Pokémon has never needed more than imagination—on the part of its creators and animators, yes, but ultimately also on the part of its millions of passionate fans. As Game Freak and The Pokémon Company keep reimagining classic favorites in new evolutions, regional forms, and innovative type swaps, however, it’s the fan base that’s taking it even further.
Over the past few years, fan creations of Pokémon have moved from entertaining side projects to truly engaging interpretations of just how boundless the universe of Pokémon can be.
One of the more widely-discussed recent examples is the work of a Reddit user named theelasticband, who reimagined the classic Slowpoke evolution line as creepy Ghost-types. Slowpoke is usually an adorable, empty-eyed Pokémon with a Water/Psychic typing and a long history of evolutions—from Slowbro and Slowking to their Galarian counterparts and even Mega Slowbro. But this fan-made interpretation takes the idea darker, substituting the usual Shellder symbiosis with something much more spine-tingling: the fossil shells of extinct Pokémon.
Here in this Ghost/Rock reimagining, Slowbro is accompanied not by Shellder but by the abandoned shell of Omanyte, whose ancient spirals are now a receptacle for ghostly energy. The Omanyte itself is long extinct—only the shell survives, with an eerie frisson that suggests some dark history.
Meanwhile, Slowking sports a Kabuto shell as a helmet, with glowing red eyes. It’s uncertain whether the spirit of the Kabuto has possessed it or whether the shell merely functions as a channel for Ghost-type energy, but either situation provides a striking and unsettling image.
These designs resonated with the community. The initial Reddit post received more than 22,000 upvotes and generated heated debate. Fans complimented the idea’s originality, its lore-appropriate creepiness, and its viability as a legitimate addition to the Pokédex. Many also noted that Ghost/Rock is an underutilized typing in the official games, on the redesigns felt like something the series never knew it was missing.
But this artistic surge is not confined to a single artwork. Programs such as the Pokémon Infinite Fusion Calculator have opened up even further possibilities, allowing supporters to create entirely new animals with a few clicks of a button. Initially constructed based on the idea of merging two Pokémon into one hybrid, the calculator now comes with a “Variants” feature that enables users to experiment with various forms, typings, and aesthetic adjustments. As of recent developments, the software currently supports more than 501 Pokémon and contains almost 180,000 individual custom sprites, contributed in large part by the fan community itself.
As the creator of the tool explains, the goal was to provide the broadest and most current fusion experience possible—and from its popularity, they succeeded. Whatever it is—Charizard/Gardevoir mix-type Dragon/Fairy or Steel Jigglypuff resembles a hovering robot—these fusions are not simply playful mashups, but new means of interacting in a world known backwards and forwards by fans.
This type of creativity isn’t merely fun—it’s key to what makes Pokémon such a long-lasting, intimate franchise. Every generation of players brings new ideas, art styles, headcanons, and mechanics with them. Projects like Ghost-type Slowking or fusion tools aren’t attempting to substitute official material—they’re embracing it, reworking it, and adding to it in ways only loving fans can.
Over two decades in, Pokémon continues to be a living, breathing canvas. Because of its fans, there’s always something new to discover, something new to hybridize, and some new take on a classic waiting in the wings. Whether you’re drawing designs in a notebook or combining sprites in your browser window, one thing is certain: the creative spirit is strong in Pokémon.