What are the most defining moves of in-game playthroughs to you?

[DrumstickGaming]

If you’ve been reading any posts of mine for a while you’ll know I’m a huge in-game player. One thing that interests me is how game-defining certain moves areIn earlier Gens this is harder to pinpoint but I can still think of some examples. I’m talking strictly maingame examples - no postgame here.

Gen 1 - Dig TM

You get the 100 BP Gen 1 Dig in Cerulean City 1/3 of the way through the game. While not absolutely everything can learn it, if you give something Dig, it will spike in usability, being good for Lt. Surge, Koga, Blaine and Giovanni in addition to being just a strong move in general. I’d give an honorable mention to the Body Slam TM as well. Hyper Beam could be a thing too if you didn’t get carpel tunnel from buying coins.

Gen 2 - Elemental Punch TMs

Anyone who has played GSC knows how good these moves are for special attackers like Gengar and Alakazam. Some Normals can use them to get past Jasmine’s Steelix too (that or Surf).

I can’t think of much for Gens 3 and 4 so I’ll give general franchise examples of the Return and Earthquake TMs. Most things can learn them and they are reasonably powerful (especially the former for Normal types), not to mention Earthquake is THE most contested TM before Generation 5. The Swords Dance TM could be an honorable mention if more things could learn it and it wasn’t locked to postgame / game corner sometimes.

Generations 5 and 7 - Work Up TM
Oh my gosh, this move. In my opinion Work Up is the best in-game TM of all time. It’s just a +1 in both offenses but you’d be surprised how from this generation on, the viability of several mons (usually those with sub-100 in an offensive stat) would KILL for Work Up. It defines any adventure through Unova, and chances are at least one mon in your team can learn it. Even in Alola it’s amazing because Z-Work Up gives +2 Attack and +1 Special Attack in one turn. The Oshawott line NOT getting Work Up noticeably hurts its viability even if it does later get Swords Dance and is solid enough otherwise, for example.

What some other in-game defining moves you can think of?

 

[QuentinQuonce]

Interesting topic.

Gen I - Bubblebeam

Bubblebeam is a move that I've always liked for numerous reasons. It's a powerful move for the stage of the game you get it and is a decent coverage option in the movepools of a lot of Pokemon who don't get Surf - Wigglytuff, Clefable, Persian, Marowak, Lickitung, Articuno. For a Water-type, it's a better option than whatever other Water moves they'll have at this point until they do get Surf. To me personally, Bubblebeam was a hugely defining move of any Gen I playthrough.

Gen II - Headbutt, Shadow Ball, Dynamicpunch, Earthquake

Headbutt for obvious reasons - similarly to Bubblebeam, it's a powerful move for that stage of the game and for the vast amount of Pokemon that don't learn Strength it's the best Normal move they'll ever get. Its field move status provides a great incentive to keep it around and the flinch chance is useful. Absolute crutch move in both GSC and HGSS imo.

Shadow Ball is an absolute weapon. Johto is full of Psychic-types and in the right hands - of which there are many - Shadow Ball demolishes them. Again, it's very powerful for when you get it (there's a trend developing here - but Johto is so low-levelled in general) and is fearsome to have used against you by Morty's Gengar.

Dynamicpunch is too unreliable to be a crucial move for playthroughs but it's one I've always been very attached to. It fits so well into Typhlosion's moveset (you probably won't be surprised to learn I've soloed Johto with a Typhlosion many times).

Earthquake stands out to me personally despite not being a Gen II move. As a young'un, I spent a lot of time at the Battle Tower before I'd beaten the Elite Four trying to get good (I wasn't) and facing the various levels with hopelessly bad teams. Earthquake is unavoidable in the Tower - I had no Flying-types on my team, so it seemed insurmountable, the most powerful move imaginable. Imagine my prepubescent joy at stumbling upon the TM whilst in Victory Road! Nothing could seem more delightful.

Gen III - Rock Tomb, Aerial Ace

The first gym leader's TMs aren't spectacular in RBY or GSC, so it's unlikely most people kept them around for long. But Rock Tomb is actually really good on just about any Pokemon - particularly your three starters - with an uncommon offensive typing for that early in the game and a useful secondary effect. Marshtomp in particular makes very good use of it since it's outsped by so much, and Grovyle appreciates having a move that's more powerful than most of the ones it learns naturally. It also teaches what I think is a useful lesson for a lot of players - that a move with a guaranteed secondary effect generally won't be as accurate or as powerful as one without.

