No series in gaming has had as many rumors as Pokémon. From as early as Generation I to as late as the prospective Generation VIII, this is a franchise that thrives on misinformation, rumor mongering, and straight up false information. The Pokémon series as we know it simply cannot exist without dozens upon dozens of rumors muddying up the fanbase and tricking fans for years. Chances are, you’ve heard tell of a few rumors that you’ve strongly believed for years. Is it on this list? Are you about to have your worldview shattered?

What’s most interesting about your average Pokémon rumor is just how easy it is for them to be created. Whether you’re someone on the internet actively trying to create a hoax, an insider who’s been fed poor information, or just some school kid trying to trick your friends that your uncle really does work at Nintendo, your rumors are going to spread like wildfire nine times out of ten. Fans will latch on to just about any halfway interesting rumor if it means giving the series that element of mystery they felt so potently as children. Although the rumors have gotten less extreme since the days of Generation I, they still are present. Some, in hindsight, seem too insane to have ever been plausible, while newer ones give us hope for the series.

30 OLD: Press Down + B To Improve Catch Rate

What’s interesting about rumors in the Pokémon franchise is just how universal they can be. Holding down and B at the same time originated in the schoolyards, but it swept up just about every major region to the point where you probably didn’t even realize you were subconsciously putting in these inputs every time you tossed a Pokéball.

Hold "A" to catch everything in your path. 

It perhaps goes without saying, given that this is a rumor list and all, but button inputs do not, in any way, shape, or form, influence whether or not a Pokémon’s catch rate increases or decreases. When you toss a Pokeball, that’s it. By all means, though, keep pressing down and holding B. It’s tradition.

29 OLD: Pikablu

Pokémon before Generation III was a bit of a Wild West, so to speak. There was no real sense where the series was going, or if it would even continue being a series after Generation II. Fans knew that Generation II was in the making, but just how long could this “trend” continue? In this era, with no sense of what to make of Pokémon, misinformation spread like wildfire.

Enter “Pikablu.” Chances are, even without the internet, you heard tell of Pikablu at some point had you grown up in the series. When Game Freak initially revealed Marill, fans tried to make sense of the creature by linking it to Pikachu. After all, it had no name, but it did resemble the electric mascot. It was a simpler time back then.

28 NEW: Let’s Go Will Become A Sub-Series

It may not be on your mind quite yet, but Let’s Go can totally turn into a sub-series, right? Game Freak seems to have put so much effort in Let’s Go’s world and assets that it almost seems foolish they’d leave it alone after one game. Of course, many of its features are borrowed from Go, but there’s a clear upgrade at play.

The sooner you accept this, the better. 

We can perhaps assume Game Freak already has a franchise on their mind with Let’s Go, but it’s important to consider one key detail: sales. There’s a good reason Let’s Go is modeling itself so heavily after Generation I and it pretty much boils down to ensuring it sells even if the game isn’t that good. Should Let’s Go meet their expectation, get ready to see Let’s Go Plusle and Let’s Go Minun down the road.

27 OLD: Super Splash

Legend tells of a Pokémon so powerful, one single attack from it could fell an entire party. This is a Pokémon with so much raw potential, that only a devoted few have ever seen its true strength in action. This is the legend of Magikarp’s Splash attack. Obviously, any conjecture about Splash is going to be bogus, but the rumors associated with it are legitimately crazy.

Given that you could purchase a Magikarp with only Splash in Generation I, many fans theorized this was less so you could have a Gyarados early, and more because Splash has a .01% chance of actually doing something, specifically, one hit KOing everything in its path. This is clearly not the case, but it is an interesting take on why Game Freak let fans waste their money on a Magikarp.

26 OLD: Bill’s Backyard

Given that Bill’s backyard is a physical place players can see, but cannot enter, it naturally sparked quite a few rumors in the early days of Pokémon’s fandom. Specifically, Bill’s backyard was supposedly home to Kanto’s starter Pokémon, allowing players to catch the two starts they were unable to attain without training.

Surely there must be treasures hidden in this man's backyard. 

Another rumor stated that Bill’s backyard was filled with level 100 Pokémon, a perfect grinding spot so to speak. Other rumors claimed that Mew was housed behind Bill’s home. After all, if Mew, the rarest Pokémon in the series, was going to be anywhere, why wouldn’t he be in Bill’s backyard?

25 NEW: Generation III On Switch

Game Freak made one thing clear with the 3DS Virtual Console: the older Pokémon games aren’t going anywhere. Even though Generations I and II are officially out of canon and no longer compatible with the series’ current timeline, that doesn’t mean they deserve to be ignored. That goes for Gen III as well.

