My Pokémon Team In Pokémon Sun Upon First Completion + What Took Me So Long To Beat It

Well, I finally beat Pokémon Sun today. Yes, I know, I keep taking forever with these, but I kinda have a reason for that this time, and I’ll get to that at the end. For now, let’s go over my Hall Of Fame team upon beating the game the first time, starting with, of course, my starter.

Doctor Hoot the Decidueye

Yeah, you’re probably gonna notice one or two similarities to my X team, and one is that I chose the Grass-type Starter Pokémon. Doctor Hoot was Level 56 upon first completion of the game, carrying no items, and having the moves Leaf Blade, Spirit Shackle, Sucker Punch, and Acrobatics (hence the lack of items). He has a Relaxed nature, and characteristic is that he…likes to relax. lol While he didn’t use them in the League, he frequently used the Z-Moves Bloom Doom, Breakneck Blitz, Never-Ending Nightmare, and Sinister Arrow Raid. The Arrow Quill Pokémon was instrumental to my victories over the Kahunas Hala, Olivia, Hapu, and the Totem Pokémon Wishiwashi, as well as being the first Pokémon out for the championship match.

Lycanroc (Midday Form)

Not necessarily a Pokémon I was expecting to use on my team going in, but one I’m glad I decided on. Lycanroc was Level 54 upon initial completion of the game, carrying the Rockium Z, and knowing the moves Stone Edge, Crunch, Brick Break, and Stealth Rock. She has a Rash nature, and her characteristic is that she has good perseverance. Thanks to her Rockium Z, she can use the Z-Move Continental Crush on the really tough foes, though she’s also used All-Out Pummeling. The Wolf Pokémon mostly played support and backup in battles, but was a huge asset in battles against Guzma and Team Skull, once defeated a Lycanroc Midnight Form in one-on-one combat where both were at the same level, and was the one to score the final victory of the Alola League Championship match.

Raichu

Yup, once again, went with Raichu for my team. But, this time, with the reveal of the Alolan Raichu, more than a bit different from my X team’s Raichu. Raichu was Level 56 when I first beat the game, carried the Aloraichium Z, and knew the moves Thunderbolt, Psychic, Brick Break, and Nasty Plot. He has a Brave nature, and his characteristic is that he loves to eat. Through the power of the Aloraichium Z, he can use Stoked Sparksurfer, though he’s also used Z-Moves such as All-Out Pummeling, Gigavolt Havoc, Breakneck Blitz, and Catastropika during his time as a Pichu and then a Pikachu. The Mouse Pokémon was a major player on my team for battles against the likes of Olivia, Team Skull, Kahili, Hau, and Hala.

Greninja

And, once again, I had a Water-type Starter Pokémon from a previous game who could perform a new, powerful transformation. lol Greninja was Level 57 upon the first completion of the game, carried the Waterium Z, and had access to the moves Water Shuriken, Night Slash, Aerial Ace, and Extrasensory. He is Naughty by nature, and has the characteristic of being alert to sounds. The Waterium Z allows him to use the Z-Move Hydro Vortex, and he’s also used Black Hole Eclipse on multiple occasions. Furthermore, Greninja has the Ability known as Battle Bond, allowing him to transform into Ash-Greninja. The Ninja Pokémon was a late addition to my team, but was instrumental in defeating many powerful foes, such as Nanu, Hapu, Acerola, and Olivia.

Mimikyu

Now HERE’S someone I knew I was going to add to my team from the first time I laid eyes on it. Mimikyu was Level 55 when I first became champion, was carrying the Fairium Z, and knew the moves Play Rough, Shadow Claw, X-Scissor, and Hone Claws. His nature is Sassy, and his characteristic is that he’s capable of taking hits…no doubt due to his Disguise Ability. lol Thanks to Fairium Z, he can use the Z-Move Twinkle Tackle, but has also used Never-Ending Nightmare in the past. The Disguise Pokémon’s unique typing made it one of my more useful team-mates, and he was a big help against all four members of the Elite Four and in the championship match.

Salazzle

Ah, the Pokémon who can only be female and runs its own reverse harem of male Salandit… … …I’m not even kidding. Look it up in the Sun version Pokédex. lol Salazzle was Level 53 when I first beat the game, carried the Firium Z, and knew the moves Flamethrower, Sludge Wave, Dragon Pulse, and Toxic, the last of which I made full use of due to her Corrosion Ability allowing her to inflict Poison status on ANY Pokémon, except those with Immunity. Her nature is Quirky, and her characteristic is that she has good perseverance. And, because she was carrying the Firium Z, she could use the Z-Move Inferno Overdrive, though I did occasionally have her use Acid Downpour. Despite being the lowest leveled Pokémon on my team most of the time, she was a big help against many foes thanks to her ability to poison almost any enemy, and was a major tide-turner against the Totem Pokémon Lurantis and in the final battle for the championship.

