I really want someone to respond to my competitive arguments in the above posts.
I am unsure if I will be able to satisfy you with the answers and opinions I have, but I may as well honor your request for a response.
I don't have anything against following in-game as much as possible, I just think that removing the option to hide teams gives bad players an unfair advantage that they would not have under our current precedent.
I'd argue it would give the more skilled player a
bigger advantage because the lesser skilled player will not know how to appropriately assimilate the information given to them and use it to manage his resources. A more skilled player will also have a better idea on how to deduce what sets each Pokemon are running, given a specific combination of Pokemon. And finally, the fact that both teams are revealed decreases the likely hood that a threat will unexpectedly sweep the opposing player, which even the best of players couldn't avoid in Gen IV. Because of this, there is little room for drastic shifts in momentum due to unknown factors you simply couldn't have prepared for, and it solidifies the better players advantages.
I don't see how a choice between 1-of-6 pokemon brings more mind games into the mix when compared to a choice between 6-out-of-about-150 competitively viable pokemon. When you have team-reveal, the only mind game is "when will he bring out this pokemon?".
There is much more to consider than this. "Is his Pokemon choiced, or is it holding another item?" "What set of moves is he running?" "Does threat X have a priory move that will take me out, or am I able to out speed him?" "Will he sacrifice his current Pokemon to switch in threat X safely?" Et cetera.
Without team-reveal, you have other mind games like "what pokemon does he have?", "can he still counter me?", "should I sacrifice this mon not knowing what his last ??? is?", "I already KOd one Steel-type, does his team look like there's another or can I use Outrage now?" etc. It adds long-term thinking into the mix because you're forced to play the odds and consider everything they could possibly do, rather than everything their 6 pokemon can do.
Except in Gen V, you can't play the odds and consider everything. Deducing probable options just isn't practical anymore. Most of those questions posed in the middle of a match can't be answered reasonably without first being aware of your opponents team, and seem less like "mind games" and more like "chance" to me. In most of the instances you described, you literally have to guess what you have to do, rather than analytically estimate.
And why should the importance of "team match-ups" be decreased? You never really specify what this means or why it would be a good thing. To me, team matchups are a huge part of how the game is played, so much more strategy goes into building your team than actually playing the games. Do you want to cover everything or just power through people? Does this pokemon mesh well with that one? Can they work together somehow? Team building SHOULD be difficult in my opinion, it adds more to the game.
I do feel that previewable teams do not detract from the importance of team building, they just direct it in a different focus.
But likewise, with team-reveal that one person can still play recklessly and get a win because you know the opponent's counters. "Oh I only have to kill Skarmory and then I'm free to sweep with Doryuuzu. Good to know that I can sacrifice anything I want now as long as that one Pokemon dies".
That is the consequence of poor team building, not having access to information about the opposing player.
It eliminates any need for safety while playing because they can't surprise you with a counter mid-game.
How can they not? Item, moves, ability and EVs all play an important role in determining how well one Pokemon fairs against another. Just by statistic alone in late DPPt, one could assume you would be facing a Salamence on the opponents team, and yet half the battle was attempting to figure out what set it was running before it steamrolled you. There are
many Pokemon who can accomplish this now.
It decreases the need for long-term thinking because you already have your objectives laid out in front of you before you start the battle, there is nothing that can come up in the middle of the match that can change what you need to do to pull off a win (barring the rare massive hax match).
What? Why not?
Unexpected items? Unexpected moves? Unexpected EV sets? All these factors can drastically alter the same Pokemon, ultimately making them a different Pokemon entirely in many cases. These factors can change the tide of the battle at any point, and in order to optimize your resources and formulate a new strategy, you'll have to take this all in to account. It will require you to change your thinking.
You seem to believe that once you know the Pokemon, you can roleplay the entire match out. Beyond the first few turns, you can't, because all the above factors mentioned simply won't allow it most of the time.
You have a blueprint to follow on how to beat your opponent and there is basically nothing your opponent can do besides hope that they're faster.
Or they can bluff a choice item and knock you out with a SE attack. Or buffer your attack with their EV investment, making your presummed 2HKO attempt in to a 3HKO, and knock your threat out in return. Or do the same thing with a resistance berry. Or hit you with an unexpected move on a particular move set.
You're simplifying the scenarios when there are plenty of possibilities in many given circumstances.
Team reveal makes strategies more linear, rather than a path that branches off with new possibilities at the end of every turn. It takes options out of matches rather than putting them back in.
Just because it gives players a general battle plan to work with doesn't mean it mitigates the opportunity for surprise, as I've explained already.
The only surprises in a game with team reveals are the movesets of the pokemon, and most of the time that is irrelevant because most pokemon are dealt with in the same way no matter what their moveset is. Swords Dance Scizor is not much different than Choice Band Scizor, and you can be damn sure it's not running a surprise Special Attacking set. I know that there are some exceptions to this rule, but they are far outnumbered by the pokemon that can only one style of competitive set.
All I can say is that I disagree with this entirely. Scizors movepool is shallow at best, and relies entirely on its other superior traits (typing, stats, ability) to be effective. I don't even know why you would choose a poor example when there are clearly many Pokemon with diverse options available.