I lead a Bible study the other day and we discussed AI for a while. I explained that AI is present in many areas of our lives, like our phones. Another point I was gonna say is video games. I've read that the Pokemon games have a type of AI that goes into battles. Does anyone know how that works?

My last post was about gen 5, however I realized I got a few things wrong about the ideas of Game Freak.

Now I realized gen 5 did not sell well mostly because it was on DS after 3DS was already a thing and it is not true there are no gen 5 references, as I thought, in later generations. They are mostly in gen 8 and 9, which I did not play because game quality dipped down quite a lot. Not only, it only lasted 3 years because it did not have any older game Remakes. So gen 5 was not punished by Nintendo, it was not used as much as gen 1 because Nintendo never supposed gen 5 was the new main generation.

So in the mind of GF gen 5 is a generation like any other, except gen 1 which is paramount to the rest, they just tried to make something more mature and closer to other RPGs for a time because they had to compensate for not using 3D, which was already a thing at the time. It was not like they ever wanted to base all future games on gen 5 games.

But I also came to a different conclusion...

Actually the bad is they realized they tried hard and sold just as much as expected, rather than more, or less. Then XY got a lot of content cut down, and sold a bit less than DP, the first DS games, but not much less. It sold more than RS, the first GBA games, due to market growth. So they learned it is not about quality, but about market laws and economics. They started to make worse generations at a faster rate, so the merchandising market was pumped up more often and even if the games sold say 10% less than their theoretical maximum, Pokémon still made more money overall. Indeed 80% of all cash is from merchandising such as plushies and gadgets.

Then Covid era made manga, anime and games popular over a wider range of people, the market skyrocketed and new, badly conceived games sell well over 20 millions. So no reason to try any harder any longer. The market laws win and the hardcore Pokéfan loses.

So what made Pokémon games so bad is Capitalism in its worse sides, not older fan backslashes. Remember GF or at least Nintendo DOES have Economics college graduates to help them and they mostly have, most likely, quite Friedman-esque economics views. They help Nintendo take market decisions.

However you could still blame the average buyer, who proved to neither prize quality, neither punish lack of quality. Except the average buyer is a 30 - 40 years old father who buys a game for his 6 - 12 years old son...

I think to get back on track they should follow this plan...

Late 2025 - Legends Z-A

Late 2026 - Gen 10 titles

Late 2028 - BW Remakes

2030 - Legends Kyurem/Original Tao Dragon

Late 2032 - Gen 11 titles

So first they should wait 2026 for gen 10 and use the extra year to make better and well functioning games, then they should do no more new generations for at least 6 YEARS. They should never go back to make a new generation every 3 years !

Then they should focus on Remakes which this time are BW Remakes, and make a Legends game to finish off the Unova storyline.

Having 2 years to make one single game should help. And people CAN wait. They would make less money because they would release less games in the same amount of time, but this is the way of quality.

Every single time I say this, I always get a lifeless response of them mentioning the lack of difficulty in the main campaign.

1. The difficulty of the game has nothing to do with anything of what I'm talking about. It's like saying Tekken isn't a complex fighting game because enemies in survival mode and arcade don't use optimal combos.

2. As far as the campaign goes, you can find difficulty in the battle facilities.

In gen 7, which is the biggest Pokemon game out there, there's 728 moves and I believe a little over 100 passive abilities. I've heard people say "oh quality over quantity." There's only so many times you can make a move similar to another move with a slight change in power. If a director says, put 728 moves in the game, there's bound to be bat crazy strategy ideas in the game and obviously there are, but even from gen 1 they went above and beyond with moves like transform and reflect type. There's more moves in this game after that break the laws of the game entirely like trick room, power swap, foul play, there are even field traps and field weather and field terrain. The games are wildly innovative and expansive.

With how easy it is to really grind up level 100 Pokémon, I kinda wish we can actually start using that level 100 power house army I grinded to its full power.

The way I could see it realistically be done, is that I could see it be a "post launch" content, which is different from a "post-game" boss like red or rematch Cynthia.

Something that only added after players presumably had done all possible content, and something not required to 100% complete the base game atleast, and would atleast have some knowledge prior before challenging it.

In that way the actual execution/difficulty of the all level 100 bossfight isn't some romhack type level "I put level 70 blastoise, on my first gym" level of unfair or the "lmao suprise Cynthia in undella town" type of BS.

Instead the difficulty comes from this being the only none battle facility boss fight, you cannot cheese by going 10 levels higher.

And only one with a full 6v6 singles.

So you either fighting at lower level, or just simply even in power.

As for narrative wise on who could play that challenge, you can pull a kingdom hearts and make that fight a tease of what's to come next, similar to yozora,lingering will, giving just amount of information that can spark conversation/theories to keep the game bopping in players head until the next game arrive, while also leaving enough room to iron out the actual lore without retconing what would be teased.

Or you know..red, but atleast be the hypothetical chuck norris red, we all imagined as kids but actually in-game.

This is not an easy question, read carefully.

Do you think Pokémon should focus on the storyline more and have more mature characters and themes, or do you think the monster collector aspect is paramount and the variety and designs of Pokémon is what matters the most ?

This question stems from the ways gen 5 is different than all others. It had way more mature themes and the storyline was the best, and it was way more storyline contered. On the other hand there were no older gen Pokémon until postgame, and the gen 5 designs were badly received by western, older fans.

If by Pokémon we mean classic, gen 1 and 2 games, then Pokémon has a very simple and even childish storyline compared to most RPGs, but it has the best battle system ever and gen 1 and 2 Pokémon are still peak design. No other RPG has such a variety of characters and such a metagame of complex battle strategies. Is not even close.

So gen 5 is the most unique Pokémon generation, way different than both the first 4 ones and the last 4 ones, but is also the closest to other RPGs. It showed Pokémon can be something different. But does it can mean it should ?

By I don't mean the David cage type of bull crap, where there's like 17 alternate ending based entirely on players action, with multiple routes like a "side with team rocket saga"

while there is a story/goal, the actual player is the one controlling the pase and structure, and by player I don't mean the self insert protagonist, I'm talking YOU.

Maybe when it comes to story/actual narrative there's only a chapter A and Z, but point B to Y is entirely your job to fill in..with your head, which you can tell an exaggerated version of that story to your friends in school by the bus.