…So, let’s get to what I’ve been putting off saying for a while now. As I’ve alluded to a numbers of times, I’m a very old-school player of these games. My first Pokémon game was Pokémon Red, which I didn’t even own a Gameboy to play on, so I got a Super Gameboy to play it on my Super Nintendo. I had no one to trade or battle with, meaning I had to miss out on a big part of what made the game so special. When I finally got to enjoy that part later on, upon getting the Gameboy Color so I could play Pokémon Silver, I realized what an amazing game-changer this series was, and I’ve enjoyed damned near every step of my near two decade long journey…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

… … …but this is my last stop. As I’ve revealed a while back on this blog, I’m currently on welfare and am unemployed. I can’t afford a new system, and it’s clear from playing this game that the Nintendo 3DS has been pushed to its fullest potential, meaning future Pokémon games in the main series won’t be released on it. If that changes someday down the road, and I am hoping it does pretty soon, great. But for now, I’m looking at this as my last journey, at least when it comes to the new games. And I have to say, while there are things I would change, and things I hope are added with the rumoured Pokémon Stars port for the Nintendo Switch, I really enjoyed Pokémon Sun. I don’t wanna spoil too much of the story, but I will say that a really gratifying part of it is watching the characters, one in particular, grow and change over the course of the game. And, you know, we’ve all grown and changed as we played along with these games, so it was a nice thing to see. And I hope that those who haven’t played through the game yet enjoy that aspect as well. If nothing else, though, I feel at least like, if this is the end of my journey, then at least it was here, in the game that celebrated 20 years of Pokémon. And so, with that said, I wanna take this time to thank one person in particular for changing my life, as well as the lives of many others: Satoshi Tajiri, creator of the initial concepts that led to the creation of Pokémon, and the current CEO of Game Freak. I don’t know how long you’ll continue to do this, but I hope it remains a hell of a ride, and I hope that you continue to inspire people and shape the world. In the end, Pokémon is all about friendships. It’s about people coming together and becoming something more by the experience, and I hope that never, ever changes.

… … … … … …Shut up, I’m not crying, YOU’RE crying. lol Anyway, feel free to leave your own memories of this and other Pokémon games, as well as your own Hall of Fame teams for Sun and Moon in the comments. Ja né, and train on.

N. Harmonik’s Blind Reaction To Alola Forms and Z-Moves Revealed for Pokémon Sun and Pokémon Moon! (And I’m There Too, lol)

Decided to do a blind reaction to this trailer, since Aibo hadn’t seen it yet. As always, here’s the trailer for those who haven’t watched it…

…and here’s our reaction vid…and a funny story. lol

… … …If I ever see that Tauros, I’m gonna turn it into cheeseburgers. -_-

Text And Screencap Only Nuzlocke?…Yeah, This IS Happening lol

So, you’re probably wondering where that Let’s Play of Pokémon FireRed that I was planning to do for the 20th Anniversary of the franchise is. Well, I kinda hit a snag in that, while I could film it, the audio had a lag issue, as seen here:

Now, I’ve thought about cancelling the project, but I REALLY don’t wanna do that. Instead, I went with an option I hadn’t considered until just the other day: A text recap of the playthrough right here, covering different sections of it at a time, with screenshots accompanying the text. That way, people can still follow along with me. And hey, Nintendo once released a book like that as a sort of novelization of the original games, so why can’t I do so for free? And, because it’s later than I planned, to make it up to people, I’ve decided to do something that I once told myself I’d never do. This will not just be a playthrough of FireRed, but a Nuzlocke Challenge. For those unaware, here are the rules:

