Worst Pokemon Sprites?

If I recall correctly, the Steelix sprite in Diamond and Pearl looks like it's floating because it's disconnected from its shadow. It always bothered me whenever I saw it.

"Okay, Steelix is officially the pokemon with the best balancing skills..."


"What have you done to my legs?"


"Eternally frozen in the slashing position, Scyther had no choice but to stay in this awkward stance. I do wonder how he gets himself out of this mess!"
 
Pokemon Platinum was an excellent game. In fact, it is a serious contender for my favourite main series game. However, many of its sprites just look... really, really awkward. I feel like the team in charge of them felt the need to have them all in different poses, to make it look different from Diamond/Pearl. Some of them look okay, but the majority of them just look... forced, compared to the more natural DP sprites.

Turtwig's head is tilted at a pretty awkward angle.


Staraptor just doesn't look as intimidating from this angle. It just looks more disinterested, which I suppose could be taken as a sign that it doesn't think you're a worthy opponent, but DP's "Im'a tear you to shreds" sprite is way better in my opinion.


I misinterpreted Roserade's Platinum sprite for a really long time. It looks like it has a big, toothy grin going from its blue rose up to the very edge of its face. I still have to look hard to see the sprite for what it actually is, a mask.


Derp.


"Captain, we're losing altitude fast!"


When I think of forced Platinum poses, Shellos-West is always the first one that springs to mind. It just looks so... unnatural leaning back with its mouth open like that. Compare it to its DP sprite:

Leaning forward, mouth closed, inquisitive look... it looks like it's curious about you. So adorable!


Nope, nothing suggestive here.

Then again, I suppose every Lopunny sprite has the same problem.

Those eyes... Why, Game Freak, WHY?

Gengar just doesn't look as cool standing in this pose. Not to mention its ears being way too small.


I suppose Pikachu is still cute no matter how it's sprited, but to me this one just doesn't have the same charm as the DP and HGSS ones.

DP sprite: Looks like a little kid fighting his heart out, exactly what Riolu is. One of my favourite sprites (Nope, definitely no bias at all)
Platinum sprite: Umm... dancing? Doing the can-can maybe?

Dear Arceus. This sprite. Hippowdon has been talked about on the last page, so I won't go into it too deeply, but... just, ugh. The DP sprite looks like something that you do not want to mess with - it's opening its mouth and showing off its jaws just to show how powerful it is! Platinum's sprite? It looks like it wants to take a nap. When I first fought Bertha in DP, I was legitimately intimidated by this thing, even though I had a Torterra. Platinum just didn't convey the same feeling.


This isn't a bad pose per se - in fact, it's pretty cool. It just looks really weird since Weavile's right arm is coming straight at you, so you don't see it at all. Its head is also tilted at sort of an odd angle.


That is NOT how dragonflies normally fly around.


When I think of Froslass, I think of many things. Cold, silent, mysterious. Something you might meet on a dark winter night. Remember that anime episode where Ash and co. meet a Froslass in a frozen mountain range that brings them to a nice warm lodge, but then it's revealed to all be an illusion? Yeah, something like that. Its DP sprite models this perfectly. Its Platinum sprite, however, does not; it looks almost like it's dancing. Platinum's sprite also ruins the illusion that its arms are attached to its "body" instead of its head.

Giratina may be Platinum's mascot, but something about this sprite just seems off. I think it's the positions of the claws on the wings.

Now that I think about it more, I think the reason I don't like a lot of Platinum's sprites is because the official art depicts the DP sprites, so those are the ones we come to see as "normal".

It's not all bad for Platinum, though; most of DP's poses were really generic, and when the repose isn't forced, the result can be excellent.

That is one awesome fighting pose.

Shinx's front legs look much more natural compared to DP's.

Golem looks like a sumo wrestler in this sprite, which I think fits it perfectly.

A brief example of how much more personality you can get with 4 arms as opposed to 2.

D'awwwwww.

Mismagius is facing the right way this time.

Platinum's sprite much better suits Lucario's calmness-favoured fighting style than DP's. (Definitely no bias here either)

"Hey. You. You messin' with me? I wonder what happens if I scratch you with my poison claw."

Platinum fixed DP's ungodly abomination of a Gliscor sprite. Seriously, how did GF manage to botch a later-gen Pokemon's debut sprite so badly?

Hell yeah.

They gave Dusknoir a more natural, if less menacing, sprite. If only Dusknoir wasn't so bad in competitive battling.

Now I know where Hippowdon's terrifying open mouth pose went. Rhyperior stole it.
 
