Little things you like about Pokémon

[Codraroll]

I Guess what I'm saying is we cant use how stellar some of the artwork is as proof of Artists getting all the time & money in the world while the Developers got way less of that to experience the True Vision. The contexts are entirely different, and sometimes depending on the art even between each other.
SWSH is at least more of a conversation, though, since the in-game aesthetics (....wild area aside) are generally quite good even though the areas are quite empty; the contrast is much higher than normal but even then I think that's probably more a different set of issues.

What I mean is, the aforementioned areas look pretty dang good in-game, so they were obviously based on good concept art. Whoever was responsible for the look and feel of the locations (Wild Area aside, obviously) put in solid work. But the areas are also often so small that it looks like there was no time to implement more than the bare minimum. So all the time spent creating a good visual concept for the Ultra Megalopolis resulted in a straight corridor in the game. Ballonlea is four buildings in the forest. Turffield is a pretty big village - that's mostly fenced off, and we only get to enter a couple of buildings plus the stadium. The visual identity is there, and it's pretty good in most cases, but the locations barely look like more than samples of that visual identity. As if the Ultra Megalopolis seen in USUM, and most of the locations in Galar, was just the concept demonstration for the look and feel of the real thing.

It also lends some credence to the theory of the Wild Area being a very late addition to the game, as it doesn't look like it was given much art direction. It's mostly a bleak and unappealing place, coloured with shades of brown and grey-green, almost entirely devoid of landmarks. It seems like the modelers really didn't have the same level of concept artwork to base the area on, and as a result, it's a pretty drab place. The need for changing weather can't have helped much either, as that means a whole variety of different visual filters had to be added to it.

 

[DrPumpkinz]

As I was thinking of obscure spinoffs and non-video games a little while ago, I wondered if there was an official Pokemon chess set. It seemed like a perfect fit. Most video game chess sets use the main protagonist, main villain, and their seconds-in-commands for the king and queen (Mario chess uses Mario, Luigi, Bowser, and Bowser Junior, for example) but this doesn't really mesh with the mechanics of chess because the king is weak as shit. However, Pokemon can use trainers for the kings and their ace Pokemon for the queen, which accurately reflects Pokemon battles if they involved the real-world war tactic of targeting whoever is giving orders to the troops. It would also be a lucrative opportunity to squeeze money from collectors. In addition to selling the board with two trainer teams (Red and Blue seem like the obvious choices), there could be additional trainers sold separately.

So I looked up if it exists, and it turns out that while there does not seem to be an official chess set with Pokemon pieces, there is some much cooler. Pokemon took chess (or more accurately, shogi) and made it their own.

Meet Pokemon Battle Chess. There are two versions of this game, each with different pieces, but the rules are consistent between them.

• The game is played on a 7x7 grid.
• The objective of the game is to hatch the opponent's egg and defeat the target Pokemon inside.
• On your turn, you must perform one of the following actions, and cannot perform more than one:
  • Move one of your Pokemon
  • Initiate a battle between one of your Pokemon and an adjacent enemy Pokemon
    • The enemy must be in a square the Pokemon could otherwise move too. For example, a regular chess bishop could only challenge an enemy in the four squares diagonally adjacent to it.
  • Move one of your Pokemon and then initiate a battle between that Pokemon and an adjacent enemy Pokemon.
    • The enemy still needs to be in a square that Pokemon could otherwise move to, but it does not need to be in the same direction that you just moved. For example, a regular chess rook could move forward three squares and then challenge and enemy to its left.
    • Yes, this is basically just the previous two actions smushed together, but the instruction booklet counts it as a separate action, and it's easier to explain this way anyway.
  • Summon a legendary Pokemon (more on this later)
  • If you can't do perform any of those actions, you lose.
• Battles play out like so:
  • The challenging player compares their attacking Pokemon's power stat (basically its speed stat) with the power of the opponent's defending Pokemon. If the challenger's power is less than or equal to the defender's power, the challenger draws a Plus Power card and adds the given value to their attacker's power.
    • There are only six Plus Power cards: +0, +0, +20, +30, +40, and +70. The deck is reshuffled whenever the 70 is drawn.
  • Once any Plus Power stuff is taken care of, the power stats are compared again, and the Pokemon with the higher power attacks. In the event of a tie, neither Pokemon attacks.
  • If a Pokemon is hit with an attack, it is flipped over to indicate that it has been damaged. If it is hit with a second attack, it is removed from the board and placed in the cost area (more on this later).
    • Pokemon have different movement options and power stats when they get flipped over.
• There are a two special types of piece:
  • Egg Pieces
    • Each player has three egg pieces that represent how cracked their target Pokemon's egg is.
    • Egg pieces cannot attack, and if it is hit with an attack, it is not flipped over, but instead placed directly into the cost area and replaced with the next egg piece in the sequence.
      • If the third egg piece is attacked, it is instead replaced with the target Pokemon.
    • I say "replaced", but the physical pieces are all in a stack, so all you need to do is just remove the top piece.
  • Legendary Pokemon
    • Each player has two legendary Pokemon that can be summoned by removing either three or four pieces from the cost area.
    • After removing the appropriate number of pieces from the cost area, the legendary Pokemon can be placed at any valid location on the board.
    • Legendary Pokemon are larger than normal Pokemon, occupying a 2x2 square, which limits where they can move or be summoned, but allows them to attack two Pokemon simultaneously.
      • A Power Plus is drawn if either opponent has a higher power than the legendary.
        • If both opponents have a lower power but add up to a higher power, you don't draw a Power Plus because power is just speed and your legendary is going to be attacking regardless. I only point this out because it's something I was confused about for a while.
      • If the legendary has a higher power than both its opponents, both opponents get attacked.
      • If the legendary's power is lower than one opponent but higher than the other, the low-power opponent gets attacked, then the high-power Pokemon attacks the legendary.
      • In the rare event that the legendary's power is lower than both opponents, I'm pretty sure the legendary gets attacked twice and just dies on the spot.
      • You can only attack two Pokemon at once if they are both in the direction you're attacking, and you can't attack one without attacking the other.
      • I'm pretty sure the opponents must also be orthogonally adjacent, but I'm not sure because the only legendary who can attack diagonally is in the version that can't be played online, and the instruction booklet isn't super clear.
    • If a legendary Pokemon is removed from the board, it is not placed in the cost area, and instead just gets set aside.

