Pokemon Spotlight: Grass starters

 

Aaa Spring is in the air, birds are in the air, bugs are buzzing and trees are (oh dear god) pollinating ugh. (I hate allergy season.) Anyways, speaking of getting in the mood of spring, it brings me to a brand new spotlight! I think given the blooming of flowers it’s only appropriate to cover Pokemon’s Grass starters.

There are over 95 different grass type Pokemon in the games, and a majority of them share dual typing. While it’s not as big of a category as some of the other types there is something that grass has consistently brought to the table – a starter. While a water type is more useful, and a fire type is almost always more powerful, the grass type to me has always represented balance. Often not as strong as a Charizard nor as swift as a Greninja, but tough enough to take a hit from the former and survive to do its own damage.

So as I did in Starting birds, let me break down each type then rank them.

Bulbasaur Family: one of the original three of Gen 1 and often times one of the most overlooked of the three starters, it doesn’t grow cannons on the back like Blastoise, nor does it turn into a “dragon” like Charizard. However it is one of the most consistent; balance is the name of the game when it comes to this starters. As I have mentioned before, it was Ash’s Bulbasaur I really fell in love with, along with the fact it helped stick up for weaker Pokemon and refused to change when others did. For me however its poison typing was a bit of a setback for the Pokemon, due to its weakness to the highly over-powered psychic type. The years however have been very kind to this Pokemon – with the introduction of fairy typing in gen 6 plus a new mega evolution this little one’s future is looking very bright.

Chikorita Family: I have a confession to make. While technically Bulbasaur was my first grass starter, since I chose Yellow as my first Pokemon game I didn’t really choose to play him (I collected him, not played him). So it wouldn’t be until Gen 2 that I would make my very first starter choice, and again influenced by the show I picked Chikorita which even I admit is one of the hardest starters to run in Gen 2.  While I will admit right now I don’t believe I ever completed Gen 2 with Chikorita, I did run her for more than half of Johto. When you struggle so much in the early gyms, you grow fond of your starter. However despite all of this…I do admit Chikorita is one of the more forgettable starters. Like I said before, the gyms in this game actually work against this Pokemon. Bird, bug, normal, ghost, fighting, steel, ice and dragon….none of these gyms would this starter or its moveset have an advantage in. Sorry Chikorita…

Treecko Family: I honestly do not have too much experience with this particular family. Gen 3 was the generation I went with fire…but I will get to that maybe one day. This is not a bad family though, and the generation has more balanced gyms so there are opportunities to really shine. Like Chikorita, Treecko is a solid grass type,  with solid grass moves. There just isn’t much that makes this starter stand out in my opinion. I had really stopped watching the show by this point so it is all personal experience and I am afraid I just don’t have it with Treecko. Hey at least he has a mega form.

Turtwig family: I have a special fondness for this family. I love turtles and this one was the very first that was a totally uninfluenced decision. Turtwig is the first dual type since Kanto, picking up the the ground typing in its final evolution Torterra. Having the ground typing can be both a blessing and a curse. The blessing is it makes getting through Gen 4 easy; I love multiple typing and Pokemon that can learn a variety of moves. However, it now becomes four times weak to ice types, making it not as successful in the competitive world. Still Turtwig is adorable and one of my favorite designs and I played him though not only Pearl but Platinum as well, bonding me pretty tightly to this little guy. I wait long for the day that Torterra can mega evolve!

Snivy Family: Poor Snivy, it’s not its fault that Gen 5 was the generation I drifted away from Nintendo and Pokemon. I did eventually return, and when I did Snivy was my choice.  Snivy is another grass starter that I think is destined to be forgotten. Like Chikorita and Treecko it is another solid grass type. I always love Snivy’s final snake-like design; there are really not enough snake Pokemon in the game. The sad fact of the matter is that Snivy’s move pool is limited, and with pure typing there is just not much other than design going for it. I fear as we move further and further into Pokemon this family will grow to be forgotten like the other solid grass types.

Chespin family: Chespin is what happens to chipmunks when they eat too many acorns and they become one. That being said, I think poor Chespin like the rest of Gen 6 starters did not have the chance to shine in game. The reason I say this is before we even get to gym two we get to pick another starter, this time from Gen 1. On top of that, these Gen 1 starters have mega evolutions. Gen 6 starters were overshadowed in their own game, with so many old school Pokemon that I didn’t really give this one a chance. Also I want to note with Chespin that this is the fourth generation to include fighting as part of the dual typing.

Ok so that is the 6 starters, so where would I rank them from worst to best….

Snivy: I love Snivy’s design, but this starter has little going in its favor; it’s not as fast as Treecko’s family nor as defensive as Chikorita’s family. Its move pool is fairly shallow as well leaving little chance to really let this well-designed Pokemon shine.

Chikorita: another pure-blooded grass type, at least unlike Snivy its move pool is slightly deeper, and it’s the more defensive then Snivy. Still I find this starter just as forgettable as Snivy and nothing really makes her stand out to me. Its own generation fights against her as there are no gyms that really allow her to shine until the second half of Gen 2.

Chespin: Poor adorable Chespin, it could not even shine in its own game because a second starter was added. While I am generally in favor of dual typing, Chespin’s dual typing just makes it so weak to flying and psychic. While I am sure it has its pluses since almost every starter that got fighting typing did well, I just never really got to use it…sorry Chespin one day maybe.

Turtwig: I love this cute adorable starter, you guys know I love this little guy. While it rocks through Gen 4, I cannot and should not ignore the fact it’s four times weak to ice. While its move set should make up for this fact, the sad fact is that a good chunk of ice users will likely out-speed Turtwig’s final evolution before it could do any damage. However Turtwig does have access to a wide range of moves making it a diverse fighter, and unlike the later three Pokemon at least its own game Turtwig can shine in.