Like a DnD campaign, maybe the goal is just "kill" the evil dragon, nobody said there's a specific way, sure you could just kill it with the Excalibur the DM had hinted exist in the campaign..but you could also just spank the evil dragon to death.

And Pokémon has alot of mileage with that idea with how the primary gameplay mechanics works already, from the type of Pokémon teams you can make, what specific kinds of teams like maybe you want to have just 1 powerhouse and 5 fodders.

The free liberty on what type of campaign you want to do in order, maybe do gym challenges first, the herba spices next, then team star last, or collect all 400 Pokémon before even completing 1 task, which gym exactly you actually want to do first to last and vice versa for other.

If gen 10 could add more, I do want to know what would that kind of experience without the traditional school motive of paldea, like what would that scope be but the more "adventurers" motif style since gen 1, but also maybe a modern HM system that works like immersive sim powers like the sheikah slate can be used to do to solve gym puzzle solving.

Additionally I think that would be good for things like anime or manga writers, because then the anime/manga went from straight forward adaption, to a specific writers adaptation/interpretation of the story, that can give unique media experience for Pokémon fans to enjoy within the same region.

I always found it interesting how all stats besides HP are buffed and debuffed by a nature, so I wanted to imagine what types of personalities would best fit with natures that boost HP and decrease all other stats. Since HP stands for Hit Points, I always understood it as something like endurance, which represents how much one can be hit before fainting (Defense and SpDef feel much more like a barrier or cushioning that depletes that amount of power that is going to hit the Pokémon). For that reason, natures that buff HP would all involve personalities or mindsets that boost a Pok\u00e9mon's Endurance (based on Psychological states and repeated experiences that help an individual Pok\u00e9mon endure more).

Resilient Nature: A Resilient Nature signals that Pokémon have experienced so much adversity, but they always thrive no matter how hard they have fallen. It may be more difficult to get better at first, but the more adversity and suffering they experience, the more resilient they may become, and they will usually not back away from a situation they know they might suffer from but that they think is part of who they are to partake in. However, the compound stress of the challenges does take a toll on their bodies, making them less agile and lowering their reaction times and Speed stat as they might be resilient, but it does not mean they are not tired.

Avenging Nature: An Avenging Nature is one we see so many times in action or psychological thriller movies. It is all about vengeance and anger. Pokémon that have this nature will react strongly to situations that cause harm to them or their "loved ones," and will be relentless in chasing the perpetrator. A Batman, Emily Thorne, Bryan Mills, John Wick Pokémon. Whoever causes them harm will suffer twofold. Because of that, their anger and determination will give them a boost in endurance so they can take more hits while being in pursuit of revenge. In a Pok\u00e9mon battle, this nature is taking being competitive to a whole new level, where every single loss becomes an instigator of a feeling of being wronged and seeking to avenge oneself, and in case of double and triple battles, avenge the fallen brothers and sisters. Because of the closed mindset of vengeance, Pokémon with this nature are more susceptible to being tricked and manipulated and might be more reactive toward physical attacks compared to special ones from a distance, which then means that their Special Defense is affected.

Inspired Nature: An Inspired Nature causes Pokémon to feel like they can do anything whenever they see a human or another Pokémon (or even nature itself) do something incredible. They are bright-eyed and full of hopes and dreams, and so whenever they are in the presence of any situation that can teach them how to achieve those hopes and dreams, they become inspired and empowered to keep on going. However, that does not necessarily mean they are more cautious or that they will achieve their desire. They are just way more willing to take any risks and thus may be able to resist more hits with the mindset that "if ... did it, I will be able to do it." That makes these inspired Pokémon more prone to falling down and hurting themselves, even if they have a more significant psychological tolerance to it, and thus their Physical Defense is naturally lower. Their go-getter, reckless nature when they become inspired makes them more vulnerable to physical hits because they don't protect themselves. They are too determined for it, and unlike Avenging Pokémon, they are not beserks that use relentless offense and anger as a physical defense, but at least their minds are shielded by the image of them being able to do what they desire the most.

Noble Nature: A Noble Nature speaks of a desire to help others and how much that desire makes one endure the worst so they can safeguard and protect those in need. Pokémon with this nature will do anything to be there for others and for nature itself, and thus such an intrinsic disposition needs a boost in HP to come to fruition (otherwise, we would have a Frustrated Nature, which might be the opposite of this one). They are sacrificial, but they also do not want to harm others. When I think of this nature's relationship with stats, I think of Desmond Thomas Doss, the army corporal (and the protagonist of Hacksaw Ridge) who chose to be a conscientious objector during WWII and thus decided to save and heal wounded men while in action instead of carrying a gun and killing other men. I think of the quintessential hero archetype with a no-kill rule. As such, this nature would depower the Physical Attack stat since the Noble Pokémon only wants to help and protect, so it tries to stay away from violent attacks, only doing so when the circumstances are dire.

Apologetic/Atoning Nature: Pokémon of this nature are prone to being forever remorseful and feel guilt about everything they do. They lack confidence and think all their actions may cause a negative reaction to everyone and everything around them, not necessarily physical in nature, but more related to their well-being. But these Pokémon don't simply wallow in their mistakes (something they still do to a concerning extent). They are also forever trying to make up for what they see as their mistakes and hurting others, and that is where they need more endurance and HP. They will not rest until they have atoned for the "pain" or discomfort they think they have caused in others. And so, because they are trying not to hurt anything while also lacking self-confidence and being psychologically down, their Special Attacks won't hit as hard. Compared to a Noble-natured Pokémon, who will willfully restrain how much physical damage they can create while not really considering how much special damage they can inflict (or being oblivious to it), atoning Pokémon are not psychologically well enough to generate and control any special attack (and don't want to either), while they may still accidentally physically harm others.

Procrastinator Nature: This nature is perhaps the most funny and relatable of all while still being a bit sad. It is the neutral HP nature, the one where nothing really happens. A procrastinator Pokémon has so many things it wants to do but struggles to get them going. They have the determination necessary to boost their HP but are also "lazy" or "anxious" enough that their determination becomes counterbalanced, decreasing their HP too. They will eventually do what they put their minds to, but unlike all the other HP-boosting natures, they will not do it immediately, have a strong drive to do so, nor will they become more determined after idling many times.

