Posted in: Games, Mobile Games, Niantic, Pokémon GO | Tagged: Niantic, Niantic Labs, pokemon, pokemon go, raticate

Poké Spotlight: Getting To Know Raticate Outside Of Pokémon GO

Part of the fun of the main series Pokémon games is the lore of each species, which Pokémon GO recreates with short descriptions in their Pokédex entries. However, looking into the roles these Pokémon play in other games, and even the anime, can enrich the experience of hunting these creatures in Niantic's mobile game. In honor of the New Year's Event currently running in Pokémon GO where Raticate is wearing a party hat, let's delve into this species' lore.

Dex entry number 020, Raticate is a pure Normal-type species from the Kanto Region, introduced into the world of Pokémon with Generation One. This Pokémon can be encountered as male or female and has a slight gender difference, with the whiskers of the male appearing visibly longer than those of the female. Referred to as the "Mouse Pokémon," which seems like a bit of a missed opportunity for a slightly more accurate classification, this is what Raticate's Dex entry says:

Raticate's sturdy fangs grow steadily. To keep them ground down, it gnaws on rocks and logs. It may even chew on the walls of houses.

Raticate is the evolution of Rattata, and both are some of the most commonly known species even outside of hardcore fans. For anyone who ever played the main series games, you know that it's hard to walk very far without a Rattata encounter. Rattata and Raticate have a regional variant from Alola introduced in Generation Seven. Alolan Rattata and Raticate add a dual Dark/Normal-typing to the line.

For fans of the anime, Raticate has quite a few major appearances, including episodes such as The Breeding Center Secret, What I Did For Love, Turning Heads and Training Hard, and more. Ash, the main character, even briefly had a Raticate after trading his Butterfree for it, but Ash ended up trading it back. Besides these major appearances, Raticate has a long list of cameos running throughout the entire series.

Other Pokédex entries offer new information about Cresselia:

• Red/Blue: It uses its whiskers to maintain its balance. It apparently slows down if they are cut off.
• Yellow: Its hind feet are webbed. They act as flippers, so it can swim in rivers and hunt for prey.
• Gold: Gnaws on anything with its tough fangs. It can even topple concrete buildings by gnawing on them.
• Moon: Its disposition is far more violent than its looks would suggest. Don't let your hand get too close to its face, as it could bite your hand clean off.
• Ultra Sun: People say that it fled from its enemies by using its small webbed hind feet to swim from island to island in Alola.

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