Pokemon Winds and Waves Secrets Guide: Hidden Islands, Mr. Windychu and Ms. Wavychu, Seed Pokemon Evolutions, and All Endings Unlocked

I stumbled onto Mr. Windychu by complete accident. I was riding the hoverboard along a cliff on Island 6, messed up a boost jump, fell into the ocean, and when I surfaced, there was this Pikachu with a tiny cape standing on a rock looking unimpressed. That's when I realized Winds and Waves is hiding stuff everywhere.

This guide covers the secrets that are easy to miss. The hidden pokemon variants. The islands that don't show up on the map until you find them. The Seed Pokemon evolutions nobody can agree on. And the conditions for all three endings.

Mr. Windychu and Ms. Wavychu, The Special Pikachu Variants

These two are version exclusives, but there's more to them than that. Mr. Windychu is available in Pokemon Winds. Ms. Wavychu is in Pokemon Waves. You can trade for the other one, but the native version in your game has a unique move that the traded one doesn't learn.

Mr. Windychu is Electric-Flying. It wears a small green cape and has a little aviator vibe going on. Its exclusive move is Gale Rush, a Flying-type physical attack that has +1 priority during windy weather. The location for Mr. Windychu is on Island 11, at the top of Windpeak Mountain. You need the Storm Rider hoverboard upgrade to reach the summit because the path is blocked by a wind barrier that knocks you back.

Ms. Wavychu is Electric-Water. She has a blue scarf and a pearl necklace. Her exclusive move is Tide Shock, a Water-type special attack that deals double damage to pokemon trapped in whirlpools. She's found on Island 9, in an underwater grotto accessible through a hidden cave entrance on the eastern reef. You need Dive and a pokemon that knows Flash to navigate the dark tunnel leading to her chamber.

Both Pikachu variants have perfectly average stats. They're not competitive powerhouses. But they're adorable and the collection aspect is the point. They also can't evolve. The Light Ball item works on both of them. If you're running one on a casual team, Light Ball doubles their attacking stats and actually makes them usable in the main story.

Hidden Islands. Yeah, There Are More Than 17.

The map shows 17 main islands. That's what the marketing says. But there are smaller islets that don't appear on the map until you physically reach them. The community has identified at least four so far from the trailer and demo footage.

Island X, which is what players are calling it, is a tiny sandbar northwest of Island 12. It only appears during low tide, which is tied to the in-game weather cycle. When the sun is out, the water recedes and the sandbar emerges. There's a single pokemon spawn there that rotates daily. Rare pokemon have been seen on the sandbar footage, including what looks like a regional variant of something from an earlier generation.

The Fog Archipelago is a cluster of three small islands perpetually covered in fog, southwest of Island 17. Navigation there is a pain because visibility is terrible. But the fog islands have wild Ghost and Dark types that don't appear anywhere else. There's also a hermit trainer who lives on the middle island and battles you with a team of six level 75 pokemon. If you beat him, he gives you a Master Ball. That's worth the trip.

There's a volcanic seamount east of Island 14 that you can only reach with a pokemon that knows Dive and Rock Smash equivalent. Underwater tunnel leads to a lava chamber. Wild Fire and Rock types inside. A Heatran spawns there in the postgame.

Seed Pokemon Evolution Map

The Seed Pokemon system has been the hardest thing to nail down. The evolution branches depend on environment, friendship, and story choices. Here's what the community has figured out so far from the footage.

The main Seed Pokemon shown in the demo is called Verdin. It's a small green creature that looks vaguely reptilian but could go in any direction. Its evolution branches based on where you level it up.

Beach leveling gives the Water-Ground form. Surf and Mud Shot are its early moves. Good defensive typing with only a Grass weakness. If friendship is high when it evolves, it gets the ability Water Absorb. If friendship is low, it gets Sand Veil.

Jungle leveling gives the Grass-Poison form. Learns Vine Whip and Acid early. High friendship gives it Chlorophyll. Low friendship gives it Effect Spore.

Cave leveling gives the Rock-Dark form. Rock Throw and Bite. High friendship gives it Sturdy. Low friendship gives it Anger Point.

Volcano leveling, which you can only access later in the game, gives a Fire-Ground form. Not confirmed in the demo, but data miners have found references to it.

Ocean floor leveling during Dive gives a pure Water form with the Swift Swim ability regardless of friendship. This one seems to be a fixed evolution with no friendship check.

The story choices that affect Seed Pokemon evolution happen at three key points. When you first encounter the Chairman's construction on Island 5. When you decide whether to report him or gather more evidence on Island 8. And the final confrontation where you choose to fight or talk. Each decision locks or unlocks certain evolution branches for Seed Pokemon in your party.

Hidden TMs and Items

TMs in Winds and Waves are partly from vendors and partly scattered across the map. Some of the best ones are hidden.

Earthquake is inside a collapsed mine on Island 10. You need a pokemon with Dig to access the lower level. The TM is behind a boulder that only Rock Smash equivalent moves can break.

Ice Beam is on top of the highest peak on Island 14. You need the Storm Rider hoverboard upgrade and a pokemon with Rock Climb. The path is treacherous. Falling off the mountain sends you back to the base.

Shadow Ball is in the Sunken Temple on Island 4, as I mentioned in the tips guide. Just sitting there on an altar. No battle, no puzzle.

Thunderbolt is a reward from Adventure 9. There's no other way to get it. Complete Adventure 9 on any difficulty and you get the TM.

There's also a hidden nursery on Island 7 that lets you leave two pokemon and come back to an egg without walking steps. You just wait real time. Two hours for a standard egg, one hour with a pokemon that has Flame Body in your party. Way more convenient than the bike circles of earlier generations.

Unlocking All Endings

The three endings require different conditions. Here's what works based on the preview builds.

For the direct ending, just play through the story without doing extra side content. Fight the Chairman when the time comes. Defeat or catch Storm/Wave. Roll credits. It's the simplest path and what most players will get on their first run.

For the redemption ending, you need to complete several things. Help all of the Chairman's staff members with their side quests. There are five of them scattered across different islands, each with a personal problem that humanizes the Chairman's organization. Complete all 18 Adventures before the final confrontation. Catch at least one of every pokemon type in your Pokedex. Make the "talk" choice at every dialogue prompt with the Chairman instead of the aggressive option. And during the final confrontation, choose to reason with him instead of fighting.

The catastrophic ending is what you get if you speedrun the main story while ignoring side content and weather warnings. Skip Adventures. Don't help anyone. Rush to the Chairman fight. The legendaries' rampage escalates and the ending is notably darker. Some pokemon habitats are permanently destroyed. The postgame world state reflects this. Certain areas are inaccessible.

I honestly haven't decided which ending I prefer. The redemption ending is the most satisfying narratively. But the catastrophic ending changes the postgame in interesting ways. It gives you different TMs, different wild spawns, different trainer rematches.

One last thing. There's a post-credits scene on Island 17 that hints at downloadable content. A researcher mentions a "distant region" with "pokemon we've never classified." Could be nothing. Could be the DLC tease. Either way, there's a lot more to this archipelago than what shows up on the surface map.