Treecko: While a pure-blooded grass type, Treecko has one thing the last four do not have – mega evolution. while I can honestly say I have never played this grass Pokemon, I do however acknowledge that this grass type may be the best of the three pure grass Pokemon. Like Turtwig, it does have access to a diverse move pool, however unlike Turtwig it can mega evolve, although for the life of me I cannot explain why it becomes part dragon….really now it is also 4 times weak to ice. Still the mega evolution adds a nice boost in stats.

Bulbasaur: Before mega evolution and fairy typing Bulbasaur might have been lower on the list, however now I say it’s the number one of all the grass starters. Now it has the stats, the moves and the mega evolution to take this grass starter all the way, of course game freak has also had 20 years to perfect Bulbasaur.

Well what’s your opinion? who is your favorite grass starter?

 

 

 

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Pokemon Anniversary

Wow 20 years….man I feel old. 20 years ago Pokemon roared into all of our lives, I was the mere age of 14 (good god I was just a babe…..this article is going to make me feel so old).  So I thought I would talk about my history with gen 1, and then because everyone likes a countdown list I thought me with my co conspirator pianoelf (who will be in red) would list our top 5 favorite gen 1 Pokemon.

When Pokemon came out I was in junior high school, I didn’t even know there was a game until I started watching the anime. After the anime and a babysitting job I got to play the game a little bit on my on my own.  It wouldn’t be until Yellow launched that I really showed a strong desire for the game, I liked getting all three starters and Pikachu, I didn’t like having to make the choice at the beginning. It would be my birthday that I would get my first Game Boy and Yellow. I loved the game and played it a lot, coming to rely on other Pokemon not featured in the anime. Yellow would start my Pokemon journey, I would go on to play every single main series entry, and a few side ones.

I don’t remember how old I was when Pokemon first came out, but I remember getting Game Boy Pockets with my two brothers and each of us got to choose Red or Blue. I chose Red, although I really wanted Blue because I loved the color blue. I think at least one of my brothers chose Blue, but at any rate, the next thing we knew, we were in the living room together choosing our first Pokemon. We all chose a different one of course, so that eventually we could see each one. I loved the variety in the different Pokemon seen in the originals (even though the original designs don’t age too well), and caught everything I saw. Since then, I have played at least one entry in each generation of games. While there are things I love in the later games, I will never forget the first one I played.

So on to my top five gen 1 Pokemon (or Pokemon family)

 Diglett & Dugtrio: I loved these little ground dwellers. I remember reading in my first Pokemon walkthough a Versus book (which sadly doesn’t exist anymore) that speed wins battles and if there is one thing this little mole Pokemon has, it’s speed. During the course of gen 1 this little guy would more than earn its place on my team. It is also one of the only Pokemon i can consistently draw and when I get bored you can find one or two on the page of a notebook.  I wished it aged as well as my love for it because as the generations grew this Pokemon fell out of favor in my teams, to stronger ground types. However, Diglett will always hold a special spot for me. 

    Pikachu: So cliche, I know, but Pikachu was the first “rare” Pokemon I ever caught. I remember the first one I saw in Viridian Forest, being surprised at never having seen one before (and how cute it was), and then quickly realized how rare it was to encounter one. This little electric mouse may have never made it as a permanent member of any of my teams, but its charm and personality have stuck with me from the very beginning. (Ash’s Pikachu is infinitely adorable too.)

 Zapdos: Out of all of the legendary Pokemon in this generation, Zapdos was by far and away my favorite. This wonderful little electric Pokemon would be a firm fighter for me. With Zappy (yes that’s what I named it) by my side I always knew I would make it through. In game Zapdos is truly the key to getting the other legendaries, We zapped Moltres and Articuno and drill pecked Mewtwo. Whenever I see the Zapdos in future games my heart jumps a beat because I know with this bird at my side…nothing will stop me. 

Pidgey, Pidgeotto & Pidgeot: Pidgey was one of two bird Pokemon you could catch at the very beginning of the game, and I always liked Pidgey’s design better than Spearow’s. As this little bird evolved, he became my Flyer and a very reliable member of my first team. In a recent playthrough of Soul Silver, I made it a point to use one, and while he had a period where he was close to useless, now he has proven himself to be a core member of the team. There have been many new bird Pokemon introduced since Gen 1, but they will never replace the Pidgey family for me.

  Rapidash: When I was looking over the list of the original 151, and looked at good Rapidash and Ponyta I got this warm happy feeling. Like most little girls, I grew up loving horses. I can’t tell you how it absolutely blows my mind after 20 years and 722(?) Pokemon that there are only 3 horse type Pokemon. Rapidash is too often overlooked in my opinion as a fire Pokemon, but it has something that is so key, the same reason i love Dugtrio: speed. It’s not only that. I loved encountering it in Snap. It is beautifully designed, and has the moves and the stats to be a great Pokemon, and she really is.  

  Butterfree: Yet another Pokemon found close to the beginning of the game! I loved Butterfree even though she was always swapped out later for something more useful. I think it’s because I loved butterflies as a kid, and hated bees (Beedrill is the Pokemon opposite Butterfree). Leveling up a Caterpie or Metapod and then seeing this beautiful Butterfree emerge was always immensely satisfying.

 Bulbasaur: Ok let’s be straight here ppl, yes Charmander grows into Charizard which even I will admit is kind of badass, Squirtle grows into a giant turtle with cannons on his back, In comparison Venasaur is not that impressive, even when we got mega this Pokemon got shafted, but to me it will always have a special little place. It was the anime that sold me on him, not willing to change when everyone one else like him did, protective of the weak and friends, tolerant of ones who annoy him and loyal to his friends. Bulba was the one out of Ash’s Pokemon that I identified with, and that’s why I love him. 

