If you’re a long-time series fan who’s eagerly unraveling the secrets of Pokémon Sword and Shield as we speak, you probably know how encounters with Legendary Pokémon tend to go down. You get into a one-time-only encounter, it’s a pain to whittle their HP down, then they absolutely refuse to stay in the Poké Ball. It’s an all-round super fun time.
The feeling of landing an untimely critical hit on a Legendary Pokémon (if you haven’t saved beforehand) is just devastating. Throughout the series, though, there have also been non-legendary Pokémon you only get to battle (or receive through in-game events) once. Let’s take a look at some!
10 Hitmonchan/Hitmonlee (Pokémon Red and Blue)
Ah, Generation I. What a wild time to be alive. We played the Pokémon TCG, we watched the show after school, and we stood in Pokémon Red and Blue’s Fighting-type gym for an hour, agonizing over the choice of whether we wanted Hitmonchan or Hitmonlee.
Granted, neither of them actually learned any moves worth using back in the day, but still: the choice between Street Fighter’s Balrog and Tekken’s Hwoarang was almost as tough as selecting a starter.
9 The Red Gyarados (Pokémon Gold And Silver)
The second generation of Pokémon added a number of fantastic innovations to the series: held items, breeding, a day/night cycle, a huge, furious red Gyarados that wants to eat you, your entire family tree and your pet chihuahua…
That’s right. Shiny Pokémon were also added to the mix in Generation II, and Game Freak wanted to make sure we noticed the whole ‘new color scheme’ gimmick. Which is why they gave us a forced encounter with a shiny Gyarados in the Lake of Rage. In the remakes (Pokemon HeartGold and SoulSilver), this Gyarados would respawn later if defeated, but it was a one-and-done encounter in the original games.
8 Magikarp (Pokémon Black And White)
The shiny Gyarados is an obvious special encounter, but you might be surprised to hear that Magikarp was also once available only as a limited event. If you’re familiar with the way this woeful little fish appears in every fishing spot ever, try this revelation on for size: you won’t find them while fishing in Pokémon Black and White. Anywhere.
The shady salesman on Marvelous Bridge will sell you the only available Magikarp in Unova (breeding aside). Who would have thought Magikarp would ever be considered a rarity?
7 Castform (Pokémon Ruby, Sapphire and Emerald)
To give Castform its due, it’s a couple of rungs above Magikarp on the Hilariously Hopeless Pokémon scale. It has a unique design and an interesting gimmick, which sees it change form and type depending on the current weather in the battle. It doesn’t have the stats to make use of these changes, sadly, but heck: props for at least being a little interesting.
In Pokémon Ruby, Sapphire, Emerald, Omega Ruby, and Alpha Sapphire, the player only gets one Castform, gifted to them by the scientists at the Weather Institute. Breeding aside, it’s the only one available.
6 Sudowoodo (Pokémon Gold, Silver, Crystal)
Continuing our series of super sub-par Pokémon that really don’t deserve to have been this exclusive, we have Sudowoodo. This Rock-type isn’t particularly bad, it’s just a very nondescript physical tank that really doesn’t cut the mustard competitively.
It made a memorable appearance in Alola’s Lush Jungle last generation, but in Pokémon Gold, Silver, and Crystal (and the Battle Frontier in Pokémon Emerald), there’s only one to be found. Take care when dealing with it on Route 36.
5 Eevee (Pokémon Red And Blue)
As we’ve mentioned, there aren’t many non-Legendary Pokémon that players are only truly given one chance to acquire. After all, almost every one of them is capable of breeding (thanks to Ditto in some cases). This isn’t the case with the first generation of games, however, because there was no breeding mechanic back then.
You’d better be really sure you know which Eeveelution you want to go with in Pokémon Red and Blue, then. You’ll find the Poké Ball containing your fluffy friend at Celadon Mansion.
4 Fossil Pokémon
When it comes to in-game event Pokémon, nothing’s more iconic than the dreaded choice: which Fossil Pokémon to go for? If you’re new to that particular generation and haven’t read up on the ins and outs of every Pokémon available, you can only hope that you’ve made the right choice for you.
While multiples of certain fossils are available in some of the games (Aerodactyl’s Old Amber, for instance), that isn’t always the case. Are you a Dome Fossil or a Helix Fossil sort of person?
3 Cosplay Pikachu (Pokémon Omega Ruby And Alpha Sapphire)
Well, of course there’s a special, limited-edition version of Pikachu doing the rounds in the games. After all, the little electric rodent is the de facto mascot of the franchise and its adorable little face is plastered on absolutely every form of merchandise the company can get their hands on.
Just as it’s available wearing a different jaunty outfit for every holiday in Pokémon GO, there’s also a unique Cosplay Pikachu up for grabs in Pokémon Omega Ruby And Alpha Sapphire. It can’t be bred, either, meaning that it’s truly one of a kind.
2 Snorlax (Pokémon Gold And Silver, HeartGold And SoulSilver And X And Y)
Old-school Pokémon fans felt a pang of pure nostalgia whenever they saw this franchise icon blocking the path in later titles in the series. That’s Snorlax’s whole shtick, and Game Freak made sure to nod to it several times.
In the original games and Pokémon: Let’s Go Pikachu And Eevee, sleeping Snorlax appeared in only two spots: one on Route 12 and the other on Route 16. If you failed to catch them, that was your helping of Snorlax lost for this playthrough (trades notwithstanding). Meanwhile, in Pokémon Gold And Silver, HeartGold And SoulSilver and X And Y, there’s only one Snorlax to find (in Vermilion City, Route 11/12 or Route 7 respectively). It’s a tough Pokemon to catch, too, so watch out!
1 Spiky-Eared Pichu (Pokémon HeartGold And SoulSilver)
Finally, we have one of the most obscure and ultimately pointless Event Pokémon in the series to date. Spiky-Eared Pichu is simply a Pichu with a (you guessed it) spiky ear. The left one, because it’s super important to specify.
You really had to jump through some hoops to obtain one. First, you needed to acquire the shiny Pichu (Pikachu-colored Pichu) from a GameStop event in North America in early 2010. With this special Pichu in hand (via trading), you needed to visit Ilex Forest in Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver with it in the first slot of your party. This will cause a brief event to take place, which will see the new Spiky-Eared Pichu join your team (as long as you have a space to receive it). This little critter is no different from any other Pichu (beyond the moves it starts with, which include the powerful Volt Tackle). It traveled through time with Celebi to meet the player in the forest, which is certainly interesting. It also can’t evolve (nor can it breed) nor be moved from the copy of the game it was collected on.