Regional Variants/Alolan Forms Discussion Thread

[BlitzGirl41]

to be honest the only alolan form i'm really fussed about is vulpix/ninetails

rattata/raticate are decent too, but the others i can take them or leave them

Out of curiosity, what is it about Vulpix/Ninetales you don't like as much as the others?

 

[RedJirachi]

I think that if they ever revisit Kanto, we should get Kanto variants on Alola Pokemon. It only seems fair

 

[clbgolden12]

I think that if they ever revisit Kanto, we should get Kanto variants on Alola Pokemon. It only seems fair

But how would it be explained? (Real life) evolution can't happen in like, ten years.

 

[Bguy7]

I think that if they ever revisit Kanto, we should get Kanto variants on Alola Pokemon. It only seems fair

While it would be intersting, I'm not sure if being "fair" is a good enough justification.

But how would it be explained? (Real life) evolution can't happen in like, ten years.

There are a couple of possibilities. The easiest being the multiverse theory, meaning the Kanto we're seeing in these hypothetical games is not the same Kanto we've seen before. Even without a multiverse, if said games where "re-remakes" then they would replace Fire Red/Leaf Green in the canon, meaning no contradictions exist. Now if we're talking sequel games that come only ten years after previous Kanto games in the same timeline, then yeah, that would be weird, but could simply be excused by saying they were recently discovered.

 

[Ophie]

I think it's worth pointing out that it's not like the Alolan forms of Kanto Pokémon became like that over a matter of ten years either. The most recent one is either Rattata/Raticate or Meowth/Persian, both of which were brought over at least centuries ago. In the real world, that's not enough time for any substantial changes genetically, though it does sometimes create differences in behavior of these animals, or for allopatric speciation to kick in. (Dogs are a good example: Every breed is the same species, but pretty much every region that welcomed in these canines then bred them to serve particular purposes and gained very different appearances and temperaments as a result.)

And since contact with Alolans has been going on for hundreds of years, there's no reason why the Alolans wouldn't send some of their own Pokémon back with them to other lands (especially before they learned about invasive species). Just as people from Kanto brought over Meowths, perhaps the people of Alola reciprocated by sending back Rockruffs. And considering the Japanese eat sea cucumbers, perhaps they brought back a Pyukumuku or dozen and they became their own indigenous population.

(Certainly though, if we're getting an Australia region, I expect it to be overrun with either Bunearies or Bunnelbies.)

 

[Grey Wind]

But how would it be explained? (Real life) evolution can't happen in like, ten years.

Why does it have to be ten years? The new regions are always retconned into existence, there's no reason we can't just assume there's been Alolan Pokemon evolving in Kanto for generations. I think it'd be pretty cool.

 

[clbgolden12]

Why does it have to be ten years? The new regions are always retconned into existence, there's no reason we can't just assume there's been Alolan Pokemon evolving in Kanto for generations. I think it'd be pretty cool.

If they were evolving all this time wouldn't they have been encountered already?

But yeah, the whole multiverse thing can be a good explanation.

 

[utlhmsus]

If the species reproduces at a fast enough rate (typically insects) and there are significant changes in the environment they can (although the changes would be rather minor).

 

[lemoncatpower]

I think that if they ever revisit Kanto, we should get Kanto variants on Alola Pokemon. It only seems fair

alola pokemon were stated to be found in alola due to the habitats being perfect and what not. That's not word for word, but they say how Alola is unique to other regions, thus pokemon of different sorts can fluorish. Unless people take pokemon from there and transfer them elsewhere, but that's asking for a bit much imo. I think only certain pokemon were able to adapt,. thats why we don't have alolan variants of every pokemon. So some pokemon would have just died trying to adapt unlike the pokemon that were able to properly adapt. Thats my theory. Also not sure where you are bringing ten years from. Alola hasn't onlybeen inhabited for ten years, and the islands have been around for WAY longer.

 

[Grey Wind]

If they were evolving all this time wouldn't they have been encountered already?

But yeah, the whole multiverse thing can be a good explanation.

Well not even the multiverse. It's just a retcon. I think it's understood that they don't have to explain why there's suddenly new Pokemon/evolutions etc, it's inevitable when you have a series like this.

 

[clbgolden12]

Well not even the multiverse. It's just a retcon. I think it's understood that they don't have to explain why there's suddenly new Pokemon/evolutions etc, it's inevitable when you have a series like this.

Yeah, but when (real-life) evolution happens in a span of roughly ten years it needs some sort of explanation.

