Pokémon

Pokémon (also referred to as Pocket Monsters) is a long running RPG created by Satoshi Tajiri. The title refers to the various monsters that can be captured and trained by humans to take part in battle or other competitions.

While the franchise had no prior crossover with the Dragon Quest series, characters/elements from both are present in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

Playable characters at the start

• Pikachu - National Pokédex number #025, and the mascot of the franchise, Pikachu is a small Electric-type rodent Pokémon first appearing in the Generation I titles. It has been a part of the SSB series since the first game.

Playable characters to be unlocked

• Jigglypuff - National Pokédex number #039, Jigglypuff is a small Normal- and Fairy-type balloon-like Pokémon first appearing in the Generation I titles, able to put anyone to sleep with its singing. It, like Pikachu, has been a part of the SSB series since the first game, appearing usually as an unlockable character. The character can be unlocked by:
  • Going through VS Matches, with Jigglypuff being the 15th character to unlock, or Classic Mode with Kirby and those in his unlock tree up to Ness. After either condition is met, it must be defeated on Saffron City.
  • Recruiting it in the green area east of the metropolis in the World of Light.

• Pichu - National Pokédex number #172, Pichu is a small Electric-type rodent Pokémon first appearing in the Generation II titles that, with a high enough friendship, can evolve into Pikachu. It debuted in Super Smash Bros. Melee, and is one of two characters that did not make another playable Smash appearance until Ultimate, with the other being Young Link. The character can be unlocked by:
  • Going through VS Matches, with Pichu being the 34th character to unlock, or Classic Mode with Pikachu and those in its unlock tree up to Mr. Game & Watch. After either condition is met, it must be defeated on Pokémon Stadium 2.
  • Recruiting it in the Power Plant in the World of Light.

• Mewtwo - National Pokédex number #150, and a legendary Pokémon, Mewtwo is a tall Psychic-type humanoid Pokémon first appearing in the Generation I titles created from the DNA of Mew. After the success of the first Pokémon movie, Mewtwo Strikes Back, it was featured as a playable character in Super Smash Bros. Melee, and was cut from Super Smash Bros. Brawl, before returning as the series's first DLC character in the 3DS/Wii U installments, being free to download a week early if players registered both the 3DS and Wii U titles with Club Nintendo. The character can be unlocked by:
  • Going through VS Matches, with Mewtwo being the 60th character to unlock, or Classic Mode with Fox and those in his unlock tree up to Wolf. After either condition is met, it must be defeated on Spear Pillar.
  • Recruiting it in the Mysterious Dimension in the World of Light.

• Pokémon Trainer - Representing the player character from the series, a generic Pokémon Trainer (designed after the franchise's first character, Red) first appeared in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, using Squirtle (National Pokédex number #007), Ivysaur (National Pokédex number #002), and Charizard (National Pokédex number #006) to fight opponents instead of battling himself. In the 3DS/Wii U installments, the trainer was absent, instead being represented by a lone Charizard. A female Pokémon Trainer (designed after the female counterpart to Red, Leaf) appeared as an alternate costume for the male Pokémon Trainer upon his return in Ultimate. The character can be unlocked by:
  • Going through VS Matches, with Pokémon Trainer being the 26th character to unlock, or Classic Mode with Donkey Kong and those in his unlock tree up to Bowser. After either condition is met, they must be defeated on Pokémon Stadium.
  • Recruiting them near the Pac-Maze in the World of Light.

• Lucario - National Pokédex number #448, Lucario is a Fighting- and Steel-type jackal Pokémon first appearing in the Generation IV titles that uses aura to both attack and sense its surroundings. After the success of the eighth Pokémon movie, Lucario and the Mystery of Mew, it was featured as a playable character in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. The character can be unlocked by:
  • Going through VS Matches, with Lucario being the 27 character to unlock, or Classic Mode with Yoshi. After either condition is met, it must be defeated on Spear Pillar.
  • Recruiting it in a corner of a stone wall in the World of Light.

• Greninja - National Pokédex number #658, Greninja is a Water- and Dark-type ninja-like frog Pokémon first appearing in the Generation VI titles that is the final evolution of Froakie, the Water-type starter of the Kalos region. It first appeared in the 3DS/Wii U installments of Smash. The character can be unlocked by:
  • Going through VS Matches, with Greninja being the 58th character to unlock, or Classic Mode with Donkey Kong and those in his unlock tree up to Sheik. After either condition is met, it must be defeated on Kalos Pokémon League.
  • Recruiting it in the Mysterious Dimension in the World of Light.

• Incineroar - National Pokédex number #727, Incineroar is a tall Fire- and Dark-type wrestler-like feline Pokémon first appearing in the Generation VII titles that is the final evolution of Litten, the Fire-type starter of the Alola region. It made its debut in Ultimate. The character can be unlocked by:
  • Going through VS Matches, with Incineroar being the 46th character to unlock, or Classic Mode with Samus and those in her unlock tree up to Pit. After either condition is met, it must be defeated on Boxing Ring.
  • Recruiting it in the southwest part of the Realm of Darkness in the World of Light.

Inspirations between Dragon Quest and Pokémon

• Dragon Quest V: Hand of the Heavenly Bride was the first game in the series in which certain monsters from random encounters may offer to join the player's party. This concept was an inspiration for the Pokémon video game series, which debuted several years after Dragon Quest V's release.
• In a 1998 interview, Pokémon creator Satoshi Tajiri revealed that his frustrations over obtaining the Mad cap were one of the main inspirations for the data exchanging feature his series would become famous for. To wit, he explained he felt a great deal of envy when his childhood friend (and Pocket Monster illustrator) Ken Sugimori managed to get two of them on his save file, and had absolutely no way to share the unneeded one with Tajiri.
• Dragon Quest Monsters took the monster-taming elements of Dragon Quest V and expanded upon them, also borrowing a few mechanics from the Pokémon series and addressing the criticisms of that franchise, setting the standards for what would become the "Dragon Quest Monsters series."

Shared casts between Dragon Quest and Pokémon productions

Japanese

• Kikuko Inoue - Nurse Joy (several episodes of Diamond and Pearl) and Fantina
• Miyuki Sawashiro - Marley and Olivia in the anime series, Elesa in the Pokémon Black 2 and White 2 anime trailer
• Atsuko Tanaka - Lucy and Lenora

English

• Xanthe Huynh - Lauren in "The Sinnoh Iceberg Race!" and Erika in Pokémon Masters
• Zeno Robinson - Goh
• Stephanie Sheh - Cheryl in Pokémon Generation episode "Old Chateau"
• Michael Sinterniklaas - Jessie's Seviper

Trivia

• Carnivine from Dragon Quest IV: Chapters of the Chosen, shares its name, possibly by coincidence, with a Pokémon.
• Wooper trooper bears a resemblance in both name and appearance to the Pokémon Wooper. This is down to the fact that they are both based on the real world axolotl, a type of salamander.

External link

• Pokémon on Wikipedia