The Pokémon franchise has been around for over twenty years now, spreading the joy of Pocket Monster collection and battle to the masses. We've seen many different games release, each with new Pokemon to capture and new locations to explore. The world of Pokémon is rich and vibrant with lore-൲based Pokédex entries and enthralling storylines for each locale.

Most long-running franchises have gone through the theory ringer and Pokémon is no exception. With each subsequent release, game theorists and Pokémon lore-lovers flood the scene with various theories and ideas. Some of these suggestions are a bit Farfetch'd (sorry, we𝓡 had to), but s꧃ome of them create cause for suspicion.

Pokémon is especially rich in conspiracy, thanks to its open-ended legends and curious Pokédex entries. There are numerous gaps in Pokemon's history, just waiting to be filled, and we have an abundance of questions that have yet to be answered. Each new release simply adds fuel to the fire, creating more questions and larger gaps. Be🌳cause of this, we've scoured the net to find some of the most interesting Pokémon Fan Theories that could very well be true.

𒐪Do you have a particular favorite fan theory or one that isn't feat♑ured on this list? Let us know!

15 Digimon Are Corrupted Pok🥂émo✤n

Digimon showed up soon after Pocket Monsters made their debut, leading many to question if the new iteration from Bandai was simply a copy-cat cash grab. This was not the case, although it's safe to assume that Pokémon was a direct influence to the Digimon franchise.

that the Pokémon and Digimon connection goes much further than that. According to t♈his elaborate fan theory, Digimon are actually Pokémon that have become corrupted via cyberspace. This seems like a wild accusation but the 💝evidence is pretty convincing.

Pokémon that are stored for later use are placed into a specialized box on Bill's computer network. It's possible that Bill created a specialized file extension (.mon) to help quickly and effectively transfer Pokémon into the digital world. If that's the case, it's entirely possible that some Pokémon could become corrupted due to a computing error. That certainly would explain why all Digimon names end with the "mon" tag.

14 Ghost Pokémon Used To Be Human 🍸

Every family-friendly game has at least one rather morbid fan theory. Pokémon has quite a few and one of the most prominent revolves around the origin of Ghost-type Pokémon. We have yet to see a Pokémon release that gives players adequate 🐠explanation as to where and how these creatures🃏 are created.

Some theorists believe that Ghost Pokémon used to be human. It's easy to pass this off as just another morbid fantasy, but some Pokédex entries seem to corroborate this spooky theory. Yamask provides a good example. This Spirit Pokémon's Pokédex Entry (Black & White) reads as follows;

"Eachꦗ of them carries a mask that used to 🍰be its face when it was human. Sometimes they look at it and cry."

A lot of Pokédex entries are a bit wild and it's important to note that one such entry doesn't prove that Gho🦋st Pokémon are in fact (all) human. Still, it's a creepy and interestin💦g thought nonetheless.

13 Pokémon He꧂althcare Woes

We don't see a lot of adult themes in the Pokémon universe. Many of these adventures revolve around a child's quest to become the next great Pokémon Master. Along the way, you'll run into some arrogant people or even those with ill intent. In fact, there are quite a few depressing moments in the Pokémon universe.

There's also the majorly depressing things we never think about, after all, we're just kids on a grandiose adventure. Many of the Pokémon titles start with a young protagonist leaving home at a young age, usually from a one parent home (we'll get into that later). Soon after you start snagging Pokémon, you're introduced to the Pokémon Center, a magical healing station that takes care✨ of your sick battle buddies without ever chargi🦋ng a service fee.

Or😼 so we think. Some theorists have suꩵggested that the Pokémon Center actually sends bills for each and every service to your home address. That's right, each time you walk through those doors, you're putting your single-parent deeper in debt. If this is true, you might want to rethink those frivolous trips to heal your lightly scuffed level 100 Charizard.

12 Origins Of Mt. M✱oon

Mt. Moon is one of the most prevalent areas within the Kanto region. You're severely missing out if you decide to simply power through this location during your journey. Mt. Moon is one of the 🎉best places to snag a Clefairy and the mountainside is filled to the brim with Pokémon fossils.

You can also find valuab🐻le Moon Stones. These falling meteorites land across the hillside, where they mysteriously turn into pricey pebbles. Most assume that Mt. Moon is just another wonder of the world, but theorists believe that the magical mountain hides a Sci-Fi secret.

Clefairy are classified as Fairy-type Pokémon, but what if they're not actual🔜ly Pokémon at all? Some speculate that the Clefairy are actually an alien race, which landed on Mt. Moon and claimed it as their home. It's also suggested that these playful puffballs brought Moon Stones with them, to make the area feel more li𓆉ke their natural habitat.

11 🦩 The Butterfree-Venomoth Mistake

This is one of the most interesting Pokémon theories to daꦆte because it seems completely plausible. A lot of work has gone into the creation of Pokémon and their evolutions, and it's a wonder how developers can keep up with all of the different names and types. that the creator's made a pretty monumental mistake when designing the orig♚inal 151.

The theory states that Butterfree and Venomoth are switched from their originally🌊 proposed evolutionary chains. Under the proposed structure, Butterfree should evolve from Venonat, while Venomoth belongs as part of the Caterpie and Metapod evolution. This doesn't make much sense from a named peꦏrspective, but the visual clues are pretty shocking.

