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Unpopular opinions

Bug Maniac Aydon said:
I think the kanto "starter you pick is the difficulty level" idea is bullshit. If the game wanted to intentionally do it this way, it'd have to explicitly tell you it's that way. Realistically, this only affects the first two gyms only a tiny bit, because Misty has some available Pokemon you can use to deal with her if you chose Charmander (a few Electric, Grass and Bug pokemon, a few users of status, and some generally strong physical attackers like Raticate, Nidos, hell even Gyarados with enough determination). Brock is only really hard if Charmander is underleveled or not using items, otherwise Charmander or Charmeleon should have an okay time with him, and Butterfree is still an option if you must have a neutral attack. Hell, in FRLG, that isn't even necessary because Charmander learns Metal Claw and Mankey is more freely available! It's just a dumb notion
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FRLG's option, or I suppose the way most games post-FRLG do it, is so much better I'm amazed it took that long to implement. All three starters can put up a decent fight against Brock in FRLG, even despite Charmander being at a defensive disadvantage.

Up until about your second or third badge, your starter outranks pretty much every other obtainable Pokemon statwise (and more so once it's evolved) so most players do have to depend on it. But this becomes a non-issue once you're 3 or 4 badges into the game, so for that initial period it makes more sense to give each starter a fighting chance against the first couple of gyms.

One thing that stands out to me is that in the little instruction manual that comes in the box for Pokemon Red & Blue, one of Oak's little tips is: "first time players should pick Bulbasaur" (image below).

Like, I get that they expected most people to read the manual. If you're not going to implement a proper difficulty level like B2W2 did, it's not the worst idea in the world to have an easy/moderate/difficult starter. But nothing in the game hints at that advantage, and it defeats the notion that you're meant to choose the one you like best.

You don't even need to make one of the starters better than the others so long as the first gym doesn't have an advantage against any of them. Just make the first gym Normal or Fighting or Dark or Psychic (or, dare I say it, Dragon). As much as I'm not fond of BW's first gym, it did put everyone on an even footing so that's something.


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Okay here is a hot take that I’ve held since early middle school/late elementary school and still believe to this day: the Pokémon Adventures manga is 100 times better than the Pokémon anime.
The characters are way cooler - there is a reason my PS! Username is TrainerRed4 - and much more interesting, as is the dialogue and their interactions. This is only added by the more serious and exciting plot that is much more intriguing than the anime and the beautiful art (although the anime does have this too).
Similarly, since I was a little kid, I’ve never liked the anime.
 
Sonikku A said:
The unpopular one would be to admit that it peaked Gen 3 RS, and declined since late Em/DPP
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I still think the emerald arc is fine, but after DPPT its been pretty garbage LOL. Hell, I wouldn't consider the early arcs that good either. Rgby is fine, but GSC and RS have terrible endings, and I could write an entire essay on the lost potential of RS in specific.

At best, is a 7/10, but most of the time its a 5/10, and after gen 4 its been a 1-3/10 lol
 
Bug Maniac Aydon said:
honestly a lot of gen 3 pokemon are horrible in design and in practice, almost as much as gen 2 is
The lunar rocks, fireflies, pikachu twins, kecleon, nosepass, castform
it feels like half the pokemon were one-off gimmicks like Ditto and Lickitung
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I guess it's my time to drop an unpopular opinion: there's nothing inherently wrong with one-off gimmicks. It certainly beats doing the exact same design slightly differently.

Shedinja is amazing, and you can't convince me otherwise.
 
Worldie said:
I have a friend who's a huge Touhou addict and also played through this on his stream.

You aren't wrong in the fact that he needed to use some clever strats and think through battles for a while.
...until he realized he could just powergrind through several of the otherwise "brain checks", which is sadly the limitation of turn based games.
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Leveling systems (which aren't even unique to turn-based RPGs) are a completely different subject from turn-based combat systems. It's not so much a limitation as an offering of a dynamic scale on difficulty, if executed correctly. Sure, you can grind excessively and cheese games where such potential exists, but you can also grind minimally and, provided the combat system has sufficient depth to it, enjoy actually having to delve into the game's mechanics and make proper use of them. This is just something very few RPGs actually do successfully.

Separate from all of that is straight up providing a recommended/required level for players to be at, and providing ways to level down or otherwise control their level to avoid being overleveled, and offering players rewards for doing fights at lower levels, but hardly any RPG does that. That's another system that's just not utilized by devs effectively, this isn't an inherent flaw or limitation to the concept of levels.
 
Ironmage said:
I guess it's my time to drop an unpopular opinion: there's nothing inherently wrong with one-off gimmicks. It certainly beats doing the exact same design slightly differently.