Now that the rules are out of the way, here are the pieces. I'll split them between the two versions. The first version is called Pokemon Battle Chess BW, and the second is strangely just called Pokemon Battle Chess. I'm just gonna call them versions 1 and 2.

Version 1

Patrat
Power: 60/50 (second number is when flipped)

Z
	Z
			X​
		X​		X​
			X​
					Z
						Z

(Patrat's movement isn't changed when it gets flipped) (If you can see this, the Z's are just there to keep the cells from collapsing)

Zoroark
Power: 70/50

Z	Z
			X​
		X​	X​	X​
			X​
					Z
						Z

(Zoroark's movement isn't changed when it gets flipped)
(The visualization is mirrored vertically for your opponent's piece)

Serperior
Power: 90/60

			X​
			X​
			X​
X​	X​	X​		X​	X​	X​
			X​
			X​
			X​

(If the X's reach all the way to edge, that means the Pokemon can move any number of spaces in that direction)

Z
			X​
			X​
	X​	X​		X​	X​
			X​
			X​
						Z

Samurott
Power: 90/60

X​						X​
	X​				X​
		X​	X​	X​
		X​		X​
	X​				X​
X​						X​

Z
	X​				X​
		X​	X​	X​
		X​		X​
	X​				X​
						Z

Emboar
Power: 70/100

Z
	Z
		X​		X​
			X​
					Z
						Z

Z
	Z
		X​	X​	X​
		X​		X​
			X​
					Z
						Z

Egg
As previously noted, eggs have no power, and are replaced with the next in the series if attacked.
This is also the only piece to not use art from Battle Trozei. They match the color of the piece, so the blue team's egg is blue instead of yellow.

Z
	Z
		Z
				Z
					Z
						Z

Z
	Z
	Z
		X​		X​
					Z
					Z
						Z

Z
	Z
			X​
		X​		X​
			X​
					Z
						Z

Victini (hatches from egg)
Power: 40/80

Z
	Z
		X​	X​	X​
		X​		X​
		X​	X​	X​
					Z
						Z

Z
	X​		​		X​
		X​	X​	X​
		X​		X​
		X​	X​	X​
			X​
						Z

Zekrom (legendary)
Power: 110/100
Can be summoned with three pieces from the cost area.

Z
	Z		X​	X​
			X​	X​
		X​			X​
		X​			X​
			X​	X​
			X​	X​		Z
							Z

(Legendary movement is shown on an 8x8 grid so it fits properly)

Z
	Z
			X​	X​
		X​			X​
		X​			X​
			X​	X​
						Z
							Z

Reshiram (legendary)
Power: 120/100
Can be summoned with four pieces from the cost area.

Z
	Z
			X​	X​
		X​			X​
		X​			X​
			X​	X​
						Z
							Z

(Reshiram's movement isn't changed when it gets flipped)

At the start of the game, the pieces are organized like this:

Z
Z
						Z

Version 2

Meowth
Power: 70/60

Z
	Z		X​
		X​	X​	X​
			X​
					Z
						Z

Z
	Z
		X​	X​	X​
			X​
					Z
						Z

Magikarp/Gyarados
Power: 40/90
Magikarp is unique in that its name and appearance are changed when it gets flipped.

