Okay, get this. A lifelong Pokémon fan—yeah, one of those die-hard collectors—had this gut-wrenching disaster. We’re talking about losing 20 years’ worth of cherished Pokémon. Apparently, they were just trying to move their stuff over to the shiny new Nintendo Switch 2. It’s supposed to be a smooth process—most of the time—but beware, ’cause this saga proves not every fairy tale has a happy tech ending.
So, in dives the Switch 2 on June 5th, creating this frenzy among Nintendo enthusiasts. Like, seriously, they sold over 3.5 million of these bad boys in just four days. Even though it didn’t launch with any Pokémon titles—big surprise there—fans are buzzing about Pokémon Legends: Z-A. That one’s dropping in October. Oh, and no worries about your old games. Thanks to this backwards compatibility magic, your original Switch Pokémon fun? Still a go.
The catastrophe happens when this one player, let’s call them Pokémon Pal, makes the transfer. They’ve got over a thousand hours in, and some Pokémon that trace back to the Pokémon Diamond and Pokémon LeafGreen days. At first, all seemed chill. But then—bam—Pokémon Scarlet boots up acting like it’s never met Pal before. Straight to language selection and character creation, like, “Who is you?” A panic-drenched search later, the save file is poof, gone.
Other fans chimed in with their own horror stories but managed to salvage their data—lucky, right? Some said, after the initial scare, their saves just kind of reappeared. One even tossed out a button combo—up, B, and X on the start screen—to maybe find a hidden backup. For Pal though? Nada. Zero. Zip. They tried everything, even reaching out to Nintendo support. Heard they’ve been kinda swamped with similar cries for help lately.
Thank the Poké-Lords not all was lost. Pokémon Pal can still pull creatures from the Pokémon Home service. But after losing so many favorites, their heart’s just not in it. Declined sweet offers from fellow fans to trade them some new Pokémon pals. It’s like, when you lose something with so much history? Hard to start again, even with a boatload of goodwill.
So yeah, moral of the saga? Be super cautious moving data. Or maybe just stay in the old cozy Nintendo nook until you’re sure the coast is clear. 🤷♂️