Shedinja is amazing, and you can't convince me otherwise.
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I think this is definitely true, but the majority of Pokemon shouldn't just be gimmicks, they should be incredibly varied but still 'normal'. If there are too many gimmicky pokemon, they they lose their charm, and a lot of them are bound to be bad.
Off the top of my head, I don't actually think that this has happened though. And I love my boy Shuckle :blobuwu:
 
Strife64 said:
I think this is definitely true, but the majority of Pokemon shouldn't just be gimmicks, they should be incredibly varied but still 'normal'. If there are too many gimmicky pokemon, they they lose their charm, and a lot of them are bound to be bad.
Off the top of my head, I don't actually think that this has happened though. And I love my boy Shuckle :blobuwu:
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It didn’t happened yet, but some gimmick Pokémon do lose their charm quickly anyways due to how much of “masters of none” they are, or because either their gimmick is too little to do anything genuinely helpful, or because of their other aspects being all around bad to begin with.

Gen 1’s gimmick Pokémon aged better than Gen 2 + 3’s gimmick Pokémon since they were already varied in terms of strengths and design.
 
Samtendo09 said:
It didn’t happened yet, but some gimmick Pokémon do lose their charm quickly anyways due to how much of “masters of none” they are, or because either their gimmick is too little to do anything genuinely helpful, or because of their other aspects being all around bad to begin with.

Gen 1’s gimmick Pokémon aged better than Gen 2 + 3’s gimmick Pokémon since they were already varied in terms of strengths and design.
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Pretty sure I'm gonna be addicted to PokeFarm Q now, all because of your link lmao
 
You know, Worldie’s post on explaining that Dexit was bound to happen simply because there’s no way to possibly keep all the Pokémon especially with the 3D model shift has got me thinking with this new opinion: Dexit was a missed opportunity. The Pokémon games have had a massive issue with code pile up. Because of how the Pokémon are coded into the computer, there isn’t enough room to play around with the mechanics without completely sabotaging the code to the point that you wouldn’t be able to transfer old Pokémon into the new game. I mean, the reason why RS couldn’t transfer Pokémon was because they completely changed the DV to the IV system and can’t change it again because it would mean another case like RS. The result is a huge pileup that if one piece is removed the whole pile comes coming down. The problem is there is a bunch of stuff that is completely not necessary yet still has to exist for sake of preserving Pokémon. Look at Contest Stats, for example. Contests haven’t been in any game other than remakes yet they still need to exist due to being tied to the ribbons which are part of the Pokémon identity. To put in perspective, you can still evolve Febass with Max Beauty even if contests don’t exist in that generation, making it the only Pokémon with multiple ways to evolve it in the main series. And it is not just Pokémon either. There is a whole bunch of items with descriptions that still existed until USM ever since DP; seems like they have been reusing code since Gen 4. Examples include the Azure Flute which was never released, and the Red Chain, a proto item which never saw the light of day yet still has a description in USM that differs from DP meaning someone modified it.

Dexit was a perfect opportunity to get rid of that pile up. Create a brand new system that replaces IVs in order to make competitive battling easier, while also eliminating the pile up from other games. Making it feature only new Pokémon like BW would makes it feel less like GF is playing favorite by including certain Pokémon over others. Of course, I understand they did not want to do this. It would essentially mean that Pokémon would no longer be able to be transferred, essentially destroying that legacy and identity like it did in RS. So they instead decided to remove bits of the code and keep parts of it to keep it under the check.

And yet, despite me rambling, I still have to admit that you can transfer a piece of data from a 2003 game to 2021 game is amazing yet impractical, which is why no other company has attempted it like Pokémon has.
 
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green_typhlosion said:
FRLG's option, or I suppose the way most games post-FRLG do it, is so much better I'm amazed it took that long to implement. All three starters can put up a decent fight against Brock in FRLG, even despite Charmander being at a defensive disadvantage.

Up until about your second or third badge, your starter outranks pretty much every other obtainable Pokemon statwise (and more so once it's evolved) so most players do have to depend on it. But this becomes a non-issue once you're 3 or 4 badges into the game, so for that initial period it makes more sense to give each starter a fighting chance against the first couple of gyms.

One thing that stands out to me is that in the little instruction manual that comes in the box for Pokemon Red & Blue, one of Oak's little tips is: "first time players should pick Bulbasaur" (image below).

Like, I get that they expected most people to read the manual. If you're not going to implement a proper difficulty level like B2W2 did, it's not the worst idea in the world to have an easy/moderate/difficult starter. But nothing in the game hints at that advantage, and it defeats the notion that you're meant to choose the one you like best.

You don't even need to make one of the starters better than the others so long as the first gym doesn't have an advantage against any of them. Just make the first gym Normal or Fighting or Dark or Psychic (or, dare I say it, Dragon). As much as I'm not fond of BW's first gym, it did put everyone on an even footing so that's something.