Z
	Z
			X​
		X​		X​
					Z
						Z

Z
			X​
			X​
		X​		X​
		X​		X​
	X​				X​
						Z

Pikachu
Power: 80/60

Z
	Z
		X​	X​	X​
		X​		X​
			X​
					Z
						Z

(Pikachu's movement isn't changed when it gets flipped)

Venusaur
Power: 100/??

			X​
			X​
			X​
X​	X​	X​		X​	X​	X​
			X​
			X​
			X​

I was unable to find any information about Venusaur's flipped attributes. This version has almost no information on Bulbapedia, and Venusaur's flipped side isn't pictured in the instruction booklet, nor could I find it anywhere on Google Images.

Charizard
Power: 100/70

X​						X​
	X​				X​
		X​		X​
		X​	X​	X​
	X​				X​
X​						X​

Z
	X​			​	X​
		X​		X​
		X​	X​	X​
	X​				X​
						Z

Eggs work exactly the same as in the previous version, except they're red and green instead of yellow and blue.

Togepi (hatches from egg)
Power: 40/70

Z
	Z
		X​	X​	X​
		X​		X​
		X​	X​	X​
					Z
						Z

Z
			X​
		X​	X​	X​
	X​	X​		X​	X​
		X​	X​	X​
			X​
						Z

Ho-Oh (legendary)
Power: 90/120
Can be summoned with three pieces from the cost area.

Z
	Z
			X​	X​
		X​			X​
		X​			X​
			X​	X​
						Z
							Z

(Ho-Oh's movement isn't changed when it gets flipped)

Lugia (legendary)
Power: 120/100
Can be summoned with four pieces from the cost area.

Z
	Z
		X​	X​	X​	X​
		X​	X​	X​	X​
						Z
							Z

(Lugia's movement isn't changed when it gets flipped)
Now I know why the instruction booklet wasn't clear on what Lugia can attack. It's not easy to properly illustrate Lugia's ability to move diagonally and vertically, but not horizontally, using boxes.

At the start of the game, the pieces are organized like this:

Z
Z
						Z

There is also a third version, called Pokemon Battle Chess W, which I couldn't find much information on. From what I can tell, it's a combination of both the previous versions played on a larger board.

Links:
This is the game's website. It's all in Japanese, but with some blind clicking, you can play version 1 on your browser.
http://www.pokemon-bc.com/

These are the English instruction booklets.
http://www.pokemon-bc.com/document/images/PBC_bw_manual_eng.pdf
http://www.pokemon-bc.com/document/images/PBC_manual_eng.pdf

This is the Amazon page where I found the flipped information for Pikachu and Charizard. It's currently unavailable for purchase.
https://www.amazon.com/Pokemon-Pok-mon-Battle-Chess/dp/B007JOG3Q0

 

[Zowayix]

I never noticed this until now, but Butterfree's upper and lower wings are actually modeled and animated separately, which is barely visible from a side view (it's a little more visible when fully animated):

It's a nice detail that I believe is also more realistic.

 

[Goodbye & Thanks]

I don't know if this is appropriate to post in this thread because it's not related to the actual Pokemon games, but one of my best childhood memories involves the Burger King promotional Pokemon toys from 1999. Here's the Bulbapedia link about the Burger King promotion and here's a video showing all of the toys, in case anyone doesn't know what I'm talking about. I remember my mom driving me and my sister around to Burger Kings and trying to find a Gengar (still my favorite Pokemon) and a Meowth (my sister's favorite Pokemon). Apparently to get a toy you needed to pay for a full kid's meal, so my mom asked the people working there if they had Gengar or Meowth toys, and since we'd already eaten, she bought the meals for the toys and told the employees to just eat the food if they wanted. The toys were actually pretty high quality as far as kid's meals toys go and I still have a few like Gengar, Kangaskhan, Geodude, Muk, and the golden Jigglypuff card.

So anyway, I just wanted to reminisce about a simpler time. I will always love Pokemon not just for the games, although I love them too, but because I've grown up with Pokemon and I've had so many wonderful experiences and formed great relationships because of it. I seriously don't know if I would have ended up being so close with my sister if we didn't share a common love of video games, and in particular, Pokemon. I guess that's not really a little thing, but it's certainly something about Pokemon that I love and am grateful for.

Also, I realize that there is a different merchandise thread and I considered posting something about the Burger King promotion there, but that thread seems more serious and less fitting for a meandering post like this. Again, I apologize if this isn't really the kind of post that belongs in this thread; I just wanted to spread some positivity and mention an aspect of Pokemon, although not directly tied to the games, that I like.

 

[Imperial Magala]

I just realized something.

The last new Route theme in the last DS Pokemon game is a remix of the first theme you hear in the first DS Pokemon games, symbolizing an end of an era. Almost cried when I realized it.

 

[Yung Dramps]

I just realized something.

The last new Route theme in the last DS Pokemon game is a remix of the first theme you hear in the first DS Pokemon games, symbolizing an end of an era. Almost cried when I realized it.

