With how relatively young Pokemon GO is, it has still managed to implement hundreds of Pokemon over the years the game has been running. There doesn't seem to be any sign of stopping either, with generation six just starting to be added in.
There are technically representatives from every current generation of Pokemon in Pokemon GO. This is, of course, due to the addition of the Alolan variants of certain Kanto Pokemon as well as the Galarian variants alongside their Galar evolutions. Meltan and Melmetal are also technically part of Pokemon's seventh generation despite premiering in Pokemon GO.
While parts of generation seven and eight are in Pokemon GO, the actual effort of full implementation hasn't begun yet. With the exception of Meltan and Melmetal, these more recent Pokemon are only in the game due to their connection to existing Pokemon. These generations, however, will be hopefully seen in full in the future.
Generation Seven - Alola
Pokemon's seventh generation brought forth the Alola region- a region based on the real world's Hawaiian Islands. Alola is filled with a variety of tropical Pokemon as well as introduced regional variants officially to the Pokemon universe.
When Pokemon Sun and Pokemon Moon were released, players soon got to see the new Alolan Pokemon forms in Pokemon GO. The Pokemon with these regional forms available in the mobile game are:
- Rattata
- Raticate
- Raichu
- Sandshrew
- Sandslash
- Vulpix
- Ninetales
- Diglett
- Dugtrio
- Meowth
- Geodude
- Graveler
- Golem
- Grimer
- Muk
- Exeggutor
- Marowak
As mentioned before, although these Pokemon were put into Pokemon GO with all of their new stats and typing intact, Pokemon originally created for the Alola region weren't brought over. This is due to to Niantic sticking to releasing the majority of Pokemon in regional order. This means that players will most likely need to wait for the majority of Kalos Pokemon to be implemented before even dreaming of seeing Pokemon like Rowlet, Litten, and Popplio.
Considering that Mega Evolution was brought into Pokemon GO a few months before Kalos Pokemon were added to the game, it is possible that generation seven's big battle mechanic might also follow this pattern. There's some big questions on how the Z-Move mechanic could work, as it gives players a once-per-battle move in the main games. It is, however, questionable how this would be balanced in Pokemon GO or if it would even be allowed in PVP.
Once the Alola region's representatives start to arrive, there are plenty of Pokemon that trainers can look forward to catching. One of these is the ever popular Mimikyu, a dual ghost and fairy-type. Considering that Pikachu has already had a special Mimikyu costume variant in Pokemon GO, many will be happy to see the cute and creepy Pokemon.
Another part of the seventh generation that will make a great impact on Pokemon GO will be the arrival of the Ultra Beasts. With their status being Pokemon from other dimensions, it could be possible for them to have special raids devoted to them in a similar way to how Mega Evolved Pokemon have their own raid category.
Generation Eight - Galar
The most recent generation and mainline game region to appear in Pokemon is generation eight and the Galar region. Based on the United Kingdom, it features a variety of Pokemon fitting with the nation's climate and references to other nations the country has interacted with in real life.
Like with Alola, the Galar region also featured special regional forms for existing Pokemon. After the release of Pokemon Sword and Pokemon Shield, these regional forms also were eventually implemented for players to find and catch in Pokemon GO. Even though not all of them have been added, those that were added are:
- Meowth
- Ponyta
- Rapidash
- Slowpoke
- Farfetch'd
- Weezing
- Mr. Mime
- Zigzagoon
- Linoone
- Darumaka
- Darmanitan
- Yamask
- Stunfisk
Since some of these regional variants gained brand new evolutions with their new forms, these new evolutions were also added into Pokemon GO. This means that original Pokemon created for the Galar region are officially available in Pokemon GO. These Pokemon are:
- Perrserker - Evolves from Meowth
- Sirfetch'd - Evolves from Farfetch'd
- Mr. Rime - Evolves from Mr. Mime
- Obstagoon - Evolves from Linoone
- Runerigus - Evolves from Yamask
Alongside the implementation of the Kalos Pokemon, players are likely going to see the rest of the Galar forms that have yet to be added. This means that Galarian Corsola and its new evolution, Cursola, might be on the horizon soon. Players may also see the Galar forms of the legendary birds, introduced in the Crown Tundra DLC.
With the original Pokemon from generation eight, there are quite a few that players have to look forward to. This includes big favorites such as the well loved Appletun and Snom. Of course, the Galar region's starter Pokemon will also likely be welcomed with open arms by the Pokemon GO community.
What's Left of the Other Generations
Despite starting the move into generation six, there are still many Pokemon from previous generations that haven't been implemented into Pokemon GO. This isn't limited to mythical and legendary Pokemon either with multiple ordinary Pokemon still not in-game yet. These non-legendary Pokemon from before generation six are:
- Kecleon
- Munna
- Musharna
- Tynamo
- Eelektrik
- Eelektross
- Zorua
- Zoroark
- Mienfoo
- Mienshao
- Larvesta
- Volcarona
With Kecleon being from generation three and many of generation four's mythical Pokemon being missing from Pokemon GO, many want the unreleased Pokemon to be added before continuing with generation six. However, while it is questionable why some of these Pokemon aren't implemented yet, many of them have gimmicks in the main game that may be hard to translate in Pokemon GO.
One of the Pokemon that may be problematic when implementing could definitely be Kecleon. Since Kecleon was introduced in the generation that gave Pokemon abilities, it is very reliant on its ability of Color Change. This makes it so that it changes its type to the last move it was hit by. With Pokemon GO lacking Pokemon abilities though, this greatly takes away Kecleon's main mechanic and overall purpose.
Generation six also has a lot more Pokemon to be implemented. Although 22 have been added, there are still 50 more Pokemon that have yet to be made available. It is unknown if these Pokemon will be added in waves or a couple at a time in-between the many events scheduled for 2021. It is also possible for the Kalos region to get their own stragglers like Hoenn, Sinnoh, and Unova.
Pokemon GO is available now in select regions on Android and iOS devices.