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I havent seen this picture in forever
 
DreamPrince said:
You know, Worldie’s post on explaining that Dexit was bound to happen simply because there’s no way to possibly keep all the Pokémon especially with the 3D model shift has got me thinking with this new opinion: Dexit was a missed opportunity. The Pokémon games have had a massive issue with code pile up. Because of how the Pokémon are coded into the computer, there isn’t enough room to play around with the mechanics without completely sabotaging the code to the point that you wouldn’t be able to transfer old Pokémon into the new game. I mean, the reason why RS couldn’t transfer Pokémon was because they completely changed the DV to the IV system and can’t change it again because it would mean another case like RS. The result is a huge pileup that if one piece is removed the whole pile comes coming down. The problem is there is a bunch of stuff that is completely not necessary yet still has to exist for sake of preserving Pokémon. Look at Contest Stats, for example. Contests haven’t been in any game other than remakes yet they still need to exist due to being tied to the ribbons which are part of the Pokémon identity. To put in perspective, you can still evolve Febass with Max Beauty even if contests don’t exist in that generation, making it the only Pokémon with multiple ways to evolve it in the main series. And it is not just Pokémon either. There is a whole bunch of items with descriptions that still existed until USM ever since DP; seems like they have been reusing code since Gen 4. Examples include the Azure Flute which was never released, and the Red Chain, a proto item which never saw the light of day yet still has a description in USM that differs from DP meaning someone modified it.

Dexit was a perfect opportunity to get rid of that pile up. Create a brand new system that replaces IVs in order to make competitive battling easier, while also eliminating the pile up from other games. Making it feature only new Pokémon like BW would makes it feel less like GF is playing favorite by including certain Pokémon over others. Of course, I understand they did not want to do this. It would essentially mean that Pokémon would no longer be able to be transferred, essentially destroying that legacy and identity like it did in RS. So they instead decided to remove bits of the code and keep parts of it to keep it under the check.

And yet, despite me rambling, I still have to admit that you can transfer a piece of data from a 2003 game to 2021 game is amazing yet impractical, which is why no other company has attempted it like Pokémon has.
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Considering they have figured out a way to transfer Gen I and Gen II VC mons to newer games, I wouldn't say that needing to transfer is a limitation on preventing GAMEFREAK from updating mechanics
 
Worldie said:
To make this back to Pokemon... I don't think what the series really need if it wanted to be difficult is "harder bosses" or "better AI" necessarly.

What it would need is some sort of constraint: something that doesn't allow you to freely faceplant into a fight to see what they have then come back and stomp it. Without some sort of constraint, the games can't be made hard, just grindy or tedious.
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A lot has gone on with this discussion so I apologize if if I suggest something someone else has.

Referring to this specific part, and reading some suggestions a few after, would the following make the game more engaging:

From The Battle Facilities: Randomized Teams & Coverage Members:
  • So we're probably never going to go away with the Pokemon League being Type specialists, or at least having some theme which you could use a single strategy or two to work around. So we have to find ways to make this kind of boss fight more challenging. Well, the thing is, Battle Facilities that has the Type Specialist sort of already do this. like, the immediate example to me is Gen VII's Battle Tree which has the Captains, Plumeria, Guzma, Dexio, Sina, and a batch of others who you can fight as a boss at the end of the streak and, though they'll of course have Pokemon of their specialty (they'll always have their ace), they'll also have Pokemon which either provides coverage or work with a strategy like a weather, terrain, or room. In addition, what team they'll use is randomized (aside from their ace). not just in what Pokemon they'll use but what the Pokemon's Moves, Ability, and Held item is (even their Ace has a few variations). So, at the very least to make the bosses harder, maybe implement a similar system. When you challenge a boss trainer, the game randomized their team (that way you can't save just before them and fight the same team) and also throws in a few Pokemon not of their Type specialty meant to be counters or work with their strategy. It probably won't make them any more difficulty, but would make the battle more interesting as you don't know what they'll be throwing out at you (like, sure, you can have a list of potential Pokemon they can use, but that's not gonna help you in the moment; especially if they have variations of the same Pokemon and there's no immediate way of knowing what variant they're using).