Hmm... It's less of a remix and more like a leitmotif of the first parts of the DP Opening encompassing 0:30-0:50ish in Route 23's theme. Still a cool detail

 

[greentyphlosion]

Incredibly, incredibly minor thing I noticed the other day because I play a lot of Gen 3: the animation for Thrash. There's been a lot of talk about how generic move animations are (particularly in later games with live sprites which people think ought to be doing better) as well as frequent confusion over how this Pokemon or that Pokemon can use a move they physically don't appear capable of performing and I think Thrash's animation rather neatly sidesteps that issue. The foe gets pummelled and three icons appear: fist, foot, karate-hand. It's an elegant way to display that it's a generic grappling move that can be learned by Pokemon as physically diverse as Gyarados, Dodrio, Piloswine, and Primeape. Not a huge fan of the move but it sticks out to me.

 

[Bull Of Heaven]

Game Freak has done well in recent generations at giving legendary and other plot-important Pokemon type combinations that nicely complement the stories around them. Confusing? Here's what I mean:

The best example is gen 7.
-The tapu are all Fairy-types, which fits their role in Alolan lore.
-The most plot-important Ultra Beast [Nihilego in Sun/Moon] is a Poison-type. This perfectly fits the way it hunts and what it does to Lusamine, while also giving it a type advantage over the tapu in general (sure, Lele is a Psychic-type, but that isn't the type that's common among all four). Matchup-wise, Nihilego is a threat that even the guardians might have trouble with alone.
-Solgaleo and Lunala being Psychic-types both fits their overall flavour perfectly (Psychic being the main stand-in for a "Cosmic" type), and gives them a type advantage over Nihilego. While these matchups don't affect the story in any big way, it just makes that much more sense that these powerful legendaries need to be called in to deal with the Ultra Beast threat.

Gen 8 does something similar:
-Eternatus' Poison typing gives it at least a soft type advantage over the non-Crowned formes of both Zacian and Zamazenta.
-The Steel typing that the Crowned formes gain gives them a clear advantage over the Poison/Dragon Eternatus. Eternatus can still give them a challenge because it naturally gets Fire coverage.
-Poison typing is a reasonable representation of the threat that Eternatus poses to Galar. Dark would work too, but would not set up these story-perfect type matchups.
-One other note on Eternatus' typing: People often complain that its role in Galar's lore is underdeveloped, but it's only just occurred to me that if Zacian and Zamazenta are English-inspired legendary heroes, and represent tools associated with knights, then Eternatus is the dragon that those "knights" have to "slay" before their quest is complete. Not bad.

TL;DR: In gens 7 and 8, the type matchups between the main plot-important Pokemon more or less perfectly suit those plots without sacrificing flavour elsewhere. Something to thing about when we see the gen 9 region and legendaries, and are trying to guess their types?

 

[Codraroll]

It has always been a gripe of mine that the Fighting type has been nearly synonymous with "humanoid martial artist" for most of Pokémon's history. I'm no fan of humanoid Pokémon, and Fighting types have always seemed to go that extra mile with being as human-like as possible. Sure, there have been exceptions like the Swords of Justice, Heracross, or Crabrawler, but whenever the Fighting type has been seen, a humanoid body shape (give or take a tail) has tended to follow.

Then along comes Gen VIII. It features six Fighting-types: Galarian Farfetch'd, Sirfetch'd, Clobbopus, Grapploct, Falinks, and Zamazenta. Between them, not a single one adheres to the humanoid body style. There are two birds, two octopuses, a dog, and a squadron of walking helmets. No elbows, knees, opposable thumbs, vertical necks or for that matter even arms to be seen anywhere. Game Freak managed to break the archetype and break it properly. That's worth cheering for!

...and then the DLC 'mons were revealed, and Kubfu and Urshifu came waltzing in fulfilling the archetype to a T. Back to the drawing board, I guess...

 

[greentyphlosion]

-Poison typing is a reasonable representation of the threat that Eternatus poses to Galar. Dark would work too, but would not set up these story-perfect type matchups.
-One other note on Eternatus' typing: People often complain that its role in Galar's lore is underdeveloped, but it's only just occurred to me that if Zacian and Zamazenta are English-inspired legendary heroes, and represent tools associated with knights, then Eternatus is the dragon that those "knights" have to "slay" before their quest is complete. Not bad.

I believe Eternatus being part Poison-type is also meant to be a reference to the dragon killed by St. George, which was said to have been venomous.

 

[DreamPrince]

I believe Eternatus being part Poison-type is also meant to be a reference to the dragon killed by St. George, which was said to have been venomous.

St.George?

 

[Pikachu315111]

St.George?

Famous medieval legend of a knight slaying a dragon to save a princess.

