At least the math test could be missed if doing mentally or in the last one, when it asks you the answer of the first
Veilstone Gym in Platinum sucks, it takes a lot of time when you hit the bags, the rolling yellow things were much better
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Unpopular opinions
- Thread starter antemortem
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At least the math test could be missed if doing mentally or in the last one, when it asks you the answer of the first
Veilstone Gym in Platinum sucks, it takes a lot of time when you hit the bags, the rolling yellow things were much better
To me I'd personally say that Gen 3 was sort of the experimental generation that Gen 4 built upon and made its identity with its games. Gen 4 is praised for a lot of reasons, aside from the fact that it was the era when the second wave of Pokemon fans rolled in, but in many ways the big things it has going for it (and this applies to the DS era as a whole) aside from that green_typhlosion mentioned is the sheer amount of fun content the games have. The games are still pretty simple in terms of story, but what they have going for them is content. The regions are great to explore, but what DPP and HGSS offer is the amount of stuff you can do after becoming Champion. DP had a whole lot to explore after defeating Cynthia in Route 224 and the Battle Zone, and it brought back Contests from Gen 3. Platinum took it even further and added a Battle Frontier, which returned in HGSS. HGSS brought back Kanto but expanded upon it so there was genuinely more to do there, and added loads of content that made for a game that gave you so, so much to do aside from the main campaign: it modernized GSC by adding more stuff like Pokeathlon, the Frontier, more legendaries to find in Kanto, and vice versa plus stuff like Gym Leader rematches, the Safari Zone that is customizable, and vice versa.
The DS era was all about having more to explore and more to do in those new areas. Gen 5 had this too, with BW1 having half the region left unexplored for post-game, more post-game dungeons, and Alder+bonus bosses in Cynthia and Morimoto, and BW2 did this too with more of the region to explore, Pokemon World Tournament, and more.
Each game in Gen 3 was sort of the experimental stepping stone that led to the creation of what Gen 4 was all about and what defined the DS era the most. Ruby and Sapphire had a pretty barebones postgame like the two gens before it, but it added Contests and Secret Bases as fun features that DPP retained. FRLG added the Sevii Islands as new areas to explore and train your Pokemon, which was a big aspect of Gen 4/5 postgames in DPP, HGSS, BW, and BW2 with the Battle Zone, Kanto, and certain parts of Unova. Sevii was sort of the building block that led to all that. Emerald had the Battle Frontier as a full blown multi-battle facility post-game to do, which Platinum and HGSS brought back in their own spin.
Of course, that's not to say that Gen 3 was the only experimental/testing ground generation for the gen/era that came after. Gen 5, despite sticking to many things Gen 4 did, was also an experimental ground in and of itself. And how? It tried to experiment with adding a story to tell in Pokemon games. One of the reasons Gen 5 gets praise now is it had a really cool story to a Pokemon game to make it feel even more like an RPG, and this is something that would define the 3DS era. The 3DS era, with Gen 6 and especially Gen 7, was all about trying to create a story alongside the adventure beyond the simple "Get 8 badges, fill that Dex, and become the Champion", and tried to create characters and a story arc for many of them to make a more story-driven experience. This is aside from the fact that Gen 6 brought in yet *another* wave of Pokemon fans with new kids joining the Pokemon craze (aka the third wave), and in many ways like Gen 4 it also brought a lot of modernizations and innovations.
You can see this in how the 3DS games have a lot of story-driven elements in their adventures. XY's execution was a bit of a mess, but it definitely tried to have a story to tell, especially when one of its post-game quests is also a story in and of itself with Looker and Emma. ORAS also focused a lot on story, by fleshing out the characters and turning the barebones story of RSE into something that was genuinely quite cool to experience. Not to mention the post-game Delta Episode that added more to the lore of Hoenn. SM and USUM are, of course, incredibly story driven, especially the former. The games like SM and USUM and even the likes of ORAS have a lot of this, and even now there are people who *do* praise them because they loved the story they experiences with these games. USUM added quite a bit in terms of story and lore by adding a post-game story to call its own as well, with the Rainbow Rocket ep and looking at the Lillie/Gladion/Lusamine dynamic in a different angle from SM. Some could say the overall execution was worse (and in some ways, it is), but it's also an alternate angle at some of the characters' dynamics and personalities that SM didn't touch upon.
(I unfortunately can't really pinpoint on what Gen 7 tried to experiment with that Gen 8 expanded upon, because rn we only have Sword and Shield so I can't tell what the Switch era's schtick is, but if anyone can identify it I'd love to have some input).
