to Groudon's fire attacks. Ryperior is a super option for this approach.

Then, do your best to one-shot Ditto before they have a chance to transform. If done correctly, you'll have just cemented yourself as the new Pokemon Champion. Congrats!