• Any Pokémon that faints is considered DEAD, and must be released or put in the Pokémon Storage System permanently. This is kinda why I haven’t done this, because I get anxious and emotionally attached enough by watching/reading other people’s Nuzlockes, so I worry I might have a small panic attack doing it myself. lol
• I can only catch the first Pokémon encountered in each area, and none else. If the first Pokémon encountered faints or flees, there’re no second chances. I do, however, plan to use the Species/Dupes Clause, adjusting the first encounter rule to prevent me from having to catch multiples of the same Pokémon for the sake of variety should I so choose. This means that I can keep fighting Pokémon in the area until one is encountered that I haven’t caught yet, which then immediately counts as the first encounter. Also, this ruling doesn’t include Route 1 prior to receiving the Pokédex and Poké Balls, since you can’t catch anything without those anyway.
• I have to nickname all of my Pokémon. This is for the sake of forming stronger emotional bonds. Y’know, so that if they die, the bigger the knife in my heart will be. lol Okay, really, it’s to further encourage me to do whatever it takes to not lose anyone.
• A black out/white out is considered to be “game over”, from which there is no continuing, even if there are Pokémon left in the PC. I also cannot reset and/or reload the game when things go wrong. That said, I think I’m gonna exclude the initial Rival battle. In my experience, the first Rival battle in games is very much luck based.
• When battling a Gym Leader, I can only use the same number of Pokémon as they have. This is one I actually use anyway, so not as big a deal, although now I have to be doubly careful not to let anyone’s HP drop to 0.
• My Starter Pokémon will be based on my Trainer ID number. If the last number is 1-3, I have to start with Bulbasaur. 4-6 is Charmander, 7-9 is Squirtle, and 0 is my choice… … …God, I hope it isn’t 4-6, or this could wind up being a REALLY short LP. lol

Anyway, I plan to get started right away, so keep an eye out. If you’ve got any advice for me, being that this is my first Nuzlocke, leave it in the comments below. Ja né!

Pokémon Questionnaire – What Are Your Favourite 6 Pokémon From Each Generation?

So, I’ve been playing Pokkén Tournament with N. Harmonik over at her place, which you can see here…

…and honest to God, Pokémon have never looked this good EVER in any other game. Maybe Smash Bros, but that’s it. But as I watch not only the Pokémon fighting, but the ones in the backgrounds of the arenas, I can’t help but notice how some have left so many great memories and positive thoughts for me. I think what really hit me was just how many from Pokémon Black and White are among some of my all-time favourites. Mind you, that could be because it had the most new Pokémon of any game since the original Red and Blue versions, since they’d decided to only have brand new ones in the main game. Still, it left me wondering, what would I consider to be some of my favourites from every generation?

So, I decided to make this questionnaire, so that everyone can list their six favourite Pokémon from every generation. I went with six because, that way, people can’t simply choose all the starters or all the members of a single family, and so that they can use their old teams to help decide, since some people, like N. Harmonik, choose to only use Pokémon that debuted within said generations for their teams (with the exception of old ones with new evolutions). Also, I’m listing these by Generation instead of Region because otherwise, most people’s Johto lists would be inhabited by evolutions that didn’t come until Generation IV. Lastly, I’m gonna be excluding Mega Evolutions, since they’d probably take up the majority of spots from lists for Kalos, but I will likely bring them up when talking about individuals from past Generations. With that said, let’s start with the original Generation, and my favourite Pokémon among the original 150.

Generation I

My Favourites: Bulbasaur, Charizard, Pikachu, Poliwhirl, Snorlax, Zapdos

Yeah, I know, not exactly blowing anyone’s minds that Poliwhirl’s on here. In fact, likely none of these are big surprises, and I probably don’t have to explain a single one. But looking back, I can’t help but think of how these six, in a lot of ways, helped shape how the Pokémon world would grow from then on. Every new entry in the main series would have an Electric-type rodent of some kind, a trio of Starters to choose from that were Grass, Fire, and Water-types, and at least one trio of Legendary Pokémon (with the exception of Generation VI, which seems to reuse Articuno, Zapdos, and Moltres). There would also be mass numbers of Water-type Pokémon with varying shapes, sizes, abilities, secondary types, and even branching evolutions through the generations, many of whom took varying cues from Poliwhirl and its family. And…yeah, I’ve lost count of how many times in the history of these games that we’ve seen Snorlax sleeping around and blocking our path. lol My point is, in many ways, these six are the originators of trends we’ve seen in these games for 20 years now, and in many ways are still able to hang with those that have come since, either through new evolutions, Mega Evolutions, attacks, abilities, stat changes, or just their natural badassery. Oh, and don’t think that just because it isn’t on here that I hate or dislike Squirtle and its family. I love it too, but there just wasn’t room on this list. Call it the unofficial #7 here.

