Like Pokémon Red, Blue and Yellow, Pokémon Gold and Silver are played from a top-down perspective, or third-person, with players directly navigating the protagonist around the fictional universe, interacting with objects and people. As the player explores this world he or she will encounter different terrains, such as grassy fields, forests, caves, and seas in which different Pokémon species reside. As the player randomly encounters one of these creatures, the field switches to a turn-based "battle scene", where the Pokémon will fight.[3]
There are two main goals within the games: following through the main storyline and defeating the Elite Four and Lance to become the new Champion,[4] and completing the Pokédex by capturing, evolving, and trading to obtain all 251 creatures. A major aspect of this is developing and raising the player's Pokémon by battling other Pokémon, which can be found in the wild or owned by other Trainers. This system of accumulating experience points (EXP) and leveling up, characteristic and integral to all Pokémon video games, controls the physical properties of the Pokémon, such as the battle statistics acquired, and the moves learned.[5]