Unpopular opinions

[Chef_]

I have played through both the Pyramid and the Palace in Emerald, and I disagree with you.

Not sure what you find difficult about the Pyramid. From what I remember, I found it fairly easy for the most part. You just had to adapt your team depending on the theme for the wild Pokémon in every round, while also having a well-built team that could handle trainers. I also found Blissey incredibly useful in the Pyramid since it can heal your team outside of battle and cure status during battle. I did find Gold Brandon to be really challenging though, I remember that I had serious problems in my battle against him. Probably the hardest Gold Battle against a Frontier Brain out of those that I have won. But the rest of the Pyramid wasn't super hard from what I can remember.

As for the Palace, it has a huge luck factor for sure, but it isn't only about luck. There are ways to raise your chance of winning. Since Natures are determining what attacks your Pokémon will use, picking a good Nature is one of the keys to victory. One strategy I have seen is using a team of Pokémon with Hasty Natures and 3 offensive attacks + Protect. Another strategy which have I thought about but never actually tried in practice was to make sure every Pokémon has at least one move from every category, making sure no turns are "wasted". And some Natures that are usually useful can still be good here, one example being Adamant which gets a huge chance of attacking when the Pokémon is below 50% HP. That said, I might just have been really lucky while battling at the Palace, but I recall that my team of Salamence/Starmie/Regice worked very well there.

If anything, my experiences with the Emerald Frontier are that the Pyramid and Palace are two of the easier facilities since I only lost once in each of them on my way to the Gold Symbol battle. The only one I had an easier time at was the Pike where I made it to Gold Lucy on my first try. I found the Arena, Dome and Tower considerably harder as I had to make a lot more tries at each of them. I haven't gotten the Gold Symbol from the Factory (yet), but I'd still say it is the hardest facility.

I do also not really agree that the Emerald Frontier is the hardest in-game challenge. As far as Battle Facilites go, I have always found the Subway in Gen 5 and the Tree in Gen 7 to be very tough and hard to beat. The Battle Institute wasn't all easy either but I think it was easier than the Factory since I managed to beat it in US/UM, but I have yet to beat the Factory in either Emerald or Platinum. I also found the Battle Tower in Crystal extremely hard and unforgiving, but that might be because I was very young and had less experience when I battled at it. Regarding the Gen 4 Frontier, I found it easier than the Emerald Frontier on the whole. But I think this might have been because I used better Pokémon/teams and had more experience when I played the Platinum Frontier compared to the Emerald Frontier, which was basically my starting point for serious semi-competitive battling. Platinum only had 5 facilities and only required 49 wins for each facility (170 wins for the Hall), while Emerald required more variying amounts. Some were lower, others were higher. The most notable is that the Tower required 70 wins in Emerald but only 49 in Platinum. The Factory required less wins in Emerald though. And winning 100 battles in a row at the Platinum Tower to get the TC upgrade was another thing I found rather difficult and challenging from the Frontier there. On the whole, I'm not sure what I'd say the hardest in-game challenge in Pokémon is. The Emerald Frontier is a candidate for sure, but it faces competition from other facilities such as the Tree, Subway, Institute, Crystal Tower and Gen 4 Frontier (especially the Factory).

I also disagree about Emerald being the best game. While it was definitely the best for its time, it is no longer the best if you ask me. I find it to be mostly obsolete nowadays because of OR/AS. One possibly unpopular opinion of mine is that I think both Emerald and its Battle Frontier are overrated, which feels a bit sad to say since I really like them, but that's how it is. People often prefer Emerald over OR/AS and complain about OR/AS not having the Battle Frontier, but I do personally not care. I find OR/AS to be superior on the whole, even without the Frontier or anything else from Emerald. Playing through the Maison twice more after X/Y was fun enough for me, I liked trying new teams and strategies there. I also get the impression that many of those who complain aren't into Battle Facilities overall, they have never tried the Emerald Frontier and wouldn't have tried the Frontier if it had returned in OR/AS. I could be wrong, but this is the impression I get from many of those who complain.

ORAS are definitely better than RS, but what does it for me with Emerald is the way that the Aqua and Magma stories are tweaked so that you fight against both. Part of it may be that I played Emerald before any of the other Hoenn games, but trying to go back and play the others just feels weird when the secondary team (Magma in Sapphire, Aqua in Ruby) is just kinda hangin' out.

I agree with you when you said Gen 4 Frontier is easier, mainly just because there's less hax that get pulled (in my experience). The guy who has the longest streak in the Gen 3 Tower lost to literally the perfect combo of an opposing team and unluckiness

 

[Yung Dramps]

Every single set of remakes - FRLG, HGSS, ORAS and LGPE - are near equally great games with a perfect mix of reverence for the source material and new spins on classic characters and places that make them among the definitive ways to experience their respective generations.

 

[BP]

Every single set of remakes - FRLG, HGSS, ORAS and LGPE - are near equally great games with a perfect mix of reverence for the source material and new spins on classic characters and places that make them among the definitive ways to experience their respective generations.

A FUCKING MEN

 

[earl]

Every single set of remakes - FRLG, HGSS, ORAS and LGPE - are near equally great games with a perfect mix of reverence for the source material and new spins on classic characters and places that make them among the definitive ways to experience their respective generations.

nah ORAS is ORASS

 

[Chef_]

Every single set of remakes - FRLG, HGSS, ORAS and LGPE - are near equally great games with a perfect mix of reverence for the source material and new spins on classic characters and places that make them among the definitive ways to experience their respective generations.