A bit of a side note from that, but as an unpopular opinion in and of itself. I think Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire are really great remakes, and overall really great games. I think a lot of people were a bit disappointed in them because they compared it to HeartGold and SoulSilver in terms of how they fleshed out and expanded upon their source games, but I think ORAS is also an awesome game and one of my favorites in the series, but I think they improve upon the original RSE differently. As such, I also really like ORAS for different reasons than HGSS. While HGSS fleshed out its source game by adding loads of awesome content to do in the post-game, and having a lot of stuff to do and more places to explore, I think where ORAS excels instead is in taking the Gen 5 approach and fleshing out the story. It took a rather weak and barebones story from Ruby and Sapphire and made it genuinely interesting to experience, by expanding upon the lore of Hoenn, fleshing out the characters to make them more interesting, and creating a truly enjoyable adventure to experience in Hoenn. That's not even to mention how it made Hoenn even more beautiful and seeing it in a modern light was so cool, just as HGSS did in making GSC Johto even better and more awesome. Plus while it didn't quite add the scope of content that HGSS had, it did still have a lot of cool features despite not having a Frontier. Soaring across Hoenn on Latios/Latias was awesome, and getting an overhead view of Hoenn was and still is cool, and finding a lot of Mirage Spots and tons of legendaries was still awesome, plus upgraded E4/Steven rematches like HGSS did with its own E4 and Lance. Not to mention the return of Contests, which are even better than in Gen 3. Overall I do really like ORAS, and appreciate it even more now in hindsight because when I look at it for what it is, and not for what I wanted it to be, I can truly appreciate it for the fact that it really is great in its own right and does a great job in reimagining the RSE experience in a modern light, just in a different fashion from how HGSS did it with GSC.
Finally, completely unrelated to the above, but tying into Champions. I think Alder is an incredibly underrated Champion. He's not the most memorable probably because you don't battle him the first time you go to the League, but he was one of the most involved Champions we ever had, even moreso than Cynthia or Steven pre-ORAS. He's not the strongest in terms of team, but he was one of the strongest morally and had a very compelling backstory. He's a man who seeks to teach the younger generation to love Pokemon, above all else, rather than sheer pursuit of strength, and while he does enjoy battling, he more than anything wishes to bring Pokemon and people even closer together, even after he retires in BW2, and challenges Cheren's viewpoint in that sense. But he's also a foil to N: while N wishes to separate people and Pokemon in BW1, Alder sees Pokemon and people and wants them to be strong together through bonds of trust and friendship. Even moreso, while N is determined to assert his way as superior, refusing to accept different ways of living, Alder is open and tries to spread understanding even in spite of differences. This is apparent even after N is defeated by you at the castle, where even though N defeated him, Alder still tried to reach out his hand to N as a friend, and tells him that even if people cannot fully understand each other's different viewpoints, that is not a reason to reject them, which shows how strong morally he is, and is key to N's growth that we see especially in BW2. It also ties wonderfully into the theme of truth vs ideals, and how at their core, both are based on perspective more than anything, and there is no one right answer: that answer is different for everyone.
His backstory also ties into his character now, in that he once upon a time madly pursued strength with his first partner Pokemon until one day, his original Volcarona died from illness, and that changed him profoundly and made him the man with the viewpoints he has today. This really ties into how he approaches Cheren: back in BW1 he was merely concerned with strength, but Alder changed that, because he knew from his past and still regrets that he never pursued a more meaningful goal with his first partner Pokemon, and he wants to make sure Cheren doesn't go down the road he did. He is a man driven by his life experience more than anything, and much of his character is based on what he lived in his entire life. I think that makes for a genuinely great character and a really cool Champion in his own right.
(end of long-ass rants lmao)
The DS era was all about having more to explore and more to do in those new areas. Gen 5 had this too, with BW1 having half the region left unexplored for post-game, more post-game dungeons, and Alder+bonus bosses in Cynthia and Morimoto, and BW2 did this too with more of the region to explore, Pokemon World Tournament, and more.
Each game in Gen 3 was sort of the experimental stepping stone that led to the creation of what Gen 4 was all about and what defined the DS era the most. Ruby and Sapphire had a pretty barebones postgame like the two gens before it, but it added Contests and Secret Bases as fun features that DPP retained. FRLG added the Sevii Islands as new areas to explore and train your Pokemon, which was a big aspect of Gen 4/5 postgames in DPP, HGSS, BW, and BW2 with the Battle Zone, Kanto, and certain parts of Unova. Sevii was sort of the building block that led to all that. Emerald had the Battle Frontier as a full blown multi-battle facility post-game to do, which Platinum and HGSS brought back in their own spin.
Of course, that's not to say that Gen 3 was the only experimental/testing ground generation for the gen/era that came after. Gen 5, despite sticking to many things Gen 4 did, was also an experimental ground in and of itself. And how? It tried to experiment with adding a story to tell in Pokemon games. One of the reasons Gen 5 gets praise now is it had a really cool story to a Pokemon game to make it feel even more like an RPG, and this is something that would define the 3DS era. The 3DS era, with Gen 6 and especially Gen 7, was all about trying to create a story alongside the adventure beyond the simple "Get 8 badges, fill that Dex, and become the Champion", and tried to create characters and a story arc for many of them to make a more story-driven experience. This is aside from the fact that Gen 6 brought in yet *another* wave of Pokemon fans with new kids joining the Pokemon craze (aka the third wave), and in many ways like Gen 4 it also brought a lot of modernizations and innovations.