That is it. So, what do you think? What would you do for the HP decreasing natures instead?

As I anticipated earlier here is a post about what happened to GF in about 2012, during the development of XY.

There is a video. It is in Italian, however I will explain what it tells briefly. I can not post it here.

It is about the reviews some GF employees wrote on the Internet about GF. It tells the way it is run is authoritarian, archaic and not meritocratic at all, except for high ranking employees who get it easy all the time.

But what is most important is what you can find out if you place all the bits together. In about 2012 there was a mass firing event. The obvious reason is BW selling less than any other new gen main title. The video explains how in GF new employees do not get high quality skill transfer, and how GF does not have many people capable to use new tech and, as such, should have stayed away from 3D, or should have learned to use new tech better.

New people did no longer have the ideas, but they were not good with new tech knowledge either.

Note : XY was mostly already developed but at the end a lot of storyline and postgame contents were cut off. This is why it feels like a originally pretty good but also mutilated game. I know this from another Italian Video I watched, however I can not post URLs.

But what I really want to talk about is not WHAT happened, but WHY and why it should not have at all.

BW tried to reboot Pokémon as a more mature franchising. It did not make a new timeline but it made Unova thousands of miles apart from the first 4 regions, in what is known in real life as the North American continent. All Pokémon living there were new, even though many resembled some of the gen 1 Pokémon. The storyline was very different than usual. It featured villains who did not appear as evil on the outside, and it required the player, unlike any other game, to catch the box art Legendary of his or her version, and fight the other.

Compared to all other new gen titles, BW sold less. It sold 15 - 16 million copies. However the market changes in size and the 26 million of SWSH is for example MUCH less than the 23 million of GS. People became more, videogames became more well accepted and no longer a virgin/incel/geek thing only, older boys started to keep playing longer. So we need to compare BW with gen 3 or 4 at the earliest and with gen 6 or 7 at the latest, especially because gen 1 and 2 benefited from the Pokémania era, and gen 8 and 9 from the post Covid Videogame/Anime/Manga popularity growth.

What we find out is BW did not sell much less than what it should. First, if 2 generations are released on the same console, the second sales less. Gen 4 DP (17 m) sold more than gen 3 RS (16 m) because the market grew a bit and it was already a different console. SM indeed sold less than XY. So BW was set to sell between 16 and 17 millions, and it sold 1 million less. Why did it ? Possibly because of the old fans backslash. Many fans born between 1988 and 1992, starting with gen 1 and about 19 - 23 back then in 2011, started to give low ratings to gen 5 Pokémon designs. And indeed the only flaw of gen 5 is Pokémon designs. By gen 6 they were gone, married with kids.

The "low" sales made GF take a wrong turn, and what I described in the first part of this post happened. Now Game Freak learned they only needed to make barely passable games and wait for the market to grow. Afterall is not like Pokémon lives on videogames, most of the money are from toys and other merchandising.

BW were ironically the most divisive games, with people either loving or hating them, either black or white. But nowadays gen 5 is one of the most loved overall. What happened ? People change their minds, and the people who started with gen 5 are now about 20 years old.

But what if BW sold better and B2W2 did too ? GF would not have took a wrong turn and would have made better games. They worked hard for BW, and hard work being rewarded is a much better moral lesson than do the bare necessities and let the name of the Brand and the market do the rest. This is my main point here : gen 5 was meant to be the new gen 1, the backbone of a new Pokémon Universe with more mature themes. It rather became one of a kind, something relevant for no longer than 3 years. Gen 1 is still ever present and always relevant, and it deserves to be so, but no one outside of actual Pokéfans who are either younger than 25, either have been Pokéfans for a VERY long time, would recognize any gen 5 Pokémon. And yet gen 5 deserved more. Its weakness is the ugliness of all fully evolved starters and the lack of truly marketable Pokémon. Maybe, even if that way it would not have stayed fully true to itself, a few more marketable Pokémon should have been added, and BW just like B2W2 should have featured older Pokémon from the start.

But gen 5 had the best storyline of the franchising and it deserved to be the new gold standard.

Let us see what GF can do now to get back on track and to remit its debts to gen 5.

In 2027 it will be time for gen 5 Remakes, the Unova games of the mega/3D timeline. What they should do is stop making new generations after 2026 (by then there will be a tenth generation which will be released well before gen 5 Remakes), afterall 10 is the perfect number, and get all the time they need to make the Remakes. Even if they get released in 2028.

They should fix the flaws of BW and add new features, while finding a way to make a better 3D. Or maybe just go back to 2D so they will have time and energy to make much more content. I know they will not go back to 2D, but they should.

After BW Remakes they should work more with gen 5, making games with the first 649 Pokémon. Indeed there is no need to make every 3 years 100 - 150 new Pokémon, there are 1000+ now and there will be 1100 - 1200 then. And they can not even put more than 700 or so Pokémon in one game anyway. They could make a 11th generation in the distant future, but by then it will be pointless, and should never get called 11th because after you pass the 10 threshold it starts to get ridicolous.

They should also change the Anime. Ash is gone, Liko will not last after gen 9. Why not making a gen 5 Anime instead of a gen 10 one ? Afterall, they can not use the Best Wishes characters, but they do not have to. Neither Hilda nor Rosa were ever used, even though both May and Dawn were. I found out there is the chance Hilda was not used because her game backsprite had a...sexy backside. Is it true ? If so, it was the most ridicolous and petty reason ever. So many videogame protagonists are way sexier afterall.

With Pikachu gone they must find a way to have a marketable mascot for such Anime however. I am not sure what they should do, but fully evolved gen 5 starters are not a good idea. The regional Pikachu clones do not hold up well either. So maybe they should find a different formula than having a single mascot.

2 days ago I made a poll to find out what is the most liked game. HGSS won by a wide margin, but another game, B2W2, got the second place and a decent gap on the third. Here I explain why they are actually BOTH the best at the SAME time. I will also explain why it makes perfect sense HGSS won.