Facts right here. Let's Go games were a blast

 

[BP]

Facts right here. Let's Go games were a blast

your opinion is wrong

 

[Worldie]

Facts right here. Let's Go games were a blast

The main issue with Let's Go games is that people expected them to be glorious remakes, a "FRLG2", without realizing they were games meant as bridge to bring newcomers & new players to the pokemon main series.

From that purpose, they're great (albeith overpriced) with actually pretty adorable graphics and interactions with both the starters and the pokemon themselves. (Plus sadly being the only pokemon games actually featuring realistic pokemon sizes in battle, which actually I love).
On positive note, they did introduce pokemon in the overworld and shown how good that feature is, and I'm glad they've kept it.


Most of the people who hate on let's go were expecting high quality graphics, compelling gameplay, enthralling narrative, to which I usually reply... Why are you playing pokemon games exactly again?

 

[Mova]

The games are fun, but Let's Go and SWSH could've worked with the 3DS price, which was 40 USD instead of 60. It doesn't help that Gen 7 was foreshadowing the premise of Pokémon being snapped from the game, either.

Also Let's Go didn't have a Blobbos version lmao

 

[Ironmage]

Unpopular opinion: Let's go fails to be a good introduction to the series.

To me, a good introduction is something that touches on all of the major mechanics, so that someone who has been through it only needs to ask questions about the specifics (e.g. What does Shields Down do?), or about mechanics new to that game (What are Z-moves?) instead of established concepts as a whole (e.g. What are Abilities?). By this definition, pretty much every mainline game since gen 4 (physical/special split is pretty big) is about the same level of effectiveness as an introduction, but it's self-explanatory that one cannot introduce a new player to held items and abilities if they don't exist in that game.

 

[Pikachu315111]

2. I don't think starter pokemon should be powerful, at least without mega evolutions. They're the first one you get for no investment at all rather than ones you went through the effort to seek out in the wild and catch. They shouldn't be shitmons, because most kids can't beat the game without rolling it with their starter, but they shouldn't be top cut mons like blaziken or gren either, at least without mega evolution. People are already too attached to starters in this game to really nerf them now, but if I could run it back from the beginning I would reduce them to a universal 520 BST and maybe even cut down slightly on their movepools.

2. I both agree & disagree. You're right that for many players the Starter is a crutch just not through early game but throughout their entire adventure, many being their star Pokemon. However I can also people not wanting their Starter becoming deadweight nearing the middle of the adventure cause it was the Pokemon they started the game with (plus Starters probably make Pokemon Company MILLION of dollars in merchandise so not going to make them not powerful). I'm thinking maybe it's not the final stage they should be messing with but the basic and middle stage.
The starter's basic stage I feel are the overpowered stage for them. Their basic stage BST is usually between 300-320. There aren't a lot of Pokemon at the basic stage that are either also between those numbers or over it (and most which are are Pokemon you found later in the game, early route mon are lucky to even be approaching 300) before we get into middle stages. While I wouldn't want the Starter's basic stage to be shrimp puffs, I think maybe lowering their BST stat range to be between 290-300 would make it so additional Pokemon you catch aren't just back-ups but actual teammates.
Of course, as I said, players wouldn't want their Starters to be deadweight probably around the near middle of the game so the middle evolutions would be where their stats could maybe be around the BST of final stages for 2-stage families (or mono-stage Pokemon). This itself might require the evolution levels for the Starters to be raised from 16 to maybe 20 so they're a bit of deadweight for a while, but much like with the pseudo Legendaries this would be a reward for the Pokemon getting a massive power boost and a promise for more to come.
And finally we get the the final evos where nothing much would change except maybe raising the evolution level from the average 35 to 40. Higher then before but Starters usually prove to be good Pokemon (in-game at the very least) and by then all your other Pokemon should either be fully evolved or evolving at the same time so it should feel like you're progressing at the correct pace.

Also, another thing which pushes the Starter's importance is usually the rival having one as their ace. Maybe they should start considering having the rival not have a Starter, maybe the other Starters are given to trainers who don't have an interest in battling or maybe involve them in the story like they get stolen.

Sadly I don't think they'll ever mix-up the Starter concept, or at least in a way that there's more than the 3 tried and true Type triangle. Starters are the face of a gen so we're going to have them to sell merchandise. They'll probably never be a game where there is no "Starter" but rather you get to pick from a variety of Pokemon and able to catch the others later on. They could maybe try having Mono-stage Starters, 2-stage Starters, or Starters who have a form change; but, as I said before, even those could risk the marketability of the Starters so not likely.

3. There needs to be a simple way to adjust every aspect of a pokemon you have from the ground up in a single menu, just like the showdown teambuilder. I get the whole build a connection with your pokemon and work hard to train them in your own original way thing, but at the same time not effectively being able to use your bros that you rolled the game with because you didn't raise them optimally is kinda lame. Just make it only available in the postgame, cost a lot of in game currency, and only available to level 100 pokemon.

5. Pokemon needs to remove all of the artificial difficulty and implement more QOL before making games harder

3. Eh, once again I agree & disagree. I don't want to just give players a Pokemon Maker as that kind of defeats the purpose of raising the Pokemon BUT I do think they should make it easier to raise them the way we like. Let us see the IVs & EVs in actual numbers, let us able to either increase or decrease IVs through training, give us a way to make the Ability Capsule unlock Hidden Abilities. There's actually plenty of simple things they can adjust to make the raising process easier for those looking to raise a certain kind of Pokemon without a maker tool.

5. Giving us better QOL tools does not mean they can't also make the game harder. Infact by giving us better QOL tools could maybe mean they would make the game harder (at least in the post game) as they would give players what they need to make their Pokemon even stronger.