 Eevee & Flareon: Ok, another cute choice, but this Pokemon is not found until much later in the game. You can only get one Eevee, and then you find that Eevee can evolve into one of three Pokemon depending on what kind of stone you give to it. Eevee is cute enough already, but Flareon’s design always attracted me more than the other two options. Flareon just looks so fluffy! Eevee has consistently been a team member in later games, sometimes as its original form, and much more often in one of its now EIGHT evolution choices.

Lapras: By now are you really that surprised to see Lapras here? If you have read my past blogs you know I absolutely love this Pokemon. She has carried me through so many games, but it was Yellow where I first met her. Once I had her by my side I dropped my Blastoise for her and I have never looked back. Lapras has been at my side since the beginning, My love for this Pokemon goes longer and deeper, met in gen 1 and by my side until the end. Beautiful, serene, defensive and strong this one has gotten me though many Elite Fours. 

 Charmander: I’m sure you can guess by now which Pokemon I got while my brothers got the other two. Charmander has always been my favorite Pokemon, partly because he was the one that started it all. I remember that I didn’t want to evolve my first Charmander, but eventually gave in and Charmeleon and Charizard became heavy hitters as I faced the Elite Four. But in every game since then, I have tried to have a Charmander on my team and never evolve him. There is something about this cute little lizard that makes me happy to have him by my side. Perhaps part of it is seeing Ash’s Pikachu and wanting my Charmander to be the same kind of friend. Ash’s Charmander may have evolved into a stubborn Charizard, but my Charmander will always be my faithful companion.

Well there you have it,  our top fives. We both enjoyed revisiting our past, and look forward to replaying the original games in the not so distant future. In the meantime please enjoy the video below, done by natewantstobattle, It seems appropriate to end the article with it.

 

Please feel free to like us on our new facebook page Gamerwomen, where we (try) to post upcoming news or interesting articles we find from around the web about various games; and of course alerts to when new articles are posted up.

 

Pokemon Spotlight: Zigzagoon

Pokemon is nothing if not consistent, we know over the years when we start up any game, that a few things will always happen. We will always get a starter pokemon, we will always have a mom that we leave behind who supports us, And the first catching areas we will always find a bug pokemon, a bird pokemon and one normal swiss army knives pokemon. From ratatta, to bunnelby and all in between. there have been good ones, terrifying one (looks at patrat and shudders). For me my favorite starter normal is really zigzagoon, i squeed that’s right i squeed when i started X a year ago and found this little guy in the beginning areas. My original one way back when when sapphire was still new was named bandit, future ones were names lil’theif and current one is named ziggy.

So what makes this little guy so special, Honestly like most beginning level normal’s you will out grow this little guy by gym four or five, but for be its that ability pickup that makes him so unique. When you start the game you can find you run though pokedollers really quickly. Zigzagoon picks up random potions, pokeballs, status heals, even berries as you travel along. Most of these items are very useful, and sometimes even life saving if your going though a forests or a cave. Early game before you get the full heals and full restores these extra little status saves are quite useful. Your little pickpocket turns out to be a real butt saver.

Zigzagoon  and Its evoluton linoone  can also be very useful learning four different hm moves, so if you need someone to carry the hm burden for your team this is a good choice learning, cut, strength, surf and rock smash. The can also use non hm but field moves like dig and rock climb. Also like most normal pokemon they are swiss army knives learning a veriaty of different type move sets, so if you decide to actually work with one longer then gym five i have a feeling you will be rewarded. however nither i nor  smogon recommend this guy outside your own game, its not built for competitive just to get you though the beginning of the game.

While its likely you will eventually outgrow the zigzagoon linoone family by the time you hit gym five, you cannot deny what this little guy does for you early game and should be recognized for that.

Omega Ruby: Final reactions and thoughts.

I have been enjoying the post game a lot, but have decided not to go into details about the final game because i want to leave some surprises left for you guys. so let me go over some of this.

Pros

-hoenn is beautifully redone.

-flying on latios/latias is a dream come true, always one of my favorite features in final fantasy was free flying, to see it here is amazing. Its a new feature i really really want to stay

-the little omages: when you talk to random npcs, they will sometimes mention other regions, kalos, unova, johoto shinnoh and kanto. it makes the game feel more global. Its a little thing but it helps.

-finding non hoenn pokemon from later games in hoenn. I cannot tell you how surprised i was to find Deino of all creature hiding at meteor falls.

-return of contests. i know i have ralled against the contests in the past, but its a nice break from all the battling you do. I didn’t really focus much here on it, but i have sapphire in the wing, i plan on doing contests more.

-secret bases. this is another element i plan on focusing more on the other game but i am very please to have this back again.

-bigger post game. thank you this was the one thing that really hurt x-y the post game was so small. hoenns is much bigger with contests the battle zone coming soon and the delta episode, it just pays off the player

Cons:

-Regis’ and the lake trio are still a pain in the ass to catch.

-sneaking, while i liked this element i found points in the game this just did not work for me. I am still working on what happened here but until i figure out why this didn’t work i will not be a fan.

-missing elements: there are some elements that players of the orginal games really missed whether it was the bathing grannies or the running the ash off the leaves, those few little tweaks broke some hearts.

-Camera angles we are still dealing with is not perfect yet.

– customization. i understand that kalos was Paris and fashion and hoenn doesn’t have that elements.  Often these games are made very close to each other so its possible the customization wasn’t added in because it was never part of the original game.

-the change in pc option order, Organize boxes was always the third one down this game the changed it to the first spot. after years of being the same spot they move it!! Are they trying to drive me crazy.

Anyways i hope you guys have enjoyed hoenn as much as i am. I will later once i really get sapphire going will post up my base.

