PotatoVoxel

PotatoVoxel turns the Pokémon Gen 1 overworld into a 3D voxel diorama while keeping the game playable on handhelds, phones, and lower-powered computers.

This release focuses on the things players notice most: faster and safer cache building, smoother route changes, lower memory use, and reliable sprite-stacked trees and grey bollards.

What you get

• A 3D voxel overworld with terrain depth, billboard characters, and shadows.
• Quality presets from HIGH to POTATO, so you can trade visual detail for smoother performance.
• A persistent terrain cache so maps do not need to be rebuilt every time they are visited.
• Safer cache recovery when a build is interrupted or a device runs low on memory.
• Authored sprite-stacked trees and grey bollards instead of unwanted voxel replacements.

PotatoVoxel is performance-focused. Your results depend on the device, game version, resolution, and other enabled mods, so no fixed FPS is promised.

Install

1. Download the PotatoVoxel .zip for your Gen1Recomp version.
2. In Gen1Recomp, open MODS → Import mod .zip.
3. Restart the game if requested.
4. Enable VOXEL in the game options.

Only run one voxel world mod at a time. Disable DramaticShape, Dramaless Shape, Battle Art Voxel, and other voxel forks before testing PotatoVoxel. Running two voxel mods together can cause missing models, overwritten settings, crashes, or poor performance.

First launch: build the cache

The cache stores prepared terrain, water, and decoration meshes. Building it before playing gives the smoothest route transitions.

1. Load a save or start a new game.
2. Open OPTIONS → VOXEL SETTINGS.
3. Choose your VOXEL quality mode.
4. Select PREBUILD CACHE and confirm.
5. Leave the game open until the build finishes and the status becomes READY.

If the game says MAP CACHE NOT READY. BUILD NOW? after CONTINUE or NEW GAME, choose YES to start the same process. Choosing NO lets you play normally, but the first visits to uncached maps may stutter while they are built.

On Android and other handhelds, keep the device connected to power during a large build. A first complete build can still take time. You can cancel and resume later; do not force-close the game while it is writing a cache entry if you can avoid it.

Cache management

Rebuild the cache

You do not normally need to rebuild on every launch. Rebuild when the game asks, after a major PotatoVoxel update, after changing settings that affect the cache, or when a cache-related visual or loading problem persists.

1. Open OPTIONS → VOXEL SETTINGS while in a save.
2. Select PREBUILD CACHE.
3. Confirm REBUILD CACHE?.
4. Wait for READY.

The cache identity includes the geometry and relevant settings, so stale data is rejected instead of silently being used. A matching cache is reused automatically after restarting the game.

Delete the cache

Use the in-game option rather than hunting for files on your device:

1. Open OPTIONS → VOXEL SETTINGS.
2. Select WIPE CACHE.
3. Confirm WIPE CACHE?.
4. Build it again with PREBUILD CACHE when ready.

If a build is still running, cancel it first. Wiping removes the prepared mesh data and the completion marker; it does not delete your save or the game. PotatoVoxel stores the cache in the mod's private scoped storage, so the path can differ between desktop, Android, and console builds.

CACHE STATUS shows whether the cache is READY, its geometry version, and the compression mode used by the device.

Quality modes

Choose a named mode to apply a complete set of tuned defaults:

Mode	Best for	Render scale
OFF	Normal 2D overworld	—
HIGH	Strong desktop or handheld hardware	100%
MEDIUM	Balanced quality and performance	75%
LOW	Lower-powered devices	50%
POTATO	The lowest GPU workload	33%
CUSTOM	Your own combination of settings	Your choice

Changing an individual quality setting changes the mode to CUSTOM. The biggest performance control is RENDER SCALE. Lower it if the game still struggles after the cache has been built.

What is not included

• VR and first-/third-person modes.
• The unused Horde minigame.
• Pokémon Stadium ROM importing or bundled Stadium ROM assets.
• Other high-cost features removed for performance and sandbox compatibility.

3D-BTL is an optional PotatoVoxel battle presentation setting. It is not a promise of Stadium-style battles or imported N64 models.

PotatoVoxel does not ship a Pokémon ROM or ROM-derived asset bytes. It works with the player's own Gen1Recomp installation and imported game data.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need to build the cache every time I open the game?

No. Once the cache says READY, it is reused across launches. Rebuild only when prompted, after a relevant update or settings change, or when troubleshooting.

Do I need a separate cache for every route?

No. PREBUILD CACHE works through the map set and stores the prepared data for later visits. The cache may still fill individual maps on demand if you cancel the build or start playing before it finishes.

Why is the first build slower than normal gameplay?

It prepares many maps and their terrain, water, and decoration meshes. 1.8.0 streams the work in bounded pieces and avoids holding whole-map temporary data, but the initial build is still more work than loading an already prepared map.

The cache is stuck or reports errors. What should I do?

First check that no other voxel mod is enabled. Then use WIPE CACHE, restart the game, and run PREBUILD CACHE again. If it still fails, report it with the information in the issue section below.

Trees or grey bollards look like chunky voxels. Is that expected?

No. Make sure you are running the current release, disable other voxel mods, wipe the cache, and rebuild it. If the problem remains, include a screenshot and the newest error-log block in a bug report.

Why do I still see a short hitch when moving to a new map?

The cache reduces the expensive work but cannot remove device or driver limits entirely. Confirm the cache is READY, try MEDIUM, LOW, or POTATO, and report repeatable transition stutters with your device details and log.

Can I use PotatoVoxel with another voxel mod for Stadium sprites?

No. Voxel forks replace the same overworld systems and are not designed to run together. Choose one voxel mod for a test session; mixing them can make it look as though one mod's settings or models are missing.

Reporting a problem

Please use the GitHub bug report form for crashes, failed cache builds, visual problems, and performance issues. The form is much easier to troubleshoot than a one-line “it does not work” message.

Include:

• PotatoVoxel version and Gen1Recomp engine version.
• Platform and device model, including RAM when known.
• VOXEL mode and any settings you changed.
• Whether the cache was READY, building, wiped, or failing.
• Exact steps to reproduce the problem.
• The newest block from lua-error.log (or switch.log on Switch), not an old crash block.
• A screenshot or short video for visual issues when possible.

For cache and transition problems, mention the map or route and whether the problem happens during PREBUILD CACHE, while loading a map, or while moving between maps. You can also use SEND LOGS in VOXEL SETTINGS or the F8 diagnostic shortcut when the log option is enabled.

Diagnostics are intended to contain technical session information only. They do not include your name, account, save data, or ROM files.

Credits

• DramaticShape — the upstream Dramatic Shape Voxel Mod this project is forked from.
• pret/pokered — the original game data that Gen1Recomp users provide to their own installation.
• Gen1Reconp — for making this all possible.