Flygon is a dissapointment design wise. Could have been more of a cool bug instead of this dumb generic dragon with one bug trait

Should have been Bug/Dragon.

2. Pokemon should never have put legends on the boxes and should have stuck with the starters. Its too much of a spoiler imo.

3. I think nuzlocke and its derivatives is stupid. People are free to enjoy what they want, of course, and if they find it fun that's 100% cool, but I personally don't see the point. If players want a challenge, I feel like they would have a much more rewarding experience playing pvp or just another game in general.

2. Thinking about it, not really. All the Legendary being the mascot means you know that it exists. If you did not look up any additional information about it it'll just be a cool looking Pokemon and maybe it'll be involved in the game's story somehow. However you can't really tell what the game's story would be about from the Legendary as it's usually a no visible trait about it that makes them the focus of the plot. And by the time they become relevant they usually provided enough hints or sneak peaks at it that it's not a spoiler what their involvement is as you already know.
As DrPumpkinz said, can't really use the Starters as, while the face of a generation, the box mascot should be representative for the versions itself. I also don't think just showing a scenario would do either as the scenarios which are version exclusive either are locations/characters found later in the game or involve the Legendaries. The only other option I can think of is, instead of the Legendaries themselves, the mascots being a version exclusive com mons who have a connection to the Legendaries (maybe even having a special members of that species you see throughout the story acting specifically as the envoy of the Legendary).

3. I'm glad you acknowledge players are free to enjoy the game however they want, though just for conversation sake I would like to defend "challenge runs" a little. Now I myself also don't do nuzlockes (I do become connected with my Pokemon) or other challenge runs, I do see the appeal of them that, at the very least, it gives someone who has played the games before a different experience and using Pokemon they normally wouldn't use. It sometime doesn't even make the game harder, you just want to see how the game's adventure holds up when you buck the traditional path and do something out-of-the-way or the game didn't expect you to do. If anything that what makes Pokemon such a unique franchise is that you have HUNDREDS of monsters you can construct a team with (and all the little additional variables within that like moves, Abilities, held items, etc.) yet many players may end up falling into a trend they take with them for their first playthrough of each gen. It's why I wish they would give a second file (specifically a New Game+ which lets us manipulate with some of the game's rules) just so we could mess around without it affecting our main file.

Most of the people who hate on let's go were expecting high quality graphics, compelling gameplay, enthralling narrative, to which I usually reply... Why are you playing pokemon games exactly again?

I mostly peeved at Let's Go because you're no longer Red/Green and your rival isn't Blue. Yes, I know, a petty reason to put a mark against the game (BTW I think the game is fine for what it's meant to be), but this sorta rewrites why Red was such an important trainer as he's no longer the one that defeats Team Rocket and went on to become Champion (it also seems like Blue didn't become a Champion either). Also the reason for the change was stupid: they didn't want your rival to be mean. Completely missing the point that you constantly BEAT your rival showing they're wrong to be mean and arrogant. But at least it made Green (sorta?) canon, and I guess it was neat being able to battle Red.

Unpopular opinion: Let's go fails to be a good introduction to the series.

Wasn't meant to be an introduction to the series, it was meant to be a bridging gap between GO and the main games.

 

[Celever]

3. I think nuzlocke and its derivatives is stupid. People are free to enjoy what they want, of course, and if they find it fun that's 100% cool, but I personally don't see the point. If players want a challenge, I feel like they would have a much more rewarding experience playing pvp or just another game in general.

As someone who almost exclusively plays the games in challenge runs (even my first time through XY was a nuzlocke) I feel like I'm in a good place to try to describe where nuzlockers are coming from. As others have said, it's really not about being challenging -- the intention of a nuzlocke isn't to fail it, because then you would just have to restart the pretty long game that is Pokémon and that's boring. The purpose is to add jeopardy on a more case-by-case basis and to experience the emotion that comes with it. A critical hit landing on your favourite Pokémon can be genuinely heartbreaking and in some of its derivatives like the wedlocke just by running into the wrong trainer with the wrong pair the odds can be stacked against you massively which adds tension. If one of your team members dies it's sad but it's also an opportunity to replace it with another Pokémon, and depending on what Pokémon you happened to catch and what stage you're in in the game sometimes the best option for your team can be a really out of left field pick that you wouldn't ordinarily use on your team. In a nuzlocke of Pokémon Pearl way back in the day I ended up using a Cherrim after the death of my Roselia against Fantina because I thought a Grass-Type would be important against Crasher Wake later and it was my only option. Cherrim ended up not only being in my team against Cynthia, but the only survivor of that entire playthrough. From then, Cherrim has transitioned from a Pokémon I was indifferent towards to being one of my favourites just because of those memories, which were brought back in my current nuzlocke of Pokémon Sword where I'm using it again. Nessa swept my team and killed all 6 of them due to an unfavourable matchup against Drednaw, but on the second attempt I put Cherrim into my team and it handled the battle excellently.

Essentially, nuzlockes fulfil the following purposes:
1) Makes players use Pokémon they wouldn't ordinarily use.
2) Therefore gives players attachment to a wider range of designs than someone who only plays through the game using their favourites.
3) Allows more Pokémon to shine -- being bulky is much more useful in a nuzlocke than a standard playthrough where it doesn't matter if your Pokémon faints, for instance.
4) Diversifies how players play the game, since sacrificing Pokémon in boss battles is no longer a valid option.
5) Deepens players' knowledge of the games that they nuzlocke, such as remembering the team of a random trainer who killed one of their team members or remembering where their team members were caught.
6) Makes players more invested in the gameplay in each and every battle due to the added jeapordy.
7) Creates stories around team members such as avenging their friends or being a soldier who frequently almost dies but manages to survive until the end. This makes players care more about these designs.