Pokemon Spotlight Part 1: Zubat family.

Welcome to my new series. its hard to make a top 10 list sometimes because you leave out so many other special Pokemon, and lets face facts at 700+ pokemon there is a lot of positives and negatives to each family. since there are alot of pokemon to cover i may not get to all of them, and now there are some top lists that are way past overdue. I just wanna try this for a bit and see how it goes.

“Zubat zubat, zubat, zubat, zubat everywhere this is dumb” Anyone who has ever ventured 20 inches in a cave in pokemon is fermiler with this bat. One of the most common pokemon in the game since gen one. In gen two Zubat became a force to be recconded with, as its third evolution crobat was finally revealed. So why is zubat the first one of my pokemon spotlight series. Well the reasons very but honestly my friend and I just traded stuffed critters and i got my beloved stuffed zubat who is happily sitting on my desk watching me type.

my adventures with zubat didn’t really start off until gen 2, in gen one i mostly ignored the little off looking bat. with a new evolution of crobat, it was no longer a matter of simpling leveling up the creature, it was about making it like you. to get there you need to actually spend some time with it. by trying to make it happy i grew to love and appreciate the strike power and speed. however with the mountain of other pokemon out there it was easy to forget what this little bat was capable of. XY one again showed me the power that is inside of a zubat.

Approaching a level cap i knew i would have to soon bench one of my big pokemon so they didn’t overlevel and stop listening to me. I swapped out my fletchling for a zubat i had just caught, and this little think became a solid rock on my team though the elite four. Gen 6 is a blessing for this little bat because one finally its poison typing becomes useful, with addition of fairy pokemon Poison in my mind become relevant. I wish however it got more of a power boost because outside of the game it still can become irrelevant, which is too bad.

Golbat, Zubats middle form i think is safe to say at this point in its evolution its going though those awkward teenage years. its head is a little over-sized and so is its upper wings, its tail bits are shorting a bit giving it feet and in a lot of photos its tongue is hanging out (at least its not lickylicky bad). Golbat has it rough for its teen years. there are a lot of awkward mid evolution out there before the final stage which in most cases look the pokemon either look more powerful or more intimidating.

 

In zubats good fortuine crobat makes it look tougher. It swaps colors moving its blue to the inner flap of the wings and purple becomes its primary body color. On top of that those akward feet are now replaced with an additional set of wings. I say this makes it looks like crobats specialty will be speed, which it is. According to one poll that i saw crobat is among the top 100 fastest pokemon.  Speed can win battles and that makes Crobat a powerful strike fighter that if used correctly could cause some discomfort against an opposing pokemon.

 

Little zubat has come a long way, from the kanto to kalos. its seen ever region out there and should get a little more respect. I woke up this morning to learning that beedrill and pidgot got a mega evolution, were is crobats? it is well past time that this little bat get the love it so despertly wants out there and give it the mega it needs and deserves.

 

 

 

So what pokemon do you think i should feature next time? What is your favorite zubat moment.

 

Hoenn Confirmed: Predictions

Hoenn is coming and so is changes to our favorite gen 3 game. As shown in this weeks E3 and cora cora leaks the remaining gen 3 starters are getting a mega evolution as well as good old Sableye. What else does game freak have in store for us?

Well if you will indulge me i am going to make my first ever prediction blog of what i feel is going to come in this new (old) set of games.

1: We will see another group of starters also get a mega, either gen 2’s or gen 4’s some where towards the end of the game, likely after the elite four is beaten.

2: secret bases will make a return with the wifi feature enabled so you can rate your friends bases

3: Besides starters we will see at least 20 different new mega evolution’s and they will not be exclusive to gen 3’s pokemon. Some Pokemon that i predict will see megas will be, Metagross, Flygon, Gallade,  Rosade, Bellosom, Gliscor, (one of if not all of the bird trio or the dog trio) Mightyena, Slaking and Luxray.

4 We will see some of gen fives pokèmon get some love too.

5 we will see delta Emerald and her is why. Unlike past generations, Ruby Sapphire and Emerald all had distinctively different story lines. Combining it like they have in the past could ruin the integrity of the past games, so i think they will in this case release the third one.

6: the beauty contests will also go wifi so you can compete with friends.

7: the past mistake will be fixed, meaning day and night will return for gen 3 re-release, while absent in the original gen 3 Gamefreak has a great track record in listing to its fan and make sure what made fans unhappy with gen 3 will be fixed when its ready to go in November.

8: The game is going to be as pretty as x-y is

So those are my predictions what are some of yours. Do you Agree with mine, Do you have some of yours, let me know in comments down below.

Gen VI Review

Well its about time i finish these pokèmon game reviews, and Pokèmon X-Y is the final one. With the delay of the bank and transporter, it seems like as good of time as any to give my thoughts on the latest entry into the pokèmon universe.

                              

While i did my version of a play by play with Pokèmon X giving you guys an idea of my team and my general thoughts along the play. After i finished X i still hand an hankering for some more Pokèmon, so i picked up Y and it quickly became my favorite version of gen 6, while they are practically twins, i think the pokèmon available in Y are far better. Like Team Rocket there are a lot of things this game nearly flawlessly, but in some cases ended up blasting off again instead.  But i will get to that later. For now let me start with the review.

First The Dislikes:

-I feel like compared to what we have gotten game wise in the past, that X-Y feel very small. The end game content especially you have the looker quests, the battle chateau, battle Maison, and the rival. sorry that’s much to keep going on. Then again everything after gold and silvers post game seems small.

-I hate to say this because the whole game feels so small, i would welcome something like the pokèmon contests, or movie or something else to do. I know i have railed against the contests the last few posts, but it made the game feel more epic and gave players something different to do with their pokèmon besides battle.

