The originalPokemonanime played fast and loose with the rules of thePokemonworld as established in the video games, highlighting various Pokemon with unique traits whose existence didn’t make much sense at the time. However, thePokemonvideo games have repeatedly introduced new gimmicks that have actually addressed these anomalies in some way, with the latest example involving thecrystal Onixfrom the anime and the new Terastal gimmick being introduced inPokemon Scarlet and Violet.
Pokemon Scarlet and Violetare introducing a new gameplay gimmick called the Terastal phenomenon. Pokemon that are Terastallized are given a glowing crystal-like shell, complete with a strange item on their head that represents whatever type is being boosted (like a chandelier for Fire-type and balloons for Flying-type). While one might think thatPokemon Scarlet and Violetare the first time that we’ve ever seen something like this in thePokemonfranchise, an earlier example can be found in the Orange Islands season of thePokemonanime.
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As pointed out by Twitter user PokeBeach, a crystal Onix can be spotted in Episode 87 of thePokemonanime, “The Crystal Onix.” In this episode, Ash and company encounter a special crystal Onix that is resistant to Water-type attacks, but weak to Fire-type attacks. While not exactly the same as theTerastal phenomenon fromPokemon Scarlet and Violet, there are some distinct similarities that may make one wonder if the developers at Game Freak were at all inspired by this episode of thePokemonanime.
The Orange Islandshave also been pointed to as the earliest example of thePokemonanime introducing regional variants. While thePokemonvideo games eventually introduced regional variants with thePokemon Sun and Moongames, thePokemonanime beat them to the punch by over a decade. Another early episode of thePokemonanime also featured an abnormally large Dragonite, with thePokemongames introducing a similar concept through Dynamaxing and Gigantamaxing inPokemon Sword and Shield.
Of course, it’s entirely possible that this is all just a coincidence and thePokemonvideo games aren’t deliberately referencing thesePokemonanime episodes. After all, one could argue that this crystal Onix is actually a better example of regional variants, not Terastallizing, as there is a lot more that goes into the Terastal phenomenon that is not represented in thePokemonanime seriesat all.
There’s still a lot to be learned about the Terastal phenomenon, butPokemonfans will just have to play the new games for themselves to find out more. Luckily, thePokemon Scarlet and Violetrelease dateis only a few months away.
Pokemon Scarlet and Violetlaunch November 18, exclusively for the Nintendo Switch.
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