There are probably more purposes, but those are the ones that I can think of right now.

Wasn't meant to be an introduction to the series, it was meant to be a bridging gap between GO and the main games.

I actually think that this is the problem, not the excuse. Every game in the series serves the purpose of being a valid introduction to the mechanics of the main series besides Let's Go!. This further means that they bridge the gap between GO and the main games anyway, because a player of GO who buys another game in the series is already invested in the world of Pokémon, the designs in it etc. due to GO. This means that if they were to buy Pokémon Sword/Shield they would bother learning all of the mechanics like abilities because they want to get more invested in the series or, due to the difficulty of Sword/Shield, if they never wrap their heads around all of the mechanics that Pokémon offers in order to optimise gameplay, they can still beat and enjoy the game. This makes SwSh a better game to bridge the gap between GO and the main games because it actually offers the same mechanics that the main games in the series have offered before it. On the other hand, Let's Go! is a simplification of the main series in fairly arbitrary ways which makes players less invested in the gameplay because there are fewer dimensions to it, and means that it isn't different enough to GO to makes players think that they should buy the next game on offer especially since battling is now offered in GO.

Let's Go! are totally nomadic within the series because they offer nothing that the games before and after them don't, but they also offer less than those games. The only thing that was changed rather than removed is how Pokémon are caught, which is universally deemed to have been a negative change. Everything else was simply removed and simplified, and there isn't valid justification for it because the simplification doesn't add anything to the game elsewhere. Especially considering that these were the first Pokémon games on Switch, I still see them as a massive misstep. Hell, if the main series is considered too much of a jump from GO, Pokémon Mystery Dungeon would have been a better introduction to the series for GO players because it is reminiscent of the gameplay within the main series games but a little simpler and less intimidating, while also having its own identity and clearly being a spin-off.

 

[Samtendo09]

Have anyone realized that GF, and TPC as a whole to an extent, keep focusing on Kanto among the older regions despite the Pokémon of the Year is Greninja, and that the top 10 isn't even half of Gen 1 Pokémon?

One thing I don't like about Pokémon is pretending that they give spotlight to each region while it's already clear that they tries to bolster the popularity of Gen 1 even with how massively popular it is. It gets to the point where it get blatant, unfair and even artificial, as it is all done by their own bias and proves a disconnection between them and the fans. It one the thing that really gives a feel that the franchise is as corporate (and merchandise) driven as it can get.

The focus on Gen 1 Pokémon (i.e. having more than one important trainer who have a Kanto Pokémon as an Ace) also make Kalos, Alola and Galar regions less believable (but not unbelievable) because in real life, the favorite animals/breed of a region is not at all the same as another. Different dog species have wildly different popularity depending on the region, for example.

Sure, there's remakes not about Gen 1 and all, but none of it changes what's going on in the mainline series or anything else, especially nowadays. It doesn't help that some animators (including some sprite animators) enforce the "Gen 1 bias/focus/only" by only animating stuff in Kanto, and same goes for some artists (but fortunately, there's a lot more that keep it fair for every regions as much as humanly possible instead).

It's their blatant bias and a zigzag of connection and disconnection between them and the fans that makes me wonder if their bias will take an even worse toll in the long run.

 

[DrPumpkinz]

Have anyone realized that GF, and TPC as a whole to an extent, keep focusing on Kanto among the older regions despite the Pokémon of the Year is Greninja, and that the top 10 isn't even half of Gen 1 Pokémon?

To be fair, as others have pointed out before, that poll was seriously flawed in structure. It's hard to tell how much Greninja's winning reflects its own popularity vs how much it reflects its lack of competition in Kalos.

 

[Samtendo09]

To be fair, as others have pointed out before, that poll was seriously flawed in structure. It's hard to tell how much Greninja's winning reflects its own popularity vs how much it reflects its lack of competition in Kalos.

It's not like GF themselves or TPC as a whole would use those polls in the long run anyways. The only effect it have in the last times was V-Create for Rayquaza during Gen 5, and then Greninja having a new form (although that might be prepared in advance anyways) during Gen 6 or 7. The way GF often give special treatment or focus for Gen 1 make some of their own Pokémon as mainstream favorite, not just fan favorites. And you know how often than not - though not always- that GF appealed to the mainstream audience than the fans in the long run (aside of quality-of-life changes, especially regarding competitive).

Another unpopular opinion of mine is that I highly dislike how blatantly gimmicky some Pokémon are. Now, some Pokémon with working gimmick like Mimiyku (Disguise) or Komala (Comatose), or certain Pokémon with multiple forms (Deoxys, Darmanitan, Aegislash, etc.) worked fine if not very well on their own (if not too well in a very few cases).

However, those whose based around a gimmick to begin with will mess my patience, as too many of them end up being too weak to function in the long run. Castform, Plusle + Minun (to an extent), Cherrim, Basculin (genuinely separate forms), Wishiwashi (despite School's very high BST, it's low HP, speed and poor movepool let it down) and both Stonjourner and Eiscue are prime examples on how to not make Pokémon based on a gimmick.

 

[Codraroll]

Have anyone realized that GF, and TPC as a whole to an extent, keep focusing on Kanto among the older regions despite the Pokémon of the Year is Greninja, and that the top 10 isn't even half of Gen 1 Pokémon?