You can see this in how the 3DS games have a lot of story-driven elements in their adventures. XY's execution was a bit of a mess, but it definitely tried to have a story to tell, especially when one of its post-game quests is also a story in and of itself with Looker and Emma. ORAS also focused a lot on story, by fleshing out the characters and turning the barebones story of RSE into something that was genuinely quite cool to experience. Not to mention the post-game Delta Episode that added more to the lore of Hoenn. SM and USUM are, of course, incredibly story driven, especially the former. The games like SM and USUM and even the likes of ORAS have a lot of this, and even now there are people who *do* praise them because they loved the story they experiences with these games. USUM added quite a bit in terms of story and lore by adding a post-game story to call its own as well, with the Rainbow Rocket ep and looking at the Lillie/Gladion/Lusamine dynamic in a different angle from SM. Some could say the overall execution was worse (and in some ways, it is), but it's also an alternate angle at some of the characters' dynamics and personalities that SM didn't touch upon.
(I unfortunately can't really pinpoint on what Gen 7 tried to experiment with that Gen 8 expanded upon, because rn we only have Sword and Shield so I can't tell what the Switch era's schtick is, but if anyone can identify it I'd love to have some input).
A bit of a side note from that, but as an unpopular opinion in and of itself. I think Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire are really great remakes, and overall really great games. I think a lot of people were a bit disappointed in them because they compared it to HeartGold and SoulSilver in terms of how they fleshed out and expanded upon their source games, but I think ORAS is also an awesome game and one of my favorites in the series, but I think they improve upon the original RSE differently. As such, I also really like ORAS for different reasons than HGSS. While HGSS fleshed out its source game by adding loads of awesome content to do in the post-game, and having a lot of stuff to do and more places to explore, I think where ORAS excels instead is in taking the Gen 5 approach and fleshing out the story. It took a rather weak and barebones story from Ruby and Sapphire and made it genuinely interesting to experience, by expanding upon the lore of Hoenn, fleshing out the characters to make them more interesting, and creating a truly enjoyable adventure to experience in Hoenn. That's not even to mention how it made Hoenn even more beautiful and seeing it in a modern light was so cool, just as HGSS did in making GSC Johto even better and more awesome. Plus while it didn't quite add the scope of content that HGSS had, it did still have a lot of cool features despite not having a Frontier. Soaring across Hoenn on Latios/Latias was awesome, and getting an overhead view of Hoenn was and still is cool, and finding a lot of Mirage Spots and tons of legendaries was still awesome, plus upgraded E4/Steven rematches like HGSS did with its own E4 and Lance. Not to mention the return of Contests, which are even better than in Gen 3. Overall I do really like ORAS, and appreciate it even more now in hindsight because when I look at it for what it is, and not for what I wanted it to be, I can truly appreciate it for the fact that it really is great in its own right and does a great job in reimagining the RSE experience in a modern light, just in a different fashion from how HGSS did it with GSC.
Finally, completely unrelated to the above, but tying into Champions. I think Alder is an incredibly underrated Champion. He's not the most memorable probably because you don't battle him the first time you go to the League, but he was one of the most involved Champions we ever had, even moreso than Cynthia or Steven pre-ORAS. He's not the strongest in terms of team, but he was one of the strongest morally and had a very compelling backstory. He's a man who seeks to teach the younger generation to love Pokemon, above all else, rather than sheer pursuit of strength, and while he does enjoy battling, he more than anything wishes to bring Pokemon and people even closer together, even after he retires in BW2, and challenges Cheren's viewpoint in that sense. But he's also a foil to N: while N wishes to separate people and Pokemon in BW1, Alder sees Pokemon and people and wants them to be strong together through bonds of trust and friendship. Even moreso, while N is determined to assert his way as superior, refusing to accept different ways of living, Alder is open and tries to spread understanding even in spite of differences. This is apparent even after N is defeated by you at the castle, where even though N defeated him, Alder still tried to reach out his hand to N as a friend, and tells him that even if people cannot fully understand each other's different viewpoints, that is not a reason to reject them, which shows how strong morally he is, and is key to N's growth that we see especially in BW2. It also ties wonderfully into the theme of truth vs ideals, and how at their core, both are based on perspective more than anything, and there is no one right answer: that answer is different for everyone.
His backstory also ties into his character now, in that he once upon a time madly pursued strength with his first partner Pokemon until one day, his original Volcarona died from illness, and that changed him profoundly and made him the man with the viewpoints he has today. This really ties into how he approaches Cheren: back in BW1 he was merely concerned with strength, but Alder changed that, because he knew from his past and still regrets that he never pursued a more meaningful goal with his first partner Pokemon, and he wants to make sure Cheren doesn't go down the road he did. He is a man driven by his life experience more than anything, and much of his character is based on what he lived in his entire life. I think that makes for a genuinely great character and a really cool Champion in his own right.