-Team Flare: I know i have said in the over views how much i disliked Flare in comparison to last gens plasma’s just seemed like this ones motivation was phoned in. Maybe its time to change up the game formula a bit if you can’t keep up a compelling reason read the dialog. there comes a point where you just stop reading it and play like you always play.

-To many Recycled story lines. Honestly this is the biggest flaw with the game, Team rocket stole Pokèmon for profit, since then however you have had the last four generations in it to destroy the world (of Course) and Rebuild it in their image. Think about it go back to each gen, think about that team and what their goals are. Other then Plasma which N’s Motivation was a little different (which is why i like this group) They have had the same goal. In this same stroke you have the Snorlax blocking the road, while you didn’t have to get and keep the pokè flute on your own, we have seen this done to death. Its either him or Sudowoodo, I beg of you give me something different.

-To many starters. To be honest I understand, but in a way having not one but two sets of starters (and a torchic to boot). The fact you get these three if you play starters straight though you have slots only open for three -four others random pokèmon. I can almost guarantee most players opted for an original more known Pokèmon rather then a new untested ones.

-this one is a two fold one, To few new Pokèmon and too many old ones. I went though this game twice, and twice i made it though a good chunk of the game without using any of the new guys. I know we are at 700+ Pokèmon, but one of the attractions honestly to black is i was allowed to explore old and new. Because of this a player like me is faced with a choice, Try something new or stick with what i knew. in my case i tried to in Y at least to pick team members that maybe from older gens, but i rarely or never used. hey like i said 700+ Pokèmon, there is no way i know the details of each one.

-How come non of Gen V’s pokèmon got a mega evolution. I understand that some fans considered Black and White to be the black sheep of the Pokèmon family, but every game has its good and bad pokèmon. that has always been the charm of the game, to figure out who is a good one and the bad one. Black and White has great Pokèmon in it, some even deserving of mega forms.

-Speaking of Mega’s How come the Generation we are currently in gets no Mega’s either? You are just stacking up reasons to ignore Kalos Pokèmon when you don’t bother to give the newest Pokèmon that something special. Especially the starters, I feel honestly that either give all starters a mega or none at all. Look i love Gen 1’s starters too who doesn’t but to ignore the other five gen starters except for Blazikin seems a little unfair don’t you think?

Now the Positive stuff.

-Now that i have some time to Digest Mega, it is sort of growing me, And if can keep terrible evolutions like Lickylicky and Rhyperior from coming into existence then i am for it.

-Customization: Ok i really like being able to pick out outfits for my character and the hair cut as well. My only protest is do i really have to keep waring a hat?

-New Pokèmon, Honestly we have only a handful of new ones, but i don’t think there is really a bad one in the batch. making my bottom 6 really hard to pick.

-Fairy types: I was a little unsure about this at first, but now i have some time to digest it, i have really become a fan of this. The ones Who changed over to Fairy were for the most part needed. (especially if reduces the number of normal out there.) My favorite changes honestly is Togepi’s family and Ralts family. (i have never been a fan of Clefairy or Jiggly) I am also pleased they left Blissey alone, it is now the sole pink puff ball that is not a fairy, Thank God because i think it would have lost something if it moved over.

-Wonder Trading: This is how i know i should never gamble in real life, because of pokèmon. I could never stop playing with the game corner (which i want back!) and now with Wonder trading, its sort of addictive, send a random pokèmon out, and get a random one back, of course you get a lot of um…sorry crap pokèmon. but Occasionally you get a real gem or a pokèmon you haven’t seen before.

-The Legendary before the final gym, so i get a chance to really check my new legendary out. I also love the fact i get it while fighting the final boss and switch it out for for me at least a team member who fought the good fight but needs a good rest in the PC, allowing you to go into the final boss battle with at least one fresh pokèmon.

-Free Pokèmon, I got Lucario and Lapras pretty darn early in the game. And we all know by now how i love my lapras.

Ok On to the pokèmon, This post will also include my favorite mega’s and pokèmon who need mega’s. I know this is a long post already, but here we go.

My bottom 6 least favorites. because this is such a small group, i for a lot of them is nitpicking.

6:Carbink: Part of the problem with this group being so small, is there a Lot of good idea just poorly executed, its pretty darn cute, but sadly i just could not find a place for it.

5: Spritzee: So many new faeries, so many useless additions, here is candidate number 2. this isn’t the worse looking one. just not one of the useful ones.

4: Klefki: Ok i am sorry i maybe one of the few that actually like Klefki, my problem with it because it doesn’t feel complete. It needs and evolution or a power boost or something to really make this something to watch out for. This also feel like instead of a fairy maybe this should have been a ghost type. Something that steels a keys i will buy that.

3: Swirlix: No Game no, bad game. Stop making food based pokèmon. This one is a little more on the disturbing side.

2: Bunnelby: I have not seen such a disturbing evolution in quite a long while. Diggersby is the reason i don’t like Bunnelby. its not a bad starter but just..(shudder).

1: Furfrou: I don’t understand why this was necessary, to have a pokèmon who you can change its looks with. Then again i have said it before there seems to be one gimmick pokèmon per gen, this one is it. Do yourself a favor and box it.

Top 6:

6: Fletchling family: If Starly family was the number one starter bird before then this family is number two. It doesn’t have a single bad looking evolution in the family, and its flame body ability makes it an ideal partner when hatching babies.

5: Inkay: I fell instantly in love with this creature when i saw it. I love octopus and squids and meeting this guy. i name Bloop, After Blooper from the squid from Mario. This is probably one of the more odd type matches but i will take it.

4:Honedge family: about time we got a Sword Pokèmon, and this one is pretty darn good. This steel ghost is also a great false swipe user. Lust like Scizor this one is great for helping fight and catch pokèmon.

