With every new mainline Pokemon game, fans are introduced to a new region inspired by a location from the real world. With Pokemon Sword & Shield, this was England, while for Pokemon Sun & Moon, it was Hawaii. These new regions provide a lot of speculation for fans who are eager to explore new areas of the Pokemon world.
Oftentimes, the real-world settings that inspire Pokemon regions inform the games' mechanics, native Pokemon, and story. One real-world location that hasn't been adapted for Pokemon yet is Greece, which is a country filled with enough history and mythology to fill an entire generation. There are plenty of reasons why Greece would be the perfect setting for a future Pokemon adventure.
10 New Mythology-Inspired Pokemon To Discover
Obviously, the main draw to any new Pokemon game is the new Pokemon that fans will get to catch and battle with. Greek history and mythology are chock-full of interesting monsters and creatures in their own right. It only makes sense that a Pokemon region based in this culture will have a lot of interesting, unique Pokemon designs.
Several Greek mythology-inspired creatures would make for great new Pokemon. There could be a Ground/Flying-type griffin or a Rock-type cyclops. Some of these new Pokemon could even take after their abilities in Greek myths, like a Poison/Rock-type Gorgon or a Psychic-type Sphinx.
9 Legendary Pokemon Inspired By Gods & Goddesses
It stands to reason that there are a lot of Pokemon designs that could simply come from the various deities of Greek mythology. The central legendary trio that serves as the generation's mascots could be based on Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades, who are often referred to as "The Big Three" in Greek mythology.
Additionally, other lesser Greek gods and goddesses could be made into either Legendary Pokemon, or even just regular common ones. For instance, there could be an owl Pokemon based on Athena or a centaur Pokemon based on Artemis. There's certainly no shortage of powerful Greek characters to take as inspiration.
8 New Regional Forms Based On Greek History
Since their introduction in Pokemon Sun & Moon, regional variants have become popular amongst fans as ways to reinterpret older-generation Pokemon in these new regions. There are many Pokemon from previous games who would fit well into the world of Ancient Greece. For others, this type of re-imagining might be appealing.
For example, one could easily see a new Rock/Fighting-type Machamp evolutionary line based on Olympic discus throwers. You could also redesign the luchador wrestling Hawlucha as a Steel/Fighting-type based on Spartan warriors. A Pokemon like Golurk could even take inspiration from bronze automatons, becoming Steel/Ghost-type.
7 Possible New Types To Be Introduced
Very rarely, new Pokemon types are introduced into the series. The last time a new type was added was in Pokemon X & Y, which debuted the Fairy-typing. Usually, new types are added to balance the competitive meta, but sometimes they can also serve to inspire new Pokemon concepts or re-imagine older ones in a new context.
Cosmic-type could be a possible addition to a Greece-inspired region since Greek mythology is the origin of astronomy. There could also be a Sound-type based on Greece's affinity for plays and music. A Light-type would also work really well for a Greek-inspired region, playing off the ideas of good and evil.
6 An Open-World Region For Players To Explore
Since the inclusion of open-world exploration in Pokemon Sword & Shield and Pokemon Legends: Arceus, many fans are clamoring for a mainline Pokemon game incorporating these elements. An Ancient Greece-inspired region would be the perfect choice to test how an open-world region affects the staples of the Pokemon franchise.
Since Ancient Greece is made up of several islands, this could also expand on Pokemon Legends: Arceus's open-world aspects by being a mostly sea-based region. There could also be a plethora of new Ride Pokemon that can help players navigate a Greece-inspired region's mountains, oceans, and canyons.
5 Iconic Landmarks To Be Discovered
Of course, Greece is home to many historical landmarks that are perfect for the Pokemon world, like the Parthenon in Athens or Mount Olympus. Additionally, there are many landmarks unique to mythology that would make for interesting areas to explore in this new region, like the Labyrinth or the Underworld.
A Greece-inspired region could also take inspiration from other nearby areas in the Mediterranean Sea. There could be cities or towns inspired by Rome, Venice, Cairo, and Alexandria. While there's certainly more than enough inspiration to come from specifically Greece, these other cities and countries could offer variety while exploring.
4 A New Evil Team With Ancient Motives
Many fans were disappointed by Team Yell's role in Pokemon Sword & Shield, as the team has very little effect on the game's story compared to previous generation counterparts like Team Plasma or Team Rocket. Maybe in this new Greece-inspired Pokemon region, evil teams could return to the forefront of the games' story.
A possible concept for this region's evil team could be based on ancient cults surrounding Hades and the Underworld. Perhaps this evil team's goal could be to unleash a Hades-inspired Legendary Pokemon and overthrow the ruling Zeus or Poseidon-inspired Legendary, leading to a climactic battle between the player and the evil team's leader.
3 Ancient Pokemon Lore To Be Uncovered
Of course, every new mainline Pokemon game features tons of backstory about the region it takes place in. An Ancient Greece-inspired region could take this to new levels since the real-world country is known for its innovations to written and oral history. An epic poem-sized backstory could finally be captivating enough for even the most impatient Trainers.
Ancient Greece's history also takes place before a lot of the history that's inspired other regions in the Pokemon world, such as America or Europe. This means that an Ancient Greece-inspired region could predate previously established lore. Perhaps there's a Pokemon version of Chaos, a mythological void that precedes Arceus's creation of the universe.
2 New Replacement For Pokemon Gyms
Pokemon Sun & Moon was unique in the franchise for replacing the concept of Gyms or a Pokemon League with the Island Challenge. Instead of facing off against eight Gym Leaders throughout the course of the game, players had to battle four Island Kahunas after completing several minigame trials.
A Greek-inspired region could further this concept of having players go through trials rather than Gym Challenges. These new trials could be based on the 12 Herculean tasks, or they could even be inspired by the Olympic Games, which originated in Ancient Greece. Either way, it would definitely shake up the Pokemon series' formula.
1 New Generation-Exclusive Gameplay Mechanics
Pokemon X & Y introduced the beloved Mega Evolution into the series, which was replaced by Z-Moves in Pokemon Sun & Moon, and then Dynamaxing in Pokemon Sword & Shield. This new generation of Pokemon could either re-introduce one of these mechanics or invent a whole new one for Pokemon fans to try out.
To keep with the themes of a hypothetical Ancient Greece-inspired region, this new mechanic could somehow be inspired by war. Ancient Greece was no stranger to war, from the Peloponnesian civil war to the poem-inspiring Trojan War. Maybe this gameplay mechanic could involve Fire Emblem-esque turn-based strategy, focusing on controlling an entire party of Pokemon at once.