(end of long-ass rants lmao)
But it's a GYM! Like, an actual one! I can't believe it took them four generations to make a gym that's an actual gym. The puzzle might be a little underwhelming but it's so stylish it almost compensates.
Hard agree, Alder is by far and away the best champion (and that's the Pokemon-related hill I'm willing to die on)
While we're on topic of the Gen 5 games, here's mine: The Unova region should have been based on California.
Specifically, the San Francisco Bay Area to be exact. Why? Well, as someone who lived in the Bay Area for their who life, and is of Asian Descent ( Specifically from South Asia ) I believe the Bay Area has a stronger " melting pot " vibe than New York. We have a whole lot of different ethnicities living in this part, ranging from South Asia, China, Japan, African American, European etc. They exist in relatively good harmony to each other ( Granted there have been racial tensions due to COVID ) and we have things like Chinese New Year and LGBTQ + parades in San Francisco.
Speaking of San Francisco, its a technological capital full of all the latest companies and has a lot of exciting sites like museums dedicated to the Holocaust and Galleries dedicated to Modern Art and Impressionism artists like Monet. And that's not mentioning Los Angeles which has Hollywood which is what PokeStar Studios is based off of! So in other words, California has a rich culture and history that can serve as lot of inspiration for Pokemon. It makes a lot more sense to have Pokemon based off Oni in the Bay Area than it is in New York.
And there's unique abundance of ecosystems! Notably, California has the Chaparal ecosystem, which is a one-kind unique ecosystem. In fact, the California Government is so dedicated to protecting it, they ban a lot of common pets that they wear would destroy the environment if released, including Ferrets, Gerbils, and Quaker Parakeets. And in the South, we have the Palm Springs Deserts, while in the North we have mountains that are covered in snow that is a popular ski resort. And that's before the bays. Imagine exploring areas like that in Pokemon In contrast, New York does not have any deserts, nor does it have a unique system like the California Chapparal.
That being said, even if Unova was a missed opportunity , I would still love a region based California for the aforementioned above.
Specifically, the San Francisco Bay Area to be exact. Why? Well, as someone who lived in the Bay Area for their who life, and is of Asian Descent ( Specifically from South Asia ) I believe the Bay Area has a stronger " melting pot " vibe than New York. We have a whole lot of different ethnicities living in this part, ranging from South Asia, China, Japan, African American, European etc. They exist in relatively good harmony to each other ( Granted there have been racial tensions due to COVID ) and we have things like Chinese New Year and LGBTQ + parades in San Francisco.
Speaking of San Francisco, its a technological capital full of all the latest companies and has a lot of exciting sites like museums dedicated to the Holocaust and Galleries dedicated to Modern Art and Impressionism artists like Monet. And that's not mentioning Los Angeles which has Hollywood which is what PokeStar Studios is based off of! So in other words, California has a rich culture and history that can serve as lot of inspiration for Pokemon. It makes a lot more sense to have Pokemon based off Oni in the Bay Area than it is in New York.
And there's unique abundance of ecosystems! Notably, California has the Chaparal ecosystem, which is a one-kind unique ecosystem. In fact, the California Government is so dedicated to protecting it, they ban a lot of common pets that they wear would destroy the environment if released, including Ferrets, Gerbils, and Quaker Parakeets. And in the South, we have the Palm Springs Deserts, while in the North we have mountains that are covered in snow that is a popular ski resort. And that's before the bays. Imagine exploring areas like that in Pokemon In contrast, New York does not have any deserts, nor does it have a unique system like the California Chapparal.
That being said, even if Unova was a missed opportunity , I would still love a region based California for the aforementioned above.
I think overall its own region is better than wishing Unova was California instead of New York (and I'm not just saying that because I live in New York).
While being a melting pot is one theme of Unova, I feel Unova has other factors to it which was based off it being based on New York thus wouldn't exist without it. Take, for example, the bridges of Unova. Sure, San Francisco may have one of the most famous bridges, but since Manhattan is an island with (at least in the game) the main way to travel to and from it is via bridges that gave GF the idea of essentially the big circle Unova is known for with the four bridges forming the "corners".
I think California would make for a neat region, I would likely guess "technology" would be a big theme due to it having Silicon Valley, but I don't think it would have served the same purpose as GF saw New York having.
And meanwhile, I'm here in Chicago visualizing it being part of a region full of Cornn Berry fields because that's what 90% of Illinois outside of Chicago and its suburbs is.
Random NPC (likely after a battle): "Man, getting a house is stupidly complicated. They're charging over 10 million Pokedollars but we're only able to carry 9,999,999! What do they think they're selling, bikes?"
Suddenly that $5 million requirement to hypothetically join Team Flare doesn’t seem so bad after all.
I’m stuck in the middle in this California debate: while I do think there are other places the Unova region could have been based on, I can’t seem to decide which of those places would be the best fit. Fun fact, I actually recall hearing somewhere that the Orre region from the GameCube spin-offs was based on Phoenix, Arizona but I don’t know if that’s actually true. I think New York (the city) was probably the best option they had, with Los Angeles, San Francisco, and the entire state of Florida not far behind. The peninsula shape just kind of works in my opinion.
