Pokemon Ruby & Sapphire fans bring iconic Jirachi myth to life

Joe Pring
Jirachi Anime

Pokemon fans with fond memories of a decades-old Ruby & Sapphire myth have been reveling in nostalgia.

The anecdotal nature of Jirachi‘s supposed capture method on the Game Boy Advance duo meant the stated steps required often varied wildly. A recurring theme involved interacting with a white rock outside the Mossdeep Space Station believed to unlock an encounter with the Wish Pokemon.

In reality, the only way to legitimately obtain Jirachi was as a download from a bonus disc included with specific copies of 2003’s Pokemon Colosseum.

However, one Reddit user wishing to realize the widely circulated rumor has animated what they always imagined the sequence to look like in-game.

The concept has prompted Gen 3 fans to share their anecdotes of the legend.

“I always heard you had to talk to the people in the space center once a day for 100 days until they would find Jirachi and let you ride on the spaceship to fight it on the moon,” one response recalled.

“I read this rumor in a teen magazine. It said that you had to save 100 times and then interact with this rock. After that, you would go to the moon and then you could capture both Deoxys and Jirachi,” another reminisced.

By chance or intention, Game Freak would allude to these rumors years later with 2014’s Omega Ruby & Alpha Sapphire.

In the remakes’ post-game Delta Episode, Trainers encountered Deoxys in space on the back of a Rayquaza where they could defeat and capture the Mythical ‘mon. Jirachi, on the other hand, was once more unobtainable without external means. This time via limited-time code events.

Pokemon fans are no strangers to tall tales. In the ’90s, playgrounds were rife with Red & Blue players sharing stories about Mew hiding under a truck in Vermilion City. Those, too, proved false, although the lucky few were able to get their hands on the OG Mythical ‘mon, some of which have survived into 2024.