Why HGSS is the best

The 2008 - 2012 era was the golden era of Game Freak, especially compared to what will happen just after that time (more about this in my next post on this subreddit). In this time frame, Platinum, Heart Gold Soul Silver, Black White, Black 2 White 2 were made. 3 out of the 4 of them are still regarded as some of the TOP 5 Pokémon games ever. HGSS is notable for being a Remake but also having been released after Platinum, rather than before. RFLG were released before Emerald. This made HGSS the ultimate gen 4 game, just like Emerald was the ultimate gen 3 game.

It is the game till nowadays with the most and best post game content. 2 regions, 16 rematchable gym Leaders, many Legendaries, but not too many of them out of nowhere like in gen 7, with gen 1 Legendaries finally being in Kanto again after they got removed from GSC, a mini Battle Frontier rather than just one Battle Tower-esque battle facility, and Pokeathlon, a new feature which is a collection of non battle related minigames, which is maybe not a big deal, but is way better than 1 mini game such as Surfing Pikachu from Yellow.

The game combines those modern features with the nostalgic appeal of GSC. It does indeed feature the first 2 regions of the Pokémon franchising, and it follows the plot of GSC. While not as much as RBY, GS benefited from Pokémania, selling a huge number of copies in the first months (in late 2000) they were sold in USA. Many people currently aged 30 - 35, and 15 - 20 at the time HGSS was released, played it even if they have no longer been Pokéfans ever since. Lugia in particular is still one of the most iconic Pokémon because it was the protagonist of a Movie released at the time Pokémon was still very mainstream.

Why Black 2 White 2 is the best

Black 2 and White 2 is the technical and aesthetic pinnacle of Pokémon. The last game of the golden era, it was the last one they made before a mass of older, full time contract employees was fired, and replaced with part time contract employees who did not have the chance to get the skill transfer they needed (again, more about this will be in my next post).

Gen 5 was an attempt to reboot Pokémon. Not only, it tried to turn Pokémon in a more mature franchising, featuring initially 16, then 14 years old playable characters in the released version and a much different storyline. However the Pokémon designs of gen 5 happened to be the worst ever made until then. They tried to reimagine many gen 1 Pokémon to create something capable of standing on its own legs, but just every gen 5 Pokémon was worse than its gen 1 counterpart, except for Excadrill compared to Dugtrio. And indeed BW had only gen 5 Pokémon until postgame. The backslash of older fans and the not so good sales triggered the awful mass firing event, which is at the origin of the soullessness of the last 3 - 4 generations of Pokémon games.

But B2W2 solved the most glaring issue of BW by reintroducing older Pokémon. It is also a direct sequel to a previous game, which is not seen anywhere else in Pokémon, and it added a ton of content such as the Pokémon World Tournament and many new areas, and the Pokestar Studio minigame, which is the only thing in a Pokémon game being actually influenced by the gender of the playable character. It is the game with the best mix of storyline and postgame content.

Not only, it and the incoming gen 5 Remakes are arguably the last chance for Game Freak to get back on track.

How they are BOTH the best

The 2 titles are both the best in their own way. HGSS is the "best Pokémon game" while B2W2 is the "best game in the Pokémon saga". What the difference is ?

HGSS is the best game from a Pokéfan perspective. Its weakness is the basic gen 2 storyline, which unlike gen 1 does not feature a convincing main villain, and unlike gen 3, 4, 5 and even 6 and 7 does not integrate the main Legendary into the storyline well enough. Gen 2 also had the worst level curve ever, even though HGSS actually solved that issue pretty well compared to GSC. This is a big flaw from a general gaming perspective, but from a Pokéfan perspective not so much. Compared to B2W2 it embodies the spirit of Pokémon way more, featuring Kanto and Johto, the first and till nowadays most iconic and best designed Pokémon, the most popular characters such as Team Rocket, Red, Misty and Brock. Pokémon was never meant to be the best franchising storyline wise. And while THE embodiement of the Pokémon spirit is actually FRLG, HGSS has just much more content than FRLG.

B2W2 is the best from a gamer perspective. Gen 5 had hands down the best storyline. It tried to speak about concrete themes such as animal abuse, rather than reshaping the planet or even the Universe, and it featured N, a way different villain than the usual either evil, either crazy, either both Team Leaders, even though the actual villain was just evil too, and became also crazy in B2W2. And B2W2 mixes this with a lot of content. But the issue of the Gen 5 bad designs remains. Gen 5 will never be as marketable as Pikachu and Charizard or Mewtwo, especially due to its starters, it will never be THE face of Pokémon at the end, even though it actually, honestly deserved to be.

This is how HGSS is the best Pokémon game and B2W2 is the best game of Pokémon.

Actually they are both in my top 3, but my subjectice favorite is FRLG. Why ? Because I am old and because as I said it is the embodiement of Pokémon as a Franchising. Even then I still know it is objectively not as good as HGSS and B2W2, and is arguably 5th, ranking lower than Emerald and Platinum also.

Put simply, I want the villain to use a team of 6 Mega evolved Pokémon Like, permamegas?

Here I will list the 5 games mostly regarded as the best. Choose your favorite of all. Judge basing on both your personal experience and what you think is objectively the best game. I will tell what is my personal favorite and the order of my top five in the comment section.
NOTE : Only mainline games are included, and Legends Arceus and LGPE are NOT considered mainline at all here.

View Poll

Particularly when it comes to the journey itself, like the background music rather than playing out the more energetic route music when you walk outside, instead the game rather just play the sounds of nature at all times, like hearing the winds, the sounds of your footsteps, Pokémon cries at a distance, waterfall crackling that gets louder when you get closer etc.

Then maybe if you do something like setup camp, you can like sit with your Pokémon at the gaze of night by the campfire, and hearing the rustling fire.

While BGM can play, I could see it like BOTW where is that random piano chime from time to time, or even if you ride a Pokémon, the music plays like when you ride a horse in botw then the typical bike song.

The only time it plays faster beat music are places like certain towns, gyms and major dungeons like victory road, but again is more about slow tunes rather, besides maybe the actual battles of course.

I think it just be neat to have a more cozy Pokémon adventure for once, even when there is motive about wanting to be the best trainer in region, I would like it that the actual end goal is the make the journey itself the best part rather than reaching the endgoal.