 

[R_N]

Honestly I just assumed Eternatus was poison to be thematic with it bringing a blight upon the land when it goes off and also being The Worst Possible Solution to an energy crisis.

 

[Siggu]

Eternatus's Poison-type might also be because of the whole Darkest Day situation.

Poison is super-effective and resistant against Fairy (although the resistance is compensated by Dragon's weakness) and resists Fighting, Zacian and Zamazenta's typings, but it's ineffective against Steel, the secondary typings of the aforementioned two when they get their Crowned forms.

So at first, Eternatus has an advantage against the ugly duo, but then it's turned around by the sudden Steel-type.

 

[Hematite]

Hmm, speaking of Legendaries' type matchups having plot significance you did say it might be possible for things like that to hint at future plot threads...
Behemoth Brain here is "said to see every past, present, and future event" - there seems to be some connection to time in its concept - while Eternatus is said to be capable of "warping the surrounding space-time," and its name in most languages is derived from eternity, immortality (aeternitas) or both.
Calyrex is also likely to have some connection with the wolves, which Sonia tells us are from "somewhere beyond Slumbering Weald" (that's where Crown Tundra is - oh gosh right I was working on a post involving this and never finished it! I should do that...); obviously, we're led to believe that their connection to Eternatus was sort of just "in the moment" and they just met and fought, but they do have an association there too (and it's been their opponent twice now).
As it happens, Calyrex is weak to Poison and Eternatus is weak to Psychic. I can't help but wonder if they might be being set up as a duo of some kind?
It might be a stretch, but it would be kinda nice if so - I would love for Eternatus to be fleshed out more in the DLC, since it really needs the help (and I've already given up hope on them doing anything with the human characters who need it...), and it would also be nice to have a reason to care about Calyrex even if its design isn't doing it for me! I already felt like they were planning on tying it in to the rest of the story somehow rather than just making it standalone, so maybe they'll do that in a way that gives new insight on Eternatus as well?
Eternatus is from space, but it had 20,000 years to get itself some neat Earth lore even if Calyrex isn't an alien. Surely they could have something planned?

 

[Worldie]

As it happens, Calyrex is weak to Poison and Eternatus is weak to Psychic. I can't help but wonder if they might be being set up as a duo of some kind?
It might be a stretch, but it would be kinda nice if so - I would love for Eternatus to be fleshed out more in the DLC, since it really needs the help (and I've already given up hope on them doing anything with the human characters who need it...), and it would also be nice to have a reason to care about Calyrex even if its design isn't doing it for me! I already felt like they were planning on tying it in to the rest of the story somehow rather than just making it standalone, so maybe they'll do that in a way that gives new insight on Eternatus as well?

Well if Calyrex is an ancient ruler of Galar... a connection to Eternatus and the doggos is a real possibility.

Also, since expanding on legendary pokemon's lore isn't new to remakes/remasters (see Crystal, Platinum, ORAS, even USUM), and since the DLCs seem to be taking the place of the generation's remake/2nd title, I think it's a legitimate expectation.

Now... "expectation" and "gamefreaks" in same sentence.... :X

 

[R_N]

Straight up I don't think there will be any new eternatus lore and I think we'll be lucky to get connection to the dogs (even if they REALLY SHOULD)
The future/past sight thing just seems like a flavorful extension of its grace & psychic powers that'll justify its exclusive move, whatever that is.

Also Armor can be played at any time once you reach the wild area and I suspect the same will apply to Tundra and while there will post-game content for each I have a feeling Calyrex will be available well before then, so it cant even interact in a meaningful way. Eternatus itself doesn't even get a meaningfuyl mention after capturing it.

 

[Ironmage]

I'll admit I read the possible connection and immediately went "wouldn't it be cool if Calyrex was villainous?" If Eternatus is set up to be something unknowable and uncontrollable, then Calyrex could be attempting to remove humanity's control of that which we do know i.e. directly opposing industry and agricultural advances. For all that Rose's timeline made absolutely no sense, he could get a little more credence back if the player is reminded that just using less energy is not an option, and that people will die if they attempt to progress backwards rather than forwards.

I dunno, maybe I just hate plants that much.

 

[R_N]

I'll admit I read the possible connection and immediately went "wouldn't it be cool if Calyrex was villainous?" If Eternatus is set up to be something unknowable and uncontrollable, then Calyrex could be attempting to remove humanity's control of that which we do know i.e. directly opposing industry and agricultural advances. For all that Rose's timeline made absolutely no sense, he could get a little more credence back if the player is reminded that just using less energy is not an option, and that people will die if they attempt to progress backwards rather than forwards.

I dunno, maybe I just hate plants that much.

I just figure Calyrex stepped down because it saw it would step down and just fucked off to the frozen tundra so people/pokemon wouldn't bug it as Galar handles its own affairs. Or something to that affect.
I am...guessing it is not the secret orchestrater of everything.

if there's anything billionaires have taught us it's that they are insane. Much less one that basically did kind of rule the region judging by how many pies he had his hands in.