Aerial Ace - another Gym Leader's TM (another theme developing). But it's one I always seem to end up using if I'm doing a run of the Hoenn games - Blaziken and Sceptile both make great use of it. I've almost never used Fly on a main battler - that tends to be left to a Wingull I've thrown in the PC - because Aerial Ace is just better overall; the lower base power is cancelled out by Fly's horrible accuracy. Probably the most reliable move in the game, it's just a shame it comes a tad late.



I tried to think of ones for Gen IV but nothing springs to mind, sadly. Weirdly enough, I don't remember ever using Work Up in a playthrough of BW or B2W2. Have I been doing Unova wrong all this time?

 

[DrPumpkinz]

The move that defines in-game Gen 3 is Protect. You may not use it much but boy howdy does the game like to spam it.

 

[Gryoine]

Series wide, but Surf and Fly and arguably Strength are defining both because you are usually forced to have two of these on your team, but also by how much you will click them if you are using a Pokemon that can learn them.

 

[Hugin]

I was going to say, Surf/Str/Fly are moves that are mostly ignored in the meta(except Surf), but in-game you will often have all 3 on your team and they'll be a reliable option for whoever uses them.

Bulldoze/Rock Tomb in Gen 6 on(never played BW). They're available early because they're technically low power, but Ground and Rock are such good coverage, and "lower speed" is such a good effect, that they're worth picking up and teaching to basically every physical attacker on your team early game. And until you get to late game, most of your physical attackers will be perfectly happy with at least one of those moves as coverage. It's annoying because they're just so solid.

 

[Volt-Ikazuchi]

I'll restrain myself to one per gen.
RBY - Body Slam
GSC -

RSE - Calm Mind
DPP -

 

[Eeveeto]

I mostly play Nuzlockes, so the ones I tend to go after are the ones that allow my Mons to stay alive or to kill easier opposing Mons:

Rest. Best TM for any bulky Mon. Of course, if Sleep Talk is another TM in the game I am playing, I use it a lot too.

Roost/Recover/Softboiled/Moonlight, etc. More recovery. Better for Mons that dont want to waste another slot for Sleep Talk.

Protect. Combined with Leftovers, allows heal. Also works to scout or to Stall with Toxic/Burn/Leech Seed/Weather etc.

Toxic. Opposing Mon dies in a few turns. Especially useful if the opposing Mon is big offensive threat against which your only option is switch around, waiting for it to die.

Will-O-Wisp. Same as above, but also reduces the attack.

Substitute. Has many uses if the Mon is fast enough. If said Mon walls the opponent, it can hit the next one without receiving damage. With Protect it enables good cheese: Ninjask, Scolipede and Blaziken can use Baton Pass, meanwhile Aerodactyl and Weavile abuse Pressure to the fullest, PP Stalling dangerous threats.

100 Accuracy Moves in general= Good. No explanation needed.

Fly. Really useful. Better than Brave Bird due to no recoil, but also allows to Stall.

Weather moves. Niche, but work for opponents who use other weathers. Can enable Mons like Kingdra to be fast and destructive.

Thunder Wave. Opponent can't kill you if it can't attack you.

U-Turn and Volt Switch. Allow your fast and frail Mon to escape from bad match-ups.

Boosting moves= broken.

 

[Mova]

words

Isn't Headbutt actually from Gen 1, not used as a TM or field move until Gen 2?

 

[KalosianPorygon]

The move that defines in-game Gen 3 is Protect. You may not use it much but boy howdy does the game like to spam it.

Slaking: This thing scares me.

 

[QuentinQuonce]

Isn't Headbutt actually from Gen 1, not used as a TM or field move until Gen 2?

Probably, yes - can't remember offhand. But it became much more prominent in Gen II, as did Waterfall.

 

[Worldie]

Honestly until gen 7, I would have just said Surf(and Waterfall) and Fly. To some degree, Strenght for some pokemon with low coverage.

The HMs were so good as actual offensive moves that there was no reason to not have them on any pokemon that could learn them during any playthrough.

