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The 10 most overpowered Pokémon of all time

These are the Pokémon with Pokédex descriptions so extreme they shouldn’t be allowed.

Skrevet af Damien McFerran

7 min readPublished on 21.08.2017 · 13:49 UTC

In the world of Pokémon, having the best beast at your side is the key to victory. If you want to succeed against wild monsters or other Pokémon trainers, then you need to ensure you've done your homework and assembled a team of that covers all of the bases, has great combat potential and the moves required to lay waste to the competition.

However, sometimes the stats don't tell the whole story and when digging deep into the Pokédex bios of some unassuming monsters, you often find that they're blessed with powers that are frankly terrifying in scope, despite their seemingly ineffectual nature. The sort of critters you can't believe 10-year-old Ash has been encouraged to go out to try and tame without causing a a major disaster.

Here's our guide to the 10 most underrated and overpowered Pokémon of all time, based solely on their Pokédex descriptions and backstories. In other words, don't assume these 10 are the ultimate monsters when playing a Pokémon video game, or you may come away disappointed.

Alakazam

On face value, Alakazam doesn't seem to be that big a deal. Its muscles are so weak and feeble that it has to use its psychic powers to move, and spends much of its time bending spoons for entertainment. You might assume this is a monster to be mocked rather than feared, but consider this: its brain is continually growing, and it is capable of remembering everything it has experienced, seen and heard since it was born. Not only does that make it the ideal partner at pub quiz nights, it means it's super smart.

Alakazam has an IQ of 5,000, which is quite something when you consider the highest recorded human IQ is 230, and makes you wonder what it might be capable of. Perhaps Alakazam's low-key status in the world of Pocket Monsters is due to the fact that with such a vast intellect, it doesn't see much point in participating in combat for the gratification of schoolkids, and instead prefers the unravel the mysteries of life, the universe and everything via the medium of cutlery bending.

Magcargo

This slug-like monster doesn't look at all intimidating, with its large yellow eyes denoting a lack of intelligent or creative thinking. However, you should underestimate these creatures at your peril; their skin has a temperature of over 10,000°C, which is almost twice has hot as the sun itself. Have a little think about that – hotter than the hottest thing in our solar system. Just standing next to Magcargo should be enough to not just make any Pokémon faint but also instantly evaporate, making this – on paper, at least – one of the most deadly Pokémon in existence.

Volcarona

When most people see a moth, the usual reaction is to either trap it under a cup or hit it with a newspaper. We wouldn't recommend either in the case of Volcarona, unless you fancy being frazzled to a crisp by intense flames. The trusty Pokédex recounts that one time, 'when volcanic ash darkened the atmosphere', Volcarona's fire 'provided a replacement for the sun and saved Pokémon from freezing'. You know what's as warm and bright as the sun? Something really hot that you don't want to get on the wrong side of.

Bewear

This adorable beast is yet another example of why it's unwise to judge a Pokémon by its looks alone. It may resemble a cute and cuddly teddy bear, but the last thing you want to do is take this creature to bed with you. According to the all-seeing Pokédex, Bewear is 'immensely dangerous' and possesses 'overwhelming physical strength'. This wouldn't be so bad if Bewear was reclusive and shy, but the exact opposite is true – it loves dishing out warm hugs to anyone nearby. The Pokédex dryly notes that 'many trainers have left this world after their spines were squashed by its hug'. Nice.

Metang

Metang actually looks pretty fearsome and is created when two Beldum fuse together. Its disc-like body and spiky appendages make it the kind of 'mon you don't want to meet down an alley at night, while its psychokinetic prowess and high level of intelligence place it in the upper echelon of Pokémon power.

All of these abilities are impressive enough, but Metang is so tough it can – according to the Pokédex – survive a head-on crash with a supersonic jet aircraft. In fact, the resultant collision wouldn't even leave a scratch. That would suggest that Metang is capable of smashing into, and incapacitating, any Pokémon. Gulp.

Grimer

Grimer just looks like a moving puddle of mud, and you'd imagine that means it rates quite low on the risk-o-meter. However, you'd be very unwise to write this icky-looking monster off, for a variety of reasons.

Firstly, it can move though even the smallest gap, allowing it to squeeze into pipes and feed off raw sewage, growing its power. Secondly, the putrid slime it leaves behind makes the earth barren, eradicating plant life and leaving behind a desolate wasteland. Finally, Grimer has the power to replicate itself infinitely; as it shambles along, bits fall off and grow into other Grimers. That makes this seemingly dull and uninteresting 'mon one of the biggest risks to humanity yet seen, not to mention an overlooked form of perpetual energy that appears to break all the rules of classical physics.

Gardevoir

This graceful-looking Pokémon doesn't appear to be particularly fearsome, and you might casually assume it would be better suited to a catwalk than a battlefield. Again, appearances can be deceptive. Not only is Gardevoir capable of seeing the future – a fact that means it could win the lottery as many times as it wanted and successfully predict the result of every major sporting event for the next decade, it also means that logic dictates that Gardevoir cannot be beaten, as it can see any incoming threat before it happens.

This alone makes it a 'mon to be reckoned with, but also consider this: Gardevoir has the psychokinetic power required to distort the very dimensions of time and space and create a small black hole. Need reminding what one of those is? It's a region of space with a gravitational field so intense that no matter or radiation can escape. Don't annoy Gardevoir, basically, or it'll open a hole in space-time.

Ditto

Ditto's trick is the ability to transform into any object or creature, which really helps break the ice at parties. However, just mull over that power for a second – Ditto can turn into anything, and retain its form and abilities. That means it could, if it were so inclined, turn into a tank, a battleship or a thermonuclear warhead, and inflict the same level of destruction as those objects.

Mercifully, Ditto doesn't seem to be particularly interested in global destruction, and is never happier than when it meets another Ditto – at which point, the two monsters try to turn into each other. The moment a Ditto appears that possesses above-average intelligence and a desire to rule the world, we're all in deep, deep trouble.

Honedge

A floating ghost sword is a pretty cool concept for a monster in the first place, making this an obvious entry in this list. However, when you consider that Honedge has the power to suck away the life force of any human foolish enough to attempt to brandish it, you've got a Pokémon on the next level of super-powerful. Just a single touch is enough to begin the leaching process, with Honedge's blue cloth quickly wrapping itself around the victim before it 'drains that person's life energy completely'. Sounds like a hoot.

Yveltal

We've saved the best until last, and Yveltal is a doozy. It's not included in this list not because it's insanely powerful (which it kinda is) but because of the impact of its passing. According to the ever-accurate Pokédex, 'when its life comes to an end, it absorbs the life energy of every living thing and turns into a cocoon once more'. Did you get that? When Yveltal bites the dust, every living thing on the face of the entire planet dies too. No biggie, then.