Most Evil Pokemon

Key Takeaways

• Pokemon can be cute, but some have disturbing characteristics. Haunter paralyzes & drains life, Froslass kidnaps, and Cacturne stalks in the desert.
• Legendary Yveltal drains life, while Darkrai turns dreams into nightmares. Hypno hypnotizes and kidnaps kids, and Giratina is seen as devilish.
• Not all Pokemon are cuddly – Banette is evil due to hateful energy, and Giratina is seen as the source of all evil in the Pokemon world.

The Pokemon games have made a name for themselves by being a great franchise for young children. Every three years, a new mainline entry into the series is released to try and appeal to the next generation of kids. The franchise mascot, Pikachu, and the trio of new regional starter Pokemon are cute enough to pique the interest of any young child.

However, every new Pokemon game brings with it a vast number of new creatures to the series. Not all of these Pokemon can be cute and cuddly, and some of them are downright evil. Their Pokedex entries and behavior often confirm these moral leanings.

Updated December 5, 2024 by Blaise Santi: If you’re not obsessively reading the Pokedex entries for every single Pokemon you catch, then you might be unaware of just how disturbing some of these unassuming creatures are. There are plenty more Pokemon whose behavior throughout the franchise can be seen as outwardly evil or malicious, but for some Pokemon, the secrets are hidden under the surface.

Take a look at these additional Pokemon who are pretty nefarious in their own ways, and be sure to pay close attention to the Pokedex entries included for each of them for details as to why they’re the kind of Pokemon to make you glad they don’t exist in real life.

1 Malamar

The Overturning Pokemon

The sixth generation Dark/Psychic-type is unique for many reasons, namely because it evolves from Inkay utilizing the console’s gyroscope. Even though it’s based on a squid, its Dark/Psychic-typing should be a clue that this Pokemon earns its spooky design. Several of Malamar’s Pokedex entries specifically name its powers of hypnosis as the strongest of any Pokemon.

There are even Pokedex entries for Malamar that describe it as a Pokemon often used by evil humans for unspecified nefarious purposes. This is especially the case in the anime, where Malamar hypnotizes Officer Jenny and even Pikachu, proving to be one of the few Pokemon to antagonize Ash and his friends without the help of humans like Team Rocket.

2 Gorebyss

The South Sea Pokemon

Nothing about Gorebyss’ design would suggest it’s one of the most evil Pokemon in the franchise. Just look at it; it’s pink and unassuming. However, even its earliest Pokedex entries from the third generation, when it was introduced as a split evolution of Clamperl, suggests quite the opposite. Apparently, Gorebyss is a fierce predator that brutally drains its prey of their bodily fluids.

What’s even stranger about Gorebyss’ cruelty is that many other Pokedex entries simply just mention that its pink body turns more vivid in the springtime. It seems to suggest that Gorebyss’ behavior toward its prey is simply just the cycle of nature, which is maybe the most scary thing about it. Thankfully, the anime has opted to not show this side of Gorebyss yet.

3 Nihilego

The Parasite Pokemon

The question remains if Nihilego and the other Ultra Beasts even count as “Pokemon.” Nevertheless, despite its very familiar design resembling the friendly Lillie from Pokemon Sun & Moon, Nihilego is not to be trifled with. This Pokemon is notorious for its parasitic nature, as seen in the games and anime when it possesses Lusamine and attacks Ash and his friends.

According to its Pokedex entries, Nihilego’s possession of others is quite biological, given that it feeds off of Pokemon and humans alike. Plus, those who are possessed by Nihilego tend to display violent tendencies, but according to characters like Wicke in the video games, Nihilego isn’t brainwashing its victims, but just exacerbating violent urges that are already inside, which is even more terrifying.

4 Necrozma

The Prism Pokemon

Necrozma is one of the strongest Legendary Pokemon in Pokemon Sun & Moon, but it plays an even bigger role in Ultra Sun & Ultra Moon. This prismatic Pokemon derives its powerful energy by taking in light, with its Ultra Necrozma form coming after it drains the world of light. Like Nihilego, it’s also able to possess Solgaleo and Lunala, the mascot legendaries of the seventh-generation games.

What makes Necrozma truly evil, however, is that the absence of light energy makes it incredibly violent and mad. That’s also why the Pokemon is a pitch-black color; it comes from all the impurities that build up inside of it as it searches for light. When Necrozma absorbs light energy from a world, it makes the humans inside it tired and lacking motivation, as seen in the anime.

5 Cacturne

The Scarecrow Pokemon

The cactus Pokemon, Cacturne, is a grass-type player’s dream. Its scarecrow-like design looks appealing, and its additional dark typing allows it to withstand some of the most powerful psychic attacks. However, Cacturne’s scariness extends beyond its real-world physical influence.

