Mysterious Ghosts?

Various, mysterious ghosts have appeared throughout the Pokémon series, yet little is known about them. These are not Ghost-type Pokémon, but what are they? Some are able to be battled, while others just float around. It does seem like Game Freak is hinting at something, with more and more ghosts appearing throughout the ages and possibly a few hidden references. This article will discuss what we know about these ghosts and speculate about what we don't know, including what might happen next!

Generation 1

The first unknown ghost appeared in Generation 1, in the Pokémon Tower! It appeared at the foot of the last staircase of the tower, preventing the player from accessing the topmost floor. The player had to battle it, but the ghost avoided all Poké Balls and even scared the player's Pokémon to such a degree that it was impossible for them to fight back. Only once the player obtained the Silph Scope, a device used for identifying ghosts, were they able to recognize the ghost's true form: Marowak. She continued to avoid Poké Balls while the hero battled her, but once she was beaten, the player could access the top floor. Afterwards, she disappeared, never to be found again.

This ghost originated from the time when Team Rocket invaded the Pokémon Tower to steal the skulls of the Cubone living there. One of them was protected by its mother. Sadly, they killed the mother instead, while the child ran off. The ghost of the mother then settled in the Pokémon Tower, only coming to rest once she saw her child again after years of terrorizing the tower. Luckily, she went to the afterlife peacefully, so this story ended well...

Generation 4

The next ghosts didn't appear until Generation 4, when they started appearing more often. Outside of the Old Chateau, near Eterna City, the player could find Gardenia talking about not daring to get close to the chateau, and it turns out that she has a good reason for it. Aside from the many Ghost-type Pokémon found in the mansion, the player can encounter the ghost of an old man in the dining room and one of a young girl in one of the bedrooms. They both walk away before the player can interact with them! They might be relatives; maybe even grandfather and grandkid. The girl can be found in another way, though: there's a photograph which holds the spirit of the girl. It may suddenly keep "looking" at the player.

There's no clue to how these ghosts are related, or why they even appear in the game! It's highly likely, though, that they are previous inhabitants of the house. The old man could be either the butler, father, or grandfather of the small girl. A small hint is given in Platinum that states that Charon used to live in this house. This means he was probably the father of the little girl, meaning the man would be the butler or the grandfather. Charon probably left them alone in the house when something terrible must have happened. He always brags about how he discovered Rotom and how it suddenly jumped into his pet doll, so he must've known Rotom was in the house. He might have joined Team Galactic to flee from Rotom, leaving the other two to be haunted by the Ghost-type Pokémon for the rest of their lives, even while dead! They have probably been electrocuted by the mischievous Pokémon. After their deaths, the unrest they faced at the end of their lives must have caused the spirits to not be able to reach eternal peace, leaving them to spook the villa for the rest of time.

Generation 5

The next generation held some more surprises. This time, there was actually a ghost with a much deeper story than those that had been seen before. In Black and White, the player character can find a mysterious ghost resting on the Marvelous Bridge. Whenever the player attempts to get closer, she disappears before they're able to reach her. After the area has been explored, an old lady explains that a young girl often played with her partner Abra in the surrounding areas before the bridge was built.

Then, in Black 2 and White 2, more information is given about this secretive girl. She now hides quietly in the Strange House near Reversal Mountain. She obsessively tries to avoid contact by obstructing anyone who comes near with the furniture in the house. As soon as she's found, she starts muttering about an everlasting dream, her partner Pokémon Abra, and some unknown Lunar Wing. It sounds like she was captured by the legendary Pokémon Darkrai and put to sleep, which caused an awful nightmare from which she couldn't escape. She needed the Lunar Wing to get better, but she didn't get it in time, so she wanted to return it to Cresselia on the Marvelous Bridge. This theory is supported by the fact that both Darkrai and Cresselia are mentioned in some of the books found in this house, as well as the Pokémon Hypno and Drowzee, which like to feed on the dreams of their victims.