3: Flabèbè family: Here we go, now this is a fairy pokèmon, not only adorable but powerful. While not a fan of Florges the final evolution Flabèbè and Florette are real cuties. The fact they come in different colors also doesn’t hurt this little ones case. Pick a flower and she will be at your side until the end of the game.

2: Froakie family: It seems like in every generation there is that one starter that outclasses the other two, in this gen it is Froakie. I you manage to get one with Protean you can make life very difficult for your competitor. Not to mention its a frog and its adorable. In Round 2 of the game in Y, my frog named Kitt (that’s a long story.) was with me until the end.  Look at that face how can you not fall in love with this guy.

1: Yveltal: This big guy surprised me. going into this game i thought Xerneas would be the legend to beat, then i played Y. Yveltal just destroyed most things in it’s space. this guy impressed me from the get go taking out the final boss pretty much on its own, while Xerneas struggled. I look forward to the day when i can pair this dark beast with its cousin lugia. This is by far the best of the new legends and if you havn’t had a chance to play with this guy, do it.

best mega evolutions. top 6

6: Mega Charizard Y: I was never a charizard fan honestly at first but with this gen i became a fan and this is my favorite version of it.

5: Mega Scizor: So i have always been Scizor fan, so seeing a mega form to one of my top pokèmon made me excited. However its evolution i dunno i am not overly excited about this look, but it powers up a fav so i can’t be that offended.

4: Mega Venusaur: With fairy becoming a new threat having a kick ass poison as an ally is necessary. Plus i have always loved bulbasaur. i am not over the moon about this mega evolutions look, i mean it has a butt flower, i think this guy got shafted.

3: Mega Lucario: Before this game i never played with Lucario, i had seen it around but fighting in general doesn’t make it into my team very often. This game made me finally take notice of this guy and how powerful Lucario is both in mega and non mega forms. This is also one of the more sleeker new evolutions, i am a fan.

2: Mega Garchomp: This is another one i did not use until this game. Garchomp impressed me though out the game, and once i got her, her mega evolution i was impressed by the look and the power she got. (hey Game freak give sharpedo a mega too!!)

1: Mega Blaziken: One of my favorite pokèmon got a mega form. Blaziken has always been kick ass, and its even more kick ass, the design is great and it makes it look like more of a threat.
Boy this was a long post, X-Y is a great addition to the pokèmon universe. While i suspect our exploration of X-Y is just beginning, due to the fact they can now download additions to the game. We know from hackers that there are three other pokèmon hiding in the code as well.

What are you thoughts on this latest game, who are some of your favorites, what do you dislike about this game? Let me know in the comments down below.

Gen V Review

I have a weird relationship with this generation in particular, Gen V came out just weeks after the original 3ds launched and i was still reeling from my disappointment in it. I played a little without a walk though but my heart was beginning to be stolen by another. I soon soul find myself seeking the precious, instead of the pokèball, and when Nintendo announced the price drop, then free games i wasn’t interested in, i found myself angry, and soon would turn my back on the game and Nintendo for two years.

                            

Sometime this summer after almost three years of exclusive play on lotro (lord of the rings online) i found myself growing bored of it, i had started to play more games on my phone but found they just were not long enough and constantly wanted me to buy stuff. So after cleaning up a bit i found my old DSI hanging out on my dresser, i looked though games i hadn’t played yet and pokèmon black was staring at me. So i popped it in and restarted my journey where i had left off two years ago. I found the story engaging and for the first time in two years pokèmon had managed to recapture my heart. (this is why i think i am still obsessive about this series i have two years to make up on). After some time my love to Pokemon regrew, as soon as i finished black i jumped right to black 2.

                                      

i love how it jumps a head a bit between the series of black and black 2, instead of replaying the same game with some tweaks it gives you a whole new chance to to check out unova from fresh eyes…that is really cool.

For the record i did try it on the 3ds collecting dust, i was still angry at it, with some persuasion from my friends i traded it in for the 3ds xl, fresh start for me and Nintendo. It worked out and now here we are.

OK lets start off with the negative:

-C-gear, i found this to be a huge let down from what pearl and diamond Pokètch. i barely used the lower screen and most of the time it was off for me. I understand where they were going, it just wasn’t pulled off well for me.

-Legendary, this set to be honest i found a lot less appealing, i hated tornadus and crew. i think mainly for me, its the fact that the main legendary really doesn’t come in until the end, some of the last battles. Giving me very little time to connect with my newly caught legendary.

-My friend scolded me when i said gen II’s starters were forgettable, saying that it was this gens who will be forgotten. While i like Snivy, honestly she is right. The fire starter Tepig is the third time we have seen a fire fighting. and Oshawott is a solid water type, but there are better water pokèmon out there. Snivy was the highlight here because with was a speedy grass who could take a hit.

-Bridges, to many blank bridges with very little to do on them.

– musicals…i thought the contests were bad now we have musicals which i found twice as confusing. I will stop complaining about the contests if the musicals don’t come back.

– Cheren, our “Rival” Really didn’t grow much, he did get a gym in black and white 2 but by then it was too late. The rival story is really over shadowed by N’s and Bianca’s. Honestly N made a better rival anyways.

-The Victory road, to much in and our and sliding down a hill for me.

Now the positive.

– i love the Villain story here, this is the first series to really pose a question to the player and makes you think, even though we essentially don’t make choices N’s story is truly a memorable one.

-Bianca: i debated on her, putting her as a positive or a negative, i ultimately rules on positive, her story line is interesting too, but all to short. The battle between her and her father, her fathers and her’s fears and her eventual growth is another engaging thing.

-Gym leaders to the rescue: I loved this part of the story line, Finally the world is in danger and its not all up to a 10 year old to save the world. The Gym leaders come in and help you out, defending you, and clearing the way so you can do what needs to be done. i love this.