One more opinion that may or may not be unpopular while we’re on the subject: Unova’s beta name (Alleos) should have stayed.
Another one of my personal unpopular opinions is that the statement "Unova is underrated" is getting alot more overrated. As much as I like Unova myself (considering it introduced my favorite pokemon of all time), I have seen the majority of pokemon fanbase saying that BW/2 were some of the best games and countless people consider gen 5 to be the golden age of pokemon. I'm not saying Unova is overrated btw, I just mean that it isn't as underrated as people make it out to be. Besides most people that hate Unova are obvious genwunners which are pretty rarely seen these days.
As a resident of London that was my major gripe with Wyndon. "Wait, this person has a house to himself?!"
You know what region is underrated and is unpopular compared to the others? The Alola region. I get it, Alola is newer than most, and there are things about the games themselves people find 50/50, but I honestly think the Alola storyline as a whole is incredibly well written and gives the region a sense of self-awareness of its role in the Pokémon franchise- something most other regions distinctly lack. I’d even go as far as to say that Alola did Pokémon’s 20th anniversary better than Sinnoh did Pokémon’s 10th anniversary back in 2006-07. Heck, even Cynthia herself shows up for Sinnoh’s 10th birthday. The island hopping nature of Alola is very unique and blends great with Alola’s theme of tradition in how the trials are handled.
The Alola games also introduced so much cool stuff that we take for granted. SOS battles are an excellent new Shiny Hunting method, Z-Moves were an actually balanced and fun gimmick unlike Mega Evolution (which also appears in Gen 7 for those who do like it), the Ultra Beasts gave us a new take on Legendaries... I could go on for a while now.
As much as I prefer the SM plot over the USUM plot, it’s hard to say that the Ultra games aren’t better from a gameplay perspective. It only seems like DLC because USUM took more of a Platinum route than a B2W2 route, so to speak, while still being split versions. I for one actually support this decision of game design, thinking that “S2M2” as I’ll call it wouldn’t have worked as well as B2W2 did.
Also, a quick note just to get this off my chest: Game Freak thinking that the Unova sequels were a financial failure isn’t true. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise, because there’s no evidence to support that. B2W2 didn’t sell worse than BW because they were sequels, they sold worse because we went to the same region again in general. This could be another unpopular opinion in and of itself.
Now this is mostly for the first 2 battles but, I like that Hop says "So you've mastered type-matchups?" etc, because (In-game) you are a new trainer who just got their first pokemon, whereas Hop has had a Wooloo for a while. I think this is neat because it builds upon the fact that you are new.
Though I do agree that when he STILL says it in Circhester, or even the League, it's kinda annoying and makes no sense anymore. I mean you've beaten 5 to 8 gyms, of course you know type matchups.
Though I do agree that when he STILL says it in Circhester, or even the League, it's kinda annoying and makes no sense anymore. I mean you've beaten 5 to 8 gyms, of course you know type matchups.
Y'know what? I actually agree with you. Alola is underrated as it actually tried to be a full fledged game and expanded on some of the content that gen 6 lacked like zygarde formes or ash greninja while also had better open world activities.
Though I think TMan87 is right why it got underappreciated. And it was mostly bcoz of ultra versions which were rather uneccesory and added little content while having the same price as the previous games
Must be a family quirk or something.
*someone puts out a fire with water*
"Oh, you really know type matchups!"
USUM are the games I feel are worse in terms of enhancements. They added lackluster amount of content like putting most old legendaries in a randomizer and it has even more tutorials and cutscenes over SM.
Also they are the games where I lost my second competitive living dex because of a wifi corruption. 1000+ hours wasted in a blink of an eye.
Aside from that, I feel the story is even more luckluster than SM. USUM's story feels kinda random:
- Lusamine suppose to be a "hero" but still hunts after her daughter and has frozen Pokemon in her room.
- Racoon Squad in the intro give the impression of badguys, but they suppose to be people trying to stop Necrozma. Or at least ask for help to stop Necrozma.
SM lacked good grinding spots. USUM feels like it's just worth buying it for the ability to grind on of SOS chaining Chansey. And the tutor moves which at that point should be in the maingame.
It annoys me that tutor moves have been put into the next games of the same generation, instead being in the game from the start. It makes the first row of Pokemon games at the start of a generation rather pointless.
Also they are the games where I lost my second competitive living dex because of a wifi corruption. 1000+ hours wasted in a blink of an eye.
Aside from that, I feel the story is even more luckluster than SM. USUM's story feels kinda random:
- Lusamine suppose to be a "hero" but still hunts after her daughter and has frozen Pokemon in her room.
- Racoon Squad in the intro give the impression of badguys, but they suppose to be people trying to stop Necrozma. Or at least ask for help to stop Necrozma.
SM lacked good grinding spots. USUM feels like it's just worth buying it for the ability to grind on of SOS chaining Chansey. And the tutor moves which at that point should be in the maingame.
