Back in the days before smartphones pretty much instantaneously disproved all liars the second they opened their mouths, a lot of kids got secret information about their games through something akin to verbal chain letters. You'd be kickin' around at recess, hanging with your friends, when one of them would run over and tell you something amazing about Pokémon that you just had to try. This could be anything from a secret way to catch some mysterious new pocket monsters to unlocking hidden areas.
Of course, your friend hadn't actually been able to do it himself; he'd just heard about it from a friend of a friend who heard it from some older kid down the street whose dad works for Nintendo. Naturally most of what was told to you was complete and utter nonsense, but that didn't stop anyone from spending countless hours trying to trick their games into delivering them some sweet exclusive content.
Back in the days before smartphones pretty much instantaneously disproved all liars the second they opened their mouths, a lot of kids got secret information about their games through something akin to verbal chain letters. You'd be kickin' around at recess, hanging with your friends, when one of them would run over and tell you something amazing about Pokémon that you just had to try. This could be anything from a secret way to catch some mysterious new pocket monsters to unlocking hidden areas.
Of course, your friend hadn't actually been able to do it himself; he'd just heard about it from a friend of a friend who heard it from some older kid down the street whose dad works for Nintendo. Naturally most of what was told to you was complete and utter nonsense, but that didn't stop anyone from spending countless hours trying to trick their games into delivering them some sweet exclusive content.
The Devastation of Splash
The Devastation of Splash
Short Version: Magikarp's Splash attack had a 0.001% chance of delivering an insta-kill
Why We Believed It: The promise of seeing a Magikarp destroy your friends' most powerful Pokémon was too awesome to pass up
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Ignoring the potential benefit of evolving one of these useless turds, Magikarp is bar-none the most worthless Pokémon one can own. Not only are its stats super pathetic, but its primary move, Splash, literally does nothing at all. In summary, Magikarp is about as helpful in a battle as a plank of wood, except for the fact that in a pinch you could use a plank of wood to hit something over the head.
This general uselessness is probably what spawned the rumor that under certain circumstances, or at incredibly infrequent intervals, Magikarp's Splash attack would instantly kill any Pokémon it was facing. Folks likened it to an even more extreme version of Fissure or Guillotine which made it all the more believable considering that those moves also follow the same logic.
My favorite part of the rumors surrounding the Splash ability was the notion that somehow the Magikarp that the con man in Route 4's Pokémon Center sells the player is the only one who actually has the secret insta-kill power. It just goes to show the mental gymnastics people are willing to go through to avoid realizing they've been played for a fool.
The Eeveelutions
The Eeveelutions
Short Version: In addition to the normal 3 evolutions, Eevee could evolve into a hole spectrum of different Pokémon types
Why We Believed It: The Pokédex data suggested it was possible and given the variety of element stones in the game, it seemed rational
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In the original Red, Blue, and Yellow editions of the games, Eevee was the only Pokémon with a branching evolution path. Using either a Water, Thunder, or Fire Stone on its basic form would transform the fluffy little creature into a more advanced, elementally charged version of the species. Naturally with three of the five elemental stones in the games working, folks began to wonder if the Moon Stone and Leaf Stone could be applied to find new, rare Pokémon.
It all made a lot of sense given Eevee's Pokédex data which read, "Its genetic code is irregular. It may mutate if it is exposed to radiation from element stones." which for many implied that it will mutate if exposed to element stones. Eventually folks smartened up and realized that it would be illogical for Vaporeon, Jolteon, and Flareon to be immediately adjacent entries in the Pokédex and then a grass-type to follow after #150.
Still, Nintendo knew folks loved finding new Eevee foms and included four more (including a grass-type, Leafeon) in subsequent releases. Still, that didn't stop young players from coming up with wild theories on how to find even more unique types of Eeveelutions.
Yoshi Spriteswap
Yoshi Spriteswap
Short Version: You could unlock a special sprite for Dragonite that featured Mario's faithful dinosaur companion
Why We Believed It: Because those bastards at Nintendo Power told us it would work
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Most of the time when you heard one of these rumors it was from some jerkoff kid down the street who wanted you to think he was a total badass for knowing some awesome secret you didn't. However, with the Yoshi Spriteswap rumor it came from the most authoritative source imaginable; Nintendo Power.
Originally published as an April Fools' Day joke in 1999 this one-page prank spiraled out of control once it hit the playground. Magazines like Nintendo Power and GamePro often wrote exhaustive fake cheat codes or secrets in their April issues, but when expressed outside the confines of the magazine, the more telling aspects of the ruse remained unknown to the players.
To make matters worse, the proceedure of events demanded co-operation between two players with one kid leveling up another's Dratini and then trading it back. Needless to say when Nintendo Power's scam didn't work there was blood on the tarmac as former friends battled over custody rights of their mutually raised dragon-type like divorcing parents fighting over a child.
The Pokéball Pitch
The Pokéball Pitch
Short Version: A specific set of timed button presses after a Pokéball was thrown could guarantee capture of any Pokémon or at least improve the odds
Why We Believed It: The same reason we believe mashing buttons during Street Fighter hyper combos increases damage dealt
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The weirdest part about this fallacious strategy is that many people developed it completely independent of outside suggestion. Sure, every now and again you'd hear something about how if you tapped the A button in-time with the Pokéball's wobbles, it'd nullify the Pokémon's attempt to break free, but players just wound up thinking that entirely on their own.
