Surprisingly, Pokemon Sword and Shield doesn’t have a lot of Pokemon species from the original games. For months, we’ve known that not every Pokemon species would appear in Pokemon Sword and Shield, meaning that the games will be the first time that players can’t “catch ’em all” in nearly 20 years. Now that the games are officially out, we know that 400 Pokemon species appear in Pokemon Sword and Shield, including nearly 100 new species of Pokemon. Of the remaining 300 or so Pokemon species in the game, 47 first appeared in Pokemon Sword and Shield. That means that less than one third of the original 151 Pokemon species are present in the new games.
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A lot of popular Pokemon from the original games didn’t make the cut – including Starter Pokemon Bulbasaur and Squirtle, Dratini and its evolutions, and Mewtwo. However, perennial favorites like Pikachu and Eevee did make the cut, as did slightly less popular Pokemon like Goldeen and Hitmonlee. In addition to the 47 Kanto Pokemon, there are also six Pokemon species from Pokemon Red and Blue that appear in the newest Pokemon games, but with brand new Galarian forms.
While the other Pokemon won’t appear in Pokemon Sword and Shield, Game Freak’s directors promised that the Pokemon will return in a future installment of the series. Players can also pick up last year’s Pokemon: Let’s Go, Pikachu and Pokemon: Let’s Go, Eevee if they really need a fix of original Pokemon goodness.
Here are the original Pokemon that made the cut in Pokemon Sword and Shield:
- Charmander, Charmeleon, Charizard
- Caterpie, Metapod, Butterfree
- Pikachu, Raichu
- Clefairy, Clefable
- Vulpix, Ninetales
- Oddish, Gloom, Vileplume
- Diglett, Dugtrio
- Meowth, Persian
- Growlithe, Arcanine
- Machop, Machoke, Machamp
- Ponyta, Rapidash
- Farfetch’d
- Shellder, Cloyster
- Gastly, Haunter, Gengar
- Onix
- Krabby, Kingler
- Hitmonlee, Hitmonchan
- Koffing, Weezing
- Rhyhorn, Rhydon
- Goldeen, Seaking
- Mr. Mime
- Magikarp, Gyarados
- Lapras
- Ditto
- Eevee, Vaporeon, Jolteon, Flareon
- Snorlax
Are you surprised by what Pokemon didn’t make the cut in Pokemon Sword and Shield? Let us know in the comment section or find me on Twitter at @CHofferCBus to chat about all things Pokemon!
