Pokémon: 10 Sinnoh Creatures That Never Made It Into Sword & Shield

The Sinnoh region has taken center stage throughout the eighth Pokémon generation. The generation began with Sword and Shield and the brand-new Galar region, but the Sinnoh game remakes Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl, along with their distant prequel Legends: Arceus, have shifted the focus back to Sinnoh.

Sword and Shield made waves in the Pokémon community thanks to their decision to omit nearly half of the Pokémon roster. Several more Pokémon were added in the Isle of Armor and Crown Tundra DLCs, but plenty were still left out. Most of the Pokémon hailing from Sinnoh have now appeared in Gen VIII in the remakes, Legends: Arceus, or both. But many of them missed the boat in Sword and Shield, and it will probably stay that way.

10 Rampardos And Bastiodon Are The Only Missing Fossils

Since Generation I, nearly every new game has included some kind of Pokémon attained by reanimating a fossil. The Generation IV fossil pokemon were Rampardos and Bastiodon, resembling a pachycephalosaurus and a ceratopsian, respectively. These two are the only fossil Pokémon from previous generations not to make it into Sword and Shield, but players who miss these fossils can pick them up in Brilliant Diamond, Shining Pearl, and Legends: Arceus. 

9 Carnivine Is Cool But Fails To Stand Out

Carnivine is Pokémon with a strong design, resembling a giant Venus flytrap plant. Unfortunately, its visuals are about the only thing setting it apart from the dozens of other pure Grass types in the Pokémon roster. Its ability, Levitate, is not particularly useful, as Grass types already resist Ground type attacks. Carnivine is all over Legends: Arceus, often terrorizing the player, but it failed to make an appearance in Sword or Shield. 

8 Burmy, Wormadam, And Mothim Are Some Of The Coolest Bug Types Around

The Burmy line is a great example of Pokémon taking design influence from the real world. Female Burmy evolve into Wormadam, while males evolve into Mothim. This is a reflection of the bagworm moth, a species that displays sexual dimorphism wherein only the males develop wings as they undergo metamorphosis.

Wormadam have a branching evolutionary path as well, gaining one of three different secondary typings depending on where it last battled. As far as Bug types go, the Burmy line has a complex and fun design concept, so its sad they never made it into Sword and Shield. 

7 Chatot Has A Secret Weapon

With a middling base stat total and an unremarkable type combination, Chatot has only one ace up its sleeve to set it apart from the dozens of other bird Pokémon. It is one of the few Pokémon capable of learning Boomburst, and one of only three Normal types capable of using it with Same Type Attack Bonus. This move has one of the highest damage potentials in the games, making Chatot’s exclusion from Sword and Shield a sorely felt lack.

6 Chingling Is The Baby Left Out

Chingling represents one of an entire category of Pokémon introduced in Generation IV, including Happini, Mime Jr., Munchlax, Bonsly, Mantyke, and Budew. These are all baby forms of existing Pokémon introduced in the Sinnoh games. Unfortunately for Chingling, the baby form of Generation III’s Chimecho, it is the only one that never made an appearance in Sword and Shield. Fortunately, it reappears in Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl.

5 Phione And Manaphy Are Unique Mythicals

Mythical and Legendary Pokémon tend to make the jump between generations, but even these were not spared from Sword and Shield’s limited Pokédex. Phione and Manaphy are a pair of related Water type Mythical Pokémon that hail from Generation IV with some unique properties. Manaphy is the only Mythical Pokémon capable of breeding.

When bred with a Ditto, it will produce a Phione. Interestingly, Phione does not evolve into Manaphy. Neither appeared in Sword and Shield, even when plenty of Legendary and Mythical Pokémon were added in the DLCs.

4 Darkrai Is Only One Half Of A Duo

Darkrai is a Dark type Legendary Pokémon known to cause bad dreams in the people around it. It resembles a shadowy figure with a white plume billowing from its head. Darkrai is a member of the Lunar duo, alongside Cresselia, which is said to be able to quell the nightmares it causes. Cresselia can be found in Sword and Shield’s Max Lairs Dynamax Adventures, but Darkrai wasn’t so fortunate.

3 Ambipom, Mismagius, Honchkrow, Gliscor, Probopass, And Yanmega Are The Unlucky Ones

Just as the Generation IV games introduced several baby forms of existing Pokémon, they also introduced new evolutions for existing Pokémon. Plenty of these have become iconic Pokémon in the intervening years, including Magnezone, Lickilicky, Rhyperior, Tangrowth, Electivire, Magmortar, PorygonZ, Togekiss, Weavile, Mamoswine, Roserade, Dusknoir, and Froslass.

Unfortunately, not all of these extra evolutions made their way into Sword and Shield, though they are all available in Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl. 

2Arceus Is A Distant God

The god of the Pokémon world and the driving force behind the most recent Pokémon game, Arceus is widely considered the god of the Pokémon world. It has been very difficult to obtain since its introduction back in Generation IV, usually only being distributed during special events. This incredibly powerful Pokémon boasts an impressive 120 in every one of its stats, making it quite the impressive fighter for anyone who can get their hands on it.

1The Starters Are A Glaring Omission

In a surprising turn of events, not many prior generation starter Pokémon are available in Sword and Shield. The Sinnoh starters, Turtwig, Chimchar, and Piplup, are quite beloved by many fans but were absent from Generation VIII before the Diamond and Pearl remakes. In some ways, it makes sense to delay the introduction of these Pokémon until the remakes of their home games, but plenty of players would have like to raise and battle with a Torterra, Infernape, or Empoleon throughout the Sword and Shield campaign and postgame.