How Legendary Pokémon & Mythical Pokémon Are Different (2024)

Legendary Pokémon are some of the most feared and powerful beings in the Pokémon world. There is a second classification of Legendary Pokémon, too, called Mythical Pokémon, and the main difference between the two usually involves how they are encountered. The discussion of Mythical vs. Legendary Pokémon has softened over the years, as it has become far easier to acquire the former group than it was in the pre-Nintendo DS era. The original crop of Legendary Pokémon appeared in Pokémon Red andBlue, which included Mewtwo and the three Legendary Birds, Articuno, Zapdos, and Moltres.

It quickly became common knowledge that there was another Legendary Pokémon in the game's files, called Mew. Since Mew could not be obtained normally in-game, its discovery led to fake methods for catching Mew in Pokémon Red and Blue spreading online - rumors and false secrets fondly remembered by old-school fans. The first Pokémon movie involved the Legendary vs. Mythical Pokémon battle that fans had been waiting to see, as Mew battled Mewtwo on the big screen. Mew set the standard for what was to come in future Pokémon video games, especially when it came to rarity.

What's The Difference Between Legendary & Mythical Pokémon?

Methods Of Obtaining These Creatures Used To Be The Distinction

It took a while before the distinction between Legendary and Mythical Pokémon was brought into canon outside of Japan, but fans instantly knew what separated Mew and its Mythical successors from the other Legendary Pokémon in the Pokémon universe. The differences between Mythical and Legendary Pokémon come as much from outside sources as they do from the lore within the games. The main difference between Legendary Pokémon and Mythical Pokémon used to be how they were acquired: Legendary Pokémon are typically encountered throughout the story in each Pokémon game, whereas Mythical Pokémon could only be encountered through outside means.

How Mythical Pokémon Used To Be Obtained & How They Can Be Caught Now

Mythicals Used To Come With An Extra Challenge

In the case of Pokémon like Mew or Celebi, the player had to visit real-life events to get the Mythical. When the Pokémon series finally gained internet compatibility, it became possible to download Mythical Pokémon during special events. These events were often very limited, and it would become impossible to obtain the distribution Pokémon afterward. Players started having more direct access to Mythical Pokémon in Gen 6's Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire, which featured Deoxys as part of the main story missions. Since then, Mythicals have become more frequent in the mainline games without relying on distribution events.

In Sun and Moon and Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon, players could obtain Magearna, while Gen 5's Keldeo was available in the Crown Tundra DLC for Gen 8's Sword and Shield games, for instance. With the Gen 4 remakes, Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl, players could get Mew, Jirachi, and Arceus based on their save data for other games. Pokémon Legends: Arceus itself featured Arceus as the main goal at the end of the campaign, though it is also possible to obtain Phione and Manaphy by solving a puzzle.

It seems The Pokémon Company has been increasing its experimentation with Mythical Pokémon distribution, as was the case with Meltan's Pokémon GO-exclusive integration. Gen 8's Pokémon Sword andShield games only contain a single Mythical Pokémon of their own: Zarude. The Pokémon Company gave fans around the world different methods for downloading it, but it has an alternate form currently locked behind Pokémon movie tickets in Japan.

The trend that seems to have started back in the Gen 6 remakes was then integrated into Gen 9 games, Pokémon Scarlet and Violet. While locked behind premium expansions, players who played through both The Teal Mask and The Indigo Disk DLCs then unlocked the Mochi Mayhem expansion for free. This short chapter concludes the story of the expansions and is antagonized by the Mythical Pokémon Pecharunt, who is terrorizing the denizens of Mossui Town in the Land of Kitakami. At the very end of the epilogue, players can catch Pecharunt in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet.

Based on how Mythical creatures are currently being obtained in the games as of Gen 9, it seems like the capture method may no longer be a defining aspect between Mythicals and Legendaries. In addition to that, the constant presence of Mythicals in games like Pokémon GO, which can then be transferred to some core series games, draws the line even thinner, and these strong and lore-fueled Mythical Pokémon feel more like a subcategory of Legendaries than ever before instead of a category of their own.

The main distinction between regular Legendaries and Mythicals nowadays is simply how they are presented in-game; they still carry an unspoken weight of additional relevance and rarity in comparison to other Legendaries. Mythicals are often teased as especially rare creatures that require a lot of progression through the game's campaign and have some special requirements, such as having save data from other titles, concluding unique chapters exclusive to those who have completed all DLCs, and even solving hidden puzzles. Mythical Pokémon will likely always have alternative methods of acquisition, but that's exactly what makes them special to Pokémon fans.

Pokemon

Created by

Satoshi Taijiri , Ken Sugimori , Junichi Masuda

First Film

Pokemon: The First Movie

Latest Film

Pokémon the Movie: Secrets of the Jungle

First TV Show

Pokémon (1997)

First Episode Air Date

April 1, 1997

Video Game(s)

Pokemon Scarlet and Violet , Pokémon Legends: Arceus , Pokemon Snap , Pokémon GO

Summary

Spanning over twenty-five years, Pokemon, known as Pocket Monsters in Japan, is the multimedia franchise created jointly by Nintendo, Game Freak, and Creatures. Conceptualized by Satoshi Tajiri in association with Ken Sugimori and Junichi Masuda, Pokemon is set in fictional worlds where people live together with tamable creatures known as Pokemon. Humans who catch, raise, and battle the creatures are known as Pokemon Trainers. They head out on extensive journeys across their continents to raise their Pokemon with the ultimate goal of competing in tournaments to become the champion. Pokemon spans several massive properties, from a long-running animated series to a successful trading card game, to the medium that started it all, video games. In addition, Pokemon began the "two-game" trend where two versions of a game would release and include different Pokemon/features between the versions, encouraging players to meet up with others and trade so they could "catch 'em all."