Pokemon Sword & Shield player shares sad encounter with wild Phantump

Brent Koepp
phantump pokemon sword shield

A Pokemon player discovered a sad encounter with Phantump in Sword & Shield. The fan’s depressing tale about the lovable Ghost-type monster will be sure to tug at your heart strings. 

Pokemon entered its eighth generation with the release of the Nintendo Switch title Sword & Shield in 2019. The popular RPG takes place in the Galar region, and included new mechanics such as Dynamaxing and Max Raids.

Another feature introduced was camping, where players could rest and make curry for their monsters. However a fan’s encounter with a wild Phantump quickly turned sad after he realized the character’s tragic lore.

phantump pokemon sword shield
The Ghost character has a tragic backstory.

Pokemon player’s tragic run-in with Phantump

The franchise has never shied away from having dark lore, for instance Lampent’s Pokedex entry states that the Gen V character is said to hang around hospitals waiting for patients to pass on. However, a player’s encounter with a wild Phantump in the woods will make you feel like someone’s cutting onions.

User ‘DidIHappenToSay‘ posted their story on Reddit on August 1 and exclaimed, “Look up Phantump’s lore… this is so sad!” Their video shows the Trainer eating a hearty meal with their monsters, when the wild Pokemon enters the camp and asks if it can join them.

While seemingly innocent enough, the player then pointed out the character’s tragic backstory. According to its lore, Phantumps are the spirit of children who became lost in the woods and eventually passed away. So the lost kid was looking for a new home and meal to eat – who else needs tissues?

While most of the users on the forum found the story to be sad, others were just surprised that wild Pokemon can wander into a camp after a player eats curry. Although the feature has been talked about since 2019, it’s apparently not that well known.

Despite releasing just under a year ago at the time of writing, Sword & Shield is already on track to becoming the third best-selling title in the entire franchise. Proof that Pokemon has never been more popular.

Players in love with the Galar region are in luck as the Gen VIII release is getting expanded in a big way this Fall with the debut of the second DLC addon, The Crown Tundra.

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About The Author

Brent is a former writer at Dexerto based in the United States, who covered topics such as Pokemon, Gaming, and online Entertainment.