Gym Challenge & Puzzle:
  • One thing I've seen suggested often is making the Gym essentially a Battle Facility, you have to go through it in one try or else gotta try again. While I can certainly see a way to do that at face value, at the same time you don't want to change the Gym too much in the way that it can become a wall. Gyms should always have additional trainers you can battle for extra experience, one last moment of training to maybe gain a level (and maybe a new move or even evolve your Pokemon) to help against the boss at the end. So if we want to make the Gym a one-go, we have to find a way to keep the last minute grind the Gym offers but not make it a spot they can actually grind at. One idea would be the Gym Trainers don't give out experience but rather give out Exp. Candy (maybe even a Rare Candy) but they do it only once, if you lose and re-battle them they don't give out the item again. Of course that's still reaping a reward even if you lost. So, another more complicated idea is that the Gym essentially "saves" a copy of your team before entering the Gym and, if you lose, you also lose any exp your Pokemon got. Of course, there's a few problems with this idea such as what if your Pokemon Evolves? Some allowances can be made, like if your Pokemon evolves or learns a new Move they can keep that but still lose the experience they gained (it would just be a quirk of the system that Pokemon is its evolved form or has a move 1 level earlier than it normally would).
  • There's also the factor of Items we need to consider. Without restricting the amount of items the player is allowed to use, how do we balance the player able to use all their items while only the boss usually has a couple of Full Restores? Once again, a few ideas. First, allow all the trainers to at least have one item they can use "for free", as in they don't need to rely on the player's use of items to be allowed to use the one they have. This will probably just be a Potion though could give use to give a few X Battle Items. Still, the player has the advantage as they can use as many items as they want, but here's where the twist comes in: For every item the player uses in a battle that's an extra item both the opponent they're currently battling and the other trainers in the Gym are allowed to use (including the Gym Leader). Now there might be an upper limit to keep the NPCs from being able to use dozens of items just in case the player decides to PP stall; but still even if they cap it so that each trainer can use like 5 or 6 items I think would be enough of a punishment to keep some players from spamming their own items. The only remaining question whether the player should be given back their items if they lose or make them still lose them as an added punishment for overusing items, I can see an argument for either.
  • On a related note, think they should do the Black Tower/White Treehollow thing where the player doesn't keep any money they earned unless they win. Alternatively they could also just not have the Gym Trainers give money and instead beating the Gym Leader gives you a big payout as if you battled a Gym worth of trainers, but I like the idea of encouraging the player to battle all the Gym Trainers because the more they defeat the more money they'll earn (on top of the experience points).
  • Finally repeated attempts also come with another issue of tedium: the Gym Puzzle. Once you solved it you know what to do. The only way I can see around this is that each Gym has a few variation of its puzzles, or is segmented in a way they have modules they can just place in at random. Like with the Gym Leader, you won't know what version of the puzzle you'll be tasked to figure out. If you lose and gotta try again it's both a form of punishment but could also be seen as a way to keep things from getting tedious; afterall Gym Puzzles aren't meant to be hard so creating a few variations more gives the player a chance to not only see what can be done with the gimmick but do more puzzles using that gimmick they were made to learn & use for this one Gym.

Worldie said:
However, if the hard mode had something more punishing in place, for example losing experience if a pokemon gets KOd, "reverse obedience" where pokemon would disobey you if they're unhappy, things that prevent you from "faceplant until you win" shenenigans.
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If a Pokemon gets KO they earn no experience, which I think is an appropriate enough punishment for being reckless.

Also, your Pokemon does lose happiness/friendship if they gets knocked out. Granted, they'll never disobey you, but that's more of an issue with the Friendship mechanic not having a drawback for low number. Would be neat that, if the number was low enough, your Pokemon would start to disobey; though at the same time you have to be TRYING to get your Pokemon to have a low Friendship. So in a long run that wouldn't work.

I think your Pokemon not getting experience, unable to be used in battle, and you have to use a Revive to bring them back if not near a healing spot is enough to make fainting a detriment.

Worldie said:
that is... how many of the non-veterans actually do this? We know that usually kids and even adults who don't exactly play competitive pokemon barely touch the games after finishing the story.
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This is why I've been focused on many the experience more interesting than just making it more challenging. Because you're right, the general audience doesn't care about difficulty, and because of that GF doesn't put much thought into it. But what the general audience would notice is tedium, so thus my suggestions not only be a challenge increase but try to make things feel more spontaneous and keeping the player on their toes. "WAKE UP! This ain't a route, it's a boss lair with a changing puzzle and mooks to get through!".

Sonikku A said:
The unpopular one would be to admit that it peaked Gen 3 RS, and declined since late Em/DPP
And that Yellow is beyond a Mary Sue insert
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Yeah, I kind of don't like what I heard they've been doing with some of the recent protags. For B2W2 they made Nate a super police agent with a weird gimmick (he acts lazy and a doofus while on the job, but when he's not he's serious) and ranks above Looker. In XY they made Calem a shut-in after a rather not serious incident (he won a small tournament, got mobbed by reporters, and not he's a recluse; feels a bit forced) so stays in a tent on the back of Grace's Rhyhorn while travelling (which he was forced to do after everyone's homes were destroyed by a battle between Xerneas and Yveltal out of nowhere; feels like the writers wrote themselves in a corner making Calem a recluse and force him kicking and screaming to the adventure). In SM they made Selene a super genius with chemicals and Poison-types that just felt random, though not as bad as what they did with Nate and Calem.