Given that Generation III has been retconned by ORAS, it’s in the same spot as both Gens I and II. That said, the Virtual Console rereleases sold fairly well so it’s only a matter of time before Game Freak ports Generation III to the Switch. Of course, the Switch does not have a dedicated Virtual Console, but that shouldn’t stop GF from trying.

24 OLD: Finding The GS Ball

The GS Ball’s inclusion in the anime would go on to spark an obscene number of rumors over whether or not it could be obtained in-game, basically dominating Generation II discourse for years. What’s most interesting about this rumor is that it’s actually grounded in truth unlike most rumors in the series.

Some rumors DO come true. 

In Japan, players actually could get the GS Ball through a special event, but this was never implemented in the west until the 3DS Virtual Console rerelease. Many fans correctly theorized that the GS Ball would play a role in catching Celebi, but no one could correctly guess that you all had to do was wait a few decades for Nintendo to rerelease the game on a 3D handheld.

23 OLD: The Rocket Count

Despite having no basis in reality, the rocket count is very similar to the GS Ball in that it dominated conversation in its Generation for years and was directly linked to the catching of a Legendary Pokémon. According to rumors, should the Mossdeep Space Center launch their rocket 100 times, players would be offered a ride on it.

Upon riding said rocket, they would be launched straight to Deoxys, Generation III’s elusive event Pokémon. Players tried for years to get the rocket to launch into outer space, but no amount of launches resulted in anything. It was always just a rumor created to make sense of the Mossdeep Space Center.

22 NEW: The Core Games Will Change Drastically

Pokémon is legitimately at a point in its life cycle where it cannot stay the same. The shift to the 3DS brought 3D models and the shift to the Switch is completely abandoning the series’ insistence on releasing on dedicated handhelds. Come Generation VIII, the core games are going to change big time.

Nothing will ever be the same. 

This could mean one of two things: Let’s Go is serving as a basis for the new Generation, opting for a more traditional three dimension look, or Gen VIII will stray away from both SUMO and Let’s Go’s approach. Either way, you can count on the new core games basically being unrecognizable next year.

21 OLD: Deoxys And Jirachi On The Moon

On the subject of the Mossdeep Space Center, piggybacking off of the Deoxys rumor, there was a subset of the rumor which stated that the rocket would take players to the moon itself. On the moon, trainers would be able to not only catch Deoxys, but Jirachi as well. No Pokémon game has ever left the planet, but who’s to say Generation III couldn’t have been the first?

What’s interesting about this rumor is how it weaves Jirachi into the Deoxys rumor. Originally, at least in the west, Jirachi was only attainable by pre-ordering Pokémon Colosseum for GameCube and receiving the bonus disc. Said bonus disc contained Jirachi which could be transferred into Gen III, but no moons were involved whatsoever.

20 OLD: Lavender Town Syndrome

Not all Pokémon rumors were as innocuous as “hold down and B at the same time to increase your catch rate.” Some were genuinely quite disturbing. Lavender Town Syndrome referred to a rumor that the music in Lavender Town was so high pitched that only children and teenagers could hear it. Not just that, the pitches themselves could influence a child’s thought.

This one's morbid even for Pokémon. 

Specifically, these pitches would spark children into committing taking their own life. This rumor spread almost as a subset of Pokémon Green, the Japanese exclusive second version of Gen I. As the west got Blue, Lavender Town Syndrome was perhaps a way of making sense of the change. Just of the darker variety.

19 NEW: Gen VIII’s Story Will Be About Ancient Pokémon

Ever since Generation IV, the series has put more and more effort into its stories. Generations V and VII, especially, featured very narrative driven campaigns with the former being home to the series’ best writing. Given what we know about Generation VIII thus far, we can deduce that it may very well be about ancient Pokémon lost to time.

Given Let’s Go’s new Pokémon, and the fact it has never been seen before, this could be Game Freak’s way of hinting at Gen VIII will center itself around: Pokémon that were believed to be long gone. Think of it like a story all about fossil Pokémon. We have no idea where these new mons are coming from, but they are indeed here. There’s good potential there.

18 OLD: Fake Starters

Every single Generation of Pokémon, from as early as Generation III, has had fans trying to pass off their fake Pokémon as the genuine starters. You can find dozens upon dozens of example spanning decades of the series’ history. Every time a new Generation is announced, you’re bound to see some fakes hanging around on the internet.

Take your pick. 

