The world of Pokemon is full of cute, cuddly creatures eager to befriend their trainers — and horrifying monsters ready to play cruel tricks and steal human souls. Though every generation has hinted at the darker side of certain Pokemon, recent games' Pokedexes have revealed some truly creepy details about some species.
Most of Pokemon's darker lore, naturally, surrounds Ghost-types. However, these aren't the only creatures with frightning abilities, disturbing origins, or nightmare-fueling designs. The Pokemon below may not be based on departed spirits, but they all have creepy or sinister aspects nonetheless.
9 Drampa
This Pokemon is generally known to be peaceful and kind — which makes it all the more horrific when one considers its capacity for rage. A Gen VII Normal/Dragon type, Drampa loves to befriend and play with children. However, if one of its friends is being bullied by another child, it will burn that bully's house to the ground.
Drampa may have good intentions, but its solution to conflict is to destroy a troubled child's home. Considering its massive size and considerable power, it would be truly horrific to watch this kindly Pokemon turn destructive, especially since it believes it is doing the right thing.
8 Mr. Mime
Though there's nothing particularly sinister in its lore, the cultural perceptions and fictional archetypes surrounding clowns and mimes make this Gen I Psychic-type's design unsettling to many fans. With its garish coloring and big, empty smile, Mr. Mime sends unintentional chills down plenty of spines.
Luckily, the visual design is where the creepiness ends. Underneath the somewhat horrifying visage, Mr. Mime is really just an enthusiastic performer who wants to make people smile with its pantomime acts. According to its Pokedex entries, it's talented too, often leaving fans enraptured.
7 Parasect
This Bug/Grass type from Gen I isn't necessarily creepy thanks to any power it has over humans, but rather the condition it suffers from itself. According to its Pokedex entries, the mushroom that grew on Paras' back has now completely drained the Pokemon, and controls its body and mind.
Essentially, Parasect has become the fungus itself. The parasite has completely taken over, and if the fungus is removed, Parasect will cease to function. The mushroom is fully sentient, piloting the empty husk of a Pokemon.
6 Mawile
There's something disturbing about a creature that's both cute and vicious, which this Gen III Steel/Fairy type is. According to its Pokedex entries, Mawile is incredibly dangerous despite its small size and adorable appearance.
This Pokemon consciously uses its cute visage to lure in prey — before it violently attacks them with the massive jaws on its head. Lulling prey into a false sense of security is always an unsettling tactic, and it's the cornerstone of Mawile's strategies both in the wild, and when fighting for its trainer in battle.
5 Zoroark
Introduced in Gen V, this Dark-type is capable of creating mind-bending illusions, capable of fooling or deluding people. It can even create the illusion of a human form for itself. Their tricks can fool even cameras, and can fool a human's senses of sight, sound, and touch.
Despite its sinister abilities, though, Zoroark ranks lower than others with similar powers. Instead of using its illusory skills to willfully cause harm, it uses them to protect itself, its loved ones, and the natural environments in which it lives. Despite the connotations of the Dark type, Zoroark is not a cruel or evil Pokemon.
4 Impidimp
Based on gremlins, hobgoblins, and other mischief-makers of old fairy tales, Impidimp loves to play pranks on humans. This Gen VIII Dark/Fairy type sneaks into homes at night, stealing items and causing general havoc.
Impidimp and its evolutions feed off the negative energy that these pranks produce in humans. To do so, Impidimp will literally suck negative emotions through the noses of annoyed or irritated humans. Imagine waking up to one of these tiny pink demons wrecking the house, before it latches onto one's face to feed on frustration.
3 Beheeyem
This Gen V Psychic-type draws inspiration from concepts of aliens and UFOs, such as those associated with Roswell and Area 51. When it is spotted in an area, Dubwool are said to disappear from farms. And those aren't the only Pokemon it abducts — Ash and his friends had their Pokemon stolen by Beheeyem in the anime.
Beheeyem can hypnotize humans and rewrite their memories, tricking people into helping them and forgetting they ever encountered this extraterrestrial Pokemon. Fortunately, Beheeyem never seems to have an evil agenda, but its mind control capabilities are eerie to say the least.
2 Malamar
Like Beheeyem, Malamar is capable of hypnosis, but on a bit of a more complex level. Instead of simply leaving its targets dazed and forgetful, this Gen VI Dark/Psychic type is capable of forcing humans to carry out its bidding, even evil deeds.
People with evil agendas often use Malamar's hypnotic powers to further their plans. Furthermore, in the anime, three evil Malamar even possessed humans in an attempt to take over the world. Though not all Malamar seek world domination, it demonstrated just what this Pokemon's powers are capable of doing.
1 Darkrai
There's little in the Pokemon world much creepier than a being that creates and feeds on nightmares. Darkrai's powers cause those around it, people and Pokemon alike, to experience terrifyingly realistic dreams. Introduced in Gen IV, this Dark-type Mythical Pokemon is feared throughout several regions of the Pokemon world.
Though Darkrai has occasionally been shown to use its power maliciously, this is usually not the case; rather, it causes nightmares as a defense mechanism. However, it is not quite clear how exactly causing nightmares protects Darkrai, or what it is seeking protection from. Regardless of its intentions, though, there's no denying that it is disturbing. Those afflicted by Darkrai's nightmares are often afraid to go to sleep.