Also all the characters they need to give additional gimmicks to which begins feeling forced with some of them. The characters sorta no longer feel just like kids of an adventure and experiencing all that the region has to offer but a character with an established role and a lot of their of experiences surround that role.

I'll agree that the manga is better than the anime, but the games are still better than the manga, at least the recent ones.
 
Samtendo09 said:
It didn’t happened yet, but some gimmick Pokémon do lose their charm quickly anyways due to how much of “masters of none” they are, or because either their gimmick is too little to do anything genuinely helpful, or because of their other aspects being all around bad to begin with.

Gen 1’s gimmick Pokémon aged better than Gen 2 + 3’s gimmick Pokémon since they were already varied in terms of strengths and design.
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Gen 1 has also way fewer (4, Being Tangela, Lickitung, Ditto and Porygon). Gen 3 has way more (Slakoth, Slaking, Shedinja, Plusle, Minun, Volbeat, Illumise, Roselia (at the time of release), Torkoal, Spinda, Zangoose, Seviper, Lunatone, Solrock, Kecleon, Tropius, Chimecho, and Luvdisc, for a total of 18, arguably more). That's a pretty decent percentage of gimmicks in the 135 sized Hoenn dex.

EDIT: gen 1 has 7 counting Farfetch'd, Mr. Mime and Jynx.
 
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Bug Maniac Aydon said:
Gen 1 has also way fewer (4, Being Tangela, Lickitung, Ditto and Porygon). Gen 3 has way more (Slakoth, Slaking, Shedinja, Plusle, Minun, Volbeat, Illumise, Roselia (at the time of release), Torkoal, Spinda, Zangoose, Seviper, Lunatone, Solrock, Kecleon, Tropius, Chimecho, and Luvdisc, for a total of 18, arguably more). That's a pretty decent percentage of gimmicks in the 135 sized Hoenn dex.
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What are you classifying as a "gimmick" Pokemon? I cannot discern any pattern.

Tangela and Lickitung are just... Pokemon. Same with Roselia, Torkoal, Tropius, and Chimecho. Certainly less gimmicky than Miss-Obscenely-High-HP-Without-Any-Defense, Stupid-Duck-That-Only Exists-As-A-Pun, Weak-Fish-That-Becomes-A-Dragon, or Cloud-With-Tits-That-Changes-Form-Based-On-The-Weather.

Solrock/Lunatone, Zangoose/Seviper, and Volbeat/Illumise are somehow gimmicks, but Hitmonchan/Hitmonlee and Nidoqueen/Nidoking aren't?

These examples aren't even cherry picked. It feels like you just blindly threw darts at the Kanto and Hoenn Pokedexes and listed whatever mons the darts landed on.
 
DrPumpkinz said:
What are you classifying as a "gimmick" Pokemon? I cannot discern any pattern.

Tangela and Lickitung are just... Pokemon. Same with Roselia, Torkoal, Tropius, and Chimecho. Certainly less gimmicky than Miss-Obscenely-High-HP-Without-Any-Defense, Stupid-Duck-That-Only Exists-As-A-Pun, or Cloud-With-Tits-That-Changes-Form-Based-On-The-Weather.

Solrock/Lunatone, Zangoose/Seviper, and Volbeat/Illumise are somehow gimmicks, but Hitmonchan/Hitmonlee and Nidoqueen/Nidoking aren't?

These examples aren't even cherry picked. It feels like you just blindly threw darts at the Kanto and Hoenn Pokedexes and listed whatever mons the darts landed on.
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They're typically novelty Pokemon with some sort of funny physical trait, and sometimes an in battle gimmick (Such as Conversion), typically start off as a single stage when introduced and aren't meant to be used in a serious match. I feel like everything I picked fits into these criterion, no?
 
Bug Maniac Aydon said:
They're typically novelty Pokemon with some sort of funny physical trait, and sometimes an in battle gimmick (Such as Conversion), typically start off as a single stage when introduced and aren't meant to be used in a serious match. I feel like everything I picked fits into these criterion, no?
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...no.

I just noticed that you added Mr. Mime and Jynx to the list. Genuinely, how the fuck. There is nothing separating these Pokemon from any other single stage Pokemon.
 
DrPumpkinz said:
What are you classifying as a "gimmick" Pokemon? I cannot discern any pattern.

