Pokémon Bank Update 'Sun and Moon': Nintendo offers a Mewnium Z-Crystal, but no easy way to get Mew
The Pokémon Bank update for Sun and Moon has finally arrived. The long-awaited release brings support for the popular service to the latest Pokémon games, allowing players to trade captured monsters across games and store them online when not in use.
The official Pokémon Company Twitter account confirmed that the Pokémon Bank update is official. It also revealed, Serebii confirms, that when transferring over a pocket monster from the Red, Blue and Yellow games for 3DS (available on the eShop), that Pokémon will get its rare Hidden Ability.
Users of Pokémon Bank will be able to snag a Mewnium Z-Crystal to be used with the legendary Pokémon Mew — this offer expires on Oct. 2. However, Nintendo doesn't offer a way to get Mew in Sun and Moon, and won't let you transfer the legendary from the older games either, — also confirmed by Serebii. So what gives?
Pokémon Bank Update: How to get Mew on the 3DS
Pokémon Red, Blue and Yellow players may not remember a portion of the game's story where they can get Mew, but the legendary Pokémon is obtainable without the use of Game Shark or other cheat devices. So the eShop editions of the first generation games let you catch Mew too.
To do this, players will need to enact the Mew glitch. While there are a few methods Pokémon players can use, the earliest that one can get Mew (and the method we used) is in Cerulean City, as seen in this video below.
Carrying out the Pokémon Red, Blue and Yellow Mew glitch requires you to catch an Abra (check here for locations) without the trainer located in route 24 locking eyes with you. When you finally do have an Abra, as shown in the video, walk up to the grass to the left of route 24. When you're aligned in the same row as the trainer in the grass, hit the start button just as he comes into sight. Select Abra and trigger the Teleport command. An exclamation mark will appear above the trainer's head as you teleport away.
You may notice the start menu is no longer working. Head into the Cerulean City gym. Walk down the right-most path and have the trainer notice you without you facing him, making sure that he walks up to you. Complete the battle and then leave the gym.
From here, head back up to Nugget Bridge (the bridge above Cerulean City's Pokémon Center with all the trainers). The start menu will automatically appear. Once you close it, a level 7 Mew will appear.
Pokémon Bank Update: Here's what's stopping you from trading that Mew to Sun and Moon
The Mew obtained using the glitch method doesn't require any weird code hacking or injecting of foreign code into the game. Yet Nintendo isn't letting the Mew obtained via this method to be moved over to Pokémon Bank.
Aside from the in-game glitch method there are no other ways to obtain Mew in Pokémon Red, Blue and Yellow outside of events. Which means the only Pokémon players that can take part in the Mew Z Crystal fun are those that took part in the February 2016 event and October 2010 event, provided they transfer over from Heart Gold and Soul Silver to X and Y first — the former two games are not supported by Bank. If you happened to miss out on these, you may want to fire up the Global Trade System and hope for the best.
Check out more Pokémon news and coverage
If you're serious about Pokémon Sun and Moon, you'll want to read up so you can be the very best. Check out our guides for picking the right starter, Pokémon Sun and Moon cheats, using a damage calculator, how to catch the new legendary Pokémon, how to get Munchlax, how to customize your character, how to trade, how to find all the evolution stones, how to use QR codes, all the Team Skull passwords, which Pokémon to catch early on and picking between Pokémon Sun and Pokémon Moon.