What exactly happened to this woman is still a mystery. She probably lived in either Black City or White Forest while she was alive, where she was a cheerful young girl. Some night, she must've been trapped by Darkrai, after which her family (possibly including the old woman from before!) searched for the Lunar Wing to cure her. Although they managed to find the sacred medicine, she had already passed away when they gave it to her. The medicine could have kept her spirit alive while her body was dead, forcing her to wander around as her ghastly self, only regaining peace once the medicine was returned. Sadly, she couldn't find the legendary Pokémon Cresselia and eventually just fled into a long-abandoned house where she could be alone. Eventually, the player character came along and delivered the medicine to Cresselia, allowing her spirit to go to the afterlife.

Generation 6

At the beginning of the sixth generation, many people were freaked out by another ghost with a vague origin. In one of the office buildings in the enormous Lumiose City, a Hex Maniac will float by on the second floor and say, "No, you're not the one." Afterwards, she vanishes and won't show herself again. Later in the game, the player can encounter another girl on the fourth floor of Hotel Richissime. She says, "...Don't talk to me... If you do, I won't... hear the elevator." It sounds like they're the same "girl" considering they use the same model and are both seeking someone.

This girl might be related to the notes found in Lumiose City's train station. They say: "I'm going to go for help. Wait in the usual place." Though we don't know what this place is, it's likely that this place is the hotel she's wandering through. Something happened, and she's now a restless ghost who keeps waiting where she was told to wait, impatiently waiting on the one who let her down. This might have something to do with the old man in the haunted house on Route 14. He tells you that there was once a person who saw a horde of faceless men, and afterwards, if you refuse to give him a tip, he says you may see something really scary. It could be that this man was the person whom the girl was waiting on, but he was too late to help her. The faceless man could have been haunting her, eventually killing her in that building before the man could reach her. After the man came, he noticed that the girl had died and retreated to this sorrowful house. When the player came to his house, he told them about the girl, whom the player can eventually meet if they go to the right building. Afterwards, in Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire, there's another Hex Maniac in Mt. Pyre who says the exact same thing as this girl; she probably wandered off in a desperate search to find whom she was waiting for, even crossing regional borders.

However, the spookiness in Generation 6 doesn't end here! In Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire, there was a ghost as well. Most players might not even spot this mischievous little one, but it's definitely there and may be the creepiest of all. A ghost girl appears in Phoebe's room when the player challenges Phoebe for the first time. She can be seen just before the battle when the light dims, sitting on a chair against the wall, and after the battle, appearing behind the head of the player character. Otherwise, nothing is known about her.

This girl is probably the sister of Phoebe, who is even known to have died in the manga. She lived in Mt. Pyre until she died, together with their grandparents who take residence there. Living among the many ghosts of Mt. Pyre, she wasn't able to withstand the enormous pressure of the ghosts trying to haunt her. Eventually, she got overtaken by a Litwick, which slowly sucked all life out of her. This eventually caused her to sneak out of her bed at night and drown herself, as she couldn't stand living anymore. Because of this painful and sad death, she became a restless ghost who sought vengeance upon the Ghost-type Pokémon that had driven her crazy. Luckily, she was able to communicate with Ghost-type Pokémon as a ghost herself. Eventually, when Phoebe went back home, she heard about her sister's death. Thinking that she'd never see her again, the sister revealed her new self. Out of pity, Phoebe took her with her to Ever Grande City, where the younger sister stayed near Phoebe whenever possible, such as when she's challenged by the player character. This also explains why Phoebe can apparently communicate with ghosts. She talks to her sister, who talks with the Ghost-type Pokémon in the area, passively letting Phoebe understand the Ghost-types. The reason her sister can only be seen once is her request to Phoebe: catch the Litwick that drove me crazy. Phoebe returned the favor and caught it, letting her sister go to the spirit world. The new Chandelure on Phoebe's team during the player's rematches with her is the same Pokémon that effectively murdered her sister.

Conclusion

Many ghosts have haunted the Pokémon games, besides the regular Ghost-type Pokémon. The Pokémon series is for sure trying to bring some spiritual mystery into the games, as the number of supernatural encounters keeps increasing with each generation. In general, Pokémon can be way more creepy than one would originally think as well, which might be an attempt from Game Freak to target an older audience. The many crazily scary Pokédex entries and strange stories are just one example, but there's even a Pokémon horror game on the market right now! Either way, it's safe to expect many more ghosts in the next games, which will likely hold the key to the mystery of the Hex Maniac, while other mysteries will never be solved.

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