The above image is rare concept art made for the first pokemon game. Concept art like this is to, well, figure out what the game's going to look like! On the left are small thumbnails with simple designs, because this is a gameboy game so they can only do so much with the graphics.

Despite the limitations of the gameboy though, the concept art on the right is still detailed, to get the feeling and idea of Pokemon fleshed out.

You can see some pokemon designs that are familiar, yet a little different.
At the top right is a turtle battling a starfish, the makings of wartortle and staryu. We can also see a lapras looking monster being ridden on (surf!), but the horn is in a different place.

Beneath them we see a giant gas monster fighting some kind of shelled pokemon. That monster would eventually become ghastly.

Here's ghastly as he appeared in the very first pokemon game.



Ghastly, in the latest pokemon game. Notice that his gasceous body has been given a solid core. Concepts can develope even after the game's been published.


The giant gas bodied pokemon idea wasnt' completely abandoned though, as we can see in...


Spiritomb! The concept of ghastly from the very beginning of pokemon, one that was abandoned in later versions, comes back as a totally new pokemon!



Always keep your artwork. Even if you think it's awful, that's good, understand what you don't like about it so you can improve it. Don't throw out the old version of an updated design either, maybe when you go back to it you can use it in a new way!