With the next generation of Pokémon fast approaching there is much speculation regarding the new games. A point of speculation that is evergreen in the community, but not very present in current speculation, is the idea of a new Pokémon type based on outer space.
The theme of space has been present in Pokémon lore from the very first games. In Pokémon Red and Green/Blue versions the Clefairy evolutionary line is said to have come to Earth from space. The Pokémon gather at meteor impact sites and dance during cosmic events like the full moon and meteor showers.
Staryu and Starmie carry a similar space connection with their star-shaped bodies and multi-colored cores that broadcast strange radio frequencies into space.
This theme continues with more Pokémon throughout the series including Lunatone and Solrock being sun and moon-shaped meteors, Jirachi living inside of a comet, Elgyem and Beheeyem being depictions of the classic “Grays/Little Green Men”, Rayquaza living in the O-zone layer, Deoxys being a mutated space virus, and Arceus, Dialga, Palkia and Giratina originating from space and creating the Earth. There are many more examples of Pokémon with a specific connection to space.
This space lore is taken to a new level in Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire’s Delta Episode post-game content. The player meets a character that teaches them more about the lore of Rayquaza and the quest culminates with the player riding Rayquaza into outer space to destroy an asteroid that threatens the planet and battle Deoxys.
A Space-type would bring with it a re-balancing of the type chart and could give a buff to under-powered types like Bug and Grass and introduce a variety of inspiration for new Pokémon species as the number of Pokémon approaches and exceeds 1000.
The lore in the Pokémon series has expanded in recent years with the introduction of a multiverse. In Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire during the Delta Episode Game Freak introduced the concept that the reason Mega Evolution exists in the Hoenn region of these games while not existing in the Hoenn of the original Ruby and Sapphire is that the latter games take place in a dimension where the events reported in Pokémon X and Pokémon Y that created Mega Evolution never took place. This put all the games that feature Mega Evolution on a separate timeline from the games that don’t.
The multiverse concept was taken a step further in Sun and Moon which introduced Ultra Beasts, Pokémon from another dimension. And in Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon which introduced in their Team Rainbow Rocket post-game the idea that there were dimensions where each of the evil teams had succeeded in their goals, and in Let’s Go Pikachu and Eevee which feature a different Kanto from the one in Red and Blue.
With a multiverse, extra-dimensional travel, and event some space travel being introduced to the series, the time is ripe for the introduction of a space-themed Pokémon type. It would being a wealth of expansion to the series lore, from people and Pokémon living in space colonies, to exploring alien worlds to capture new species of Pokémon.
So far the information released on the upcoming Pokémon Sword and Pokémon Shield versions hasn’t pointed towards any new types. However, the games Dynamaxing and Gigantamaxing features, which replace Mega Evolution and Z-Moves, bring a whole new set of mysteries and possibilities.
So while the jury is still out of whether generation 8 will be the generation that introduces a Space or Cosmic-type, the games will very likely provide another link in the chain that will eventually lead to the cosmos of the Pokémon World.
Originally published at http://gamedropblog.wordpress.com on July 20, 2019.
