Pokémon

It started as a top-secret easter egg, became the centre of one of the biggest gaming rumours of the ’90s, and then grew into an important piece of the Pokémon mythos. Yes, I’m talking about Mew, one of the most mysterious yet famous Pokémon in the entire franchise. Today, I’ll be looking at Mew’s inspirations and its history, both in-game and in the real world.

Unlike other Pokémon in Pokémon Red and Blue (Red and Green in Japan), Mew’s development was not overseen by character designer Ken Sugimori. It was added to the two games just before their Japanese release in early 1996 by Game Freak programmer Shigeki Morimoto, without the knowledge of most of the other staff members. However, Mew’s origins go back further than that. Series creator Satoshi Tajiri conceived the idea of an ‘elusive, phantom-like Pokémon’ that would act as a hidden secret within the game. He wanted to have a ‘character that exists but doesn’t appear’ – the mysterious 151st Pokémon – which he hoped would be the subject of rumours that players would find exciting.

By the end of the development of Pokémon Red and Green, the cartridge was already full, and there wasn’t room to add anything else. But then the debug features, which wouldn’t be included in the final release, were removed. According to Shigeki Morimoto, this created a minuscule 300 bytes of space, enough for the programmer to add one more, very simple Pokémon at the last minute – Mew. Morimoto initially wanted Sugimori to design the creature, but Sugimori was unable to make time because of the game’s rapidly approaching release date, so Morimoto designed and made Mew himself, apparently just two weeks before game development was finished. Due to a lack of storage space, Mew’s sprite was small and not coloured in. The programmers had been explicitly told by Nintendo that, after debugging, they were not to alter or tamper with the game in any way. They might have accidentally ruined the game code, which, so close to the scheduled release, would have been disastrous. Morimoto, therefore, was taking a big risk – but in the end, it paid off.

Mew was intended to be a Pokémon that only Game Freak staff would know about and be able to obtain. However, due to a glitch in the game, some members of the public were able to encounter it. It wasn’t long before rumours of its existence started to circulate. People spoke of an invisible character, hidden somewhere in the game. Theories began circulating about possible ways of obtaining Mew, first by word of mouth and then in early forums. Much speculation centred on a small truck parked near a cruise ship at the harbour in Vermillion City. The truck is only accessible with the aid of some crafty trading with other players, and for years many people believed that Mew was hidden beneath that mysterious vehicle. But, in reality, the truck was a dead-end, and so were all the other theories – there was no legitimate way of encountering Mew in those first games.

Fortunately, Game Freak had noticed that the interest in Mew was boosting Pokémon game sales, so they decided to reward some very lucky players. In mid-April 1996, less than two months after the release of Pokémon Red and Green in Japan, the May issue of CoroCoro magazine officially revealed Mew to the public, providing readers with some early artwork that had been drawn by Ken Sugimori, based on Morimoto’s in-game sprite. This, finally, was the first irrefutable proof that the super-secret 151st Pokémon actually existed.

What is more, this issue of CoroCoro also unveiled a contest to obtain Mew. The promotion received over 78,000 applicants, but Mew was only distributed to 20 children. Each of them had to mail their copy of Red or Green to Game Freak to have Mew manually uploaded to their game, and then it would be mailed back. I wonder if any of those 20 original Mews still exist on some old, forgotten Japanese Game Boys that somehow still work. If so, they really would be part of Pokémon history. The second Mew distribution was a little larger, with 100 winners having the elusive Pokémon traded to their cartridges.

Mew is a pale pink, slightly cat-like Pokémon. Its arms are small and practically useless, probably because it uses its psychic powers for virtually everything, including floating or flying through the air. Its pink fur is so fine it can only be seen under a microscope. Its large eyes and smooth, sleek appearance make it look almost like a newborn or even an embryo. Its long, thin tail even resembles an umbilical cord.

Its original sprite (seen in the image above) looks especially embryonic, but when Ken Sugimori came in to help create the official artwork for Mew, he apparently disliked the overtly fetus-like aspects and revised the design slightly. According to the Pokédex, Mew’s DNA contains the genetic code of every known Pokémon in the world, and some researchers have even suggested that it is the ancestor of all Pokémon species. Because it seemingly possesses the genetic composition of every other Pokémon, Mew can use an incredible variety of moves.

Mew’s small, floating form mirrors fairy-like beings in real-world folklore and mythology: shy, magical, and rarely seen. Indeed, in Pokémon lore, Mew is so rare and elusive (not to mention capable of invisibility) that it was believed to be extinct or even just a mirage until a scientist rediscovered it in a jungle on a faraway island. Pokémon researchers then used DNA obtained from Mew to create a clone, Mewtwo, though the genetic source material was altered in an attempt to create a more powerful and violent Pokémon.

In the lore, Mew may be the progenitor, but in real life, it was created after its clone. The 151st Pokémon was designed as a simplified version of Mewtwo, significantly smaller and with a less detailed body design, so it would occupy less space in the game’s data. The simplicity works well with its concept. You can really see the cute, innocent little creature that Mewtwo, via all those horrific genetic experiments, has become distorted from. The fact that it looks quite embryonic underscores the theme of origin and birth of life, lending some credence to the theory that Mew could plausibly be the ancestor of all Pokémon, without looking too much like any one particular type.

Mew made its first anime appearance in Pokémon: The First Movie. Until that point, all that existed of Mew for reference were its in-game sprite and some official artwork, so Mew’s movements and personality were primarily created by the movie’s animators. They portrayed Mew as an innocent, pure-hearted, almost childlike being that advocated harmony, opposing Mewtwo’s destructive, hateful nature. Shigeki Morimoto was apparently amazed upon seeing the final product in the film.

‘There were 150 characters [in Pokémon Red and Green], and Mew was number 151,’ series creator Satoshi Tajiri once said. ‘It created a myth about the game, that there was an invisible character out there … It kept the interest alive.’ Indeed, the mystery surrounding Mew’s obtainability in those original games only increased sales. I suspect that the thought of this secret, ultra-rare Pokémon that people had possibly heard about, but only half-believed, struck a chord with the game’s fan base and intended audience. In the West, when Pokémon Red and Blue were finally released, over two years later, Mew often became the prize in Nintendo’s rare live events and magazine contests, further fuelling its legendary status.

Since then, Mew has become an iconic Pokémon and a large part of what made the franchise so successful. Who knows? Maybe if it wasn’t for Mew, the games might not have taken off in the way that they did, and the series might not have become the seemingly unstoppable juggernaut that it is today.