Well, yes, it has actually been a bit of a meme in the Pokémon fan community for the past, oh, six-seven years or so. I think people really started to notice it when XY came out and those games handed you Kanto starters early on, that were much stronger than the native Kalos starters due to their ability to Mega Evolve, then it continued with letting you use a Poké Flute to wake a Snorlax blocking the road, and some guy later on just gave you a Lapras for no reason. Santalune Forest is also a direct copy of Viridian Forest, and the first wild Pokémon encounter in the game is hard-coded to be Pidgey, but that's stuff you only notice when you're playing the games over again. SM and SwSh continued the so-called "Kanto pandering" to various degrees, but it's clear that other generations have been heavily sidelined in favour of Gen I.

And yeah, lamenting the fact is hardly unpopular these days. The original 151 only make up a fairly small fraction of all Pokémon these days, most fans had a non-Kanto game as their first Pokémon game, and have 'mons from the later generations as their favourite Pokémon, but it seems like Game Freak is still run by the people who made RBY and consider the first games their favourite creation and keep favouring Kanto 'mons. Heaven forbid you have something like Crawdaunt, Pangoro, or Probopass be your favourite 'mon. They aren't likely to get much attention anytime soon, gotta give Meowth its fourth regional form first.

 

[DreamPrince]

It might be because the Gen 1 are most “recognizable” at least according to GF. Not sure where this statistic comes from though, or it’s just an excuse.

One other feature of SwSh that has been removed that I’m very sad they removed was Battle Videos. Battle Videos were fun because I could watch some of my favorite matches ovrt and over again, or you could learn from another strategy. I was so upset they removed in SwSh. There’s not even a successor in Home. Why did they remove it? Was it because not many people used it? If that’s the case, all side activities should be removed because no ones uses it on the same level as battling.

 

[Worldie]

One other feature of SwSh that has been removed that I’m very sad they removed was Battle Videos. Battle Videos were fun because I could watch some of my favorite matches ovrt and over again, or you could learn from another strategy. I was so upset they removed in SwSh. There’s not even a successor in Home. Why did they remove it? Was it because not many people used it? If that’s the case, all side activities should be removed because no ones uses it on the same level as battling.

Honestly I'd think it's just cause they were hosted on GTS, and GTS was going to get closed.
Since it's a relatively low usage feature, they didn't feel the need to re-code it on the new servers.
Which is, understandable if you ask me.

QR codes also got discontinued for same reason, but since they are a widely used feature, they got replaced with the new team codes (that can be shared without the need to actually picture the QR)

 

[Codraroll]

It might be because the Gen 1 are most “recognizable” at least according to GF. Not sure where this statistic comes from though, or it’s just an excuse

It might be a self-fulfilling prophesy in that respect. Gen I 'mons are marketed more because they are more recognizable, and they are more recognizable because they are marketed more.

Strangely enough, I actually think Niantic has been better at showcasing Pokémon from different generations in Pokémon Go than is the case in most other Pokémon media. While the rest of The Pokémon Company tends to focus on two generations exclusively - Gen I and Gen Latest - Niantic puts the spotlight all over the place. Take for instance the current loading screen picture in Pokémon Go, which, admittedly, prominently features Pikachu, Eevee and Snorlax, but the background has Sudowoodo, Sawsbuck and Beartic lounging around. An image used for much of last year showcased such different Pokémon as Corsola, Gible, Mantyke and the legendary pixies. The New Year's picture from last year featured Electivire, Lucario, Grumpig and Swinub. Those are Pokémon TPC would never bundle together in promotional material, but Niantic seems to mix and match as it suits them.

Likewise, the spawns in-game are mostly geared towards Pokémon of the same types appearing at the same time, not the same generation. Right now, the radar feature in my game shows the following Pokémon nearby: Meowth, Barboach, Nosepass, Mudkip, Bidoof, Seel, Baltoy, Pidove, and Snubbull. That's all the five first generations represented, in a sample of 9. Note that Pokémon Go is only updated to Gen V at the moment, so that's a pretty solid representation. As I'm typing, relatively obscure Pokémon such as Spheal, Vulpix, Misdreavus, and Drilbur join in. I'm not necessarily saying Niantic does Pokémon better than Game Freak, but they're certainly taking good care of the brand.

 

[Worldie]

It might be a self-fulfilling prophesy in that respect. Gen I 'mons are marketed more because they are more recognizable, and they are more recognizable because they are marketed more.

Strangely enough, I actually think Niantic has been better at showcasing Pokémon from different generations in Pokémon Go than is the case in most other Pokémon media. While the rest of The Pokémon Company tends to focus on two generations exclusively - Gen I and Gen Latest - Niantic puts the spotlight all over the place. Take for instance the current loading screen picture in Pokémon Go, which, admittedly, prominently features Pikachu, Eevee and Snorlax, but the background has Sudowoodo, Sawsbuck and Beartic lounging around. An image used for much of last year showcased such different Pokémon as Corsola, Gible, Mantyke and the legendary pixies. The New Year's picture from last year featured Electivire, Lucario, Grumpig and Swinub. Those are Pokémon TPC would never bundle together in promotional material, but Niantic seems to mix and match as it suits them.

Likewise, the spawns in-game are mostly geared towards Pokémon of the same types appearing at the same time, not the same generation. Right now, the radar feature in my game shows the following Pokémon nearby: Meowth, Barboach, Nosepass, Mudkip, Bidoof, Seel, Baltoy, Pidove, and Snubbull. That's all the five first generations represented, in a sample of 9. Note that Pokémon Go is only updated to Gen V at the moment, so that's a pretty solid representation. As I'm typing, relatively obscure Pokémon such as Spheal, Vulpix, Misdreavus, and Drilbur join in. I'm not necessarily saying Niantic does Pokémon better than Game Freak, but they're certainly taking good care of the brand.