Tangela and Lickitung are just... Pokemon. Same with Roselia, Torkoal, Tropius, and Chimecho. Certainly less gimmicky than Miss-Obscenely-High-HP-Without-Any-Defense, Stupid-Duck-That-Only Exists-As-A-Pun, Weak-Fish-That-Becomes-A-Dragon, or Cloud-With-Tits-That-Changes-Form-Based-On-The-Weather.
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I still wanna smack the guy that designed that, but yeah

A gimmick isn't "every paired mon" or "every single stage mon". Gimmicks need some sort of definition. Otherwise every generic mon is a gimmick mon
Let's look at the first 3 gens
Gen1;
-Farfetch'd is a gag hard to get that's weak as hell
-Magikarp is a high maintenance pathetic mon to become Gyarados
-Nido line being Gender exclusive
-Chansey being a hyper min maxed mon that's rare
-Ditto transforming when no one else bar Mew can
-Eevee's many evos

Gen 2;
-Dunsparce being intended to be rare and weak
-Wobuffet being incapable of direct attack
-Unown... just having Hidden Power
-Blissey being an even bigger min maxed mon
-Smeargle being capable of learning any move via Sketch
-Suudowoodo being deceptively rock
-Roamers technically (So the beast trio)

Gen 3
-Wurmple random evo chance
-Volbeat/Illumise being a gendered pair (though this barely counts)
-The Plusle/Minun pair in both being a Pikaclone, AND being so double team oriented in build
-Kecleon being the mon GF designed around an ability, noticeably being the first to show it off early
-Shedinja being a literal shed shell
-Slakoth/Slaking for Truant beasts
-Chimecho for hyper rarity
-Feebas being Magikarp 2.0
-Spinda 360 + spots
-Castform being weather reliant
-Lati Twins as roamers
-Deoxys being form cart reliant
-Altaria for being deceptively a dragon

Note that all of these are either a weak joke, incredibly rare, hyper odd for stats, or feature a new mechanic exclusive. Not "oh every paired mon" or "every single stage"
 
Ugh, what counts as a gimmick Pokemon is going to be a huge discussion that I don't have the time for right now.

Right now all I'll says is that the definition of a gimmick Pokemon has somewhat changed over the years. In recent times they generally apply to a Pokemon with a unique Ability, Move, or some other mechanic they only have. However in the early days a gimmick usually more had to do with how you got the Pokemon and it's "role" than more about it's design. To start off, here are what I think the "Gimmick" Pokemon of Gen I were and why:

  • Pikachu: Yes, believe it or not, I do think Pikachu counts as a gimmick Pokemon even in the original Red & Blue. As the story goes, Kōji Nishino liked Pikachu so much he didn't want players to find it easily, so he placed it early in the game in Viridian Forest with a low encounter rate (guess he either didn't know or wasn't allowed to remove it from the Power Plant where it was more commonly found). Of course, his plan backfired and many players did find it, but in a way this resulted in Pikachu sort of being a tutorial Pokemon of sorts that some locations have rarely encountered Pokemon. And of course its popularity from the manga and anime made this early rare appearance even more special.

  • Nidoran: A very loose gimmick as otherwise they're normal Pokemon. It was the very first attempt to have sexual dimorphism in the game with the limited technology they had. This is a more world building gimmick as the real world is full of animals that genders look different from one another, so to make the Pokemon world feel naturally it would have some too. In later gens they would be able to actually do sexual dimorphism in a few ways while keeping it all one species/family. But for both Nidoran's family the only thing connecting them is that a female Nidoran can lay eggs of a male Nidoran.

  • Farfetch'd: We all know why it's here. Meant as a sort of prank and a pun on the phrase its based on, you trade a commonly found Spearow for what you think is a rare and powerful Pokemon. And while Farfecth'd is a BIT more powerful then Spearow at first, it'll soon become deadweight as you play through the game and all your other Pokemon get stronger. Not only that, had you trained a Spearow instead, it would have eventually evolved into the more powerful Fearow. Farfecth'd is rare but that's all it had going for it, it was weak in battle otherwise and meant as a joke and maybe to teach them that just because its rare doesn't mean its good (or maybe a lesson of patience instead of seeking immediate gratification).

  • Gastly family: The only Ghost-types in the game, that alone could qualify it being gimmicky but there's more. Because it's not exactly Gastly itself that's the gimmick, but rather the Pokemon Tower. First time you visit Lavender Town you can visit the Pokemon Tower with nothing stopping you... BUT you can't catch anything because every wild Pokemon is a ghost! However you can still battle the trainers, all the rather creepy Channeler who are saying weird stuff, and that's when you first see both Gastly and Haunter. When you finally get the Silph Scope, you find out that the ghosts this whole time have been Gastly (at least implied as Cubone also appeared as Ghost due to game mechanics). You can finally catch one as well, a souvenir for one of the games more unique moments.