--------
You know, honestly? I kind of like Rose as a villain. His plan is beyond stupid AND immoral but it's also something I could believe a billionaire doing "for the good of all". A fun counterpoint to the other believable plan of "fuck you got mine" of fellow billionaire philanthropist Lysandre. & Lusamine, I suppose....huh. Past 3 gen villains have all been varying shades of insane billionaires...and ORAS' backstory had another one out of Devon...

Anyway the only issues are a combination of the game's narrative structure & lack of follow through on solutions (somethign the world of Pokemon is set up for IN EVERY OTHER SINGLE REGION IN THE GAMES).

 

[Ironmage]

I just figure Calyrex stepped down because it saw it would step down and just fucked off to the frozen tundra so people/pokemon wouldn't bug it as Galar handles its own affairs. Or something to that affect.
I am...guessing it is not the secret orchestrater of everything.

I don't expect it to be evil (for starters, the only legendaries that could be considered worse than Neutral are designed much more monstrously), I just think it being evil makes things more interesting. If we think of something reasonably powerful that could have forseen the Darkest Day 2 but made no move on it, we end up with the following options:
1)Calyrex forsaw the full event and didn't care to help, because It's either indifferent or views the potential learning more important than the losses suffered (most likely)
2)Calyrex forsaw the event and was planning a move on Galar, so hoped Eternatus would handle a certain fire-type known for dealing with problems in Galar. This didn't happen, so petalbrain's plan didn't take place at that moment
3)Calyrex did not forsee it, and views this as humanity capable of handling things on their own
4)Clayrex did not forsee this, and views this as dangerous [to itself]. Clearly, Humanity must be pushed back before they completely break [calyrex's hold on] destiny itself.

My general dislike of fate and nature spirits that do not embrace technology means that I vastly prefer reason #4, despite it being the least likely to actually occur.

 

[DrPumpkinz]

I don't expect it to be evil (for starters, the only legendaries that could be considered worse than Neutral are designed much more monstrously), I just think it being evil makes things more interesting. If we think of something reasonably powerful that could have forseen the Darkest Day 2 but made no move on it, we end up with the following options:
1)Calyrex forsaw the full event and didn't care to help, because It's either indifferent or views the potential learning more important than the losses suffered (most likely)
2)Calyrex forsaw the event and was planning a move on Galar, so hoped Eternatus would handle a certain fire-type known for dealing with problems in Galar. This didn't happen, so petalbrain's plan didn't take place at that moment
3)Calyrex did not forsee it, and views this as humanity capable of handling things on their own
4)Clayrex did not forsee this, and views this as dangerous [to itself]. Clearly, Humanity must be pushed back before they completely break [calyrex's hold on] destiny itself.

My general dislike of fate and nature spirits that do not embrace technology means that I vastly prefer reason #4, despite it being the least likely to actually occur.

It might be an extension on #1, but there's also the option that Calyrex forsaw the full event, including the part where Eternatus gets bodied by two kids and their dogs.

 

[Pikachu315111]

Honestly I just assumed Eternatus was poison to be thematic with it bringing a blight upon the land when it goes off and also being The Worst Possible Solution to an energy crisis.

It could also maybe be a reference to it being from space. Stuff some space is radioactive, a powerful source of energy but can make you deadly ill.

Well if Calyrex is an ancient ruler of Galar... a connection to Eternatus and the doggos is a real possibility.

Honestly, if they mention anything, at most I can see the Hero Wolves being its loyal knights (in their base forms).

If I were to make up a backstory: When Eternatus awoke 3k years ago and started causing the initial Darkest Day, Calyrex sent the Hero Wolves to face it but they were swept aside due to the Zacian being weak to it and Zamazenta unable to put a dent into it. Calyrex, both a Type that's super effective but also weak to Eternatus, held it off as it sent the Hero Wolves to the humans where it foresaw them bonding with two humans would give them armor needed to defeat Eternatus. Calyrex eventually fell to Eternatus, but Calyrex foresaw this was the end of its reign as the two humans the Hero Wolves bond with will then go on to become the rulers of Galar. Sadly, due to the prior battle injuries, while they defeated Eternatus the Hero Wolves were too hurt so was sent to the Slumbering Weald to rest. Calyrex meanwhile went into self exile to the Tundra, and as recent events saw Eternatus return, its loyal knights coming back to help two new heroes, and now awaits for when it meets with the hero who then went on to become Champion.

if there's anything billionaires have taught us it's that they are insane.

You don't say.