It annoys me that tutor moves have been put into the next games of the same generation, instead being in the game from the start. It makes the first row of Pokemon games at the start of a generation rather pointless.
Yup. I literally sold my copy of Sun and used the proceeds to buy Ultra Moon (just for a bit of variety) as soon as the sequels were announced. What's the point in having the first game? Sure the story's better but in practical terms USUM make the former two completely obsolete.
One of the biggest reasons I prefer the original Sun & Moon over the Ultra versions is actually because of how USUM struggles to keep an identity. It wants to be a hard game but quite frankly isn't. It wants to be the more gameplay focused of the two and the overadded dialogue sequences make it hard to enjoy that. It wants to be a game aimed towards the aging fanbase but prefers quantity over quality whereas the originals do the opposite in this regard. Not to mention they removed many Pokemon from base Alola in exchange for the increased regional PokéDex size.
See a pattern here? USUM wants to try and fix the problems of the originals, of which I believe there were very few, but ends up shooting itself in the foot instead. Here's a really good example of how the originals are better at keeping their role in the franchise. The game seems self-aware of the fact that Pokémon fans are getting older, and as a result, we saw... maybe a little too many innuendos in that game. I find it underrated on its own how SM felt more maure than the average game. Aaaaand then the Ultra games threw that out the window. Who else remembers that part at Exeggutor Island in the rainstorm? The Ultra games replaced Lillie for this part but were too lazy to give the other dude new dialogue...
See a pattern here? USUM wants to try and fix the problems of the originals, of which I believe there were very few, but ends up shooting itself in the foot instead. Here's a really good example of how the originals are better at keeping their role in the franchise. The game seems self-aware of the fact that Pokémon fans are getting older, and as a result, we saw... maybe a little too many innuendos in that game. I find it underrated on its own how SM felt more maure than the average game. Aaaaand then the Ultra games threw that out the window. Who else remembers that part at Exeggutor Island in the rainstorm? The Ultra games replaced Lillie for this part but were too lazy to give the other dude new dialogue...
Some more short thoughts on various recent topics:
Gen 4 being similar to Gen 3
I have never thought about this before, but after reading posts by others about it now, I can definitely see it. That said, I definitely agree that Gen 4 should be considered a spritual successor or a refinement of Gen 3, not a "clone" or something along those lines.
I also feel that there are a lot that Gen 3 does similar to Gen 1, I thought about this recently and I guess this is a good opportunity to bring it up. For instance, many Gen 3 Pokémon are similar to various Pokémon from Gen 1. Some notable examples are the Wurmple line and the Caterpie/Weedle lines, the Skitty and Meowth lines, the Corphish and Krabby lines, the Spheal and Seel lines, the Feebas and Magikarp lines, and possibly others too. It is funny because Gen 5 often gets a lot of hate for having many Pokémon similar to Pokémon from Gen 1, but after looking a little deeper, I feel that the same goes for Gen 3. I remember reading old Serebii threads a while ago and one common complaint about Gen 3 back during the the days when it was the newest was just this, how many Pokémon were "rip-offs" of old ones.
As for more similarities, both Gen 1 and 3 start with a Rock-type Gym (which Gen 4 does as well) and has an Electric-type Gym as the third Gym. There are also Fire-, Psychic-, and Water-type Gyms throughout the regions (although in different orders) and technically a Fighting-type Gym as well if we count the Dojo in Saffron in the Kanto games. Regarding the E4, there are many similarities as well. Three of the Hoenn E4 members use the same types as the E4 in Kanto (Ghost, Ice and Dragon). Their genders are also the same (Drake and Lance are male, Phoebe, Glacia, Agatha and Lorelei are female). Then the last member of the Hoenn E4 uses Dark-types, while Johto previously had a Dark-type user in its E4.
So there are a lot of similarities between Gen 1 and Gen 3 as well, though I wouldn't go as far as to consider Gen 3 a "rip-off" of Gen 1 or something. And I don't consider this to be something negative towards Gen 3 either, I really feel that it manages to have its own identity despite having many similarities to Gen 1. The same goes for Gen 4, which I feel manages have an identity of its own despite having many similarities to Gen 3.
Also, regarding new fans of the series. I believe that every generation creates new fans, not just Gen 4 & 6. Though, those might have created more new fans than other generations, maybe there are "waves" of new fans once in a while, I don't really know.
Sinnoh Gyms
Not sure if I prefer the ones in D/P or Platinum, it has been too long since I played the main story of the Sinnoh games so I don't really remember how they were. However, one thing I was a little disappointed by in Platinum was how it did not feature completely new puzzles or layouts for every Gym, like Emerald did (except for the Petalburg Gym). But that's okay, I still like Platinum a lot.
Alder
I agree about Alder being a great Champion (he's my second favorite after all). His character, backstory and involvement in the main story is amazing. I still prefer Iris though.
Should Unova have been based on the San Francisco Bay Area instead of New York?