I've been thinking about this lately and I REALLY want a massive region that covers Guyana, the Caribbean Sea and Mexico, for several reasons.

1. In my headcanon, Faraway Island is a portion of a Guyana based region, so could be a setting for Legends Mew
2. Nazca Line AND Aztec based legendaries
3. Dive returning for the Caribbean Sea

It could essentially be Kanto + Johto or Kanto + Sevii Islands, but all as one huge region. Obviously the Pokémon world isn't a 1:1 world map recreation, so they could easily condense that portion of the world to like, one large region south of Unova. I know combining Guyana, Mexico and the Caribbean would be pretty real world inaccurate, but Johto was almost the entirety of Japan squished together, and it could be treated as three smaller regions anyway? Like how theoretically you could have Orre being sort of north of Alola (I think, I'm British).

Great open world setting too, could possibly have 8 gyms in Guyana, 8 gyms in Mexico, battle facilities and the league in the Caribbean, requiring you to have 8 out of 16 badges etc.
And, as I mentioned in my Yamask post, original Yamask + evo with different forms based on the Aztec mask Yamask evolves holding.
Or even just, Mexico + Caribbean.

Either way, doesn't have to make too much real world sense, I just think there's decent enough potential in all three areas to make the best region ever. The multi-region nature of HGSS + the oceanic exploration of Hoenn, in a Pokémon game just as big as GTA.

Entirely unrealistic, but if I had the ability I'd make that game tomorrow lmao.

This thread will be a place for basic questions that don't contribute to active discussion. Before asking a question, please check Google or resources such as Serebii or Bulbapedia to see if they will answer it. If not, then feel free to post your question here for people to answer. Basic questions outside of this thread will be removed. This thread will be replaced with a fresh one every so often, so please use the most recent one.

Useful Links:

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Official Pokémon Website

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Yamask has fascinated me for a while for once main reason.
The only two times we've seen it, they've been its regional variants, and I can prove it.

While Unovan Yamask may never be retconned canonically as a variant, I believe with 100% confidence that it is one, and not in the Exeggutor way, but in the usual way. All we need to do is look at availability and themeing.

Gen 5: Obviously, a regular available Pokémon, its mask fits with Unova, as does Cofagrigus with the whole random Egypt inspired desert thing they've got going on (Sigilyph is also Egyptian af).

Gen 6: Across XY and ORAS, the only way to get Yamask is breeding a Cofagrigus caught in an ORAS mirage spot, so this is FAR from the line appearing naturally, even less natural than the regional variants in blueberry academy.

Gen 7: Nothing, It's transfer only.

Gen 8: Galarian Yamask and Runerigus.

Gen 9: Completely absent (for now, but I can't see it fitting anywhere in PLZA).

So, essentially, we've ONLY seen it in Unova and Galar, both times with a different form an evolution, and in both cases It's specifically tied to that region's theme and the nature of where it's found. I'm taking this to mean we haven't seen what Yamask looks like normally, and I think It's native to Mexico.

Basically, I just get that feeling that original Yamask is by default not holding anything, and the tail it uses to hold stuff is just its tail normally.
I'm like, completely convinced that in a Mexico based region, we're gonna get a maskless Yamask, ancient masks as evo items, and its evolved form will have alternate forms depending on the mask it evolves with.

Even if Unovan Yamask is the default forever (probably will be), my headcanon is never changing. Even if a Mexico region doesn't include my (quite frankly, genius) idea, I'm just gonna headcanon that it died out in the Aztec era anyway. You can't stop me, I love my lil mask ghost.

When SM/USUM first came out I hated that whole generation. Thought it sucked, was too hand-holdy. Too many cutscenes. Really boring environments etc. The characters just wouldn't stop talking, it seemed like a never-ending tutorial. Really thought the series had run its course by then. This is still a very common sentiment that people still have, and I fully understand it.

I really disliked Gen 8 and 9 so I thought, maybe give Gen 7 a go again. Turns out that generation was actually pretty good and had a ton of QoL and content packed inside. The story was not half bad either, Lillie and Lusamine are excellent characters, the music was peppy with tracks I unironically revisit now every time I am back in the pokemon mood.

The region is full of life and atmosphere, designed to suck you in with its tropical allure. I wasn't too keen on the Z-moves back in the day, but nowadays its such a novelty to have both Z-moves AND megas in one generation. The boss battles and trials are really fun and can be actually tough too, but it leaves just enough room for you to cheese and experiment with them. The Pokémon variety is much better than I first thought too. I remember thinking "man, I can't make nice teams in this" but since I've replayed both Moon and Ultra Moon this and last year back to back, I've made teams with a big variety of species and type. You get access to really cool Pokémon and lots of types very early on. Also, this was before Dexit, so you can have a fully complete national dex in the game, so catching a Pokémon in this generation doesn't feel pointless to me like it does in newer games. On top of this, the game's presentation is great, the graphics and environments really push the 3DS to its limits and the games are... legitimately pretty! When you get so used to Scarlet/Violet's Garry's Mod-style open world with its poor rock textures you can get a heavy whiplash from looking at Gen 7 again.

Gen 7 is still flawed of course, and doesn't hold a candle to other generations, but its nowhere near as awful as I first thought. I truly appreciate this generation so much more now. It's crazy how packed this game was with so many things, and nowadays, we have to google a list if a certain Pokémon is even going to be available in current gens.

You never know what you had until the years pass. I guess you could say that about the current gens too, but SM/USUM are the most recent proof we have of this occurring, in my eyes, and their biggest flaw (too hand-holdy, slow, dialogue heavy) are not nearly as egregious anymore. It will never be the best Pokémon game, but I made peace with it. It's a fun game.

What is your favorite Pokémon generation ? Make your overall choice by Pokémon designs, lore of the region, storyline of the games and how good the games are for the time they were released.

NOTE : Remakes here are considered to be part of the same generation of the original games. For example FRLG are gen 1 and HGSS are gen 2.

If your favorite generation is not between the first 5 ones, just choose the last option of the poll.

View Poll

A few weeks ago I made a poll and discovered Pokéfans have gen 3 as their favorite, and they like gen 5 and 4 more than 1 and 2, even though at least they like the first 5 gens way more than all the last 4.

