Highlights
- Mega evolution, along with other battle gimmicks like Z-moves and Dynamax, has inspired fan artists to create new designs for Pokemon, with Mega Mamoswine and Mega Dewgong being the latest additions.
- Mega evolution allows Pokemon to temporarily enhance their stats and take on a new appearance, and fans have been creating their own mega designs for Pokemon without official mega forms.
- While mega evolution may not be returning soon, the upcoming DLC for Pokemon Scarlet and Violet will continue to inspire artistic projects within the Pokemon community.
Between Pokemon's mega evolutions, Gigantamax forms, and Paradox Pokemon, there are many different variations of certain Pokemon, and one artistic fan of the franchise has created mega forms for both Mamoswine and Dewgong as part of a larger project. Mega evolution may have been an absent mechanic since the Gen 7 Pokemon games, but the awesome designs it provided have continued to encourage new artwork over the years based on the battle gimmick.
Since mega evolution was first introduced to the Pokemon franchise in Pokemon X and Y, every new generation of games in the series has brought about some new battle gimmick, many of which are unique to the games that they were introduced in. These battle features have allowed Pokemon to unleash some pretty cool powers, but with each of these gimmicks working in different ways, it's safe to say that fans don't appreciate them all equally. Mega evolution, Z-moves, Dynamax, and Terastallization have each served to encourage new fan-made moves and creature designs from the artistic side of the franchise's community though, with mega evolution typically being regarded as a feature that many players hope is reintroduced to the core series games someday.
Put simply, mega evolution allows Pokemon to undergo a special type of evolution that allows them to temporarily enhance their stats and transcend what is otherwise their final evolutionary stage. This lets them take on a whole new appearance for a time, and a great many fans over the years have drawn up plenty of new mega forms for species of Pokemon that don't officially have one. This time, a talented fan artist known as CycloneToya on Reddit has shared some of their own new mega designs, which provide an insight into what Mamoswine and Dewgong might look like if they could mega evolve. These designs are part of a larger creative project that the artist is working on which involves creating mega variations for every Gym Leader's ace Pokemon seen throughout the series, and curious fans may follow the artist's progress on this project via their posts on Reddit.
While mega evolution has been absent from some of the more recent generations of Pokemon games, Generation 8's Dynamax phenomenon isn't too dissimilar in the sense that it also provided new forms for Pokemon with Gigantamax forms. While Pokemon Scarlet and Violet's Terastal phenomenon unfortunately lacks this particular sort of feature, the Gen 9 games have also brought the mysterious Paradox Pokemon into the fold, which provide new variations of familiar Pokemon.
Either way, the number of gimmicks present throughout the big world of Pokemon has only given creative players more potential to work with, both in terms of gameplay possibilities and artistic projects as well. While mega evolution might not make its return any time soon, fans can at least look forward to a plethora of new Pokemon coming soon in Pokemon Scarlet and Violet's DLC, which will undoubtedly lead to some brilliant new art from the community.