I don't think so. I think it was fine that they based Unova on New York. Though I wouldn't mind if they made a region based on the SF Bay Area in the future. I'm not from the US and the only two major US cities I have visited for more than a day are Phoenix and Chicago, so I think that making regions based on other US cities/areas are very welcome because it feels quite exotic for me.
Is Unova overrated, and is Alola underrated?
I don't think so. Unova is my favorite region, so I think it deserves the praise it gets. On the other hand, I think Alola as a region is average at best. It was okay in the end, but not quite on the same level as Unova, Sinnoh, Hoenn or Kalos. So it does not deserve too much praise. IMO, both regions are correctly rated rather than over/underrated.
SM or US/UM?
Back to yet another endless discussion subject. As I have stated many times before, I prefer US/UM. Should the things they added have been DLC for S/M instead? Yes. But now that's not the case, and because of that, I prefer US/UM because they are the games that have many of the things that S/M are missing. I really can't see any reason to go back to S/M after playing US/UM. Yes, US/UM could have made more and better improvements, but what they did are enough for me.
Gen 4 being similar to Gen 3
I have never thought about this before, but after reading posts by others about it now, I can definitely see it. That said, I definitely agree that Gen 4 should be considered a spritual successor or a refinement of Gen 3, not a "clone" or something along those lines.
I also feel that there are a lot that Gen 3 does similar to Gen 1, I thought about this recently and I guess this is a good opportunity to bring it up. For instance, many Gen 3 Pokémon are similar to various Pokémon from Gen 1. Some notable examples are the Wurmple line and the Caterpie/Weedle lines, the Skitty and Meowth lines, the Corphish and Krabby lines, the Spheal and Seel lines, the Feebas and Magikarp lines, and possibly others too. It is funny because Gen 5 often gets a lot of hate for having many Pokémon similar to Pokémon from Gen 1, but after looking a little deeper, I feel that the same goes for Gen 3. I remember reading old Serebii threads a while ago and one common complaint about Gen 3 back during the the days when it was the newest was just this, how many Pokémon were "rip-offs" of old ones.
As for more similarities, both Gen 1 and 3 start with a Rock-type Gym (which Gen 4 does as well) and has an Electric-type Gym as the third Gym. There are also Fire-, Psychic-, and Water-type Gyms throughout the regions (although in different orders) and technically a Fighting-type Gym as well if we count the Dojo in Saffron in the Kanto games. Regarding the E4, there are many similarities as well. Three of the Hoenn E4 members use the same types as the E4 in Kanto (Ghost, Ice and Dragon). Their genders are also the same (Drake and Lance are male, Phoebe, Glacia, Agatha and Lorelei are female). Then the last member of the Hoenn E4 uses Dark-types, while Johto previously had a Dark-type user in its E4.
So there are a lot of similarities between Gen 1 and Gen 3 as well, though I wouldn't go as far as to consider Gen 3 a "rip-off" of Gen 1 or something. And I don't consider this to be something negative towards Gen 3 either, I really feel that it manages to have its own identity despite having many similarities to Gen 1. The same goes for Gen 4, which I feel manages have an identity of its own despite having many similarities to Gen 3.
Also, regarding new fans of the series. I believe that every generation creates new fans, not just Gen 4 & 6. Though, those might have created more new fans than other generations, maybe there are "waves" of new fans once in a while, I don't really know.
Sinnoh Gyms
Not sure if I prefer the ones in D/P or Platinum, it has been too long since I played the main story of the Sinnoh games so I don't really remember how they were. However, one thing I was a little disappointed by in Platinum was how it did not feature completely new puzzles or layouts for every Gym, like Emerald did (except for the Petalburg Gym). But that's okay, I still like Platinum a lot.
Alder
I agree about Alder being a great Champion (he's my second favorite after all). His character, backstory and involvement in the main story is amazing. I still prefer Iris though.
Should Unova have been based on the San Francisco Bay Area instead of New York?
I don't think so. I think it was fine that they based Unova on New York. Though I wouldn't mind if they made a region based on the SF Bay Area in the future. I'm not from the US and the only two major US cities I have visited for more than a day are Phoenix and Chicago, so I think that making regions based on other US cities/areas are very welcome because it feels quite exotic for me.
Is Unova overrated, and is Alola underrated?
I don't think so. Unova is my favorite region, so I think it deserves the praise it gets. On the other hand, I think Alola as a region is average at best. It was okay in the end, but not quite on the same level as Unova, Sinnoh, Hoenn or Kalos. So it does not deserve too much praise. IMO, both regions are correctly rated rather than over/underrated.
SM or US/UM?
Back to yet another endless discussion subject. As I have stated many times before, I prefer US/UM. Should the things they added have been DLC for S/M instead? Yes. But now that's not the case, and because of that, I prefer US/UM because they are the games that have many of the things that S/M are missing. I really can't see any reason to go back to S/M after playing US/UM. Yes, US/UM could have made more and better improvements, but what they did are enough for me.
