Mysteries

Pokémon mysteries

18 case files from the Pokémon world. Each one keeps three things apart: what the games say, what fans think, and our own verdict. Fan theories are always labelled, so you can tell a fact from a fun guess.

A new Mystery of the Week is picked every Monday.

How we label a case

• Open. The games leave it unanswered, so nobody can say for sure.
• Solved. The games or the developers give a clear answer.
• Busted. A rumour that does not hold up.

All case files

• Case 01: Is Ditto a failed Mew clone? Open. Two pink Pokémon that both copy things. Are they related?
• Case 02: Where did Arceus come from? Open. The games say Arceus hatched from an egg and shaped the world. So where did the egg come from?
• Case 03: Which came first: Unown or writing? Open. Unown look like letters. The Pokédex itself says nobody knows why.
• Case 04: Why is MissingNo. famous? Solved. A "Pokémon" that was never meant to be seen, and a playground legend that grew around it.
• Case 05: Is Mew hiding under the truck? Busted. The most famous playground rumour in Pokémon. We checked.
• Case 06: Why is Rhydon number one inside the game? Open. Rhydon is number 112 in the Pokédex but number 1 on the secret list inside Red and Blue.
• Case 07: Why is Azurill’s gender odd? Open. Most baby Pokémon match their family. Azurill does not, and in older games it could even flip.
• Case 08: Why do Pokédex numbers jump around? Solved. Grookey is number 810 in one list and number 1 in another. Nothing is missing.
• Case 09: Where does Shedinja come from? Open. Evolve one Nincada and get two Pokémon. How?
• Case 10: Why 108 spirits? Open. A stone, a spell, and a very specific number.
• Case 11: Where do Hoopa’s rings go? Open. Hoopa pulls things through its rings and sends them somewhere. Where?
• Case 12: Why won’t Pikachu evolve in Yellow? Open. Every Pikachu can become Raichu. In Yellow, yours says no.
• Case 13: Where do Paradox Pokémon come from? Solved. Great Tusk, Iron Treads, Koraidon and Miraidon look like Pokémon from a different time.
• Case 14: Who made the Ultra Wormholes? Open. Holes between worlds opened over Alola. We know who can open them, but not why they exist.
• Case 15: Could scientists really revive fossils? Busted. In Pokémon, a machine can turn a fossil into a living Pokémon. In real life, it can’t.
• Case 16: Is Kabuto still alive today? Solved. The Pokédex says some Kabuto never went extinct, and real horseshoe crabs back that up.
• Case 17: Did Regigigas build the continents? Open. A giant with ropes, and three Pokémon it may have made from clay, ice and lava.
• Case 18: Does Jirachi grant wishes? Open. It sleeps for a thousand years and wakes for seven days. What is the wish part?

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