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Evolution is one of the primary facets of the Pokemon franchise. You cannot imagine how everything works in the Pokemon world without the concept of evolving your favorite Pocket Monsters. The fact that these creatures evolve with you as you progress through a game is what makes them special. The same is true in the main series.
While the concept of evolution might seem simple, the reality couldn’t be farther from the truth. There are a lot of mechanisms (you could also call them gimmicks) that make an otherwise linear process interesting.
In this article, we will walk you through all the evolution gimmicks in the Pokemon franchise, ranking them from most useless to absolutely overpowered.
All Pokemon evolution gimmicks, ranked from worst to best
7) Location-based evolutions
This was created in the Sinnoh region. Eevee received two new evolutions – Leafeon and Glaceon. The only way to get these Eeveelutions would be to evolve this critter by the moss rock or the icy rock, respectively.
This evolutionary gimmick is inconvenient as you would have to be physically present in a certain location to evolve your monsters.
6) Evolution through friendship
This evolution gimmick depends on how happy certain Pokemon are with you as their trainer. There is a happiness gauge, and once that fills up, the Pocket Monster will evolve after gaining a level.
When you think about creatures that evolve via friendship levels, the first names that come to mind are Golbat, which evolves into Crobat, and Chansey, which evolves into Blissey.
There are certain Pokemon that need one more thing besides friendship. These need to be leveled up at a certain time of day to carry out a successful evolution. Eevee takes advantage of the day and night cycle once it reaches maximum friendship. It evolves into Espeon during the day and Umbreon at night.
5) Evolving Pokemon with Evolutionary Stones
Evolutionary Stones are items that help you evolve your Pocket Monsters by bringing them into their vicinity. These have a one-time use, and evolutions are fairly easy to carry out with the help of these stones.
Evolutionary Stones will always evolve creatures to their final stages. The first time that this gimmick was shown was during the evolution of the franchise mascot, Pikachu, into Raichu. Ash's buddy, when brought in the presence of a Thunder Stone, evolves into the latter.
You would be surprised to know that even though the Thunder Stone has been in the franchise since the first generation, it works with only three Pokemon – Pikachu, Eevee, and Eelektrik.
4) Evolution through trading
Evolution through trading was introduced in the first generation, and it is one of the easiest ways of evolving monsters. The science of why certain critters undergo spontaneous mutation upon being transferred from one trainer to another is a tad bit spotty, but it has provided the world with some of the most powerful creatures.
Alakazam, Machamp, Golem, and Gengar are some of the strongest beasts from Kanto that have evolved via trading.
The second generation of Pokemon added some spice to the mix by requiring Held Items for trade evolutions. For instance, Metal Coat is a Held Item that evolves Scyther into Scizor, and Onix into Steelix.
3) Mega Evolutions
Mega Evolution is a temporary alteration to the form of certain Pokemon. This evolutionary mechanism requires the Pocket Monster to hold a certain item to successfully carry out the evolution. Only certain species of monsters can undergo Mega Evolutions.
The critter's appearance changes entirely upon undergoing Mega Evolution. Its stats increase, but it does not receive any new moves nor do they alter to more powerful variants.
Mega Mewtwo X, Mega Mewtwo Y, Mega Charizard X, and Mega Charizard Y are some of the most popular Mega Evolutions in the Pokemon franchise.
2) Dynamax Evolutions
Unlike Mega Evolutions, which are available to certain species of creatures, Dynamax Evolutions are available to all Pokemon. Monsters that undergo these grow in size and their appearances change.
This evolutionary gimmick combines the stat boost from Mega Evolutions with boosted moves. While the moves become stronger, they do not necessarily do anything different. They just dish out more damage.
Like Glaceon and Leafeon, you would have to be in certain areas in the Galar region to carry out Dynamax Evolutions. You would want to ideally Dynamax evolve your monsters to get a significant power boost. However, it will only last for three turns in battle.
1) Gigantamax Evolutions
Gigantamax Evolutions are similar to the previous two entries, but at the same time, they are vastly different. Only certain creatures of a given species are able to undergo these changes.
The beasts that undergo Gigantamax Evolutions grow in size to a massive degree, and their appearances change by a great margin as well. Not only do their exteriors alter, but you will also get to enjoy new sets of moves when you successfully carry out a Gigantamax Evolution.
This is the most sought-after evolutionary gimmick by far, as you get a new set of moves that are stronger than the basic moveset. Your beast increases in size, alters its appearance, and its stats receive a significant boost as well. However, all these benefits will last you for three turns in battle, just like Dynamax Evolutions.