 

[Ishiftyounot]

Thunder Punch / Fire Punch / Ice Punch

It took me until 2020 to play a Gen II game so I didn't truly experience the ability to buy TMs for these moves, but the Elemental Punches hold a special place in my heart across many of my playthroughs. Electric, Fire and Ice are great typings to have on a Pokemon's moveset but most of their decent moves are Special attacks - a 75BP Physical move of these types is much appreciated on a lot of Pokemon I tend to use either for STAB or coverage. Plus I just like their aesthetic? Idk but BoltBeam colours and coverage makes me feel happy. Their position as my "defining" moves stems from Platinum, BW2 and USUM in particular which is ironic because I've never beaten USUM and only cleared BW2 once? But in those games they're tutor moves that are actually accessible during the main story which I appreciate.

Platinum and BW2 require Shards - in Platinum I know for a fact you can get the necessary number by the time you have access to Surf (since you have to hit the Fuego Ironworks to trade the Star Pieces), whilst in BW2... I don't actually remember? But I know it's accessible reasonably early. Both of those games however it's likely you will only have access to one Elemental Punch with additional teachings requiring some farming, whilst in USUM you just have to farm Mantine Surf (which is pretty fun so no issues there). USUM in particular is funky because the moves are split up - you can have Fire Punch once you reach the second island but the other two are halfway round the third island (just before Totem Mimikyu), the price you pay for easy access to the moves I guess. Your opinions on the limited accessibility may vary, personally I prefer the USUM method (just wish Ice/Thunder Punch were available a bit earlier) but I did like having to think which Pokemon on my team needed the move more and working around it. Teaching my Infernape Thunder Punch or my Alolan Muk Fire Punch at a reasonable time was always fun for me.

 

[Codraroll]

Tackle. Chances are at least some of your team members will have to rely on this to do damage at the start of the game. Sure, there's also Scratch and Pound, but Tackle is the original staple move for the early-game grind.

Bite. One step up from Tackle, even more ubiquitous, but otherwise generally superior in every way. So many Pokémon learn this as random coverage, and since level-up movepools tend to be fraught with moves that are either a direct upgrade of an already-learned move, or useless due to redundancy with an already-learned move, Bite tends to stick around. And for good reason! At 60 BP, it's perfectly serviceable, 100% accuracy makes it very reliable, and it's useful against the occasional Ghost or Psychic-type you might bump into on your travels.

Flame Wheel/Razor Leaf/Water Gun. Your starter will probably use one of these a lot for quite large portions of the game. They might even be the most powerful moves of your team, and capable of saving the day in key battles.

Fly. Higher BP than most other moves carried by whatever Flying-type Pokémon you need to lug around for transport purposes, and since it grants evasion for a turn, you don't quite notice that it's a two-turn move. So of course it becomes a go-to move in battle.

 

[Bull Of Heaven]

Gen 1 Bubble Beam and Thunderbolt are the big TMs for me. Never used Dig much, but not surprised that others did. Special mention also to Low Kick, Double Kick, and Confusion, because if you start with Charmander or Pikachu, you're probably using one of those to beat Brock.

Elemental punches and Headbutt in Gen 2 for sure. Special mention to Rock Throw because it makes Geodude a nuke in the early gyms.

Rock Tomb is a good answer for Gen 3. Shock Wave is bad but sometimes useful. Metal Claw specifically for Charmander in FRLG.

Ice Beam, Thunderbolt, and Flamethrower TMs can all be found for free somewhere in Sinnoh. Grass Knot is a nice early TM that Chimchar and Piplup can both use well. Some of the good Platinum tutor moves, like Earth Power, are fun in the postgame.

I feel like Shadow Ball, Bulldoze, X-Scissor, and Rock Smash are TMs I've used fairly often playing through BW.

Rock Tomb, Shadow Claw, Aerial Ace, and Power-Up Punch in XY.

And perhaps the greatest of all: The early reusable Scald TM in Sun and Moon.

Flame Wheel/Razor Leaf/Water Gun. Your starter will probably use one of these a lot for quite large portions of the game. They might even be the most powerful moves of your team, and capable of saving the day in key battles.

I would sooner think of Ember or Flame Charge than Flame Wheel.

 

[KalosianPorygon]

Flame Wheel/Razor Leaf/Water Gun.

Aren't you meant to say Ember? That's a more common early-game move than Flame Wheel.