 

[Akashin]

Yeah, but when (real-life) evolution happens in a span of roughly ten years it needs some sort of explanation.

It doesn't need to be so short a span of time. As Ophie pointed out, Kanto Pokemon taking on their Alolan forms happened over a much greater span of time. All they need to do then is retcon things such that Pokemon native to Alola were schlepped off to Kanto at a similar time and adapted in their own way since then.

 

[lemoncatpower]

It doesn't need to be so short a span of time. As Ophie pointed out, Kanto Pokemon taking on their Alolan forms happened over a much greater span of time. All they need to do then is retcon things such that Pokemon native to Alola were schlepped off to Kanto at a similar time and adapted in their own way since then.

why would alola pokemon need to adapt to kanto though?

 

[clbgolden12]

why would alola pokemon need to adapt to kanto though?

You could also say, "Why would Kanto Pokémon need to adapt to Alola?"

 

[Akashin]

why would alola pokemon need to adapt to kanto though?

What clbgolden12 said. Moreover, there could be plenty of reasons for regional adaptation. New predators to deal with, loss of natural habitat and necessity to adapt to a new one... Really, several of the reasons that applied to Alolan forms could still apply.

 

[Ophie]

If the species reproduces at a fast enough rate (typically insects) and there are significant changes in the environment they can (although the changes would be rather minor).

Yep. We see this firsthand with bacteria and cockroaches, who are very good at adapting to the means humans have of trying to get rid of them.

If they were evolving all this time wouldn't they have been encountered already?

Encountered already where? The Alolan forms are pointed out to not exist in any other region so far. You won't find them in the wild. You might find them in the hands of trainers, but who's to say they'd be allowed in? The Pokémon world really can't handle a red squirrels vs. gray squirrels situation.

alola pokemon were stated to be found in alola due to the habitats being perfect and what not. That's not word for word, but they say how Alola is unique to other regions, thus pokemon of different sorts can fluorish. Unless people take pokemon from there and transfer them elsewhere, but that's asking for a bit much imo. I think only certain pokemon were able to adapt,. thats why we don't have alolan variants of every pokemon. So some pokemon would have just died trying to adapt unlike the pokemon that were able to properly adapt. Thats my theory. Also not sure where you are bringing ten years from. Alola hasn't only been inhabited for ten years, and the islands have been around for WAY longer.

Among the Alolan Pokémon, there are definitely species confirmed to have been diverged through human means. These include Meowth and Persian (deliberate introduction), Rattata and Raticate (accidental introduction), Raichu (differences in human-made cuisine), and Grimer and Muk (deliberate introduction). And while they don't have confirmed Alolan forms, Yungoos and Gumshoos are said to not be native to Alola and were introduced in by humans too.

 

[Sαpphire]

Among the Alolan Pokémon, there are definitely species confirmed to have been diverged through human means. These include Meowth and Persian (deliberate introduction), Rattata and Raticate (accidental introduction), Raichu (differences in human-made cuisine), and Grimer and Muk (deliberate introduction). And while they don't have confirmed Alolan forms, Yungoos and Gumshoos are said to not be native to Alola and were introduced in by humans too.

This is kinda intriguing - I wonder to what region the Gumshoos line is native, and if they indeed are an Alolan variant of that species. That would be a pretty cool starting point for more regional variants in future games!

 

[Bguy7]

This is kinda intriguing - I wonder to what region the Gumshoos line is native, and if they indeed are an Alolan variant of that species. That would be a pretty cool starting point for more regional variants in future games!

I doubt Gumshoos as we know it is an Alolan Variant just because that would cause odd in-universe issues. Alolan Variants are clearly defined in-game, and Gumshoos is never even hinted at being considered as such. Just being brought to a different region doesn't necessarily mean they look any different from what they were in their original region.

 

[lemoncatpower]

I don't think Kanto variants will ever happen. It's too much like Johto, so they'd share the variants anyways. There aren't islands locking them into habitats where they can't just go to a preferred area, so I don't see how they'd evolve without drastic human intervention. But speculating on it is always fun i suppose.

 

[clbgolden12]

Encountered already where? The Alolan forms are pointed out to not exist in any other region so far. You won't find them in the wild. You might find them in the hands of trainers, but who's to say they'd be allowed in? The Pokémon world really can't handle a red squirrels vs. gray squirrels situation.

No, like, if Alola Pokémon were in Kanto and adapting to the region, wouldn't we have seen this during the events of RBY and such?

Unless the multiverse plays into this.