This is a fate that the series will never escape. Generation IV fakes notably had different Type pools for the three starters; the most popular Generation V “leak” based designs off pre-released silhouettes, only getting the Types wrong; and the Generation VIII leaks will probably trick you for a week before you forget they ever existed.

17 OLD: The Pokémon Mansion’s Extra Room

The Pokémon Mansion is one of the most interesting locations in Generation IV due to the mere fact that you cannot enter every single room at any point in the game. Ghosts actively block your progress, preventing you from exploring the mansion in its fullest, so fans naturally sprung to rumors of what could be inside.

Would there be a Legendary in one of these rumors? Perhaps another Rotom? Some type of Ghost Pokémon never before seen? Some Master Balls for your trouble? Regardless of what was inside, these rumors could never decide on how exactly to get past these ghosts, just that you could.

16 NEW: Pokémon Bank For Switch

In its current form, Pokémon Bank is only available for the 3DS. It does make sense to some extent. After all, Pokémon is a predominantly handheld franchise. It won’t be next year, however. Starting in 2019, Generation VIII will be on the Nintendo Switch, a home console, meaning Pokémon Bank needs a new home.

Game Freak won't allow your 3DS to turn into a glorified Pokemon Bank machine. 

This is the kind of rumor that honestly just makes sense. Of course Pokémon Bank will come to Switch. Players aren’t going to want to keep all their Pokémon on the 3DS while actively building a team on the Switch. Game Freak will port Pokémon Bank over, give it some compatibility, and forget the 3DS ever existed.

15 OLD: Delta Emerald

Although remakes had never gotten third versions before, fans were fairly adamant that Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire would inevitably lead into Gen VI’s final game, Delta Emerald. Given just how barebones ORAS was, remaking mostly Ruby and Sapphire content with very little emphasis on Emerald, it made sense that Game Freak would tackle a third version.

Of course, this never came to pass. Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire were barebones by design. You don’t have a Battle Frontier deliberately. There was never going to be a Delta Emerald outside of ORAS’ post-game. It was a rumor born out of pure desperation at the state of ORAS.

14 OLD: Gen III’s Other Regions

Following the release of Generation III, fans only had one thing on the mind: regions. After Gold, Silver, and Crystal all heavily featured Kanto as part of their post-games, fans naturally expected Generation III to follow suit. Would Ruby and Sapphire bring Kanto back? Would it link Hoenn to Johto?

Hoenn stands alone. 

When players beat the Hoenn Elite Four and realized they were confined to borders of their region, they tried to make some sense of it. Perhaps there was a way to reach other regions! Maybe by completing the Pokédex or simply defeating every trainer in Hoenn. Thus, rumors were born. Unfortunately, Hoenn would never link up to another region, leaving said concept Gen II and IV exclusive.

13 NEW: New Graphics Engine For Gen VIII

Did you really think Game Freak created a new graphics engine just for Let’s Go? Sure, it has some basis in the series’ pre-established aesthetic and lifts assets quite heavily from Go, but there’s clearly a reason Game Freak is experimenting with a new engine: Gen VIII is going to take advantage of the Switch’s hardware.

Keep in mind that Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon, the most recent core games, were developed for 2013 hardware. They may have come out late into the 3DS’ lifespan, but it was already a dated system. The Switch is so much stronger than the 3DS that it’s almost ridiculous. Big things are coming for Gen VIII.

12 OLD: Beating The Elite Four 1000 Times

If you beat the Elite Four enough times, something interesting will happen! Or so the rumor goes. Whether it be a measly 100 times or the gargantuan 1000, beating the Elite Four enough times to unlock something substantial has been commonplace in the fandom since day 1. If you go back to Gen I, it even ties into a previous rumor.

Because 100 apparently isn't enough. 

Apparently, beating the Elite Four 100 to 1000 times would unlock access to Bills backyard where one could catch their fill of rare Pokémon. Chances are that if you’ve heard this rumor, you heard the 1000 wins version. It’s such a high number that you’re likely to lose interest before ever getting close, failing to ever disprove the rumor.

11 OLD: Gray

Black 2 and White 2 set a precedent unlike any other for the series: third versions weren’t a given. After four Generations straight of third versions, Generation V shook the foundation by giving fans sequels. Naturally, before Game Freak announced Black 2 and White 2, many fans were “certain” we’d be getting Gray.

A mix of Black and White, Gray would have been the ultimate version of Gen V. Interestingly, many fans defended the sequels by claiming that Black 2 and White 2 basically were the hypothetical Gray, just split between two games. Game Freak even trademarked the title. It’s possible that, at some point, Gray was Gen V’s actual future.