I think the main perk of Niantic is that since they're a 3rd party, they're not tecnically hit by GameFreak's or TPCI's decisions on how to sort their events and implementation.
Hence assuming the "gen 1 pander" exists in TPCI, they aren't affected by it as they are a independant company, and they're mostly focused on keeping people interested in keeping playing and hunting, rather than giving attention to the merchandise material (the self-realized prophecy as you say)

 

[Codraroll]

I think the main perk of Niantic is that since they're a 3rd party, they're not tecnically hit by GameFreak's or TPCI's decisions on how to sort their events and implementation.
Hence assuming the "gen 1 pander" exists in TPCI, they aren't affected by it as they are a independant company, and they're mostly focused on keeping people interested in keeping playing and hunting, rather than giving attention to the merchandise material (the self-realized prophecy as you say)

That being said, there are traces of it in Niantic's case too, it's just a little less in-your-face. The loading screen pictures tend to put a Gen I Pokémon in the point of focus, with Pikachu appearing in more than half of them. Events that feature Gen I Pokémon are also more common than those from other generations (exemplified in recent Community Days with Rhyhorn and Abra), and the antagonists of the game are called Team GO Rocket. There is some Gen I bias there too, but it's not as overwhelming as in other Pokémon media.

 

[Pikachu315111]

That being said, there are traces of it in Niantic's case too, it's just a little less in-your-face. The loading screen pictures tend to put a Gen I Pokémon in the point of focus, with Pikachu appearing in more than half of them. Events that feature Gen I Pokémon are also more common than those from other generations (exemplified in recent Community Days with Rhyhorn and Abra), and the antagonists of the game are called Team GO Rocket. There is some Gen I bias there too, but it's not as overwhelming as in other Pokémon media.

While the Community Days are suspect, I don't fault the use of Pikachu (series mascot) or Team GO Rocket (GF just established that there's a version of Giovanni who can travel through dimensions and so Niantic is just continuing that storyline by having that Giovanni coming to "our world" via GO; also Team Rocket is a nice base villain team whose goals are simple and you can easily relate them to many organized crime groups (yakuza, mafia, etc.)).

 

[Worldie]

While the Community Days are suspect, I don't fault the use of Pikachu (series mascot) or Team GO Rocket (GF just established that there's a version of Giovanni who can travel through dimensions and so Niantic is just continuing that storyline by having that Giovanni coming to "our world" via GO; also Team Rocket is a nice base villain team whose goals are simple and you can easily relate them to many organized crime groups (yakuza, mafia, etc.)).

That, plus most of the people who play Go know Pokemon from the Anime, and due to the fact J&J are a thing, Team Rocket is by far the most recognizable "bad org" as they've stuck with the anime since the start.

 

[Celever]

I definitely fall on the side of thinking that Kanto Pokémon are favoured because they're popular, not because they're from Kanto, and that the fact that the most popular Pokémon are from Kanto is only coincidental. It's a self-feeding cycle to an extent with characters like Pikachu, Charizard, Gengar, and Lucario, but as my inclusion of Lucario demonstrates I don't think that this is unique to Gen I. Pokémon from later generations I would identify as being in the same feedback loop are (Gen II) Togepi, Pichu, Umbreon, the Legendary Beasts, Tyranitar, Lugia, (Gen III) Grovyle, Sceptile, Torchic, Blaziken, Mudkip, Swampert, Gardevoir, Aron, Aggron, Manectric, Milotic, Absol, Salamence, Metagross, Rayquaza, (Gen IV) Turtwig, Infernape, Staraptor, Garchomp, Lucario, Munchlax, Rotom, (Gen V) Excadrill, Whimsicott, Darmanitan, Chandelure, (Gen VI) Greninja, (Gen VII) Rowlet, Incineroar, Rockruff, Lycanroc, and Mimikyu. I think it's too early to tell for Gen VIII, though Wooloo is definitely a contender to be on this list.

These Pokémon are listed because I think that, for whatever reason, their popularity has endured better than other Pokémon who TPCi have attempted to put into their own feedback loops. After Pachirisu won VGC they actually increased their production of Pachirisu plushies expecting an increase in demand, but it never came. Braixen and Weavile, two great designs with every chance of becoming all-time favourites, were included in Pokken Tournament but increased popularity didn't follow. Pumpkaboo and Gourgeist were pushed hard in Halloween season during Gen VI, but they never became popular either. Delibird is another case of a Pokémon who's still pushed every Christmas but who never has enduring popularity at any time of the year besides that.

The short of it is that though the trend above demonstrates a general decrease per generation, the outliers being Gen III with many enduring designs and Gen VI with practically none, that's looking at the state of things as they are right now. There are countless Pokémon from the more recent generations who TPCi has tried to make as popular as Charizard or Mudkip but they just haven't risen to the occasion and actually found the popularity that's needed for TPCi to keep pushing them. This is the same reason why despite being Kanto Pokémon, we don't see Dewgong or Poliwrath merch anywhere, because they're not popular enough to warrant it despite being in the series from the start. Most designs which TPCi identifies as having icon potential are tested to see if the general public is receptive to them, and we have slam dunks in more recent generations like Mimikyu, Lycanroc, Chandelure, Greninja, and Lucario to prove that it's not that TPCi is just sticking to their laurels by which I mean old favourites, because if they were these Pokémon would have never taken off to the extent that they have.