 

[Suspicious Derivative]

Something that is related to the above discussion and that I don't think I have posted before (in this thread): I liked the story in S/S. Yes, really. That's probably an unpopular opinion too. Having a more down-to-earth and simpler story was a nice change of pace from the more extreme stories we have seen in previous generations, most notably Gen 7. Even better, I thought it was mostly well executed too! I liked how the main focus was on the Gym Challenge and not the legendaries even if they still got involved in the story. Yes, the ending/climax could have been better but even so, I still enjoyed it a lot. And teaming up with Hop and the cover legends to fight against Eternatus was really amazing, one of the better final battles in the series if you ask me. I also liked how the evil team was reduced to nothing but a joke this time around, that was surprisingly great and a good way to do something new and different with the evil team.

Now to what I actually wanted to say. I made a post here a while ago about everything I liked about Pokéstar Studios... or so I thought. It wasn't quite the case though, as there are some things I forgot about! First of all, easter eggs. I think it is really cool how it is possible to unlock extra scenes in two of the movies, though this is only possible if you are using your own Pokémon. The first one is in Full Metal Cop 3, using False Swipe to get the opponent's Pokémon to 1 HP there will trigger a special conversation. The second one happens if you use Substitute in Mystery Doors of the Magical Land 2. I remember doing that and got the extra scene there, it revealed an interesting thing about the characters in that movie, that was really cool.

I also like how the film directors are named after real-life Hollywood directors. According to Bulbapedia, Sydney Pokémet is a reference to Hollywood icon Sidney Lumet, while John Pokénter"and David Pokénch pay homage to John Carpenter and David Lynch, respectively. Those are really nice homages/references. Plus the Japanese name "Pokéwood" is obviously based on Hollywood (and other real-life movie studios ending with "wood"). And several of the movies are based on real moves like the Big Monster being inspired by Godzilla and Ghost Eraser being inspired by Ghostbusters.

I also really like several of the opponents you get to face, some of them are very unique. Not only in terms of design and purpose, but also how they are as "Pokémon". One of my favorites is the Majin in Ghost Eraser 4 which is a Dark/Ghost-type with Wonder Guard... which means it can't be damaged by regular moves. That's really cool.

I hope that was everything I liked about Pokéstar Studios. For real this time.

I have previously talked about how I like battling at Battle Facilities. One more thing about that which I don't think I have mentioned is the thrill it gives me when I am trying to get a long streak and knowing that if I lose, I will have to start over from zero again, which makes it require high concentration so that I don't screw up and lose or get unlucky and get haxed to death. Nothing else in Pokémon gives me this feeling. I think I am going to miss it once I have beaten the Subway for real, but for now I'm going to enjoy it a bit longer. I decided to make this post instead of doing a few more rounds at the Subway in White today, so this way, it will last even longer!

Let's talk about trainer classes. I have previously mentioned that my favorite trainer class is Backpackers, and my second favorite is Fairy Tale Girls. And now, I know which my third favorite trainer class is. Veterans. They are just so cool. I think their designs are really awesome in all generations they appear in. One thing that has been mentioned before is that they could also be seen as a the last stage in a sort of "trainer evolution" which is Rising Star -> Ace Trainer -> Veteran. I really think that's a really cool way to see it. And I guess there's a sort of personal reason as for why I like the Veterans too. When I was younger, I always thought it was cool how there were adults who were serious Pokémon fans as well, I looked up to some of them and got inspired by them. Now, I am an adult myself, and I wonder if there are younger fans who look up to some of us adult fans now too? If so, that would be extremely cool. And even if not, I think it would not be wrong to consider myself a "Veteran" after having been a fan of Pokémon for over 20 years. Veterans are basically adult Pokémon fans who have been fans for a long time... just like me, and many others here on the forums. So that's why they are my third favorite trainer class in the series.

Lastly, something random that I just wanted to write somewhere and I decided that it will be here since the manga thread we have has been inactive for a long while. I like how the latest chapter of Pokémon Adventures (Sword/Shield) finally debuted some of the characters from the games I have been longing to see. Namely the Rivals and Sonia! I was wondering if the Rivals would ever appear or if Marvin would sort of take their spot in the manga, but now they're finally here. I liked their portrayal so far, they seem similar to what they were in the games. I thought it was fun how Hop has a sort of similar personlity to Shield (yes that's what I'm going to call her even if it isn't her name). Marnie was getting annoyed by the noise the others were making while Bede was his usual jerkish self. As for Sonia, I wonder if she will get a bigger role eventually because the manga has given Professor Magnolia a pretty big role so far, unlike in the games where it is Sonia who gets the big role. Either way, I'm looking forward to the future of this chapter in the manga.

And on a different note regarding the manga, I like how the B2/W2 Chapter finally ended a while ago. Now the manga creators can put full focus on the S/S Chapter while releasing the volumes for B2/W2, X/Y, OR/AS and S/M/US/UM, making the manga finally more up to date than it has been since...I don't even know when.

