Most of the Pokémon Game Freak designs are inspired by a number of real-world concepts, and Pokémon Sword and Shield’s starter Pokémon are no different. Each of the starters’ evolutions and their Gigantamax forms has a unique set of possible origins, ranging from real-life animals to characters like James Bond.
Sobble, Grookey, and Scorbunny were the first Pokémon Game Freak revealed for Sword and Shield. As the games’ primary companions, starters are designed to appeal to all players. Sword and Shield’s starters follow a familiar pattern: They begin with cute designs (begging for adorable Pokémon plushies and merchandising), evolve into lovable-but-awkward “teenage” middle stages, and then transform into more elaborate, “cool” final stages. Game Freak may not have been able to achieve that “cool” factor, though, as many fans called Sword and Shield’s starter evolutions weird when they first leaked before the games’ release.
Regardless of any one person’s opinion on the starters, each has an interesting story to tell through its design. Game Freak does not normally speak directly about the design inspirations behind any of its Pokémon, however, so fans are left to come up with their own theories about what inspired each creature. Lockstin & Gnoggin, a Pokémon-focused video game theory YouTube channel, broke down the possible origins of every Gen 8 Pokémon in this way. Since Pokémon Sword and Shield’s Galar region is heavily inspired by England, all three of the starter lines are thought to have designs based partially on English culture. Here are the most likely origins of each Pokémon Sword and Shield starter line.
Pokémon Sword and Shield: Grookey Evolution Line Origins
The Grookey line is likely inspired by various primates and by British rock band drummers, Lockstin & Gnoggin argues. Macaques, a kind of monkey, are known to drum on objects like dead logs, and some primates use sticks and other items as tools, which explains the origin of the “drumstick-wielding primate” theme. Grookey’s raccoon-like “mask,” snout, and off-colored hands and tail point mainly to the squirrel monkey as inspiration. Thwackey - which might rank among Pokémon Grass starters’ best middle evolutions - has Grookey’s squirrel monkey-like appearance and drum theme, but its topknot/Mohawk-like hairstyle and tougher attitude suggest a connection with the war drums once used to relay commands to battling warriors.
Rillaboom takes the previous two designs to the next logical step, turning the drummer money into a drummer ape. As its name implies, Rillaboom is based on a gorilla. The “boom” in its name is likely a reference to both the sound of the large, Taiko-like drum it carries and the sound of a gorilla beating its chest. Rillaboom could also be a reference to a viral 2007 commercial from British candy company Cadbury (via Lockstin & Gnoggin), which featured a gorilla playing drums to Phil Collins’ “In The Air Tonight.”
Rillaboom’s Gigantamax form, which will be added to the games in the Pokémon Sword and Shield Expansion Pass DLC, expands Rillaboom’s drum into a full, rock-band drum kit. According to the Pokémon Company, Rillaboom focuses completely on its drums while in this form, perhaps referencing the amount of focus required for drummers to properly play a multi-piece kit. Additionally, Gigantamax Rillaboom’s hair-like leaves extend over the top of its new “forest of drums” like a forest canopy, suggesting Rillaboom becomes as powerful as a whole forest in its Gigantamax form.
Pokémon Sword and Shield: Scorbunny Evolution Line Origins
Continuing the Fire-type starter Pokémon Zodiac trend, Scorbunny’s line is based on soccer-playing rabbits. Or, rather, football-playing rabbits, given the Galar region’s English influence. The combination of the two inspirations is a logical one, since rabbits’ powerful jumping legs could theoretically translate into football prowess if anthropomorphized.
Scorbunny resembles a young child, eager to run around and play football with its friends, Lockstin & Gnoggin argues. Raboot, then, has the more serious attitude of a teenager aiming to go pro, complete with fur that resembles more advanced athletic gear: shoes, a sweatsuit, a headband, and a mouth-covering snood (commonly used by football players in cold weather). Cinderace is the final step in the Scorbunny line’s football career. It resembles a professional player, with a more developed physique, plus shorts, tights, and a showy attitude.
The Pokémon Sword and Shield Expansion Pass reveal gave fans a look at Scorbunny’s Gigantamax form. In this state, it grows longer, drooping ears and stands atop a gigantic ball of flames the Pokémon Company calls a “Pyro Ball.” Its ears could be a reference to athletes’ tradition of draping their countries’ flags over their shoulders after a win, but the fireball is clearly an evolution of the Scorbunny line’s soccer influence, showing the massive power of Scorbunny’s transformation via a huge, flaming soccer ball.
Pokémon Sword and Shield: Sobble Evolution Line Origins
Sword and Shield’s Water-type starter Pokémon line is inspired by chameleons and spies. Like Scorbunny’s “rabbit legs and soccer” combo, the Sobble line’s two main concepts go well together: Spies are known for stealth and subterfuge, and chameleons are known as color-changing camouflagers (though, in reality, they don’t actually use their color-shifting to blend in). The shy Sobble is able to hide by become almost invisible when wet, establishing the chameleon connection, and the whole line’s head crests resemble that of both certain chameleon species and basilisk lizards.
Like Raboot, Drizzle channels teen angst. As Lockstin & Gnoggin points out, its purple, drooping head crest may be a reference to emo subculture, commonly associated with introverted teens. Inteleon grows out of its shyness and becomes a suave spy, shooting water out of its fingers like a gun. This is most likely a reference to England’s most famous fictional secret agent, James “007” Bond.
Inteleon’s Gigantamax form exhibits some great Sword and Shield Expansion design choices, enhancing its spy persona with new, gadget-like appendages. It becomes perched on its grown-out tail, which resembles a sniper’s nest. According to the Pokémon Company, the changed appearance of Gigantamax Inteleon’s eyes is meant to represent a heads-up-display, showing it the temperature, air pressure humidity, and the distance to its targets . This HUD, likely a reference to spy movies’ love of high-tech fictional gadgets, is displayed on Inteleon’s nictitating membrane - the third, semi-transparent eyelid found on animals like cats and lizards.
None of these starter origins can be confirmed as definite without Game Freak’s word, but Pokémon Sword and Shield’s starters show their influences more clearly than many previous Pokémon design origins, so the origins pointed out in Lockstin & Gnoggin’s analysis seem fairly likely. More complex origins can usually be found in the designs of new legendary and mythical Pokémon, which the Pokémon Sword and Shield Expansion Pass is bringing to the games soon.
Next: Game Freak Should Have Announced Post-Launch Pokémon Additions to Sword & Shield Earlier
Pokémon Sword and Shield released for the Nintendo Switch on November 15, 2019.
Source: Lockstin & Gnoggin