Y'know, I feel like talking about trainer sprites now. They're sprites, and they're in Pokemon, so it works.

Quite frankly, the Fairy Tale Girl's sprite has always bothered me:


Scratch that, it's frickin' creepy af


The dress and overall design work flavourwise, but that face just ruins it. Creepy, soulless eyes that stare into your very being and say, "I will see you again, when you're all alone, and you will not escape me" alongside the weird smile just creeps me out beyond words.
Compared to the overworld Sprite, the battle sprite makes very little sense:


(pardon the picture, I couldn't actually find a good overworld sprite)


Compared to their equivalent, the Hex Maniac, this makes Hex Maniacs look positively normal(at least Hex Maniacs make sense design-wise)
 
Pokemon Platinum was an excellent game. In fact, it is a serious contender for my favourite main series game. However, many of its sprites just look... really, really awkward. I feel like the team in charge of them felt the need to have them all in different poses, to make it look different from Diamond/Pearl. Some of them look okay, but the majority of them just look... forced, compared to the more natural DP sprites.

Turtwig's head is tilted at a pretty awkward angle.


Staraptor just doesn't look as intimidating from this angle. It just looks more disinterested, which I suppose could be taken as a sign that it doesn't think you're a worthy opponent, but DP's "Im'a tear you to shreds" sprite is way better in my opinion.


I misinterpreted Roserade's Platinum sprite for a really long time. It looks like it has a big, toothy grin going from its blue rose up to the very edge of its face. I still have to look hard to see the sprite for what it actually is, a mask.


Derp.


"Captain, we're losing altitude fast!"


When I think of forced Platinum poses, Shellos-West is always the first one that springs to mind. It just looks so... unnatural leaning back with its mouth open like that. Compare it to its DP sprite:

Leaning forward, mouth closed, inquisitive look... it looks like it's curious about you. So adorable!


Nope, nothing suggestive here.

Then again, I suppose every Lopunny sprite has the same problem.

Those eyes... Why, Game Freak, WHY?

Gengar just doesn't look as cool standing in this pose. Not to mention its ears being way too small.


I suppose Pikachu is still cute no matter how it's sprited, but to me this one just doesn't have the same charm as the DP and HGSS ones.

DP sprite: Looks like a little kid fighting his heart out, exactly what Riolu is. One of my favourite sprites (Nope, definitely no bias at all)
Platinum sprite: Umm... dancing? Doing the can-can maybe?

Dear Arceus. This sprite. Hippowdon has been talked about on the last page, so I won't go into it too deeply, but... just, ugh. The DP sprite looks like something that you do not want to mess with - it's opening its mouth and showing off its jaws just to show how powerful it is! Platinum's sprite? It looks like it wants to take a nap. When I first fought Bertha in DP, I was legitimately intimidated by this thing, even though I had a Torterra. Platinum just didn't convey the same feeling.


This isn't a bad pose per se - in fact, it's pretty cool. It just looks really weird since Weavile's right arm is coming straight at you, so you don't see it at all. Its head is also tilted at sort of an odd angle.


That is NOT how dragonflies normally fly around.


When I think of Froslass, I think of many things. Cold, silent, mysterious. Something you might meet on a dark winter night. Remember that anime episode where Ash and co. meet a Froslass in a frozen mountain range that brings them to a nice warm lodge, but then it's revealed to all be an illusion? Yeah, something like that. Its DP sprite models this perfectly. Its Platinum sprite, however, does not; it looks almost like it's dancing. Platinum's sprite also ruins the illusion that its arms are attached to its "body" instead of its head.

Giratina may be Platinum's mascot, but something about this sprite just seems off. I think it's the positions of the claws on the wings.

Now that I think about it more, I think the reason I don't like a lot of Platinum's sprites is because the official art depicts the DP sprites, so those are the ones we come to see as "normal".

It's not all bad for Platinum, though; most of DP's poses were really generic, and when the repose isn't forced, the result can be excellent.

That is one awesome fighting pose.

Shinx's front legs look much more natural compared to DP's.

Golem looks like a sumo wrestler in this sprite, which I think fits it perfectly.

A brief example of how much more personality you can get with 4 arms as opposed to 2.

D'awwwwww.

Mismagius is facing the right way this time.

Platinum's sprite much better suits Lucario's calmness-favoured fighting style than DP's. (Definitely no bias here either)

"Hey. You. You messin' with me? I wonder what happens if I scratch you with my poison claw."

Platinum fixed DP's ungodly abomination of a Gliscor sprite. Seriously, how did GF manage to botch a later-gen Pokemon's debut sprite so badly?

Hell yeah.