– Great second round, Most of the time when we get a third game its a replay of the originals with some tweaks to it. Black and White, followed with Black 2 and white 2, these two take place a few years after the events of black and white. You do get some new areas, the original victory road is gone, (Thank god)  and you get to see the after math of the events that took place in the original black and white game.  *If you haven’t played them i highly recommend playing the second part to the color you picked the first time around, because it gives you the other dragon.

-Black 2 access to old legendaries, finally got my latios…only down side was the regi’s again. i will admit one thing they are easier to catch with the dusk ball which was not there in gen III, still doesn’t mean i was thrilled to see them.

-Transfers: While i wasn’t so thrilled at first with the new way to catch, i quickly adapted to it, and found it way more efficient then the previous generations. Making transfers a breeze, which is nice because with the transporter and bank on the way, moving everyone over to black and black 2 has been a priority.

-Transferring story, If you connect Black up to black 2 it will load up your previous game, so when it does flash backs you see your previous interactions with N, or previous accomplishments in the gen before.

-Black and white 2: The movies, while i hated the musicals and contests i sort of enjoyed the movie part, i think because if gave me a chance to test drive pokèmon i normally wouldn’t play otherwise.

-Reusable Tm’s. In previous generations you had one shot at a TM, and if it was rare like earthquake you had to think carefully about who you used it on. Thanks to this generation i can finally use something like Earthquake, still smartly but helps me build a better team.

Now for the pokèmon. To start with neither Trubbish nor Vanillish will be on either list, while there not horrible pokèmon they are not really good, i however do not buy the idea that there horrible because of the design, there have been far worse designs over the years, which i have covered in the past. Besides after 15+ years playing this game, i am used to weird pokèmon, i mean come on…there are fighting eggs and i pile of sludge out there.

First for the bottom 6

6: Durant: This isn’t a bad Pokèmon, its on the list mainly because i am absolutely terrified of ants. When i was a little girl visiting my great aunt and uncle in texas. Me and my brother were playing with an ant hill, that ant hill turned out out to be fire ants. To this day i remember its pain they inflected. Since then i have been scared of ants, and Durant is an ant, so its on the list.

5:    Pidove Family: This isn’t necessarily a bad bird, its just a huge let down after the predecessor Starly. Starly’s family in generation IV was just so good for a starting bird, and as it grew it got better. This guy in comparison is just not all that good.

4: Patrat: Another victim of two many better pokèmon out there. This one also freaks me out a bit. Those Eyes..i am just not a fan of it. At least Rattata was cute, and sort of stayed cute when it evolved. those crazy eyes….i just can’t deal with them.

3: Sigilyph: Ok this one just pissed me off. I battled it many times, and it always gave me a hard time. There in every generation that one Pokèmon that is over used by npc, that piss the crap out of you. For me its Sigilyph.

2: Tornadus, Thundurus, Landorus: I wouldn’t mind these three if they were not so difficult to get them. In a single black game you can only get two out of the three. In black 2 i could catch them using Dream radar, they were a pain to catch there, but at least they got me moving i guess. Still i am not a fan of these three.

1: The Pan family: I really don’t like the monkey pokèmon, and these three are annoying. I just don’t like these guys, and there evolutions don’t help. I really don’t like these guys.

Top 6

6: Golurk: This huge golem of a pokèmon, showed up for me in black and White, but i never played him until Y. He is very impresive for a ghost pokèmon. he actually scared me a bit when i first met him due to his huge side, but Golurk can be a gentle giant who can put a sever smack down on your opponents. I was very pleased to have him on my side on Y.

5: Chandelure: This is the perfect example to me of the game having way to many good pokèmon, and some just get ignored. This one came to my attention recently as well, trying to learn ghost pokèmon better for another top 6, i started training a litwick, boy did this little guy impress me. Enough to become a competitive member of a team for myself. A the fact it automatically learns a grass move, and a good one at that makes it a powerful little ally. Don’t believe me check him out for yourself. i promise it won’t steal you soul…

4: Haxorus: This seems to be a running theme for these first three. pokèmon whose power i would have never known if it wasn’t for Y. while i wrote up my reviews for X i also played Y shortly after i finished X. In Y Haxorus and Golurk became strong members to my final team, Neither one disappointed me, when i needed them the most. Something she reminded again recently when i did an online battle with a friend, and with half my team down she came though and protected me again.

3: Stoutland: Pokèmon is just full of normal type pokèmon, In every generation you get a couple of them, most are decent to useless with very few stand outs. This is a stand out of the normal family. This is just a power house, and if breed correctly you can have an elemental powerhouse that can leave your opponent crying. On top of it, this one really doesn’t have an awkward middle phase which makes this guy even better.

2: Joltik: By now i am sure you guys think i am crazy, I am terrified of ants but don’t have a single issue with spiders. I think by now you guys know i love this family and i have one currently on my Y cartage that i am working with. While its not the strongest of the bugs, its one of the cutest and one of my favorites to come out of this generation.

1Hydreigon: I have said it before and i will say it again, you don’t spend 64 levels with anything and not grow a little attached to it. I first met Hydreigon fighting the final boss in Black Ghetsis, That sucker was tough and had a counter for half my team. This is a powerful Pokèmon, but a high level evolve. I knowing i was bouncing to black 2 quickly bred and sent over a baby Deino over to my black 2 game. Smart move on my part and it became a powerful ally, and honestly out of everyone on this list, he needs a mega.

So what are your thoughts on the fifth Generation? It is obvious from this i was a big fan of this generation, it was the one that returned me back to the world of both Pokèmon and Nintendo for that this generation will always be a little special to me.

