Uncovering the Origins of Nuzlocke: The Creator Behind the Challenge

The Nuzlocke challenge was invented by Nick Franco, a webcomic artist who created a series called Pokémon: Hard Mode and illustrated the concept in 2010 using Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire as a foundation. The Nuzlocke challenge originated from an anonymous user known as “Nuzlocke” posting crude comics involving his adventures of Pokémon Ruby in the /v/ category of 4chan, with the name “Nuzlocke” being a fan creation that stuck, derived from a Seedot/Nuzleaf that appeared in the original comic, which Franco would draw with the face of John Locke from the TV series Lost.

Understanding the Nuzlocke Challenge

The Nuzlocke challenge is a permadeath playthrough wherein a Pokémon that faints is considered “dead” and must be released, making the series’ challenges even more difficult, though not every Pokémon game is equally difficult to complete.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. What are the original Nuzlocke rules?: The only two official rules are: Release a pokémon if it faints; Catch the first pokémon you see in an area and nothing else.
2. What is a Nuzlocke?: A Nuzlocke is a permadeath playthrough of a Pokémon game where any Pokémon that faints is considered “dead” and must be released.
3. When was Nuzlocke invented?: The Nuzlocke challenge was invented in 2010 by Nick Franco.
4. Where did the Nuzlocke come from?: The idea of a “Hard-Mode” for Pokémon originated from an anonymous user known as “Nuzlocke” posting crude comics involving his adventures of Pokémon Ruby in the /v/ category of 4chan.
5. Why is Nuzlocke named after Locke?: The origin of the name comes from the Seedot/Nuzleaf that appeared in the original comic, which Franco would draw with the face of John Locke from the TV series Lost.
6. What is the hardest type of Nuzlocke?: Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon are the hardest main-series Pokémon games to Nuzlocke.
7. Does Nintendo hate Nuzlocke?: The Pokémon Company states its opinion on Nuzlocke runs, confirming that it has no problem with Nuzlocke runs.
8. Can you use eggs in a Nuzlocke?: The Egglocke is a variant of the Nuzlocke challenge, where caught Pokémon are replaced as soon as possible by eggs, containing a Pokémon unknown to the player.
9. Is breeding banned in Nuzlocke?: While it’s not technically against the rules to breed Pokémon during a Nuzlocke run, many players feel that this cheapens the experience.
10. What happens if a Pokémon dies in a Nuzlocke?: Any Pokémon that faints must be released or boxed permanently, considered “dead” for the rest of the challenge.
11. What is a Sleeplocke?: A Sleeplocke is a tournament of patience and skill, a “nuzlocke” run of Pokémon with the added challenge of staying up as long as you can, where you cannot sleep and cannot “black out” in game.
12. Can you white out in a Nuzlocke?: White Out = Run Over, if a player should totally wipe a fight, regardless of if they still have Pokémon in their box, their Nuzlocke run is over.
13. What is a Wedlocke?: A Wedlocke means you have three pairs of opposite gender Pokémon, so you have three sets of one male and one female.
14. Are Pokémon Nuzlockes illegal?: The Pokémon Company International said: “We do not have any issues with fans/creators playing the games with Nuzlocke rules.”
15. Are items banned in Nuzlockes?: Items (other than revives, of course) aren’t banned, there’s a popular variant called the Hardcore Nuzlocke that bans items alongside a few other extra rules.