They gave Dusknoir a more natural, if less menacing, sprite. If only Dusknoir wasn't so bad in competitive battling.

Now I know where Hippowdon's terrifying open mouth pose went. Rhyperior stole it.
I've covered a number of these sprites and i agree with all the 'worst' ones. I do not agree with your view of Buizel. I just think it doesn't look as 'badass' it was meant to...

Then again, I look straight away at the first pokemon in National dex of Platinum and I get this:
upload_2016-4-26_20-28-27.png

What? What dance is he doing?

upload_2016-4-26_20-29-47.png

At least this dance is consistant but then again, Venusaur seems to be looking at his leg...
 
It's supposed to be hanging down from the (invisible) ceiling.

I personally like it way more than the 3D one.
Yeah, but like... it isn't? Makes perfect sense for the back sprite but not so much if it is on the opposing side of the field lol. Probably why they changed it in B2/W2. And yeah, generally speaking I prefer gen5's animated sprites over the new 3d models, but that's neither here nor there.
 
Now remember Nidorina? Despite its somewhat eternally angry expression, it can still be cute like in this sprite:

I'm sure this trait has been retained from this original sprites of Red and Green in Japa-

MOMMY, I'M SCARED.

And also:

Since when was Ghastly a dying Undertale monster?


Finally, this:

Who's that Pokemon? Seriously, try to guess what the heck this thing is without searching it up.
 
Now remember Nidorina? Despite its somewhat eternally angry expression, it can still be cute like in this sprite:

I'm sure this trait has been retained from this original sprites of Red and Green in Japa-

MOMMY, I'M SCARED.

And also:

Since when was Ghastly a dying Undertale monster?


Finally, this:

Who's that Pokemon? Seriously, try to guess what the heck this thing is without searching it up.
Should I really spoil that last question for the uninformed?
 
Though really, the most dissapointing thing about the Gen 1 sprites is that they could have been SO much better. I don't think any technical limitations kept these sprites from being good.
Just look at how the Bulbasaur could have looked:
bulbafix.png
How nice! This is just a recoloured version of the Crystal sprite. (And those games had the same dimensions for the front sprites.)
*sigh* Oh well. Instead, we should be thankful that Gen 2 didn't look like-
hitmonfix.png
NOPE.
 
Replaying old Emerald, I always have some weird irk to animation that is... involving size expansion. Case in point....

I get her stance. I don't get how she expands and shrink.
I recall this happens to others like Umbreon, Ralts family, and others....

And Delphox's model when viewing her profile is too small. I couldn't even make out her face outside battle and Amie other than >:|
(。ˋ︿ˊ)
Shame, when closed up, Delphox actually looks cool with serious expression.
I don't know who else would have the same problem with their size too large to render their face well enough when viewed in PC.

Finally, this:

Who's that Pokemon? Seriously, try to guess what the heck this thing is without searching it up.
One thing I'm sure is that I want to drown this thing and bury it in deep ocean.
Ahem, at least mohawk is funnier than sweet roll.
 
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Replaying old Emerald, I always have some weird irk to animation that is... involving size expansion. Case in point....

I get her stance. I don't get how she expands and shrink.
I recall this happens to others like Umbreon, Ralts family, and others....
Honestly, I think that Gengar is one of the worst offenders:

Regardless, I believe that the size increasing thing is supposed to represent the power exerted by the Pokémon in question. Kind of like what happens when you use Night Shade or Extrasensory in the games...

In fact, a lot of Psychic-types tend to "expand".

But speaking of animations, am I the only one who prefers the old Crystal animations over the Emerald ones? I personally find the former more dynamic, lively and with more "personality" than the latter. Just to show a few examples...
-->

-->

-->

-->

-->

-->

-->

-->

-->


Granted, there isn't much you can do with only two frames, but I wonder why they didn't use at least three or four frames in the DPPt and HGSS games. I bet the animations would have been way smoother.
 
Honestly, I think that Gengar is one of the worst offenders:

Regardless, I believe that the size increasing thing is supposed to represent the power exerted by the Pokémon in question. Kind of like what happens when you use Night Shade or Extrasensory in the games...
 
sorry, but I have serious personal problems with Vulpix.

In fact, a lot of Psychic-types tend to "expand".
Ah yes, I remember Gengar also is creepy weird that way. Well, I thought of that too, but then... it looks awkward when they just size the sprite. It'd be more understandable if they do it with translucent apparition like in those two moves. Oh well, sprite limitation, isn't it....

And just a little mention, but your signature reminds me that Latias now doesn't have the permanent smile.... (。’•︿•‘)
 

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