Pokémon Legends: Johto Rumor Leaves Fans Devastated

According to leaks, it appears that a Legends game for the Johto region in Pokémon was originally planned, but was scrapped for Legends: Z-A instead. Players are shocked that Game Freak would pass up the chance to revisit the extremely popular region.

The Johto region of Pokémon’s Gen II games has remained exceedingly popular over the past two decades. Iconic Legendaries like Ho-oh and Lugia are used regularly in modern media, and copies of HeartGold & SoulSilver are currently some of the most expensive retro games on the market.

Despite this, it appears that Game Freak and Nintendo may have passed up an opportunity to revisit the iconic Region, opting instead for the Kalos region revisit that has seen mixed reception since its launch in 2025. Fans who have learned of this alleged swap are less than pleased with the choice.

Pokémon Fans Are Wrecked Over Missed Return to Johto

In a social media post shared by HiddenPowerPod, the popular Pokémon podcast shares potential leaked information that Game Freak may have ditched a Johto Legends game, asking how fans felt about Johto over Kalos.

According to Game Freak documents, the concept of dual Johto Legends games were moved on from when The Pokemon Company decided to make Legends ZA instead...

Would you have preferred a potential Johto revisit over Legends ZA? 💭 pic.twitter.com/N4iC6d76bH

— Hidden Power Podcast (@HiddenPowerPod) February 21, 2026

Fans in the comments were ruined over the news. One player stated, “Of f*** course they always do the 'can do one but not the other' bs,” while another added, “I love all Legends games, but Johto DESERVES a Legends game set in the past.”

The information on a possible Johto setting was allegedly included in the “Teraleaks,” a series of major information leaks that impacted the Pokémon franchise. The Teraleak incident happened in October of 2025, potentially leaking years of projects to the public.

This leak also included possible first looks at Gen 10, Gen 11, and games that have been confirmed, like Legends: Z-A and Pokopia. The accurate leaks have helped back that the Teraleaks were reliable, though nothing has been confirmed by Game Freak, The Pokémon Company, or Nintendo.

While it would have been incredible to return to Johto in a Legends game, many have also concluded that it might be best for such a game to come out after Pokémon games are a bit more reliable, as the response to Legends: Z-A was mixed at best. Only time will tell if Lugia and Ho-oh will finally feature in a modern title on the Switch 2.