[quote=@Natsucooldude]
<Snipped quote by DarthSeverus394>

This is an answer that spawns some more questions from me. For example, if there are animals and pokemon, what's the distinction between the two? How do pokemon exist if they can't be handwaved away by saying 'different evolutionary path'. Is it ok to eat normal animals and not ok to eat pokemon? why would this be? a lot of pokemon are just animals with implicitly supernatural powers.
[/quote]

I've always thought that pokemon was a post-apocalyptic version of our world with pokemon being genetically engineered beings.

There's a fan theory that pokemon are an invading alien lifeform, though.  That would explain the "egg groups" and how dittos can breed with anything, as they are the original form or something very close.  The other pokemon are stuck mimicking things or animals in our world, maybe as a defense mechanism which lets them blend in.