DNA,
No, the battery didn't run dry. The battery still works, the strips in it went dead so the cartridge is unreadable. That game dying is why I didn't bother to level up or train a lot of pokemon for a few years. I had over fifty Lv.70s, a few dozen Lv.50s, and many teams being worked it. I did have one level 100, it was my starter.
Though, I used to have a silver version with a dry battery. Also, i have an oddball gold version. I bought it used back in 2004 or 2003 and the original owner took it's original casing off and replaced it with a red version casing.