  • Onix: Onix in my opinion was made for one reason: to look impressive. Up till Brock's Gym all the Pokemon you've fought up till now were just oddly colored small animals, hardly "monsters". Then Brock throws out this gigantic rock snake. The game has suddenly changed. It's no longer a game full of cutesy monsters, Onix marked the point where it showed Pokemon came in all shapes and sizes, from cute to cool to strong to weird. Not only that, if you were unprepared, Onix was a challenge to take down with it usually being your Starter the only one able to face it with their Special attacks. From Brock after you'll start encountering the more fantastical Pokemon to catch and train yourself, but first you gotta defeat the gatekeeper.

  • Voltorb Family: From pretty much the start of the game your trained to pickup Pokeballs you see on the ground cause they contain cool items or, usually prompted, a new Pokemon! So you're in the power plant, you see a Pokeball, interact with it without thinking, AND battle. Mimics are nothing new to adventure games, monsters that disguise themselves as objects such as chests to sneak attack unsuspecting players. I would argue the Voltorb family are one of the best mimics ever made. Okay, you can maybe see how a chest can be made into a monster, but a Pokeball? that handheld futuristic device used to catch Pokemon? Surely that can't ever have a Pokemon made of it... and then you realize the player character can't tell a difference from a few inches/centimeters to an entire foot/half a meter. And that's only a start of Voltorb's oddity as, unlike other Mimics or a Pokeball, it can't open up (and when it evolves it instead grows a mouth) and looks like a digital device (with mysterious lore to match) than an old object made of wood or metal. And finally, there's the odd fact that, since it is a Pokemon, you can catch it in a Pokeball, a Pokeball inside a Pokeball.

  • Cubone Family: Gastly isn't the only made special from the Pokemon Tower. I think you hear about Cubone before you're able to encounter it, how its prizes for the skull on its head. Notably there's a Cubone who lost its mother in the care of Mr. Fuji. When you get the Silph Scope you can finally start encountering them and catch one for yourself, but that's not the end. The ghost that was keeping you from entering the top levels of the tower is revealed to be a Marowak, the ghost of the Cubone's mother! Defeating it puts its soul at ease, letting you pass to rescue Mr. Fuji, not only for him to give you the Poke Flute, but also so he can help take care of the Pokemon in his care including the orphaned Cubone. It's part of a small bittersweet story that's one of the standouts in Pokemon, one which has gotten some love in recent years with the Origins mini-series and Let's Go adding onto it.

  • Hitmonlee & Hitmonchan: So you get through the Fighting Dojo, the old Gym of Saffron City, and for defeating the karate master you get a prize: ONE of the two Pokemon the karate master fought you with. Them, the Starters, and the Fossils are the only moments you gotta pick between one-of-a-kind Pokemon. However this is the only one you have to fight for and, unlike the Starters and Fossils, both of these Pokemon are relatively similar; you're honestly not losing much from picking one over the other. But it could be because of that which makes it a harder decision cause now you gotta make your judgement of smaller details and preference rather then a specific Type like the Starters or a Physical/Special attacker like with the fossils. And whatever you pick, if you want to complete the dex, you'll need a friend to give you the other one anyway (at least to register it in your dex before trading back).

  • Magikarp family: Probably something we don't think of as a gimmick, but it is and more than just because its a weak Pokemon that evolves into a super strong Pokemon. It also has to do with the ever-memorable Magikarp salesman. Though he's probably more memorable from the anime, he originates from the game where he sells you a Magikarp promising the same grandeur as he did James... and like James you're suckered into buying a worthless fish. But unlike Farfetch'd, if you stick to training it until it grows to Level 20 you're given the ultimate surprise of a Gyarados! And this is all probably before you get the Old Rod so had you bought the Magikarp you get Gyarados earlier than you would normally and keeping up with your team's progression.

  • Lapras: I can see arguments for not including it, but Lapras I feel deserves a spot as I think the purpose of just handing one to the player is so it could be their Surf Pokemon later. Yes, many Pokemon could learn Surf and you'd run in plenty of them, many Water-types, by the time you encounter Lapras. But Lapras's lore of being used as a ferrying Pokemon I think helps it stand out amongst those other Pokemon as the one who logically should get Surf.

  • Ditto: It's Ditto. Need I say more? Only knows Transform, plenty of fan theory behind it being failed clones of Mew. Gen II would make it the ultimate breeding Pokemon so even if you don't use it you still have one just to help fill the dex.

  • Eevee family. It's Eevee. Need I say more? Of all the gimmick Pokemon, Eevee stands as one of the most gimmicky with its various ways of evolving. And it all started here being the poster Pokemon for Evo Stone evolution. If you had an Eevee and had a gap in your team a Fire, Water, or Electric-type would fit than Eevee got you covered!