However, Pokéfans are a minority out of all living people, that is definitely a given, and indeed people who would even recognize the most iconic Pokémon from gen 3 to 5, such as Rayquaza, Groudon, Kyogre, Salamence, Metagross, Dialga, Palkia, Giratina, Arceus, Garchomp, Zekrom, Reshiram, Kyurem and Hydreigon are a minority (except for Lucario maybe).

On the other hand, many gen 1 Pokémon such as Pikachu, Charizard, Bulbasaur, Squirtle, Eevee, Meowth, Mew and Mewtwo, and also Togepi and Lugia from gen 2 and, finally, Lucario from gen 4, are way, way more recognizable by the average person, especially, but not only, between people aged 30+ who, for obvious reasons, are not gamers.

But why it is so ?

There are multiple reasons but they can be summarized with one word : Pokémania.

The Pokémania era was a time when both the games, the Anime and the TCG were at their absolute peak of popularity in the USA. It started in early 1999, few months after the first games, Red and Blue, were released in North America. Pokémon suddenly became a mainstream topics, and even had Creationist pundits and other people from the Evangelical Right wing area addressing Pokémon as demons.

According to a poll I made at least 50% of the American males currently aged 30 to 40, who in 1999 were 5 to 15, played at least one between Red, Blue and Yellow.

The Anime was at its peak in the second half of 1999 and the first half of 2000. Later it lost popularity very fast, and it has never ever been remotely as popular as it was in late 2000, let alone late 1999 and early 2000.

At the time the trading card game was a huge hit too, but its popularity declined sharply after 1 or 2 years from its peak, and was never that popular again.

Only like 35% of American males currently into their thirties played Gold, Silver or Crystal, and the figure gets much lower if we look at how many younger people played later games. Out of men aged 26 to 36, who at the time of the gen 3 release were 5 to 15, likely less than 25% played at all.

Pokémania overall lasted from early 1999 to early 2001, even though more accurately it gradually disappeared from late 2000 to mid 2001. By the time Crystal was released, Pokémon was already normalized as a popular franchising with a solid fanbase, but was no longer capable to be really mainstream.

Until 2016.

In 2016 with Pokémon Go, Pokémon becomes again a mass topic. Just so many people, and mostly adults at that, downloaded it on their phones. At the time there were only the first 151 Pokémon. However it did not even last a year and by the time gen 2 was added it was no longer that popular. And history repeated itself.

Thanks to gen 2 being heavily foreshadowed by the Anime and other merchandising at the height of Pokémania, and to the release of the 2nd Movie in USA well before the release of the gen 2 games, some gen 2 Pokémon, but mostly just Togepi and Lugia, are some of the most iconic, and the same can be said for the heavily pushed out Lucario.

Other than that, to all average people, who are mostly 30+ or non Pokémon gamers, Pokémon IS gen 1 Pokémon. The human characters they would be able to name are Red (obviously in the form of Ash), Blue (in the form of Gary), Misty, Brock and Team Rocket (Jessie and James from Yellow and the Anime), and not May, Dawn or Hilda (or Iris, since Hilda for ridiculous reasons was not used in the Anime), Team Magma, Team Galactic or Team Plasma. The strongest Pokémon to them is Mewtwo, not Arceus, and the Legendary trio is the Legendary birds. And literally anyone knows Pikachu, if not also Charizard.

I feel like I'm going crazy!

Back in the day when I was first learning about the more complex mechanics in the DS games I remember scouring Bulbapedia and coming across some obscure fact about Korean language versions of either the Gen IV or V games that led to me kind of wanting to get my hands on a copy of one.

I suspect it had something to do with breeding and/or ditto but I'm not sure if I just misunderstood the Masuda method at the time...

I know that's not much to go off of but it's been itching at my brain recently and there is very little information about any Korean releases, so I was hoping someone might be able to help!

Hey! Is there a website or app that allows you to remove pokemon from a giant list?

I’m doing a full generation 1-10 playthrough, and want to avoid reusing the same pokemon.

Hello,

I'm on my way to catch Salamence in Sun, (1% encounter via pre evolution and then 1% via SOS route 3 zone 2), and next I want to catch the level 100 magikarp in platinum.

I did get munchlax in gen 4, dunsparce in gen 2, Chansey from gen 1 and such...

So in this spirit, I would like to know what can I get for my collection, just in case I overlooked some of them.

Thank you !

Edits to share wich ones we consider for the list :

Gen I

• Chansey (and such in safari) ✓

Gen II

• Dunsparce evolved to Dundunsparce ✓
• Celebi crystal virtual console ✓

Gen III

• Feebas ✓

Gen IV

• Munchlax ✓
• Magikarp level 100 ✓

Gen V

• N's pokémon
• Shiny Haxorus ✓

Gen VI

• Flabebe ✓

Gen VII

• Salamence route 3 ✓
• Zygarde 100% ✓

Gen VIII

• Sinistea antique ✓
• A rare marked Pokémon

Gen IX

• Magikarp lvl 100
• Poltchageist artisan form
• A rare marked Pokémon

I really like the longer routes where you have to manage your pokemon and items. However when I played the first gen 7 games it felt like there was a pokemon center around every corner. Akala island (middle one on this map) was especially egregious; First there is Heahea city pokecenter, then route 4, then Paniolla town pokecenter, then route 5 with its own center, and route 8 is connected to it and has yet another pokemon center. If you drew a straight line between the last 3 the distance would probably be less than 200 meters. I can't remember if you go to route 8 right after 5 but the density of pokemon centers is super high and makes it feel more like a theme park than an adventure.

Contrast this with pokemon emerald's route 119 leading up to Fortree city. Every poketuber hypes this map up but for a good reason as it is a long and expansive route that throws a lot of different pokemon and challenges at you. Without being too tiring or tedious I would hope that if pokemon goes back to routes that there would be more like this.

I think another factor making the routes feel shorter in SM is that Z-moves are disproportionately powerful in shorter battles. A single Z-move may not make or break a battle between 6 pokemon on each team, but against a trainer with 2 mons, a Z-crystal will take out half their team. Add in the fact that there aren't HMs any more and even without the EXP share, players have more of a leg up against NPC trainers than ever before. This makes it so that the only challenge you will have is against the totem mons, and a few specific trainers.

