While most Pokemon evolve by reaching a certain level or being exposed to a specific elemen𓄧tal stone, there have always been some fascinating exceptions to the rule. Way back in Gen 1, you could only get Gengar or Machamp by trading a Haunter or Machoke, respectively. This idea was further developed in Gen 2 when Steelix and Scizor came from traded Onix and Scyther hold♓ing a Metal Coat. As the generations went on, more and more niche clauses were introduced in order to make completing your Pokedex both more difficult and more fulfilling. The problem is that gimmick evolutions have gone way too far - it’s time for Game Freak to realise that nobody wants an evo that can only occur after a piece of wet ghost tissue loses at least 49HP.
Before we discuss any of the frankly ridiculous evolution methods in modern Pokemon, let’s take a look at some of the most impressive ones. I’ve always appreciated the friendship mechanic - you’ll never get a Crobat unless you’re willing to spend a lot oꦯf time building a relationship with your Golbat. Inkay, on the other hand, will only evolve into Malamar if you flip your handheld device upside down. Given the design of these two ‘mons, this - while not the most immediately intuitive con൲cept - is pretty damn cool.
While Mamoswine’s requirements were originally a bit too obscure - Piloswine needed to know Ancient Power, an egg move for Swinub at the time - the fact you can just learn it from any Pokemon Center Move Reminder in G🅘en 8 makes the process a whole lot easier. Over the past few days, I’ve hatched and caught at least 15 Tyrogue looking for one with equal Attack and Defense stats to get Hitmontop. It’s annoying,𒁏 but given Tyrogue’s unique evolution branching towards Hitmonlee, Hitmonchan, and Hitmontop, it’s a worthwhile endeavour that doesn’t feel cheap.
Perhaps the greatest evolution requirements in Pokemon history are those tied to Shedinja, the phantom bug who shows up in your party if you follow a set of highly specific prerequisites. Not only do you need to evolve Nincada - you need to leave at least one empty slot in your party and have one or more Pokeballs in your inventory. Iꦡf you do it right, your Nincada will evolve into Ninjask, but its husk will take on new life in the form of Shedinja, an undead insect who apparently doesn’t even breathe. Across lore, methodology, and just sheer intrigue, it’s by far the coolest gimmick evolution in Pokemon history.
Clearly, Pokemon has had an S.S. Anne-load of brilliant evolution ideas over the years, but its most recent outing eschewed nuance for total arbitrariness. I am, of course, talking abou𝔍t Galarian Yamask and Galarian Farfetch’d, who evolve into Runerigus an❀d Sirfetch’d, respectively.
In order to get Runerigus, you need to ensure Yamask takes at least 49HP worth of damage without fainting. There’s no levꦛeling up or evolutionary stone required - you just need to take this exact amount of hurt before traveling to the Dusty Bowl and walking under a stone arch. Once you’re here, Yamask will evolve provided all of the damage was inflicted by an enemy - self-damaging moves like Curse and weather hazards like Hail and Sandstorm don’t work. I defy almost anyone who says they figured this out all by themselves. I had Pokemon ꧒Sword early and even I had to wait for launch to look it up online.
Sirfetch’d is similarly ridiculous. Instead of just saying “Farfetch’d evolves at level 35” or even something like “Farfetch’d needs to be at least level 30, ho🦄lding a Black Belt, with another Fighting-type Pokemon in the party,” you need to land three critical hits in the same battle. What on Earth? Who came up with this ridiculous requirement? Why is it so random?
The worst part about this is that for Farfetch’d to evolve at a reasonable level, you kind of need to do all of this in a trainer battle. Given that a lot of people treat completing the Pokedex as a postgame endeavour, it’s likely that all of the trainers on every route will already have been defeated. What I ended up doing earlier this week - I completed the Pokedex before, mind꧙, and have been replaying Pokemon Sword on a different Switch - was heading to the 🐬Wild Area, finding a Wobbuffet, and spamming Focus Energy and Leaf Blade while holding a Scope Lens. Because it used Destiny Bond on me, I had to catch it instead of beating it. It worked in the end, but not before dozens of battles with lower-level Pokemon elsewhere and a healthy amount of Exp Candy Ls I’d have much rather used on Pokemon with more promise.
The reason all of this is so frustrating is because it’s all so new. Even Ultra Sun & Ultra Moon, the mainline🍰 games before Sword & Shield, had weird evolutions like Crabominable, who you could only get if you raised your Crabrawler at Mount Lanakila. At least this makes sense - you’re on the tallest mountain in Alola, surrounded by tough trainers and ‘mons on the way to the Pokemon League, and this Fℱighting-type crab takes on a hybrid Ice typing from battling in the blistering cold. It’s nowhere near as intriguing as Shedinja or Malamar, but it’s a whole lot better than spamming Dire Hits and hoping you don’t get critted by a wild Pokemon 20 levels higher than you.
I mean, I haven’t even mentioned the Eeveelutions yet, all of whom have different evolution requirements, most of which have changed at least once over the years since their inception. There is nothing inherently wrong with gimmick evolut꧃ions - Pokemon Sword & Shield just forgot what made gimmicks special and instead chose to lean into the most stupidly random ideas they could come up with.
As a lifelong Pokemon fan, I love a good unique evolution method. If Gen 9 wants me to take 87⭕HP of damage in thick fog before climbing up a mountain and rotating counterclockwise for 15 second꧂s though, I’m going to be anything but a happy camper.
And yes, I intentional🅠ly refrained from mentioning Alcremie - to me, an evolution that stupid is as good as non-existent, thanks.