Generation II

My Favourites: Typhlosion, Crobat, Espeon, Umbreon, Heracross, Donphan

Despite the fact that a lot of Pokémon from Johto wouldn’t become truly great until Generation IV, where they got new evolutions, there are still plenty from those games that I have fond memories of. Typhlosion’s pretty easy to justify: Take Charizard, remove its secondary type, and give it a few tricks the former couldn’t do. The result is Typhlosion, and I think it’s a really solid choice from Gold, Silver, and Crystal. Crobat is basically the secret weapon that isn’t quite so secret, as most in the know are well aware of its incredible Speed, but just how many have overlooked it because of how common its initial form, Zubat, is? The answer is A LOT. Umbreon was always one of my favourite Eeveelutions, although it hasn’t aged well, but it’s hard not to put Espeon right up there with it. Heracross is a beast, always has been, always will be. And then there’s Donphan. I loved Donphan before I even knew its name. Just that first appearance in Pokémon The First Movie had me going “What is THAT?! That’s so awesome! It’s like an elephant that turns into a mad wheel or something!” And I don’t think I saw Pikachu’s Summer Vacation when I first I saw the movie, so that was the first time it really hit me that there was gonna be another Pokémon game. I mean, yeah, we had Togepi show up, but I thought that was just gonna be a special event Pokémon like Mew. Speaking of Mew, though, if I remember Generation II for one thing in particular, it would be how this was the point where the previously untouchable Psychic-types were becoming a little more touchable, and they only became more-so as time went on.

Generation III

My Favourites: Sceptile, Blaziken, Swampert, Breloom, Mawile, Lairon

Yeah, surprisingly, not as many big favourites from this Generation as most others. I say ‘surprisingly’, despite this being the Generation that lost a fair share of long-time players, because I actually was not one of those people. I stuck around, and I really liked Generation III. If I can think of one word to best describe it, it’d be, for a lack of a better term, advancement. We had the introduction of Abilities, Pokémon Contests, the Battle Frontier, and a bunch of other stuff. But anyway, the favourites I have from this Generation list still stand out to me. All three starters were pretty solid in their own ways, and I’d like to point out that I liked Swampert and its family before it was cool. Mind you, poor Sceptile was one of the few Pokémon that would be victimized by the physical/special split next Generation, and Blaziken, while cool, started a trend where, for three Generations, we had Fire/Fighting-type starters, and we got sick of it pretty hard. Mawile and Lairon were pretty much immediate favourites from the moment I saw them, just for how cool they looked, but it admittedly took a bit to realize how awesome Breloom was. When I figured it out, though, I felt like smacking myself. Breloom and Blaziken were also the start of what I consider the second Genesis of Fighting-types, though it wouldn’t be complete until what came next…

Generation IV

My Favourites: Infernape, Roserade, Ambipom, Lucario, Togekiss, Glaceon

If Generation III is the start of the major advancement of Pokémon, then Generation IV was when said advancement was perfected. Lots of older Pokémon got brand new and much needed Evolutions. Stuff like the Contests were expanded upon. WiFi was utilized for trading and battling. But to me, the two biggest advancements can be seen in the favourites I chose here. The first is the physical and special split, where instead of being determined by type, whether an attack was physical or special was determined by the move itself and whether there was physical contact with the opponent. This was something that was needed from the START, from the very first games, and we finally had it here. The other major change was that, partially due to the split, and because of a few new attacks and abilities, and new Pokémon like Infernape and Lucario, Fighting-type Pokémon and attacks suddenly became a LOT more usable. In Gen 1, Fighting-types were not all that useful, especially since Psychic-types were so powerful. Generation II introduced Dark and Steel-types, which were weak to Fighting, and Gen 3 brought Pokémon like Blaziken and Breloom to shake up the Fighting-type. This, however, was the major turning point. And I know I’ve told this story before, but one of my favourite Pokémon from all of my playthroughs of the games is a female Lucario I named Tex, after the character from Red vs Blue, because of just how badass she is. Oh yeah, and Roserade is one of my favourite Grass/Poison-types of all time, and I think it’s only topped by Bulbasaur and its family in my eyes. And when you consider how many of those there are, that says a lot.

Generation V

My Favourites: Samurott, Excadrill, Sawk, Cottonee, Emolga, Chandelure

Again, like I said before, I was surprised to find just how many Pokémon from this Generation have left such great impressions on me. When I see Generation V Pokémon in Pokkén Tournament, I smile. A lot. Hell, the six Pokémon on this list are the members of my original team in Pokémon Black, and I still have plenty of other favourites beyond them, including Braviary, Haxorus, Volcarona, Pansage, and more. And it didn’t really hit me until Team Four Star mentioned it during their Nuzlocke Playthrough of LeafGreen just how ballsy a move Black and White, and Generation V in general, were. Black and White had all brand new Pokémon for the main story, and you couldn’t get anything else until after beating it for the first time. There was no third version, but two direct sequels, the first since Gold, Silver, and Crystal. And the games weren’t made for a brand new system, as you could get them for the Nintendo DS, but did have advantages presented for those that played them on the DSi. But yeah, Samurott is a great mixed attacker, Excadrill is insanely broken as shit, Sawk is a pretty good physical attacker and inheritor to Hitmonlee’s legacy, Cottonee is stupid good despite the fact that Prankster’s less favourable among Trainers nowadays, Emolga is adorable as shit and the first Electric/Flying-type since Zapdos, and Chandelure? Well, Chandelure has the highest Special Attack of all non-Legendary and non-Mega Evolved Fire-type Pokémon, and is a pretty handy Ghost-type, too. Mine had a Nature that was beneficial to Special Attack. Can you see where this is going? So yeah, having it be playable in Pokkén is kind of a treat for me, even if it is bizarre as shit to see in a major fighting game. ^_^