 

[Pikachu315111]

Something that is related to the above discussion and that I don't think I have posted before (in this thread): I liked the story in S/S. Yes, really. That's probably an unpopular opinion too. Having a more down-to-earth and simpler story was a nice change of pace from the more extreme stories we have seen in previous generations, most notably Gen 7. Even better, I thought it was mostly well executed too! I liked how the main focus was on the Gym Challenge and not the legendaries even if they still got involved in the story. Yes, the ending/climax could have been better but even so, I still enjoyed it a lot. And teaming up with Hop and the cover legends to fight against Eternatus was really amazing, one of the better final battles in the series if you ask me. I also liked how the evil team was reduced to nothing but a joke this time around, that was surprisingly great and a good way to do something new and different with the evil team.

Honestly, had they just tossed the "saving the world" plot out I think they could have made for a more interesting narrative. "But what would make the player special then"? They established that at the beginning of the game: defeating the undefeatable Champion. From the start of the game and throughout it we're told how Leon is unbeatable and we see him going around Galar being adored by his fans (to be fair he also helps wherever he can, but for furthering the player's goal of wanting to be the Champion showing the respect the Champion gets would be a good incentive). Of course the story would need some major rewrites for certain characters & their motivations (notably Sonia and Rose), including maybe changing the Legendaries as the Hero Wolves and Eternatus would be hard to fit in a story that now no longer involves them. Because of that it's hard to imagine what this new story would be (the games may not even be named Sword & Shield). Though I would hope with less of a "save the world" plot and setup for it they could focus more on the character's personal stories. Also would like to have seen more celebrating the Champion Cup (between signing up for it in Motostoke and about to face Leon there's little to no fanfare around the Gyms; you'd also think throughout you'll meet NPCs who are excited to meet Gym Challengers, Reporters who'd want an interview after every Gym, business people looking to offer sponsor deals, seeing the other Gym Challengers outside of the Gyms, etc.). And Post Game could have been more based on the player learning and taking on the duties of the Champion.

Certainly has given me new ideas on how a Pokemon core series plot could be written without their being a "saving the world" plot but still make the player feel important.

I hope that was everything I liked about Pokéstar Studios. For real this time.

Did you mention how, after making each movie, you're thanked by being taken around PokeStar Studios being thanked & congratulated by all the characters who work on making the movies (including Brycen and Sabrina) before taken to a special dressing room which has an easter egg of a list of Pokemon version of popular movies/books?

Also how after each movie you go into the lobby and see fans of the movie you give you praise and items. And as you make more movies you see more and more fans (including humorously a Neo Team Plasma grunt, I think you also get an old Team Plasma grunt).

And a small detail, though still appreciated, is each movie was given a film poster:

Another fun fact, you'll notice the titles are written in various languages:

• Japanese: Brycen-Man, Invaders, Big Monster
  At least in English, the movie series titles are direct translations of the Japanese word on the poster. Slight exception obviously for Brycen-Man as it instead writes out Brycen's Japanese name: "Hachiku-Man".
• English: Full Metal Cop, Timegate Traveler, The Giant Woman, Ghost Eraser
• Spanish: Love and Battles
  The poster reads "Amor a Primera Vista" which translates to "Love at First Sight".
• German: Mystery Doors of the Magical Land
  The poster reads "Die Pforten des Zauberreichs" which translates to "The Gates of the Magic Realm".
• Italian: The Red Fog of Terror
  The poster reads "La Nebbia Rossa" which translates to "The Red Mist".
• French: Everlasting Memories
  The poster reads "Un Souvenir Inoubliable" which translates to "An Unforgettable Memory".

And yes, in those languages that is what the movie is titled.

Not to mention all the other fun trivia about the movies. I suggest looking through them for yourself.

One thing that has been mentioned before is that they could also be seen as a the last stage in a sort of "trainer evolution" which is Rising Star -> Ace Trainer -> Veteran.

If you like that little "evolution" I'd suggest checking out a Flying Press article that I and TMan87 wrote about even more Trainer Class evolution lines: Life of Trainer Lines. (And additional credit to Kaiju Bunny, Kilima, A Cake Wearing A Hat, The Dutch Plumberjack & Ryota Mitarai for their contribution)

 

[DrPumpkinz]

Of course the story would need some major rewrites for certain characters & their motivations (notably Sonia and Rose), including maybe changing the Legendaries as the Hero Wolves and Eternatus would be hard to fit in a story that now no longer involves them.

They could just go the route of Kanto, where the legendaries are just kinda there for you to stumble across if you're adventurous. Though I imagine that might make it harder to market the games...

business people looking to offer sponsor deals

This could actually lead to some interesting mechanics, or at least a new way to earn money. Accepting a sponsor deal would get you perks for gym or otherwise broadcasted matches, but you'd need to keep the sponsors happy. Maybe a sponsor will only continue to sponsor you if you use a specific Pokemon, or battle in a specific way. Gotta maintain that brand identity, after all.

Actually, this doesn't sound interesting. This just sounds depressing.