People don't like it when they don't feel in control of a situation, especially when it comes to something they put a lot of work into. That's probably the largest contributing factor to why, when told to simply wait and see if their Pokéball would work, players began developing their own superstitious rituals to guarantee success.
The Pokémon Tinity
The Pokémon Tinity
Short Version: All manner of conspiracies around 4th-form evolutions, merging, and multiple captures of the three starter Pokémon.
Why We Believed It: Being the first Pokémon you get in the game, the starters have a lot of special significance.
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When looking at all of the rumors surrounding the starter Pokémon from Red and Blue, it was hard pinpointing one that defined the obsession with secrets surrounding the three. When it comes to Charizard, Blastoise, and Venusaur, people were willing to believe all sorts of things ranging from the ability to evolve them once more under special circumstances to being able to merge them together to form one super-Pokémon.
If there was one set of rumors more prevalent than the rest, it was the various tricks to get all three of the starters from Prof. Oak without trading your friends for them. It was suggested that naming your character something special or talking to Prof. Oak's lab assistance 100 times before picking would net you all three, but truth is none of these would work.
A few truly devious tricksters would boast about how they got it to work, showing off their game saves with Charmander, Bulbasaur, and Squirtle in their team with the original trainer tag verifying they'd caught them fair and square. In reality, these cheaters used a Gameshark or multiple profiles with the same name.
Pokémon: Creepy Black Edition
Pokémon: Creepy Black Edition
Short Version: An urban legend about a disturbing bootleg version of the original Pokémon games that added a ghost as a starter
Why We Believed It: The story was just too good not to believe
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While not exactly a schoolyard rumor, this creepypasta story about a mysterious bootleg cartridge got circulated so much online that people were looking for actual copies of it, hoping to see the disturbing gameplay for themselves.
It's better if I don't explain this one too much and just let you experience it for yourself. If you dare, click the cartridge and enjoy...
Pikachu, Raichu, Pikablu
Pikachu, Raichu, Pikablu
Short Version: With the help of a Water Stone and some mystical chanting, Pikachu or Raichu could evolve into a new water-type Pokémon called Pikablu
Why We Believed It: Because kids in Japan already had him and we saw him in Pokémon: The First Movie
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In the days leading up to the release of Pokémon: The First Movie in America, Nintendo was also preparing the launch of the Japanese version of Pokémon Gold and Silver which would be coming out a mere 11 days later. Naturally, press materials, screenshots, and other images of the new Pokémon had started surfacing in various magazines and online, but most American kids had no idea that a sequel to their favorite game was coming and so when they saw this stuff, they immediately assumed they were just unfound creatures within the games they already had.
Pikablu (real name: Marill) was the most popular of these new Pokémon thanks to its similarities to Pikachu.Both being mouse-like in appearance, people assumed they were related in some way and so rumors of a hidden evolutionary form, Pikablu, surfaced. Other Gold/Silver exclusives got their own rumors too, especially ones with origins in Red/Blue like Slowking and Steelix.
Bill's Garden/Mountain/Forrest
Bill's Garden/Mountain/Forrest
Short Story: A secret area full of rare and exclusive Pokémon could be found by accessing the vacant lot behind Bill's Sea Cottage north of Cerulean City
Why We Believed It: A strange gap in the mountains his house rested against could very easily be seen and there was no explanation for why it was there.
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Although there were many different stories of made-up Pokémon, very few rumors actually involved accessing new areas in the game. One such rumor though was Bill's Garden, a secret haven for rare Pokémon that, if accessed, would bring the player untold popularity because they were super cool by extension of their rare Pokémon collection.
The rumor started largely because of the gap behind the Sea Cottage Bill resides in. Being at the top of the map with no way of viewing beyond it, players had no idea whether what they saw was as far as it went, or there was a secret land just beyond their sight. Looking at it with a critical eye now, it's easy to see that the sprites required to complete the roof of Bill's house couldn't have been placed atop a mountain texture and so the gap was created, but you miss these things when you're a kid and you're all excited about catching something nobody else has.
Catch Mew If You Can
Catch Mew If You Can
Short Version: The mysterious Mew can be cought if you manage to complete a bizarre series of events in-game
Why We Believed It: After Pokémon: The First Movie debut in theatres it became impossible to deny that Mew definitely existed
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Missingno's Bounty
Missingno's Bounty
Short Version: A bizarre glitch Pokémon found off the coast of Cinnabar Island could duplicate any item, including the Master Ball or Rare Candies
Why We Believed It: Because it actually worked!
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Most of the time when folks encounter a glitch in a game, they'll do just about anything to avoid finding it again, but Missingno. instantly became one of the most popular Pokémon for the fact that finding him often meant getting access to an unlimited supply of hard-to-get items. Considering the edge that having unlimited stat-boosting items would give you over your friends, finding him became an impossibly tempting proposition.
Unfortunately for some, in addition to providing them with unlimited power, Missingno. also glitched the hell out of the game. Random graphical troubles, corrupted save files, and all sorts of other oddities would come about once the strange creature had been found. Thankfully rumors only started surfacing in most places after a May 1999 issue of Nintendo Power, a full 8 months after most kids started playing the game meaning many avoided ruining their first playthrough this way.
Still, Missingno. is the definitive Pokémon rumor. It spread virally and nearly everyone that's played the game knows about it. The fact that we all wanted to catch one may have something to do with the "gotta catch 'em all" objective of the game, but potentially moreso it showed just what we'd be willing to sacrifice for a little extra power to beat our friends.