However, there is an issue, and it's that with each passing generation there are more Pokémon trying to share the limelight and therefore each one gets less of it. Frosmoth couldn't get a beautiful iridescent G-Max because they had to make one for Pikachu, Eevee and Meowth. Palossand didn't get a regional Galarian form (imagine one based on the White Cliffs of Dover!) because it was Gen V's turn to get some makeovers rather than Gen VII's. The more assets they have to balance the harder it becomes, and so necessarily the weaker or more nichely popular designs of newer generations can't compete with old Pokémon who were nichely popular but built up a fanbase over time. I feel confident in saying that Hatterene is a better Gardevoir, Shiinotic is a better Amoonguss, and Clauncher is a better Krabby. But Gardevoir was Wally's ace, Amoonguss has been holding down the fort in VGC since its introduction, and Krabby had that scene at the beginning of PMD Explorers where it blew the beautiful bubbles over the sunset. They've been in the series for longer so we have more memories with them, and therefore we feel more of a bond.

I think it's difficult to gauge the bias without looking at time frames. It's been 8 years since Gen VI and 24 since Gen I. That means we've been with Gen I designs for thrice as long as Gen VI -- many people who grew up with Red/Blue are married with kids of their own at this point. Perhaps in 16 more years we'll have a greater affinity toward certain Gen VI designs just due to their inclusion here or there, and we'll be arguing about Gen VI bias in the Gen XV games. It's unjust to expect new Pokémon to reach the levels of widespread popularity as the Gen I Pokémon because don't forget, the Gen I Pokémon are some of the most popular and known fictional characters in history. It was a social phenomena. If you were a kid in the 90s, your Grandma can tell you who Pikachu is, your parents can probably name a good 10-20 of the Kanto Pokémon, and half the people you went to school with could take a good stab at naming all 151 even now. In some ways, Pokémon is still using this early momentum, which means they have to be moderate in how they add to and revamp the series, meaning they can't stop favouring these early designs in favour of new ones. I mean, they tried that in Black/White when they only had new Pokémon until the postgame, and everyone hated it.

 

[DreamPrince]

I definitely fall on the side of thinking that Kanto Pokémon are favoured because they're popular, not because they're from Kanto, and that the fact that the most popular Pokémon are from Kanto is only coincidental. It's a self-feeding cycle to an extent with characters like Pikachu, Charizard, Gengar, and Lucario, but as my inclusion of Lucario demonstrates I don't think that this is unique to Gen I. Pokémon from later generations I would identify as being in the same feedback loop are (Gen II) Togepi, Pichu, Umbreon, the Legendary Beasts, Tyranitar, Lugia, (Gen III) Grovyle, Sceptile, Torchic, Blaziken, Mudkip, Swampert, Gardevoir, Aron, Aggron, Manectric, Milotic, Absol, Salamence, Metagross, Rayquaza, (Gen IV) Turtwig, Infernape, Staraptor, Garchomp, Lucario, Munchlax, Rotom, (Gen V) Excadrill, Whimsicott, Darmanitan, Chandelure, (Gen VI) Greninja, (Gen VII) Rowlet, Incineroar, Rockruff, Lycanroc, and Mimikyu. I think it's too early to tell for Gen VIII, though Wooloo is definitely a contender to be on this list.

These Pokémon are listed because I think that, for whatever reason, their popularity has endured better than other Pokémon who TPCi have attempted to put into their own feedback loops. After Pachirisu won VGC they actually increased their production of Pachirisu plushies expecting an increase in demand, but it never came. Braixen and Weavile, two great designs with every chance of becoming all-time favourites, were included in Pokken Tournament but increased popularity didn't follow. Pumpkaboo and Gourgeist were pushed hard in Halloween season during Gen VI, but they never became popular either. Delibird is another case of a Pokémon who's still pushed every Christmas but who never has enduring popularity at any time of the year besides that.

The short of it is that though the trend above demonstrates a general decrease per generation, the outliers being Gen III with many enduring designs and Gen VI with practically none, that's looking at the state of things as they are right now. There are countless Pokémon from the more recent generations who TPCi has tried to make as popular as Charizard or Mudkip but they just haven't risen to the occasion and actually found the popularity that's needed for TPCi to keep pushing them. This is the same reason why despite being Kanto Pokémon, we don't see Dewgong or Poliwrath merch anywhere, because they're not popular enough to warrant it despite being in the series from the start. Most designs which TPCi identifies as having icon potential are tested to see if the general public is receptive to them, and we have slam dunks in more recent generations like Mimikyu, Lycanroc, Chandelure, Greninja, and Lucario to prove that it's not that TPCi is just sticking to their laurels by which I mean old favourites, because if they were these Pokémon would have never taken off to the extent that they have.

However, there is an issue, and it's that with each passing generation there are more Pokémon trying to share the limelight and therefore each one gets less of it. Frosmoth couldn't get a beautiful iridescent G-Max because they had to make one for Pikachu, Eevee and Meowth. Palossand didn't get a regional Galarian form (imagine one based on the White Cliffs of Dover!) because it was Gen V's turn to get some makeovers rather than Gen VII's. The more assets they have to balance the harder it becomes, and so necessarily the weaker or more nichely popular designs of newer generations can't compete with old Pokémon who were nichely popular but built up a fanbase over time. I feel confident in saying that Hatterene is a better Gardevoir, Shiinotic is a better Amoonguss, and Clauncher is a better Krabby. But Gardevoir was Wally's ace, Amoonguss has been holding down the fort in VGC since its introduction, and Krabby had that scene at the beginning of PMD Explorers where it blew the beautiful bubbles over the sunset. They've been in the series for longer so we have more memories with them, and therefore we feel more of a bond.