However I can see why some people would like the added convenience so I wanted to ask your thoughts on the matter. Was it an issue for you, or did you even notice?

TL'DR: Too many pokemon centers made an already condensed region feel even smaller to me.

The comments on the other one were mostly negative, and I get why, but it got me thinking about what I'd like to see.

First, the quotes: It wouldn't just be Kanto. Kanto and Johto as regions are connected in my mind, as someone who played HGSS before RBY and has never played FRLG. The basic idea I'm thinking of would probably be more of a "reimagining" than a remake, too.

I want to see Kanto and Johto imagined more like Paldea, but with a bit more restriction. Kanto and Johto are already established to have a ton of mountains boxing them in, as well as large coastlines, and this can easily be taken advantage of. Since the Kanto midgame is incredibly open already, this would mostly serve to make sure you still have to say, go through Viridian Forest and Rock Tunnel, at least the first time around.

I imagine that there would be multiple ways to get from Kanto to Johto and back, allowing players to move between both regions as they wish. This would be pretty easy to manage, since the starting towns (and thus progression) are both toward the lower-center of both regions combined. Players would have to get a full set of either region's gym badges to enter the League, but progression in either region would allow for use of field moves, possibly encouraging strategizing to get them as soon as possible.

Players would have a different rival in each region, which I think still works well. Silver always felt less like he was your rival and more like you were his rival, and there are a few options for Kanto. If it went with Blue, he could be trying to prove his training was better, even if your Pokemon were objectively stronger. If they go with Trace... well, I don't know anything about Trace, actually. It seems like he mirrors the player more than Blue did, so he might be integrateable in an "actually, this was the story's protagonist, not you" kind of way.

I could see both rivals being made much tougher / more gimmicky to account for the extra experience the player naturally would gain. They get annoying in response to there being more you can do. You'd see stuff like FEAR (would killing Blue's Raticate be more justified if he FEAR'd you early on?), minimize, parafusion, and more, from these trainers trying out strategies that could still win even though they're disadvantaged.

I also wouldn't restrict the regions to their original Pokedexes. Ideally, what I'd like to see is instead a Native Pokedex and the National Pokedex. Pokemon originally from the respective regions would have a much higher chance to spawn in general, and would be registered in the Native Pokedex. Pokemon from other regions would be rarer (and it definitely wouldn't be all of them) but still around, and would register to the National Pokedex. The Pokedexes would be less given for you to record data on the Pokemon themselves, but instead Oak and Elm are looking for information on how the introduction of non-native species has impacted Kanto and Johto's ecosystems.

What do you guys think about this? I don't think it would happen still, of course. I think actually mixing things up like this and doing away with heavily route-based design could really help make Kanto and Johto feel new and exciting again.

Even though I started with gen 3, thanks to RFLG gen 1 will always be by far my favorite. And that is exactly why I really hate LGPE. I always wanted, from like 10 years ago when I still buyed and played all new Pokémon games, a definitive Kanto remake. And LGPE in a way should have been just that. However it is definitely not : it is barely even a true mainline title, let alone the "definitive" version of Pokémon's original region.

However after LGPE they will no longer make Kanto remakes, or this is what will most likely happen.

Yet here are my ideas for such game : it would have the same basic mechanics of the last released generation, so if they made it in 2024 it would have all gen 9 basic battle mechanics and move learnsets, however the graphics would be close to gen 5, the most advanced 2D graphics of the franchising, just with modern high definition. Indeed, I never liked Pokémon 3D graphics. From now I will put in brackets all ideas I am not sure about.

There would only be the first 151 Pokémon, (or at least so would the Pokédex be like. Gen 1 Pokémon with an evolution would get it if the evolution method is avaible, but they will not be in the Pokédex.) All NPCs would still only have gen 1 Pokémon and only gen 1 Pokémon will be encountered.

There would be no Z moves, no Gigantamax and no Terastalizing, and, while I like Mega Evolutions, I guess it would not make sense to use them while not using all the other more recent gimmicks. (If Mega Evolutions are used, then many more weak gen 1 Pokémon whould get one.) Even if used, only the player will be able to use Mega Evolutions.

It would be set 2 years later than the gen 1 events. 1 year earlier than GSC, just because there will be no gen 2 Pokémon in Kanto, unlike in GSC. The player character would not be Red, but rather a different mute character. But I do not want the Rival to be a random kid like in LGPE. So, who could be ? A possibility is the female gen 1 Rival, known as Blue in Japan and Green in USA. Another is a character based on Yellow from Pokémon manga, but with a different name.

There would be 5 starters : Bulbasaur, Charmander, Squirtle, Pikachu and Eevee (which would be able to evolve into any from its 8 evolutions, but only 3 will be in the Pokédex). The Rival would have Charmander if you choose Bulbasaur, Squirtle if you choose Charmander, Bulbasaur if you choose Squirtle, Eevee later evolving into Jolteon if you choose Pikachu, Pikachu if you choose Eevee.

Team Rocket and Giovanni would return, but the Gym Leader of Viridian City would be the male Rival, as in gen 2. The main storyline would revolve around Team Rocket's quest for capturing and controlling Mewtwo. This would actually involve finding Red, who mysteriously disappeared 1 year earlier, because in this timeline Red did actually manage to catch and control Mewtwo. It will be revealed Mewtwo has human DNA.

All base stages of all gen 1 Pokémon would be found in the wild, even the starters. All 5 gen 1 Legendary Pokémon would be in, and the birds would spam again if killed. Mew would be avaible after beating the Elite 4.

There would be a new Battle Tower, in Kanto, if not even a new Battle Frontier.

