Game of origin

The subject of this article has no official name.
The name currently in use is a fan designator; see below for more information.

The game of origin is a value in the Pokémon data structure that indicates the game a Pokémon was originally obtained in. This value was introduced in Generation III. It determines the origin mark of the Pokémon.

Assignment

Pokémon caught in the wild or obtained as a gift or in-game trade have the game they were obtained in set as their game of origin. From Generation III to IV, Eggs have their game of origin set to the game in which they were obtained, not the game they were hatched; from Generation V onward, Eggs have their game of origin set to the game in which they are hatched. How the game of origin is determined for Pokémon from Mystery Gifts varies, with some having a predetermined game of origin set by the Wonder Card and others using the recipient game as the game of origin. Shedinja retains the Nincada's game of origin upon evolution.

The Generation I and II games do not track Pokémon's games of origin, so Pokémon transferred from these Virtual Console games record the game they were transferred from as their game of origin.

Uniquely, Pokémon originating from Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl, Pokémon Legends: Arceus, or Pokémon Scarlet and Violet that are transferred into Pokémon Sword and Shield are assigned the game of origin value for Pokémon Sword and the met location of "the Faraway place". The original game of origin value is restored if these Pokémon are deposited back into Pokémon HOME, but the original met location is permanently lost.

Gift Pokémon from other games

All core series games, as well as Pokémon Colosseum, Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness, and Pokémon GO, have unique game of origin IDs. Pokémon received from other games determine their game of origin in different ways.

Pokémon Colosseum Bonus Disc: Gift Pokémon from the Bonus Disc have Pokémon Ruby as their game of origin.^[1]
Pokémon Channel: Pokémon obtained from Pokémon Channel have Pokémon Ruby or Sapphire as their game of origin (chosen randomly).
Pokémon Box Ruby & Sapphire: Eggs obtained from Pokémon Box Ruby & Sapphire use the recipient game as their game of origin.
My Pokémon Ranch: Pokémon traded by Hayley have Pokémon Diamond as their game of origin.^[2]^[3]
Pokémon Dream Radar: Pokémon sent from Dream Radar have the game they were received in as their game of origin.^[4]
Pokémon Link: Pokémon sent to Pokémon X, Y, Omega Ruby, and Alpha Sapphire via the Pokémon Link feature (i.e. gift Pokémon obtained from Pokémon Bank or the Pokémon Omega Ruby and Pokémon Alpha Sapphire Special Demo Version) have the game they were received in as their game of origin.^[5]
Pokémon HOME: The game of origin of Pokémon obtained as gifts in Pokémon HOME varies. Regardless of their game of origin, these Pokémon are displayed as being met in "Pokémon HOME" rather than their corresponding region.
- Gift Pokémon that debuted prior to Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl have Pokémon Sword as their game of origin.^[6]
- Pokémon obtained as gifts in Pokémon HOME intended for Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl have Pokémon Brilliant Diamond as their game of origin.
- Pokémon obtained as gifts in Pokémon HOME intended for Pokémon Legends: Arceus have Pokémon Legends: Arceus as their game of origin.

Uniquely, in Pokémon Colosseum, the gift Ho-Oh from Mt. Battle has Pokémon Sapphire as its game of origin instead of Pokémon Colosseum.^[7]

Technical implementation

In Generation III, this value occupies 4 bits of a two-byte word in the Pokémon data structure. From Generation IV onward, it occupies a whole byte.

Possible values

#	Hex	Game	Met location following transfer
0	00	unused	a distant land
1	01	Sapphire	the Hoenn region
2	02	Ruby	the Hoenn region
3	03	Emerald	the Hoenn region
4	04	FireRed	the Kanto region
5	05	LeafGreen	the Kanto region
6	06	unused	a distant land
7	07	HeartGold	the Johto region
8	08	SoulSilver	the Johto region
9	09	unused	a distant land
10	0A	Diamond	the Sinnoh region
11	0B	Pearl	the Sinnoh region
12	0C	Platinum	the Sinnoh region
13	0D	unused	a distant land
14	0E	unused	a distant land
15	0F	Colosseum & XD	a distant land
16	10	unused	a distant land
17	11	unused	a distant land
18	12	unused	a distant land
19	13	unused	a distant land
20	14	White	the Unova region
21	15	Black	the Unova region
22	16	White 2	the Unova region
23	17	Black 2	the Unova region
24	18	X	the Kalos region
25	19	Y	the Kalos region
26	1A	Alpha Sapphire	the Hoenn region
27	1B	Omega Ruby	the Hoenn region
28	1C	unused	the Kalos region
29	1D	unused	the Kalos region
30	1E	Sun	the Alola region
31	1F	Moon	the Alola region
32	20	Ultra Sun	the Alola region
33	21	Ultra Moon	the Alola region
34	22	Pokémon GO	Pokémon GO
35	23	Red	the Kanto region in the good old days the Kanto region. How nostalgic!^{Gen VIII onward}
36	24	Blue or Green	the Kanto region in the good old days the Kanto region. How nostalgic!^{Gen VIII onward}
37	25	Blue (Japanese)	the Kanto region in the good old days the Kanto region. How nostalgic!^{Gen VIII onward}
38	26	Yellow	the Kanto region in the good old days the Kanto region. How nostalgic!^{Gen VIII onward}
39	27	Gold	the Johto region in the good old days the Johto region. How nostalgic!^{Gen VIII onward}
40	28	Silver	the Johto region in the good old days the Johto region. How nostalgic!^{Gen VIII onward}
41	29	Crystal	the Johto region in the good old days the Johto region. How nostalgic!^{Gen VIII onward}
42	2A	Let's Go, Pikachu!	the Kanto region
43	2B	Let's Go, Eevee!	the Kanto region
44	2C	Sword	the Galar region
45	2D	Shield	the Galar region
46	2E	unused	Pokémon HOME
47	2F	Legends: Arceus	the Hisui region the Sinnoh region of old^BDSP the Faraway place^SwSh
48	30	Brilliant Diamond	the Sinnoh region the Sinnoh region made new^LA the Faraway place^SwSh
49	31	Shining Pearl	the Sinnoh region the Sinnoh region made new^LA the Faraway place^SwSh
50	32	Scarlet	the Paldea region the Faraway place^SwSh a distant land^BDSP^LA
51	33	Violet	the Paldea region the Faraway place^SwSh a distant land^BDSP^LA
52 ... 255	34 ... FF	unused	a distant land