A fan build that went straight for nostalgia
A Pokémon Pokopia player has recreated Ash Ketchum’s childhood home from the Pokémon anime, and the result is close enough to make longtime fans do a double take. Since launching in early March, the cozy life-sim spin-off has turned into a full-blown hit, crossing 2.2 million copies sold in just a few days. Naturally, players have spent the past few weeks testing how far the game’s building tools can go, then showing off the results to everyone else.
That has led to plenty of elaborate community creations, along with the usual parade of franchise references tucked into player-made builds. Pokémon Pokopia already includes a few nods to the broader series, but some fans clearly preferred to add their own.
Ash is not in the game, but his house is
There are already several easter eggs in Pokémon Pokopia that point back to the mainline games, including an abandoned Team Rocket base and the remains of the S.S. Anne. Ditto’s wardrobe also leans heavily on series history, with outfits and hairstyles inspired by characters such as Ethan, Leaf, and Red.
One major omission, at least for anime fans, is Ash Ketchum himself. Ash never appears in the mainline games, which has apparently not stopped anyone from missing him. So one player decided to fill the gap the old-fashioned way: by building his house instead.
Reddit user LeslieLevi shared their version of Ash’s childhood home, and the resemblance to the anime version is striking. Using screenshots from the series as reference, they recreated the exterior with a full garden, roof tiles, and dormer windows. The build also includes an interior look at Ash’s bedroom, complete with a wall calendar, laptop, and TV screen.
Not every room is a frame-by-frame recreation, which is probably for the best unless someone wanted to spend the next six months arguing about fictional kitchen layouts. LeslieLevi filled in areas like the kitchen and living room with their own design choices, since those spaces are not fully shown in the anime.
The player said they named their Ditto “Red,” matching the character from the mainline games. Since Ash Ketchum was inspired by Red, LeslieLevi felt it made sense to use Ash’s home as their base on Cloud Island.
Community feedback did the tiny but important work
The post has drawn 1.6K upvotes so far, with other users praising how carefully the build captures the original house. In the comments, fellow fans suggested that LeslieLevi repaint the roof a different shade of red. LeslieLevi followed that advice, and the revised version reportedly looks even closer to Ash’s home.
They also said they chose Cloud Island specifically so other players could visit the build later. In Pokémon Pokopia, Cloud Islands is the multiplayer mode that supports four-player sessions in a shared world separate from the main game. Players can also make their Cloud Islands public.
That is not the only social feature available. Pokémon Pokopia also has a Palette Town area that supports GameShare, letting players connect with other Nintendo Switch 1 or Switch 2 users even if the guest does not own the game. The coincidence is doing a lot of work here, since Palette Town is also Ash Ketchum’s hometown in Kanto. For anyone trying to recreate his journey, the game has at least handed them the right neighborhood.
Pokopia keeps rolling out events
The game has been out for nearly a month, and the momentum has not really slowed. Not long after launch, Pokémon Pokopia held its first limited event, which featured Hoppip, Skiploom, and Jumpluff.
An April Fool’s event has already been announced, although this one will not be about befriending new Pokémon. Instead, players who take part will receive an inflatable Sudowoodo decoration, because apparently even the prank event gets to be a collectible.
The development team has said it plans to keep improving Pokémon Pokopia in the coming months, so more events and updates are likely on the way. For now, though, LeslieLevi’s Ash Ketchum house stands as one of the cleaner examples of what happens when a fandom gets access to a good building system and absolutely refuses to act normal about it.
I built Ash Ketchum’s house
by u/LeslieLevi in Pokopia
