Pokémon Gen 10 Legendaries Should Break A 26-Year Tradition

3 hours ago 1

Published Jan 25, 2026, 7:01 AM EST

Matthew Danielson is a Senior Gaming Staff Writer for Screen Rant, using their expertise in fighting games, RPGs, and action titles to provide insight into your favorite experiences.

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When picking up a new Pokémon game, the first choice players usually make is which version of a game they get. Most mainline Generations have two separate games, where certain Pokémon are exclusive to either one, encouraging trading with other players. However, this also applies to the Legendary Pokémon on a game version's box art, marking a trend that may have overstayed its welcome.

One of the most memorable Legendary creatures ever in Pokémon's history was Mewtwo, the Psychic-type experiment of Team Rocket found in Cerulean Cave. In the Gen 1 games, Mewtwo was a secret shared between both Pokémon Red and Blue, allowing everyone to discover it together. Without restrictions to the Legendary, as Lugia and Ho-Oh would see in Gen 2, Mewtwo had an even bigger presence that's lasted decades.

Exclusive Legendaries Should Come To An End

Groundon and Kyogre from Pokémon side by side.

Many Pokémon games have been defined by exclusive Legendary Pokémon, especially as the Generations have continued. This trend started with Gen 2, but became twice as prominent in Gen 3, where Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire made Groudon and Kyogre exclusive to their respective versions. Some of the series' best Pokémon have been locked away like this, from Dialga/Palkia, Zekrom/Reshiram, Xerneas/Yveltal, Solgaleo/Lunala, and many more.

This tends to divide the player base of any new Gen, with games being selected based on which exclusive Legendary they like more. Ironically, the follow-up games in various Generations like Pokémon Emerald or Pokémon Platinum tend to be fan-favorites, partially because you can catch both Legendaries that were once limited.

Some of the Legendary exclusives even extend into the DLC of certain Pokémon games, where certain expansions only have a rare Pokémon if you're playing on the right version.

Games from later Gens tend not to have a "third" edition like Platinum or Emerald though, greatly limiting the Legendary Pokémon players can encounter. This mechanic may have been great when trading was a novelty for the series, but now it stands as more of an inconvenience. Having Legendaries separate from each other derails some of the hype from a future Gen, forcing players to make a choice rather than be excited about a new game.

Gen 10 Games Need A Legendary Like Mewtwo

Official character art of Mewtwo in front of two artworks from the Pokémon's cards, both of which show Mewtwo on a cosmic background.

With Gen 10 on the horizon, Pokémon could benefit from departing from the dual release approach they've done before. Releasing a game with all its Legendary Pokémon accessible to all players would promote more natural discovery, rather than resignation to only getting certain creatures through one edition. This may even create more cooperation, much like the separate version formula tries to do with trading.

Mewtwo is a prime example of a great postgame Legendary that took lots of exploration to find, exemplifying the hidden nature of its rarity. Pokémon like Regirock, Registeel, and Regice in Gen 3 also fit this category, requiring players to read brail and complete other obtuse steps to find them naturally. Some of the biggest hype in a Pokémon game comes from player intuition, which is slightly robbed if there is no chance to get certain Legendaries in the first place.

Part of the nostalgia that comes with this iconic series is the number of traditions it follows, whether that be turn-based battles or a Pokédex filled with hundreds of unique pocket monsters. That being said, some ideas might need to change to make the 10th Generation of Pokémon feel fresh compared to its past.