  • Porygon: No, not because of the anime incident! Porygon's role in the game I would say is similar to Farfetch'd but with importance to the actual story. Porygon is a trick, its only available from spending hours on the slot machines to get enough coins (or beating the Elite Four over and over to trade money in for coins...), and in the end its kind of useless. But that's the point, Team Rocket stole it from Silph Co. to use it as a draw into their gambling ring and sucker people out of money for a Pokemon they could easily create more copies of. Its gimmick is being a non-battling tool for Team Rocket.

  • Fossil Pokemon: Like with a few Pokemon the list, the gimmick isn't exactly themselves but something related to them, a trait that'll later become less interesting as more Fossil Pokemon are introduced. Yes, I'm talking about that to get them you need to revive them from their fossil item. An idea lifted straight from Jurassic Park, now players could play god by reviving their own ancient Pokemon like... a shelled squid... or a crustacean without claws... they get better when they evolve. OH, but before that you gotta pick which one you want. In a strange moment, you encounter this Super Nerd who thinks you're after the fossils and battles you for them. You win of course and get to pick one and him the other (hey, wait a moment, if he won he would have gotten both so why are we splitting them now?). Now you have a dead Pokemon! But it won't be until Cinnabar Island until you can revive it. Of course this wasn't exactly what players were expecting when they heard about reviving a prehistoric Pokemon. However, those who were savvy enough to backtrack would discover a back entrance to the Powter Museum via Cut and be given an Old Amber. That's when they get the Fossil Pokemon they REALLY want: a carnivorous dinosaur! It's just some of the more wild moments in the game where you're reviving Pokemon which have been dead for million of years.

  • Snorlax: Snorlax role isn't as a Pokemon at first, but as a roadblock. With two of them in the game in very inconvenient spots, you have to find side paths to get around them. But at some point you do need to wake them and once you get the Poke Flute from Mr. Fuji that's when the roadblock suddenly turns back into a Pokemon and attacks! A sudden boss, but also these are your only chance to capture them! It's not that bad of of a Pokemon either, so all the work you did to get around them and waking them up is worth it only to get where you need to go but also a powerful Pokemon if you choose to use it.

  • Dratini Family: Like the Gastly family, they're the only Pokemon of their Type: Dragon. They're also the psuedo Legendary of the game, or rather Dragonite is, so it's super rare and super strong. And it's a Safari Zone Pokemon so super annoying to get (and the highest level you need to raise to evolve). You don't get Dragonite because it'll fill a gap in your team, you get a Dragonite because you want a badass dragon to mow through your enemies. This visual of cool is further pushed by the strongest Elite Four trainer, Lance, not only using Dragonite but also Dragonairs and still giving you a hard time. Another thing possibly adding to their mysticism is that they were purposely made resistant to the Starter Types (and Electric probably because of Pikachu) to make them feel like the ultimate boss Type.

PHEW! That got a lot more busy near the end, though I think that just shows how different the "gimmick" Pokemon were in Gen I. A lot of them would later lose their gimmick status becoming normal Pokemon, only Eevee & Porygon somewhat I'd say would remain gimmicks.

Before I end this, a few Pokemon I don't see as gimmick even in Gen I:

  • In-Game Trade Only Pokemon: Yes, I know there's a ton of "in-game trade only" Pokemon like Lickitung, Mr. Mime, and Jynx. But, the thing is they don't really have anything else special about them outside of that. They just are. Farfetch'd has a whole story connected to it that also defined its design which is why I find it a "gimmick", but that doesn't really go for most of the other trade onlys.

  • Safari Zone Only Pokemon: Now you'd think I would have Chansey, Kangaskhan, Scyther, Pinsir, and Tauros on the list too... but just like with the in-game trade only there's really no memorable story connected to them aside they're super rare & hard to catch because you're in the Safari Zone where you have a limited amount of steps, 30 Safari Balls, can only throw a rock or bait, and they can run away. Some certainly have unique designs and traits like Chansey being the ultimate Special Wall or Kangaskhan having a child in its pouch, but I don't really find those as giimmicks, at least not how the others I listed above.

  • Legendary: They're not really gimmicks, they're sort of like super bosses you then get to use.
 
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Bug Maniac Aydon said:
honestly a lot of gen 3 pokemon are horrible in design and in practice, almost as much as gen 2 is
The lunar rocks, fireflies, pikachu twins, kecleon, nosepass, castform
it feels like half the pokemon were one-off gimmicks like Ditto and Lickitung
Click to expand...

Hey at least it's easy to get debut Hoenn Pokémon in their own region (looking at you Larvitar, Houndour, Slugma etc.)
 
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