Pokemon Scarlet and Violet's Indigo Disk DLC Leaves a…

Summary

Pokemon Scarlet and Violet's DLC will expand the Pokedex but Gen 5 remakes may be the only hope for some missing Pokemon.
The uncertainty surrounding the Switch's future means these nine Pokemon may only have one more chance to join the platform.
While eight of the missing Pokemon could potentially be included in Gen 5 remakes, one outlier, Furfrou, may not make it.

Though the second half of Pokemon Scarlet and Violet's DLC is set to expand its Pokedex one more time with previously unavailable Pokemon, any potential Gen 5 remakes will be the only hope for a few remaining Pokemon who still haven't made it into Pokemon's Switch games. The recent leaks of Scarlet and Violet's updated Pokedex following The Indigo Disk appear to confirm which Pokemon from earlier generations will be coming to Paldea. But taking a look at the bigger picture of available Pokemon across the series' various Switch games reveals that there are nine Pokemon in particular who will still be unobtainable on the platform post-Gen 9.

With the uncertainty surrounding the Switch's future and Nintendo's plans for its next console, it's possible that the last chance these nine Pokemon have to join the other thousand-odd on the Switch lies with the highly anticipated remakes of Pokemon Black and White. While it hasn't been confirmed if there will be Black and White remakes or if Game Freak will even be developing them, many fans remain hopeful that prospective Gen 5 remakes will be released during the Switch's lifetime. However, though these Gen 5 remakes could easily account for eight of these nine Pokemon, there may still be one missing even then.

Pokemon Has A Pokedex Problem On The Switch

Back when Pokemon Sword and Shield were being launched, Game Freak caused controversy when it announced that it would be phasing out the National Pokedex in future Pokemon games. While it claimed it was doing this to better balance the continuously growing number of Pokemon, many players were disappointed or frustrated at the prospect of being unable to transfer their favorite or oldest Pokemon from earlier games. Ultimately, while almost every Pokemon can now be obtained between the various Gen 8 and Gen 9 Pokemon games on the Switch, this has inevitably resulted in nine unlucky Pokemon shown below being completely unavailable after simply not making the cut.

Pokemon	Generation
Patrat	Gen 5
Watchog	Gen 5
Pansage	Gen 5
Simisage	Gen 5
Pansear	Gen 5
Simisear	Gen 5
Panpour	Gen 5
Simipour	Gen 5
Furfrou	Gen 6

Pokemon Black and White Remakes Can Come To The Switch's Rescue

There is still hope for these missing Pokemon thanks to Black and White remakes and other Gen 5 games, as eight out of these nine Pokemon in particular actually belong to the same generation. Firstly, Patrat and Watchog were introduced as Black and White's traditional Route 1 Normal-type Pokemon, which means they are both virtually guaranteed to appear in any Gen 5 remakes on the Switch. Secondly, another three Pokemon and their evolutions dubbed as the "Elemental Monkeys" are also just as likely to appear, especially since Pansage, Pansear, and Panpour were intentional parallels to the Starter Pokemons' types for players to obtain early into the game.

One Gen 6 Pokemon Might Still Not Make It To The Switch

However, one last Pokemon might not be as fortunate as the Patrat, Pansage, Pansear, and Panpour Pokemon lines, as it is an outlier among these eight Gen 5 Pokemon. Based on the French inspiration for Pokemon X and Y, Furfrou was introduced in Gen 6 with a unique gimmick of multiple fashionable forms that tied into Pokemon's new customization features. But given how close the Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl remakes were to Gen 4's source material, it seems highly unlikely that Furfrou will make a surprise appearance in Black and White remakes if they take a similar approach.

There could be the slim possibility that Game Freak will capitalize on the popular spin-off Pokemon Legends: Arceus that coincided with the Gen 4 remakes if it announces plans for a second Pokemon Legends game set in Unova. Just as Pokemon from more recent generations received Hisuian forms, so too could Furfrou be introduced to the Switch through an all-new regional variant. But with Game Freak remaining silent about the future beyond Pokemon Scarlet and Violet's final DLC expansion, any potential Gen 5 remakes will face scrutiny from fans about whether they will finally add the last nine Pokemon missing from the Switch.

Rating block community and brand ratings Image