My Top 6 Ice Pokèmon

well the weather outside is frightful all right, with a snow/ice storm outside my window now seems the perfect time to give you all a list of my top 6 ice pokèmon.

Like all top 6’s no legendaries are allowed on this list. So without further delay let me get started.

6: Glaceon: This one almost got bumped from a list, but a friend argued with me and won. Glaceon is another eeveelition, its defiantly one of the prettier ones. Now we are getting into the more interesting way to evolve an Eevee, you have to be around a cold stone to get your new frozen friend. This is not one of my top eevee’s for one reason only, its sibling vaporeon can do most of what glaceon does. It is a beautiful pokèmon no doubt about it.

5: Mamoswine Family: This Ice ground type started off life in pokèmon with just two evolutions, then they added mamoswine, this ice tank is a pretty solid critter. While he isn’t as much fun to ride on on x as rhyhorn still a solid pokèmon and with a move pool to back it up this is a good one to have on your side.

4: Avalugg: Avalugg and Bergmite are new to the world of pokèmon. He impressed me while i was working on raising Bergmite up. he proved to have a solid defense and could take a blast from a flame thrower and stand for one more round, not many pure ice times can say that. He looks a little strange at first with his flat back, but you know by now you think strange would be nothing new in my world.

3: Walrein Family: speaking tanks, Walrein at first glance when introduced in Gen III reminded me of another water ice Seel from generation one Seel and dougong, and i promptly named it seel once i caught it. However it turned out to be much more impressive then Dougong ever was. This one has solid stats and the defense to back it up its a solid family who would make any trainer lucky to have it on their side.

2Aurorus: Making her second appearance on the top 6 the beautiful Aurorus, this pokèmon stole my heart when the first announced the fossils, i know everyone went gaga over tyrunt, but amaura was the one who caught my attention. While not the strongest ice on this list, it still has a decent enough stats and move pool to make it competitive. This is not a throw away pokèmon for which i am glad. I am happy this exists.

1: Lapras: No one who has been reading my posts should be surprised to see my old friend. I don’t know if you have noticed by now, i tend to not have a lot of single evolution pokèmon on my lists. I like Pokèmon who evolve because it it gives me a sense of accomplishment, i guess that is what makes Lapras so unusual for me. Lapras has never had an evolution, never has and given we are now in our 6th game and still no evolutions probably will never have one. So why do I love them so much, Good question. Lapras as seen me though five generations, and no matter how tough the situation has gotten in game, this little one always sees me though. Recently coming though the new elite four in X, i was counting on my other pokèmon to help me though the five elite members. Three out of four elite four members had to be handled by my Lapras, when i tried to give her a break to let my fairy handle the dragons…but nope my fairy went down leaving Lapras to sweep the dragons, the fire and help out with the water. This is just one of many stories i can share with you, And its one of the many reasons Lapras has time, after time, after time, proven why it is an invaluable member of my team. Lapras will always be my number one Pokèmon, and my favorite ice pokèmon.

So how about your guys? what are your favorite ice types.

Also I am thinking strongly of doing a new top ten list with some new pokèmon. what do you think?

My Top 6 Favorite Rock Pokèmon

Rock pokèmon are a nice sturdy members to anyone’s team. of course like any type i have my favorites, So like always no legends allowed in here, not that i would pick regirock if it was allowed. Stupid regis.

6: Onix: this Rock snake first came to my attention with the anime, first time i encountered in battle against Brock. Its been years since then but i still remember how powerful he became. like many early rock types this one shares the type with ground which is a nice mixing. Onix is an old early fav, and would not deny his spot on this list…(really i wasn’t going to put him on this list, but he insisted)

5:Tyrantrum: Most Anicent pokèmon are rock types, as a result there are a lot of really good ancients as a result, i picked two to be on this list. There was a lot of excitment when tyrunt was announced finally a ancient that was a t-rex, on top of that it got dragon attached to it. I must admit i was very impressed by this guy it has a nice move pool and yes having a t-rex on you team is king of cool…but it was not my favorite of the two that came out.

4: Aurorus: I have love brachiosaurs since i was a little kid. so when i spotted this as a new pokèmon i fell instantly fell in love. On top of that this one counters tyruntrum, as an ice type it has the type advantage so this nice peaceful looking pokèmon is a powerful ally.

3: gigalith: I became friends Roggenrola, early in the Pokèmon Black game, he was at my side though the elite four. Thanks to a friend i was able to swap my boldore all the way up to Gigalith. For me if a pokèmon earns its place on my team it gets to go though the elite four with me. This one helped me though two gyms and countless battles, holding steady for me allowing one more move in sometimes a rough situation. He earned his place in my team and my heart.

2: Tyranitar: This guy has been on my lists before on the top 6 Dark types. Funny he was number two on that list as well, poor guy. This is a powerful rock type and dark type, in fact he maybe the toughest and most powerful one on this list…however it doesn’t make him my favorite. Sorry bud power doesn’t always equal love in my eyes. it probably doesn’t help his case that i haven’t used him in almost 10 years.

1: Geodude Family: around since the first generation this family some how always finds its way into my team. However it really wasn’t until Gold and silver, did it really shine for me. I have been over this story, before. with my frist game silver the pick of my starter Chikorita the grass pokèmon. However this would prove to be a bad choice, however there was a little notch on the beginning route, i found my little geodude, a female named dudette. Dudette rolled over the flying gym, the bug gym and the normal gym. Surprisingly it even hanged tough in the fighting and steel gym. It has over the years continued to prove itself. i got mad at x-y for putting onix in so early in the game and only showing me graveler towards the end of the game because i am such a fan of these little guys. Geodude, Graveler and Golum have earned there place as number one on this list.

 

So What do you think? do You agree, do you disagree? Who are your top 6? leave your comments down below.