Monday, August 3, 2015

The Kanto Regional Pokedex is WRONG!

Alright, I know there are some people who will think I am treading on hallowed ground here.  People who have followed the games for a long time or maybe just played the first generation know where in line their favorite Pokemon are in the list of 150 (or 151).  Be really, there were only 149 to start with (not including Mew).

Gender differences were first introduced in the second generation (Gold, Silver, Crystal (GSC)) and it wasn't until the fourth generation that gender based evolutions were introduced. The idea of a Pokemon evolving based on its gender is one of the first ideas used in the games.  I am speaking of Nidoran♂ and Nidoran♀.  Clearly, these were intended to be the same Pokemon but with gender differences and evolve differently based on that gender.  I am assuming at the time, the developers were not able to code this type of difference within one Pokemon, let alone have the Pokemon evolve differently.  As I mentioned previously, this they were able to do this in later generations (fully able to do this as of generation 4).  So, really, Nidoran♂ and Nidoran♀ should be one Pokemon.  So... the Pokedex would look like this:

27 Sandshrew
28 Sandslash
29 Nidoran
30 Nidorina
31 Nidoqueen
32 Nidorino
33 Nidoking
34 Clefairy

After this, every Pokemon in the list would have their number decreased by 1 making Mewtwo number 149.

But, this isn't the only issue I have with the Kanto regional Pokedex.  As seen in later games, a regional Pokedex is reserved for Pokemon that can be found and caught in that region in the wild or an evolution of such Pokemon.  There are several Pokemon that cannot be found in the wild in the Kanto region, but are in this regional Pokedex.  When was the last time you found a Hitmonlee or Hitmonchan training in the Rock Tunnel? Have you ever seen a Lapras surfing in the seas around the Seafoan Islands?  Or found an Eevee frolicking in the fields of Kanto?  These are all given to you by NPCs and cannot be found in Kanto. I would include Mr. Mime, Jynx, Farfetchd, and Lickitung on this list as they are only obtainable by trades with NPCs in the original Red and Blue, but can be found in the wild in Kanto  in later games. 

So, by this list, you can shorten the regional Pokedex by at least 7 (including Eeveelutions).  To further complicate the matters, there are Pokemon introduced in later games that are ONLY found in Kanto (i.e. Houndour in GSC).

There isn't anything that can, or will be done about this because these games are steeped in tradition.  As implied before, many people would be outraged in their favorite Pokemon received a new number.  But maybe an alternate National Pokedex might be in order...

Your thoughts or comments? Did I miss a Pokemon that doesn't belong in the Kanto Pokedex?  Please leave your idea in the comments!

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