Summary
- Google and Pokemon partner to create a cute search Easter egg game with the original Gen 1 Pokemon.
- Players need to sign in to catch all 151 Pokemon.
- The partnership is a fun way to engage fans without a clear promotional tie-in.
Pokemon and Google have partnered to create a cute mini-game based around the original 151 Pokemon in the series. The Pokemon Easter egg is easy to access, and provides a bit of fun for any fan using Google.
Google is no stranger to partnerships with video games or adding fun little nods to popular titles. To name just a few, Splatoon 3, Minecraft, and The Last of Us have all received Easter eggs on the search engine, and a Katamari Damacy Google Easter egg even lets players relive its gameplay by rolling up their entire page of search results with an animated ball. Google and Pokemon have gone hand-in-hand in the past as well, with Google Maps challenging users to catch Pokemon in a mini-game similar to Pokemon GO.
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Now, Pokemon and Google have teamed up once more to introduce a cute little search Easter egg minigame. Fans who access Google on their mobile browsers or mobile app are able to participate. If a user searches for the name of a Pokemon in the original Kanto Pokedex, after the results load, a small Pokeball icon will appear in the bottom right-hand corner. Tapping it will lead to an overlay of the searched Pokemon popping onto the screen, followed by a short animation of a Pokeball being tossed at it and capturing it. A new screen will then pop up, telling the player to find the remaining 150 Pokemon by searching for them, too.
Pokemon Google Easter Egg Caveats
Fans who want to try out this Easter egg may want to know a couple of things beforehand. Catching 151 Pokemon is only possible for users who have signed into their Google accounts while performing the searches. While users can search and catch as many Pokemon as they like without an account, the tally will not increase, and the records of prior Pokemon caught will be lost.
Furthermore, players can’t immediately start catching Pokemon like the Legendary bird trio or Mewtwo. An attempt to do so will result in a message that the user needs a Master Ball to capture them, and that they can obtain one after capturing their first five Pokemon. The more creatures caught, the more Master Balls are gained, allowing users to eventually grab every Pokemon. However, this means that those who don’t log in won’t be able to capture these special Pokemon at all.
It’s not clear at this time why Google and Pokemon chose to partner up. Pokemon Day has already passed for the year, and the release of Pokemon Legends: Z-A is still a ways off. It may simply be a cute way of celebrating the series with fans, and not meant to promote any one particular thing.