As its design suggests, Cacturne is a scarecrow Pokemon that is most at home in the desert. Unfortunately, it is not content to just stand in place and absorb the sunlight. According to its Pokedex entries, Cacturne comes to life at night to follow travelers until they get tired. What this Pokemon does when it catches these travelers is anyone’s guess. However, it is certain to be something evil.

6 Haunter

The Gas Pokemon

In the Pokemon anime, Haunter is portrayed as more of a jovial creature. This Pokemon joins Ash on his journey as the young trainer needs a ghost-type Pokemon to help him defeat the psychic-type gym leader, Sabrina. Haunter has some fun of his own, though, by playing tricks on Team Rocket and leaving Ash on the battlefield, only to return at the last minute.

In the games, Haunter is depicted as more of a malevolent presence. Its Pokedex entries state that Haunter licks a person to paralyze them and watches until their life force is slowly drained. That isn’t the behavior of anything on the side of good.

7 Froslass

The Snow Land Pokemon

Froslass was a later addition to the Snowrunt line and was introduced in Generation 4. This Pokemon is supposed to be a more elegant evolution option for players who want to use something other than the angry-looking Glalie. Since its design is based on a siren from mythology, Froslass achieves this goal quite well. However, players should be wary about this icy ghost’s intentions.

One of its Pokedex entries states that Froslass freezes those walking in the snowy mountains and takes them back to its cave. To make matters worse, it’s said that Froslass keeps these frozen travelers as decorations, which is among the most disturbing things ever written in the Pokedex. While this behavior may not be lethal, kidnapping adventurers is still evil.

8 Banette

The Marionette Pokemon

In a game series like Pokemon, it seems like a no-brainer to create a creature in this universe that is based on a child’s doll. GameFreak has proved that almost anything can be used for the inspiration behind a Pokemon’s design, and using a child’s favorite toy for a Pokemon like Banette makes perfect sense. Though, there was no need to make it so evil.

Banette is not a cuddly toy that is intent on protecting the trainer it loves. Instead, it is a possessed nightmare that was discarded by its original owner. As a result, this Pokemon is now an evil force that is created by hateful energy. This energy is what makes it so evil.

9 Yveltal

The Destruction Pokemon

The legendary Pokemon in every new generation are always something to look forward to. These powerful beasts are often fought by the player as a part of the main story, and catching such a Pokemon is normally a reward for progressing so far in the game. Sometimes the legendary Pokemon are benevolent creatures that need protection, and other times, they are destructive forces that need to be stopped.

Yveltal fits into the latter part of these legendaries, and it is exclusive to Pokemon: Y. This Pokemon is caught by the player as its resurrection could bring about an evil time in the Pokemon world. Its Pokedex entry from Omega Ruby says that Yveltal drains the life of all those who are near when it flaps its wings.

10 Darkrai

The Pitch-Black Pokemon

Even the dreams of the people in the Pokemon world are not safe from some of the forces at work in that reality. For instance, the legendary Pokemon, Darkrai, is known as the nightmare Pokemon, and its main duty is to enter people’s dreams and turn them into nightmares. While nightmares are a normal part of life, no one wants to be subjected to a horrific nightmare every time they sleep just because Darkrai is near.

What makes this Pokemon more evil is the fact that each of its Pokedex entries states that Darkrai can lull people to sleep. Therefore, this malevolent Dark-type is willingly putting people to sleep and forcing them to relive their biggest fears.

11 Hypno

The Hypnosis Pokemon

Hypno has always been a Pokemon that has given players the creeps. Its innate ability to use its pendulum to hypnotize people and eat their dreams is sinister, and it is the main strategy that trainers use when battling with this Pokemon. However, some things about Hypno make it cross the line from being purely creepy to evil.

Hypno’s Pokedex entry from Pokemon FireRed mentions a time when this Pokemon hypnotized and kidnapped a child. There is no reason why this Pokemon would do something like this, but stealing defenseless victims is definitely something everyone can agree is evil.

12 Giratina

The Renegade Pokemon

Religion is not something that plays a big part in the Pokemon games. However, the Pokemon universe opened up a can of worms when it introduced the creator Pokemon, Arceus, in Generation 4. If there is a purely good God Pokemon, then there also must be an evil counter. That is exactly what Giratina was created to be.

As the main legendary in Pokemon Platinum, this creature is largely regarded as the devil of the Pokemon world. Its violent behavior in the past was so severe that it was banished and trapped in another dimension called the distortion world. Giratina’s existence makes it a truly evil Pokemon, but it also means that it is responsible for all the other evils in the Pokemon world.