 

[Wukong]

I'll go in a slightly different direction for Gen 4. I would have to say Dragon Rush is the most defining in-game move in Gen 4. The Cynthia and Lance battles in Platinum and HGSS respectively are two of the hardest fights in the series in my opinion (the latter being my vote for the single hardest in-game battle). Dragon Rush seems like a pretty iconic move to help remember how terrifying that Garchomp and two of those Dragonite were.

No, it's not a perfect move with 75% accuracy but that fear factor of "will it hit, will it not?" or "will it flinch, will it not?" gave those battles a pretty horrifying vibe. I definitely think of that move when I think of my Gen 4 playthroughs.

 

[DrumstickGaming]

I'll go in a slightly different direction for Gen 4. I would have to say Dragon Rush is the most defining in-game move in Gen 4. The Cynthia and Lance battles in Platinum and HGSS respectively are two of the hardest fights in the series in my opinion (the latter being my vote for the single hardest in-game battle). Dragon Rush seems like a pretty iconic move to help remember how terrifying that Garchomp and two of those Dragonite were.

No, it's not a perfect move with 75% accuracy but that fear factor of "will it hit, will it not?" or "will it flinch, will it not?" gave those battles a pretty horrifying vibe. I definitely think of that move when I think of my Gen 4 playthroughs.

Ghetsis's Hydreigon from BW2 also has Dragon Rush too.

It's a weird move for aces honestly.

 

[Bull Of Heaven]

I'll go in a slightly different direction for Gen 4. I would have to say Dragon Rush is the most defining in-game move in Gen 4. The Cynthia and Lance battles in Platinum and HGSS respectively are two of the hardest fights in the series in my opinion (the latter being my vote for the single hardest in-game battle). Dragon Rush seems like a pretty iconic move to help remember how terrifying that Garchomp and two of those Dragonite were.

No, it's not a perfect move with 75% accuracy but that fear factor of "will it hit, will it not?" or "will it flinch, will it not?" gave those battles a pretty horrifying vibe. I definitely think of that move when I think of my Gen 4 playthroughs.

Yeah, honestly my memory of it is a bit different. More like "good, they're using Dragon Rush, that can miss". Good pick for this thread either way though.

And if we're looking at moves used by important NPCs, I submit Bubble Beam (Misty's Starmie), Rollout and Attract (Whitney's Miltank), and Hyper Beam (Lance's mons and also some used by other champions; the recharge turn can be helpful much like a Dragon Rush miss).

 

[Scorpio]

And if we're looking at moves used by important NPCs, I submit Bubble Beam (Misty's Starmie)

On this topic, I submit Water Pulse for the Gen 3 games, used not only by Misty but by Wallace/Juan as well.

 

[shinquickman]

RBY: Agreed with Dig. It's basically Earthquake before the second gym

GSC: Also agreed with Elemental Punches.

RSE: Bulk Up/Calm Mind. Near necessary for the Pokemon league. Yawn is a good runner up.

FRLG: Brick Break. Good early-mid game move that's also buyable in Celadon City.

DPPt: Can't really think of any. Maybe Shadowball in Pt.

HGSS: Fireblast. A 120 BP move before the third gym is nuts.

 

[Ironmage]

I associate the gen 7 games and USUM in particular with Toxic. Damage-over-time is strong enough that many totems use their item slot specifically for mitigating poison (though as single-use it only gives one extra turn), but the fearsome Ultra Necrozma? no item, deciding the fight in one turn.

I miss 6v6 bosses and Toxic being universal...

 

[PokemonCrusader]

Dream Eater in FRLG.

I found much amusement in combining the move with Butterfree's Compound Eyes ability and Sleep Powder.

 

[The Mind Electric]

Thunderbolt is a staple of pretty much every playthrough I do, regardless of game. It's a powerful, accurate, and spammable Electric move. This makes it great for dust-busting two of the most common types in Pokémon games: Water and Flying. Every region has at least a little bit of water, and there's always birds flying around, so something that can spam Thunderbolt is a must-have for anything resembling an efficient playthrough. I'll recommend Pokémon to people purely for their Thunderbolt-spamming ability.

 

[dreepy]

After beating Flannery in RSE she gives you TM50(it's the TM for overheat)

 

[Codraroll]

Aren't you meant to say Ember? That's a more common early-game move than Flame Wheel.

Ember is more common early on, but it also gets replaced quickly (usually with Flame Wheel). And the waiting period from then on until Flamethrower is really long, so I feel more of a connection with Flame Wheel than Ember.