History of the Pokmon world

May 2024 · 43 minute read
175Togepi.pngThis article contains fan speculation.
There is no solid evidence for or against some parts of this article.
If you were looking for the character ages, see List of character ages.

This is the history of the Pokémon world in the games, and the order which events occurred, or, for events which happened outside the games, where they happened in relation to the games.

In the core series games

Timeline

Several occurrences in the core series Pokémon games depend on the games being connected to each other in a timeline, but a complete timeline cannot be drawn from the games themselves. Series producer Junichi Masuda, in an interview with GameInformer on October 24, 2019, stated that Game Freak does not apply a timeline to the Pokémon world rigorously.[note 1]

Deleted tweet by Toshinobu Matsumiya

On May 7, 2014, Game Freak employee Toshinobu Matsumiya's Twitter account posted a timeline of the core series Pokémon games up to that point.[1] However, the tweet was subsequently deleted.

This tweet in conjunction with other evidence suggests the following timeline:

Porygon's creation

Porygon's Pokédex entries in Pokémon Sun, Ultra Sun, and Ultra Moon state that it was created 20 years ago.[note 5] Pocket Monsters Encyclopedia states that Porygon was created in 1995, as well as stating that 150 species of Pokémon have been discovered as of 1996, alluding to the player having completed their Pokédex in Pokémon Red and Green,[note 6] thus implying that Pokémon Red and Green take place in either 1995 or 1996. This would mean that Pokémon Sun, Moon, Ultra Sun, and Ultra Moon take place 19–20 years after Pokémon Red, Green, Blue, and Yellow; from this information and the time lengths between other games in the series, it can be calculated that the time period between Generation II/IV and Pokémon Black and White is 12–13 years long. However, the length of this time gap has never been explicitly confirmed in any official material, with Toshinobu Matsumiya having described it as "secret" on Twitter.[3]

Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire

Although Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire are remakes of Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire, they contain some references to features from the original games as having been present about a decade ago,[note 7] while others have not yet come about, such as the Battle Frontier, which is under construction. Despite this, the remakes are implied to happen at the same point in the timeline as the original games, as the Royal Unova and a device to visually reproduce the dreams of Pokémon having not yet been created reveals them to take place before Pokémon Black and White[note 8][note 9] and Mr. Bonding gaining O-Powers reveals them to take place before Pokémon X and Y.[note 10]

Pokémon: Let's Go, Pikachu! and Let's Go, Eevee!

Although Pokémon: Let's Go, Pikachu! and Let's Go, Eevee! are remakes of Pokémon Yellow, Red and Blue are known to have already finished their journeys years ago, and Mina's age mentioned in her concept art would suggest that the games are set a maximum of six years before Pokémon Sun, Moon, Ultra Sun, and Ultra Moon,[4][note 11] implying that they take place later than the original game. However, this is contradicted by Sabrina having a vision of meeting a special Trainer in three years, referencing the protagonist of Generation II, suggesting these games may not necessarily adhere to the timeline of the rest of the core series.

References to real-life years and release dates

The specific years of events are not mentioned in the games themselves, but Pocket Monsters Encyclopedia implies that Pokémon Red and Green take place in 1995 or 1996, the latter being the year in which they were released; this year is also referenced in Pokémon Sun, Moon, Ultra Sun, and Ultra Moon on Red's shirt, which features a symbol resembling the number "96". Pokémon Gold and Silver are known to occur three years later, also aligning with their release in 1999. Similarly, Pokémon Black 2 and White 2 are set two years after Pokémon Black and White, which was also the amount of time that passed between the releases of the games. References to the passage of time in real life also appear in Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire, in which the player's mother states that she saw the Litleonids when they last occurred 12 (in the Japanese and Korean versions) or 11 (in the English, French, German, Italian, and Spanish versions) years ago, referencing the time between the release of Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire and their remakes, and Norman mentions having seen the Eon Ticket 11 years ago, referencing how long had passed from the item's original distribution in 2003 to the release of the games. Similarly, in Pokémon Diamond, Pearl, Platinum, Brilliant Diamond, and Shining Pearl, the description of the Member Card mentions that the last date marked on it was 50 years ago; the date shown on the card's official artwork (1958.12.1) is exactly 50 years prior to its first distribution.

