Which Pokémon have new evolutions in Gen 2, what candy do you new, and how will evolution items work?
Update: Update: Pokémon Gen 2 evolutions are are now available. Here’s how they work and what you need!
Pokémon Go has begun releasing the Gen 2 Pokémon from the Johto Region in Pokémon Gold and Pokémon Silver video games. Starting soon, you’ll be able to evolve Espeon, Umbreon, Steelix, Kingdra, Porygon2, Blissey, and more. But, you’ll need more than just Candy to do it — you’ll need the all-new Evolution Stones!
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Which Gen 1 Pokémon have new evolutions in Gen 2?
With the release of Gen 2, some Pokémon that currently have no evolutions now get their first, and some with existing evolutions now get extra or split evolutions. Here’s the list!
- Golbat to Crobat
- Gloom to Bellossom (split)
- Poliwhirl to Politoed (split)
- Eevee to Espeon (split)
- Eevee to Umbreon (split)
- Slowpoke to Slowking (split)
- Onix to Steelix
- Scyther to Scizor
- Seadra to Kingdra
- Porygon to Porygon 2
- Chansey to Blissey
Which Gen 1 Pokémon do you need to have ready to evolve?
You don’t have to have already evolved Pokémon, like Golbat, Gloom, Polywhirl, or Seadra ready for new third-stage or split evolutions. You simply have to have the base level Pokémon and enough candy to do both evolutions. You certainly can keep the evolved ones ready to evolve again, but you can also keep your options open, in case you catch an even better base level with higher CP and stats, which will result in an even better new evolution when they become available. Either way, here’s who you’ll need:
- Zubat or Golbat for Crobat
- Oddish or Gloom for Bellossom (split)
- Poliwag or Poliwhirl for Politoed (split)
- Eevee for Espeon (split)
- Eevee for Umbreon (split)
- Slowpoke for Slowking (split)
- Onix for Steelix
- Scyther for Scizor
- Horesea or Seadra for Kingdra
- Porygon for Porygon 2
- Chansey for Blissey
What are Evolution Stones and how do they work?
Evolution Stones are items that trigger new or newly split evolutions. You collect them from PokéStops, like you do Pokémon Eggs, and use them to unlock the new Gen 2 evolutions and splits.
- Sun Stone: Evolve Gloom to Bellossum.
- Kings Rock: Evolve Poliwhirl to Politoed, Slowpoke to Slowking
- Metal Coat: Evolve Onix to Steelix, Scyther to Scizor
- Dragon Scale: Evolve Seadra to Kingdra
- Up Grade: Evolve Porygon to Porygon 2
They’re less common than Pokémon Eggs so you’ll have to hit a lot of PokéStops to get them. They’re also single-use only, which means you’ll need to get one for each evolution you want to perform. Yeah.
What about Espeon and Umbreon?
You don’t need Evolution Items to evolve Eevee into Umbreon or Espeon, but since they’re the 4th and 5th split evolutions, you may not want to leave it to pure chance either.
When Pokémon Go launched there was an Easter egg that let you force Eevee to evolve into Flareon, Jolteon, or Vaporeon by re-naming them after their trainers, the brothers from the original animated series: Pyro, Sparky, and Rainer respectively.
The same trick works for Gen 2. Here are the trainer names you need to use:
- Sakura: Espeon
- Tamao: Umbreon
Remember, it only works for the first Espeon and Umbreon you evolve, so choose wisely — your highest stat (IV) and CP Eevee’s!
What about Chansey to Blissey and Golbat to Crobat?
You can evolve Chansey to Blissey immediately. You just need 50 Chansey Candy to do it. Same with Golbat to Crobat. Evolve away, just have 100 Zubat Candy ready to pay for it.
Don’t worry about the movesets, those will get reset again at random. Just make sure you choose as high a stat (IV) and CP Chansey or Golbat as possible to evolve!
Should you have multiple Pokémon and Candy for the split evolutions?
Yup! To cover all your bases, you’ll probably want to have 3 to 5 Pokémon ready to evolve. That way, you’ll likely get at least one new evolution, even if the game is stacked against you. If not, hey, it’s three chances for a decent moveset. Here are the one’s you want some coverage on:
- 3 to 5 Oddish or Gloom for Bellossom (split)
- 3 to 5 Poliwag or Poliwhirl for Politoed (split)
- 3 to 5 Eevee for Espoen (split)
- 3 to 5 Eevee for Umbreon (split)
- 3 to 5 Slowpoke for Slowking (split)
Should you save your best Pokémon for the new evolutions?
You’ll always want a good evolution if you can get one, and that means a Pokémon that’s appraised really well in game terms, and has high CP and high stats (IV). Since movesets are what can really make a difference, though, and they’re determined at random when you do the evolution, it’s impossible to guarantee any results. (Beyond “if at first you don’t get a good moveset, evolve and evolve again!”)
The Pokémon with the highest potential CP, and the ones you’ll want to max out, are:
- Blissey (3000+)
- Espeon (3000)
- Scizor (2800+)
- Porygon2 (2500+)
What candy do you need to evolve and how much?
A lot. At least for most of them. And don’t forget the Evolution Items for some!
- 100 Zubat candy for Crobat
- 100 Oddish candy + Sun Stone for Bellossom (split)
- 100 Poliwag candy + King Rock for Politoed (split)
- 25 Eevee candy for Espeon (split)
- 25 Eevee candy for Umbreon (split)
- 50 Slowpoke candy + King Rock for Slowking (split)
- 50 Onix candy + Metal Coat for Steelix
- 50 Scyther candy + Metal Coat for Scizor
- 100 Horesea candy + Dragon Scale for Kingdra
- 50 Porygon candy + Up-Grade for Porygon 2
- 50 Chansey candy for Blissey
To cover your split evolution bases, you’ll really want 3x to 5x for those Pokémon:
- 300 to 500 Oddish candy + Sun Stone for Bellossom (split)
- 300 to 500 Poliwag candy + King Rock for Politoed (split)
- 75 to 125 Eevee candy for Espeon (split)
- 75 to 125 Eevee candy for Umbreon (split)
- 150 to 250 Slowpoke candy + King Rock for Slowking (split)
If you have all that in place, you should be able to evolve all your Gen 2 Pokémon the minute you get the Evolution items!
Gen 2 is so… today. What new evolutions will come to Pokémon Go with Gen 4?
Sigh. Okay. LOL.
- Magneton to Magnezone
- Lickitung to Licklicky
- Rhydon to Rhyperion
- Happiny (baby) to Chansey
- Tangela to Tangrowth
- Mime Jr. (baby) to Mr. Mime
- Electabuzz to Electivire
- Magmar to Magmortar
- Eevee to Leafeon
- Eevee to Glaceon
- Porygon2 to Porygon-Z
- Munchlax (baby) to Snorlax
- Togetic to Togekiss
There are also Gen 3 and Gen 4 pre- and post-evolutions for some of the new Pokémon introduced in Gen 2. Stay tuned!
Any Pokémon Go Gen 2 questions?
If there’s anything else you want to know about the evolutions or about Pokémon Go in general, drop it in the comments below.