Pokemon fans have discovered a minute detail on the paw of one of Pokemon Winds and Waves new starters, Pombon. The tiny detail continues a Pokemon series trend, and highlights the new Pokemon Winds and Waves starter’s Fire-typing.
Pokemon Day arrived with a big splash, with numerous reveals during the Pokemon Presents stream. Likely the most exciting thing for the majority fans was the reveal of Pokemon Winds and Waves, the new mainline Gen 10 games that will carry the series into the future. Although Pokemon Winds and Waves won’t release until sometime in 2027, fans are already scouring the material that has been released, and noticed a particular detail with Pombon.
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Pokemon fans have pointed out that there’s a little Easter egg on Pombon, the new Fire-type Puppy Pokemon in Pokemon Winds and Waves. Very little has been shown of the dog Pokemon so far, but a keen-eyed fan called kevinthedot noticed a tiny detail on the Pokemon’s paw, which is partially raised in its concept art. Pombon’s paw pads are visible, and if one looks closely, there’s a connection between the middle toe pad and the main pad on the sole of its foot. While many likely wouldn’t even notice it, this connection makes the paw pads strongly resemble the Japanese kanji character for fire.
Unfortunately, during the video trailer, fans don’t get a look at the underside of Pombon’s feet, so all they can go off of is the concept art. Nonetheless, the clever little detail has charmed the Pokemon fandom, which already seems to be quite taken with the new Fire-type starter in general. Fans have stated that the paw pad Easter egg is adorable, while the detail has made some Pokemon trainers imagine tracking elusive Pokemon by their footprints. However, quite a few players have taken the opportunity to hope that the presence of the kanji on the dog’s foot doesn’t mean that it will become bipedal later on to show off the detail, as many Pokemon fans have been upset when quadruped Pokemon have become bipedal and more humanoid after evolving.
Long-time fans of the series familiar with Japanese may recall that this isn’t the first time that kanji characters have been utilized in the franchise. One of the earliest examples was the Fire Blast attack, which appeared as the kanji for “big” when used, which is part of the attack’s Japanese name. Another instance of this happened back in the sixth generation of Pokemon games with Pyroar. In addition to the male Pyroar’s mane looking like flames, the yellow part also makes up the same “big” kanji. Mega Pyroar, which was only added to the franchise recently with Pokemon Legends: Z-A, continues the trend by putting the “big” and “fire” kanji together on its larger mane. While most of these little details are lost on players who don’t understand Japanese or Chinese writing, it’s just part of the series’ fondness for puns and easter eggs.
It will still be quite a while until players get to choose their new starter in Pokemon Winds and Waves, but thankfully, there’s no shortage of Pokemon projects for fans to enjoy, either right now or in the near future. Many gamers are currently experiencing Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen for the first time now that it’s on the Nintendo Switch family of consoles, while others are eagerly anticipating Pokemon Pokopia‘s launch in early March. Add to that a wide variety of events, bonuses, and new additions to existing Pokemon games, like Mew joining Pokemon Sleep, and there’s plenty to keep busy with while players wait for the mainline series’ new adventure.
- Released
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2027
- Multiplayer
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Online Co-Op, Online Multiplayer