Here the Teams and level curve of gym Leaders and Elite 4 :

Brock

Geodude L 13

Kabuto L 13

Omanyte L 13

Onix L 14

Misty

Psyduck L 20

Horsea L 20

Poliwhirl L 20

Starmie L 21

Lt Surge

Magnemite L 23

Voltorb L 23

Electabuzz L 23

Raichu L 24

Erika

Tangela L 29

Victreebell L 29

Parasect L 29

Vileplume L 30

Janine -not Koga, and you will see why at the end-

Wheezing L 42

Golbat L 42

Nidoqueen L 42

Muk L 43

Sabrina

Hypno L 42

Jynx L 42

Exeggutor L 42

Alakazam L 43

Blaine

Rapidash L 46

Magmar L 46

Ninetales L 46

Arcanine L 47

Blue

Rhydon L 49

Gyarados L 49

Exeggutor L 49

Arcanine L 49

Pidgeot L 50

Lorelei

Dewgong L 54

Jynx L 54

Slowbro L 54

Cloyster L 54

Lapras L 55

Koga -here the surprise-

Muk L 56

Golbat L 56

Venomoth L 56

Nidoking L 56

Wheezing L 57

Bruno

Primeape L 58

Poliwrath L 58

Hitmonchan L 58

Hitmonlee L 58

Machamp L 59

Agatha

Marowak L 60

Parasect L 60

Clefable L 60

Gengar L 60

Gengar L 61

Lance -the Champion after Red disappeared and Blue became a Gym Leader-

Gyarados L 64

Aerodactyl L 64

Seadra L 64

Charizard L 64

Dragonite L 64

Dragonite L 65

After the first time you beat the Elite 4 the main storyline event would happened and you would have to fight Giovanni after he got control over Mewtwo, here the Team

Dugtrio L 68

Rhydon L 68

Nidoking L 68

Nidoqueen L 68

Persian L 69

Mewtwo L 70

After this you woukd have to fight the 8 Gym Leaders and the Elite 4 again...

Rematch Teams

Brock

Golem L 66

Kabutops L 66

Omastar L 66

Aerodactyl L 66

Onix L 66

Rhydon L 67

Misty

Golduck L 68

Seadra L 68

Poliwrath L 68

Vaporeon L 68

Blastoise L 68

Starmie L 69

Lt Surge

Magneton L 70

Electrode L 70

Electabuzz L 70

Jolteon L 70

Tauros L 70

Raichu L 71

Erika

Tangela L 72

Victreebell L 72

Parasect L 72

Exeggutor L 72

Venusaur L 72

Vileplume L 73

Janine

Wheezing L 74

Golbat L 74

Nidoqueen L 74

Venomoth L 74

Arbok L 74

Muk L 75

Sabrina

Hypno L 74

Jynx L 74

Exeggutor L 74

Mr Mime L 74

Slowbro L 74

Alakazam L 75

Blaine

Rapidash L 76

Magmar L 76

Ninetales L 76

Flareon L 76

Charizard L 76

Arcanine L 77

Blue

Rhydon L 78

Gyarados L 78

Exeggutor L 78

Arcanine L 78

Jolteon L 78

Charizard L 79

Lorelei

Dewgong L 80

Jynx L 80

Cloyster L 80

Slowbro L 80

Chansey L 80

Lapras L 81

Koga

Muk L 82

Golbat L 82

Venomoth L 82

Nidoking L 82

Snorlax L 82

Wheezing L 83

Bruno

Primeape L 84

Poliwrath L 84

Hitmonchan L 84

Hitmonlee L 84

Tauros L 84

Machamp L 85

Agatha

Marowak L 86

Parasect L 86

Clefable L 86

Gengar L 86

Kangaskhan L 86

Gengar L 87

Lance

Gyarados L 90

Aerodactyl L 90

Seadra L 90

Charizard L 90

Dragonite L 90

Dragonite L 91

Finally Red's Team, to be fought after you have beaten the Elite 4 two times...

Pikachu L 94

Lapras L 94

Snorlax L 94

Vaporeon L 94

Venusaur L 94

Mewtwo L 95

In the anime it comes from the Kalos region, yet it's in the Alolan dex. I've always thought of it as a Kalosian Pokemon because of the anime and the timing of its reveal.

I’ve been seeing a lot of people claiming that Zeraora was originally intended to be in generation 6, but I have not been able to find a source for the information. Does anyone have a source for this information? (Centro is not a reliable source.)

I’ve also seen the claim paired with people saying Ultra Beasts were planned for Gen 6 as well. This gives me pause on the credibility of any of this info, as it conflicts with the fact that Game Freak developers had previously mentioned in interviews that Ultra Beasts were inspired by invasive species which were a big problem in Hawaii (Alola).

I really want to try to create my own version of existing pokemon towns to see how much i can improve them.

It's not to be playable, just for the fun to create.

So i'm wondering if there is some site like Inkarnate which are specialised to create pokemon maps.

Basically just the title. Bulbapedia doesn't list them on the Light Clay page, but it would seem odd for it not to...

I think you all know about the unhinged scrapped fourth gen Canalave folk tales that depict Pokémon being tortured and killed for fun, Typhlosionanthropes impregnating young women, humans laying with Pokémon and stuff.

You have to remember that they were scrapped and that, like all myths, they are just an allegory of ancient times, not to mention that they aren't even in the games.

I'll continue ti call the Cyndaquil line my favourite among Johtho starters. And I still like Lapras, who has quite a role and scenes in PMD2...

On one hand I think it's a needed feature for mainline titles, since people really just wants more things to do in the games, when you ain't playing the story, maybe you could simply learn competitive battling, master all 300 curry or sandwich or catch them all to pan the game out, but not everyone is into that, which is okay.

So, I do think sidequest features is a much needed thing to add.

On the other hand, what I would fear is that said multiple sidequest would either be nothing more than a reskinned fetch quest variants, or a bunch of mini games that has nothing to do with core game, like a Yakuza Game, which would be fine especially for the kids, but it probably would eat alot of dev time gamefreak don't have much time already, that they could have use to polish the actual game more.

I think instead, I hope bunch of sidequest could more like a challenge on your understanding of the Game, like maybe a sidequest help train another fellow kids pokémon, by that I mean YOU have to battle using that kids Pokémon in a battle, and that kid used yours. Like a rental pokemon, you win the gauntlet of challenges you get a really good item like a free focus sash or something.

Also to make the sidequest feels less padding, maybe make each one has a "personal reason" that you can do them, by simply alligning them to fit the players end goal of becoming the champion, with maybe actual results like obtaining an item to help get your Pokémon in the end.

Similar to how the anime can make ash ketchum able to do other than just training between each battle, by saying stuff like "if you bake a cake, you can meet the world champion Leon"