Butterfree looks like a flying version of Venonat, featuring the same eyes, antennae, and feet. Likewise, Venomoth looks eerily similar to Caterpie (and Metapod)🍬, as it possesses the same eyes and forehead structure. It definitely appears that someone on the development team got these two evolutions mixed up.

10 The Great Pokémon War 🐈

Most Pokémon releases see the protagonist leaving home on an epic journey to fulfill their destiny. Have you ever noticed that each home you leave seems to be occupied by only your mother? We don't see many father figures in the Pokémon ꦬuniverse and, oddly enough, it seems that most of the populace is made up of either children or the elderly.

Theorists as to why most of the middle-aged men and women are missing from this world. The massive age gap may be a product of something called The Great Pokémon War. This prevalent part of Pokémon history was a large-scale battle that saw the demise of many soldiers an🌳d Pokémon.

One popular Gym Leader even makes reference to the war in FireRed or LeafGreen. Lt. Surge of Vermillion City Gym boasts that Electric-type Pokémon actually s🦹aved his life during the war. This isn't necessarily concrete information on whether or not all of the "adults" perished in this war, but it does shine and interesting light as to why the Pokémon franchise has a lack of middle-aged characters.

9 🎐 Gym Guide Is Your♏ Dad

Here we have more on the subject of why your dad is missing in each Pokémon release. One theory points out that our beloved protagonists may have all come from broken homes. It's entirely possible that each father wasn't the best individual and decided to skip out of town before our young🌟 Pokémon Master was born.

Perhaps this is why your mother puts so much effort into raising you right and giving you the opportunity to become something truly astonishing. She simply ca𝔍n't bear to see you turn out like your father. Depressive tho♌ughts aside, there is one interesting point that stems from this theory. It's possible that your dad isn't actually "gone" and has always been there, rooting for you on every step of your journey.

Some believe that the Gym Guide, which you𝓀 meet at the beginning of each Gym challenge, is actually your deadbeat dad.  After succumbing to the guilt of leaving walking out on his family, this loner now prowls each Gym, waiting for just a few moments with the child he never knew.

8 The Creation Of Ko𒊎ffing And Wheezin🐽g

Clever names aside, Koffing and Wheezing are two of the most curious Pokémon to ever grace the series. We've seen garbage and poison types before 🌠but these two Team Rocket mainstays look rather "off" in their design. Have you ever wondered about the origins of these particularly gaseous creatures?

It isn't far-fetched to think that Koffing and Weezing aren't simply industrial-themed Poඣkémon. After all, we do have a walking garbage pile (Trubbish) and a slippery mass of ooze (Grimer). Yet, there are some who think that Koffing andꦑ Wheezing weren't naturally formed by the great Pokémon Gods. Instead, they believe that these two toxic critters are the end result of a Team Rocket experiment gone wrong.

that Koffing and Wheezing are a byproduct of a failed experiment in which Team Rocket attempted to create clones of Ghastl🦩y and Haunter. The group was hoping to breathe life into these clones by using their gaseous forms as a starting point. Koffing and Wheezing were the end result, which may explain why they have a skull and crossbones (signifying poison danger) pla🎃stered on their bodies.

7 🌠 Voltorb Are Possessed Poké Balls

On the subject of ghostly creatures, we have suggesting the origins of Voltorb. It's entirely possible (and probable) that these strikingly simple ball-based Pokémon were created to fill the Electric-type void of the original 151.  That hasn't stopped some diehard Pokémon theorists from developing an origin story that is both frightening and hil🃏arious to think about.

It's possible that Voltorb wasn't created as an original Pokémon. Have you ever noticed that Voltorb has the exact same color scheme and shape as a Poké Ball? The theory states that this hot-headed Pokémon is actually a Haunter-possessed Poké Ball, which would explain why Voltorb features the same eye structure and shape. When a Haunter manages to take over a Poké Ball's ♔form, the button clasp on the front disappears, leaving the specter trapped.

Each Voltorb is capable of activating a devastati💯ng self-destruct attack. It's possible that this attack is simply pent-up energy from a Ghost-type that is enraged by the prospect of being trapped in such a small space.

6 ꦉ The Origin Of MissingNo.

By now you've probably heard the story of the infamous MissingNo. This programming glitch began in Pokémon Red and Blue. This particular "Pokémon" stands as Missing Number (there was a ten-character name limit in the first game) and is one of the best-known glitches in Pokémon history.

Although MissingNo. itself isn't very special, it is capable of doing some very interesting things in-game. Most players used this Pokémon as part of an item duplication exploit, which would allow you to gain access to 99 of any item (including Master Balls and Rare Candy). It's obvious that this glitch is a simple programming erro🀅r, but some believe MissingNo. has a much more depressing origin.

It's said that this clouded array of numbers and broken graphics is what happens to a P൲okémon when it is left inside of a Poké Ball for too long. We do know that Pokémon are stored onto computer networks and there must be something data-like for larger ♏Pokémon to fit inside such small containers. You may want to think about this the next time you catch a Bidoof (we still love you) and hastily toss its Poké Ball-and-all into the nearest storage bin.