Generation VI

My Favourites: Chespin, Greninja, Talonflame, Vivillon, Tyrantrum, Sylveon

Despite the fact that X & Y feature the least amount of new Pokémon for any new Generation, there’re still plenty of good ones. And, of course, the thing that most people will ultimately remember Generation VI for is Mega Evolution, but like I said, I’m not including Mega Evolutions in this list, so brand new Pokémon for Generation VI only. That said, plenty here that I like a lot. Chespin is just too fucking adorable, not to mention tough enough to beat the Bug-type Gym Leader 2-on-1 with ease. Greninja seems to be a favourite among many, managing to make it as a playable character in Super Smash Bros. 4. Talonflame breaks the tradition of the Pidgeot in that it is the first time we saw the super-common Flying-type evolve into something other than a Normal/Flying-type, and is pretty sweet. Vivillon doesn’t really do much that Butterfree couldn’t, but I like the different designs for it, and it’s still pretty solid despite having a type combination that we’ve seen a lot. Tyrantrum is badass and the first instance of a Fossil Pokémon based on a T-Rex, and I don’t know why it took so long to get it. And Sylveon is, in a lot of ways, outright broken due to the effects Pokémon get for the high levels of Affection that are required to get it, and is a brand new type that massively changes up the competitive battle scene.

So, those are my favourite Pokémon from each Generation. What are yours, though? Feel free to let me know (although you don’t have to go quite as in-depth as I did, lol) in the comments below. Also, lemme know which Pokémon you’d like to see either as DLC for Pokkén Tournament or in a sequel to the game. Ja né!

Pokémon Sun And Pokémon Moon Confirmed!

…Yup, it’s official.

…Okay, I have so many questions, so I’m just gonna get ’em out in a bulleted list. XD

• Does this mean we’re NOT getting a Pokémon Z Version, or just not yet?
• If not, what does that mean for Zygarde’s alternate forms?
• Is this even the anticipated Generation VII, or direct sequels to X and Y? Or BOTH?
• Will they be exclusive to the New 3DS?…God, I hope not. o.O
• Why does the little artwork we see in the trailer seem focused on vehicles? Are we getting a greater emphasis on vehicles in these games? ‘Cuz while they’ve been around since the beginning, they haven’t really been exploited to their fullest potential in-game. Pokémon are still the primary method of getting around within a region, whether it’s riding on Rhyhorn or Mamoswine back across harsh terrain, using Pokémon that can swim or otherwise traverse rivers and lakes to get across water, or flying with Pokémon to fast-travel from place to place. Oh, and just saying, that firetruck with Blastoise riding in the back was ADORABLE. lol
• If this IS Generation VII, how many new Pokémon are we getting? Are they going to be scaled back like in X & Y, or will we be getting a new region populated almost entirely of new Pokémon like in Black and White?
• Are we gonna see Ash-Greninja in the games, or is it anime exclusive in order to give Ash something akin to a Mega Evolution without actually giving him a Mega Evolution?
• What’s the meaning behind Sun and Moon? Are there new Legendaries that are related to the sun and the moon? Are the version exclusives going to be Pokémon found in the same places at different times of the day? Are Solrock and Lunatone getting Mega Evolutions?
• What other new Mega Evolutions and forms will there be for older Pokémon this time around?
• We’ve learned that Pokémon from the re-released Red, Blue, and Yellow will be transferable to Sun and Moon via Pokémon Bank, and there’s a big emphasis on everything “coming together” for this one. Is there some kind of emphasis on that in the story? Are we maybe going to see old characters return? Are we getting further elaboration on old stories and mythologies? Is this perhaps the CONCLUSION of the main Pokémon games, at least up to this point?
• Will Ash EVER turn 11 and/or win an actual regional tournament???

Anyway, lemme know what you think of these questions, what you think the answers will be, and if there are any other questions you have, and we’ll see what develops between now and the end of the year. Ja né!