Alternate universes

The existence of multiple alternate universes is alluded to or stated in some of the games.

Beginning of the Pokémon universe

The clash between Groudon and Kyogre as depicted in ancient paintings

This information is based primarily on the mythology of both the Hoenn and Sinnoh regions.

Prehistory

This information is based primarily on the study of Fossils and other archaeological remains. Some of this information is also based on scientific research.

Millions of years before Generation I:

3,000 years before Generation V:

3,000 years before Generation VI:

AZ and the ultimate weapon

3,000 years before Generation VIII:

2,500 years before Generation V:

2,000 years before Generation V:

2,000 years before Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire:

2,000 years before Generation IX:

1,500 years before Generation I:

1,000 years before Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire:

Many years before Legends: Arceus:

805 years before Generation IX:

800 years before X and Y:

Sometime before Legends: Arceus: The Diamond and Pearl Clans arrived in Hisui, and an long conflict, arguing with each other, as one believes the almighty Sinnoh is a deity of time and one, a deity of space, unaware that both clans were mistaken.

Recent history

This information is based on historic records.

Ecruteak City

Hundreds of years before Generation II:

Sometime before Generation IV:

c. 700 years before Generation II:

c. 500 years before Generation II:

c. 500 years before Generation IV:

c. 500 years before Generation VII:

c. 400 years before Generation I:

c. 400 years before Generation II:

c. 400 years before Generation VIII:

c. 300 years before X and Y:

c. 200 years before Generation V:

c. 200 years before Generation IX:

Hundreds of years before Generation IX:

c. 150 years before Generation II:

c. 150 years before Generation IX:

c. 100 years before Generation V:

1925

c. 50 years before Generation V:

c. 50 years before Generation VIII:

c. 40 years before Generation III:

c. 32 years before Generation VIII:

Several decades before Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire:

1969:

11 years before Generation III:

10 years before Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire:

1995

Less than 10 years before Generation I:

Some years prior to Generation I:

Ten years prior to Generation IX

A year and a half prior to Generation IX

One year prior to Generation I:

Contemporary history

From the Pokémon games:

Generation I/III:

PE:

Between I/III and II/IV:

Three years after Generation I/Generation III/ORAS (Generation II/Generation IV/BDSP):

Between Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire and Generation V:

Between Generation II/IV and Generation V:

A few years after Generation II/Generation IV (Generation V):

N and Zekrom

Between Black and White and Black 2 and White 2/X and Y:

Two years after Black and White (Generation VI):

Encountering Xerneas

Between Black 2 and White 2/X and Y and Generation VII:

Two years after Black 2 and White 2/X and Y (Generation VII):

Lillie and Nebby as a Solgaleo

Some time before Generation VIII:

Generation VIII:

Some time after Generation VIII (Generation IX):

In the side series games

Pokémon Colosseum

Pokémon Colosseum shares the same continuity as the core series games. The events of this game occur between I/III and II/IV core series games.

Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness

Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness shares the same continuity as the core series games. The events of this game occur approximately two years after Generation II/Generation IV.

In the spin-off games

Pokémon Ranger series

The Pokémon Ranger series shares the same continuity as the core series games.

The events of Pokémon Ranger occur between I/III and II/IV core series games. The events of Pokémon Ranger: Shadows of Almia, and Pokémon Ranger: Guardian Signs occur at the same time as II/IV core series games.

In Pokémon Ranger: Guardian Signs, there are legends about events from hundreds of years before Generation I.