Just wanted to say that I agree with this. I feel the same way about OR/AS, and about many other games as well. Over time, I have come to appreciate many games for what they are, not for what I wanted them to be or for what they could have been. This is mostly notably for the games from Gen 6 and on. I have always liked X/Y but I have really learned to appreciate them more over time. And as said, the same goes for OR/AS. As well as US/UM and S/S, for that matter. Sadly, I don't feel that way about S/M because I prefer US/UM. I wish I could say this for HG/SS as well, but I feel they just have too many issues to the point that I don't think I can ever appreciate them for what they are rather than what I think they could and should have been.
Which ones did they remove? I can't think of any apart from the Island Scan Pokémon, and the ones that got removed got replaced by others anyway.
Now here's an opinion I can get behind. I think Alder is unfairly glossed over because you don't fight him until the post-game and he's not as cool or hard as Cynthia. He's a well-written character and his team embodies it pretty well. GF's apparent reluctance to try out an experiment like him again is disappointing, especially because they tried to return to form with Diantha in X/Y and it was nowhere near as good as Cynthia.
On the topic of ORAS, I honestly like ORAS as games more than RS.
The initial games felt like a step back from GS. I know some of my problems are related to technical limitations but Hoeen felt rather boring and lacking of replay value for me coming from GS.
The game is very favorable for Water Types.
ORAS is however a bit too different from RS. It changes the skript and characters in a way that it doesn't feel like remakes but a reimagining. Stuff got cut like going through that one tunnel to find steven to see him immediately after you enter the cave.
Sky Pillar is completely different from what it used to be.
Non of the elements of Emerald were implemented. Not even Navel Rock where Ho-Oh and Lugia could have stayed instead of putting them into Hoopa Rings.
And you get a Lati handed for free.
Oh yes, Mega Evolution being implemented into the main story not only makes the game awfully easy, but also changes the flow of the region's lore to the point parallel universes were introduced and I don't want to go there any further.
As fanservice it is a neat game, but as a remake what the fans wanted, especially with the line about the Battle Frontier, it feels like a slap in the face.
My opinion of these games are more negative knowing that the Frontier was purposely excluded because "most won't appreciate it" because Mobile Games.
I thought the games were made for the fans. Remember? "Hoeen confirmed"?
As for Gen 4 vs Gen 3.
I considered Gen 4 more like a spiritual successor to Gen 2 similar how I felt Gen 3 was to Gen 1. Old Pokemon get pre-evolution and evolution by a noticable amount. They are also the games with remakes of the Gen's they are succeeding.
Thinking about it more, I struggle to find a lot of stuff in common with gen 2 and 4.
The initial games felt like a step back from GS. I know some of my problems are related to technical limitations but Hoeen felt rather boring and lacking of replay value for me coming from GS.
The game is very favorable for Water Types.
ORAS is however a bit too different from RS. It changes the skript and characters in a way that it doesn't feel like remakes but a reimagining. Stuff got cut like going through that one tunnel to find steven to see him immediately after you enter the cave.
Sky Pillar is completely different from what it used to be.
Non of the elements of Emerald were implemented. Not even Navel Rock where Ho-Oh and Lugia could have stayed instead of putting them into Hoopa Rings.
And you get a Lati handed for free.
Oh yes, Mega Evolution being implemented into the main story not only makes the game awfully easy, but also changes the flow of the region's lore to the point parallel universes were introduced and I don't want to go there any further.
As fanservice it is a neat game, but as a remake what the fans wanted, especially with the line about the Battle Frontier, it feels like a slap in the face.
My opinion of these games are more negative knowing that the Frontier was purposely excluded because "most won't appreciate it" because Mobile Games.
I thought the games were made for the fans. Remember? "Hoeen confirmed"?
As for Gen 4 vs Gen 3.
I considered Gen 4 more like a spiritual successor to Gen 2 similar how I felt Gen 3 was to Gen 1. Old Pokemon get pre-evolution and evolution by a noticable amount. They are also the games with remakes of the Gen's they are succeeding.
Thinking about it more, I struggle to find a lot of stuff in common with gen 2 and 4.
As much I hate to say this... hot take, but they’re actually right. Pokémon fans will always find a way to complain about anything, and while I don’t really understand what mobile gaming had to do with this, I can’t get myself to think that this feature would be enough to turn ORAS into a “bad” Pokémon game. It sucks that it was cut, sure, but is the inevitable complaining from a fanbase this toxic (you guys in the forums are great for the most part) worth the effort of adding in seven battle facilities, half of which aren’t even that popular?
Edit: I am not saying I dislike the Battle Frontier. Besides, I feel like that opinion would be a little too unpopular. I am only saying that Game Freak being aware of the fanbase’s lack of appreciation is a sign that some people need to get their sh** together.
I mean with this kind of reasoning you could justify removing literally any feature. Why even bother coding the underground in the Sinnoh remakes? The shitty fanbase is gonna harass Masuda on twitter anyway!!!
At the end of the day, corners get cut because games are getting more difficult to make and game freak is still following the same release schedule as 20 years ago, not because of some sort of cat and mouse game with the fanbase.