By far the aspect fans look forward to the most inPokemongames is all the new creatures they’ll encounter while adventuring through each region. While many Pokemon in each generation are brand-new, oftentimes Game Freak will also introduce new evolutions or forms for existing Pokemon. Other times, evolutions are left on the cutting room floor during a Pokemon’s design.
These six Pokemon throughout the franchise’s history nearly had an additional or alternative evolutionary line. While some concepts may have been shelved for some time, others were altered enough to become entirely different Pokemon by the end. For two of them, there may always be the chance for Game Freak to bring them back in the future.
6Gorochu
Before the existence of Pichu in Gen 2, the evolutionary line consisted only of Pikachu and Raichu. Naturally, the developers of the firstPokemongames experimented with a third evolutionary stage forthe franchise’s eventual mascot, named “Gorochu.” However, the evolution was scrapped, as planner Koji Nishino described in an interview withPokemon.com:
[In] the game specifications, Pikachu ended up being the kind of Pokémon that evolves only once.
Some fan artists have taken it upon themselves to imagine what Gorochu’s full design would’ve looked like, which supposedly had fangs and a horn. It’s unknown if it would’ve remained pure Electric type or if it would also have a dual-Fighting or Fire combination. Sadly, it’s unlikely this cut evolution will ever see the light of day unless it gets reinterpreted into a Mega Evolution.
5Guardia
The Real Source Of Pokemon’s Darkest Theory
Cubone and Marowak are two of the most iconic Pokemon from the first generation, thoughin the beta forPokemon Red & Green, they had an additional evolutionary stage known as “Guardia.” Like Gorochu, only its original back sprite has been seen online, but it reveals an interesting point in the development of the original 151 Pokedex.
By the looks of Guardia’s design, the Marowak evolution would’ve been larger with a small Cubone in a pouch. Gen 1 fans will recognize similarities between this design and the final look of Kangaskhan. This could also lend credence to the theory about Cubone and Kangaskhan’s relation, with fans having speculated that Cubone’s “mother” was actually the Parent Pokemon. (Source:Polygon).
4Bobo
Noctowl Originally Looked Very Different
In 2018, a scrapped prototype ofPokemon Goldfrom the 1997 SpaceWorld demo leaked online, causing online dataminers to reveal early designs for some second-generation Pokemon. One design that’s quite different from its final version is Noctowl, the evolution of Normal/Flying-type Hoothoot. As indicated by its prototype design, Noctowl’s design originally resembledthe spherical shape of its pre-evolution.
Prior to their renaming, Hoothoot and Noctowl were called “Hoho” and “Bobo” in the Japanese beta. Bobo also has entirely different stats than Noctowl, giving it potential as an offensive wall rather than as a speedy special attacker. (Source:X).
3"Latiken"
This Blaziken Design Seems Familiar
Originally,Blaziken looked very differentcompared to its final design. The Fire/Fighting-type starter’s concept art from the pre-alpha version ofPokemon Ruby & Sapphirehas floated around online for years, depicting a Pokemon trainer riding Blaziken. While this was years before the addition of Mega Evolution, it also doesn’t even resemble Blaziken’s eventual stronger form.
Some other fans noticed a similarity between this unused Blaziken design, dubbed “Latiken,” as having similarities in design to the Legendary Pokemon Latios and Latias,who were also introduced inRuby & Sapphire. Perhaps it was actually meant as an alternate form for Blaziken or the Legendary duo, but for now, we can only assume it was a scrapped evolution. (Source:X).
2Mega Jynx
Dataminers Reveal Lots About This Pokemon’s Alternate Form
Nowadays, a word about cut Pokemon evolutions is quite rare, but oftentimes dataminers will find interesting information from scouring video game source codes. One such example of this is afterthe launch ofPokemon HOME, where an alternate cry was found for the Pokemon Jynx, with enough reverb to suggest it had a scrapped Mega Evolution at some point.
Little is known about the design or details of what Mega Jynx would’ve changed, but dataminers couldn’t even confirm its existence until a more recent update toPokemon HOME. Perhaps this will become relevant again if/when Mega Evolution returns, as it’s been speculated to in the upcomingPokemon Legends Z-A. (Source:X)
1Mega Flygon
One Popular Pokemon Never Got A Mega
When Mega Evolutions were being revealed forPokemon X & YandOmega Ruby & Alpha Sapphire, it seemed like a matter of when, not if, fans would get to see a Mega Flygon. Unfortunately, it never came to pass, despite fan outcries. As it turns out, there were indeed plans for Mega Flygon at one point,particularly in the Generation 3 remakes. As Ken Sugimori described in an interview with Nintendo Dream magazine (viaNintendo Life):
Flygon has had the potential to have a Mega Evolution since XY, but we were unable to complete a design and so it was dropped from consideration.
There’s little information known about what would’ve changed for Mega Flygon, but hopefully, fans will someday get to see something exciting happen with this fan-favorite Ground/Dragon-type.