In the anime

Main article: History of the Pokémon world (anime)

In the manga

Pokémon Adventures

Main article: History of the Pokémon world (Adventures)

References

  • Matsumiya tweet (archived from Twitter)
  • Pokémon Sun and Moon Grimsley settei
  • "Elapsed time is secret. Imagine freely!" - Toshinobu Matsumiya. May 10, 2014. Twitter
  • Pokémon: Let's Go, Pikachu! and Let's Go, Eevee! Mina settei
  • Koga: TM06 contains Toxic! It is a secret technique over 400 years old!
  • Old Man: "July 20, 1969! Humankind first set foot on the moon that day. I bought a color TV just so I could watch that news."
  • According to the Pocket Monsters Encyclopedia, Porygon was created in 1995.
  • Pokédex from Sword: Rumor has it that the theft of top-secret research notes led to a new instance of this Pokémon being created in the Galar region.
  • Notes

  • Game Freak Talks Sword And Shield's Champion, Wild Area Interactions, And More by Brian Shea
    Masuda: It starts to get a little complicated if you pay too much attention to timelines. Like, there might be a professor that appears and it wouldn’t make sense at all if we applied that kind of timeline logic. So we try not to apply it too rigorously. Maybe one hint is that if a character is appearing with Professor Oak, they’re living in the same era. Rather than some series where it makes sense to have the timeline progress as you go and the story evolve, the approach that Pokémon takes is expanding the world, like what the regions are, and making it richer as we go. Rather than a timeline, it’s more of a physical space thing.
  • Jasmine: "I'm thinking maybe I should participate in this Contest in Sinnoh to try and be more vibrant."
    Erika: "How did it go?"
    Jasmine: "I couldn't bring myself to go to the Contest."
  • Cynthia in HeartGold and SoulSilver: "This is the pattern that represents Giratina, the ruler of the world that is on the opposite side of ours, the world of antimatter..."
    Cynthia in Platinum: "No...! I'm so sorry I took so long. I think I finally found the answer from studying the myths. When this world was made, Dialga and Palkia appeared. Apparently, there was one more Pokémon that appeared at the same time. A Pokémon with as much power as Dialga and Palkia... But also one whose name was never to be spoken--Giratina! It's said to lurk in another world... A world on the opposite side of ours... That's what the shadow was. It must have been Giratina."
  • Pokédex from Sword: Rumor has it that the theft of top-secret research notes led to a new instance of this Pokémon being created in the Galar region.
  • Pokédex from Sun: Roughly 20 years ago, it was artificially created, utilizing the latest technology of the time. Pokédex from Ultra Sun: This Pokémon was created using the cutting-edge science of 20 years ago, so many parts of it have since become obsolete. Pokédex from Ultra Moon: It was built 20 years ago by scientists who dreamed of exploring space. Their dreams have yet to come true.
  • Pocket Monsters Encyclopedia: As of 1996, thanks to the investigative and research efforts of Prof. Oak, 150 species of Pokémon have been discovered.
    #118. Porygon: In 1995, Silph Co., which undertakes R&D into Pokémon and related products, successfully applied state-of-the-art technology to create this man-made Pokémon.
  • A Bug Catcher in Rustboro City's Pokémon Center: I heard that Pokémon Centers had two stories up until around 10 years ago! And they used to have a special area called a “Pokémon Cable Club”!"
    A Battle Girl in Dewford Gym: "A long time ago at Dewford Gym, it was always dark inside. We trained our minds by practicing in the dark!"
    An old man in Fallabor Town's Contest Hall: I just love making Pokéblocks! In the old days it used to take four of us to make a Pokéblock with this machine. A machine that was used to mix Berries in this region long ago."
    A man on Mt. Pyre: "This used to be a desolate place. The ground had holes here and there, and I used to fall in!"
    Mom: "The Litleonids, hmm? I remember going to see them with your dad 11 years ago when they last passed by!" (12 in the Japanese and Korean versions)
    Norman: "Hmm? Is that an Eon Ticket you have there? Hm...it’s been a good 11 years since I last saw a ticket like this..."
  • (Oceanic Museum) “The Royal Unova” “A model of the sunset cruiser currently being built in the Unova region. It’s scheduled to be complete in — years.” The number is too faint to be read.
  • Devon's scientist: "I'm trying to develop a device that visually reproduces the dreams of Pokémon... And I’ve heard that my rival, who lives far away, is doing the same research! I can't lose this race."
  • Mr. Bonding: "HEY! This...this power! This power is incredible! I feel tied to these old men with such strong bonds now! I feel like a totally different man!"
  • Mallow: "I mean, we have to move on from being captains when we turn 20 anyway". (Pokémon Moon)
  • See also

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