I think it's difficult to gauge the bias without looking at time frames. It's been 8 years since Gen VI and 24 since Gen I. That means we've been with Gen I designs for thrice as long as Gen VI -- many people who grew up with Red/Blue are married with kids of their own at this point. Perhaps in 16 more years we'll have a greater affinity toward certain Gen VI designs just due to their inclusion here or there, and we'll be arguing about Gen VI bias in the Gen XV games. It's unjust to expect new Pokémon to reach the levels of widespread popularity as the Gen I Pokémon because don't forget, the Gen I Pokémon are some of the most popular and known fictional characters in history. It was a social phenomena. If you were a kid in the 90s, your Grandma can tell you who Pikachu is, your parents can probably name a good 10-20 of the Kanto Pokémon, and half the people you went to school with could take a good stab at naming all 151 even now. In some ways, Pokémon is still using this early momentum, which means they have to be moderate in how they add to and revamp the series, meaning they can't stop favouring these early designs in favour of new ones. I mean, they tried that in Black/White when they only had new Pokémon until the postgame, and everyone hated it.

I don’t think the problem is with Kanto getting attention, I think the problem lies with Kanto getting more attention and references every time the new games come out. Even before Gen 6, there were several design choices to mimic Kanto: Unova being only Gen 5 Pokemon, while DP's Base dex had 151 Pokemon, referencing Kanto. In Alola, there are so many references to Kanto that its hard to think of Alola without thinking of Kanto. Here are a list on the top of my head: More Kanto Pokemon than Alola Pokemon in base dex, All Alola forms being Kanto only, The player character moved from Kanto, All exclusive Z-Moves were Kanto/Alola only, Lillie goes to Kanto at the end of the game, Red and Blue being Head of Battle Tree, Samson Oak, and Nugget Bridge. Heck, Charizard serves as a ride Pokemon despite not being catchable in Alola at all! Now i'm not saying that there weren't any references to other regions, like Wally and Anabel for Emerald, as well as Cynthia and Looker for Platinum, but the number is significantly smaller. This is what people are talking about too much Kanto; when I play SM, Kanto is shoved at every corner that it feels like Alola is a part of Kanto.

For your mascots, I would add Goomy, Sylveon, Aegislash to Gen 6, Primarina for Gen 7, and Dragapault and Snom for Gen 8. I disagree saying that its coincidental that Gen 1 get more attention than other regions. Gold and Silver came out shorty after Red and Blue, and there are probably people who have played have those games now have kids of their own, and I'm sure classmates could name the Johto Pokemon as well. Gold and Silver were the second best in terms of sales for Gameboy/color only being beaten by Red and Blue, and because of there success TPC was founded as well as Pokemon becoming a multi-billionaire franchise.

Yet, the Johto starters have not gotten Mega Evolutions or Gigantamax forms, yet alone Z-Moves and Gigantamax; despite being as prominent in the Anime and their games being just as popular as Red and Blue. And its hard to deny that favoritism does not play a role in development: Gengar and Venusaur, two Pokemon that are the favorite of Sugimori, were given Megas and a Gigantamax. There aren't as many references to Johto as Kanto in many of the other newer titles despite the regions being connected. You can't deny favoritism plays some role, though how much it plays is debatable.

If your logic that affinity grows over time is the case, then we should be having more Johto representation from TPC. But that's clearly not the case. In Gens 6 and 7, the trends were Z-Moves and Gigantamaxing, all of which were given to the lastest Gens and Gen 1.

I'd also like to point out that other media plays a role into what Pokemon are " iconic ", the anime features Togepi, PIkachu, Jigglypuff, Lucario, Greninja, and Sylveon as prominent Pokemon while some these like Greninja and Lucario get added to Smash, promoting their popularity even more.

And last, last thing.

Memes

 

[Yung Dramps]

It's a 2 for 1 special boys and girls, two steaming takes concerning the hotly anticipated Diamond and Pearl remakes!

#1: I do not care whether they use Mega Evolution or Dynamax as their central "gimmick", assuming they do have one. I don't really know what to say about this one other than to check out my previous post on why I like Dynamax in-game. Also, complaining about Dynamax being "forced" in to the plot of Sinnoh is hypocritical as shit if you're fine with ORAS or Let's Go "forcing" in Megas.

#2: I honestly don't think these games will be coming any time soon. There's a massive contingent of this fanbase that believes DP remakes are inevitable as the next big titles, but I honestly doubt it for a few key reasons. The biggest one being that usually when a remake is on the horizon, little bits of fanservice towards that generation are snuck in to the preceding original titles to tease it. OG DPPT did things like reference the Lake of Rage/Red Gyarados, have Jasmine cameo at Sunyshore City and give a sizable contingent of its new evolutions and Pokedex space to Gen 2 mons. XY had the Mega Blaziken event, major characters like Diantha and Calem/Serena using Hoenn megas, just a lot of Hoenn megas in general really along with some smaller hints via NPC dialogue. Following this trend, you'd think SWSH would have tons of little nods to Gen 4, like maybe Gigantamax/Galarian forms for a few Sinnoh mons or references to a couple of characters from those games, but nope! In addition, considering this year will be occupied by the SWSH DLC, the next possible year for a new title is 2021, which is gonna be a big anniversary year (the 25th) where I imagine that if anything they'd pull a Sun and Moon and try to get a new generation out the door.