Magnemite & Magneton

I've always had a fondness for Magnemite, but it wasn't until gen IV that it really stood out to me as a Pokemon. I found it a lot of fun to use in battle, with hard-hitting moves and that reliable defense. Its ubiquity in the games also means it's pretty easy to run into across generations. And who doesn't love that design? This page is a little collection of fun things about Magnemite and its evolution, Magneton.

Where is Magnezone?

You may wonder why I leave out Magnezone. The answer is that I just don't like Magnezone. Apologies, Magnezone, it's not your fault. I'm just not a fan of the evolutions added to pre-existing Pokemon in gen IV. I find Magnezone to be overdesigned and a little... ugly. I can tolerate Magnezone, I can learn to live with Magnezone, but I can't love Magnezone, and so it doesn't belong on this page.

Got A Screw Loose

How many screws does each member of Magneton have? The games have been inconsitent on this. Pokemon Green sprites show that the top Magneton has 3 screws, but the bottom two Magneton have one screw at the 'top' of their head, and an extra screw near the center of the Magneton cluster. In total, they have 7 screws (3+2+2).

Sprites from Pokemon Red/Green, Red/Blue, and Yellow, respectively. You can see that they all have 7 screws total.

However, gen 2 had a different take on Magneton. Each member would have 3 screws, like 3 Magnemite together. This is the 9-screw Magneton. Gen 3 would continue with this 9-screw Magneton.

Gold, Silver, Crystal, Ruby/Sapphire, Emerald, FireRed/Leafgreen.

9-screw Magneton lasted two generations before 7-screw Magneton returned with a vengeance. From gen 4 to the current gen (gen 9 as of time of writing), 7-screw Magneton has been firmly established as the main Magneton.

Why the change? If Magneton is meant to be three Magnemite together, it makes sense that the Magnemite would not lose screws when coming together. You can see that it's a little odd in the Pokemon Stadium depiction of Magneton as three separated entities - the 2 missing screws look a little wonky.

Pokemon Stadium's depiction of Magneton as three floating Magnemite have two missing screws...

Pokemon Stadium 2's Magneton selection has the Magnemite with 3 screws each, though it's hard to see in still photos. Its actual model of Magneton has 7 screws like Stadium 1.

Pokemon Battle Revolution is unusual in being a gen IV game that has Magneton having 9 screws. Other gen IV media depict Magneton as hvaing 7 screws. Was the team in PBR just going off old depictions, or did the change in Magneton happen afterwards?

Can Magneton separate?

Is Magneton three Magnemite just floating near each other, or are they attached? Different games differ on the level of attachedness that Magneton has. Pokemon Stadium has the most dramatic interpretation, with being three Magnemite floating in the vicinity of each other. Stadium 2, Colosseum, Gale of Darkness, and Pokemon Battle Revolution all have this interpretation of Magneton.

Some sprites show Magneton being mostly attached but not entirely. The Red/Blue and Silver Sprites show Magneton being slightly apart. Gold has them touching. Gen 3 and forward have them touching. The 3D models in Gen VI on have Magneton touching basically all the time, like one big unit.

Pokemon Sleep suggests Magneton can unlink while they are asleep. (Side note: Isn't this... so adorable? I almost can't take how cute this is.)

Some anime episodes also show that Magneton can unlink to dodge attacks.

Magneton separating to dodge an attack. (Source)

Conclusion - Magneton can separate, but they choose to be close together. Some Magneton may enjoy being more unlinked than others (e.g. Stadium), some may enjoy being tightly attached, and some like a little wiggle room.

Magnet to Head Ratio

Early sprites and art of Magnemite and Magneton show a big head with tiny magnets. The effect makes the magnets look like little cub ears.

Sugimori art of Magneton for Red and Green. Notice the short magnets.

Personally, I prefer a more equal magnet-to-head ratio, as it makes them look more "mature." The 3D models from X/Y onwards have the bigger magnets, but a surprising amount of depictions of them still show the smaller magnets. This is especially true in the tv show. Easier to animate? Easier to see?

Body Control

The Pokemon Crystal sprite shows that Magnemite can move its eyeball around. Several animations show that Magnemite and Magneton can move their screws and their magnets.

Magnemite can have eyes that are open, crossed out if knocked out, or half open. The anime episode "Sparks Fly For Magnemite" suggests that Magnemite can blush.