Pokémon (Not-So) Griefing Thread - Gen 9 announced: Scarlet and Violet, Releasing Late 2022

[6MillionCoofs]

I wasn’t about to write an entire thesis in the dead of night about why X&Y is superior to SWSH despite being nearly a decade old game. The graphics just happened to be the first thing that stuck out to me as I currently play through a modded version of it.

The thing that still sticks out to me is the gym with the punk rock gym leader whose ace is based of Kiss and they completely lack music.

 

[AnotherPleb]

The thing that sticks I am still stuck is the gym with the punk rock gym leader whose ace is based of Gene Simmons and they completely lack music.

That fight not having vocals was absolutely criminal.

 

[Bixnood]

Because I know good games and would be there to do a job, not to cream myself over the job title and brag about it on social media.

Spoiler: Sword and shield sperging

I played it on my wife's request on my own switch and copy of the game but using her copy of pokemon home last year.

where the fuck are the animations that they said necessitated the dex cut. also no end game and no interesting online functions.
any other serise and it would be over after a release like that.
The only thing I liked was being able to access the box from anywhere as it allowed me to have a team of twelve instead of six for level curve, but it also wouldn't let me turn off exp share.

 

[Mike Stoklasa]

Spoiler: Sword and shield sperging

I played it on my wife's request on my own switch and copy of the game but using her copy of pokemon home last year.

where the fuck are the animations that they said necessitated the dex cut. also no end game and no interesting online functions.
any other serise and it would be over after a release like that.
The only thing I liked was being able to access the box from anywhere as it allowed me to have a team of twelve instead of six for level curve, but it also wouldn't let me turn off exp share.

Don't forget those high resolution models for the Pokemon.

 

[AnotherPleb]

Don't forget those high resolution models for the Pokemon.

I fail to see why the game couldn't have run on the Wii U.

 

[Mike Stoklasa]

I fail to see why the game couldn't have run on the Wii U.

And at the end of the day... I'd rather have high resolution sprites. And can we talk about the music in Sword and Shield? It fucking blows.

 

[Sincere Sinner]

I hate the visual presentation of the most recent titles A LOT, but the lack of evolution in its core gameplay formula is what really boils my piss. I know that's a super obvious observation any half-assed Youtube video essayist could bring up but it really is that fucking stale; I literally cannot find a franchise that has changed less over as many titles if I tried. And even in the ways it DOES change, it never folds them into the core formula for the next game.

Why the fuck am I still sweeping everything in one hit? Rebalance statistics so that equivalent level pokes take 3-4 neutral hits from each other on average and maybe you might actually engage the fucking player and have them think (worked for the Stadium games btw). Shit dies too fast for any strategy to ever matter. Overleveling trivializing the game? Gen 5 kind of tried to fix this already! Aggressively rubberband the FUCK out of XP earned from lower level mons. I actually dont mind XP Share in concept, the problem is that we're literally earning 6x XP with an experience formula that hasn't changed since the games inception.

We got a lot of mons, and not a lot of ways to differentiate them. How about 2 abilities simultaneously? Why the fuck not? Moves! Why don't really powerful moves have an exclusivity premium? Imagine using a Pokemon and one of its main selling points is that it can learn Earthquake and basically nothing else learns Earthquake. Maybe a Pokemon is otherwise very cool but is actually pretty one-dimensional and limited in moves, or vice versa. Not every fucking Pokemon needs the expansive movepool or flawless type coverage of a Starmie.

Maybe you guys think these ideas suck, but my POINT is that nobody with a real passion for making the game better and developing its core gameplay appears to be working on the fucking game and I just think to myself "Christ, I could do better."

 

[SSF2T Old User]

How about 2 abilities simultaneously?

CY+GameFreak would find a way to fuck this up. These are the same people that gave Delibird "Vital Spirit" and "Insomnia".

 

[Nauseated Courgi]

Why the fuck am I still sweeping everything in one hit? Rebalance statistics so that equivalent level pokes take 3-4 neutral hits from each other on average and maybe you might actually engage the fucking player and have them think (worked for the Stadium games btw).

Why though? The game shouldn't alter our opponent's stats like that just to give the illusion of difficulty. That could lead into the game being unfair.

Instead of silently altering our opponents stats outside of what the pokemon is capable of obtaining, how about the levels and movesets of our opponents change depending on your team's strength?

We got a lot of mons, and not a lot of ways to differentiate them. How about 2 abilities simultaneously? Why the fuck not?

Mystery dungeon did this actually. It was pretty cool, but the base games definitely don't need that. It works for the mystery dungeon series because the elements and threats in that game are balanced around that.

Mainline, on the other hand, not so much. Do you really want to go on an online match and deal with a Clefable that has Unaware and Magic Guard or an Cinccino with Technician AND Skill link?

It could make some mons stronger, but it would also lead to some pretty busted ability combinations.

Moves! Why don't really powerful moves have an exclusivity premium? Imagine using a Pokemon and one of its main selling points is that it can learn Earthquake and basically nothing else learns Earthquake.

Nah. I think it would be better to have every mon have a "Signature move" that they learn at a high level (75-90 maybe). That way you can reward players for patiently training up their favorite mons while also giving them a little extra edge in combat.

Imagine using a Pokemon and one of its main selling points is that it can learn Earthquake and basically nothing else learns Earthquake. Maybe a Pokemon is otherwise very cool but is actually pretty one-dimensional and limited in moves, or vice versa. Not every fucking Pokemon needs the expansive movepool or flawless type coverage of a Starmie.

Why not? You get more use out of a mon with diverse movepool rather than a pokemon with small movepool that's particularly good at a certain strategy.

With a diverse movepool, you can create all kinds of strats. All the mons on your team don't need to be offensive. Some could be used for field setup, team recovery, enemy hinderance, etc.

Mons with small movepools tend to be dropped after a while due them being a one-trick-pony. Sure, they're really good at that one trick, but if I want it do more?

 

[Sincere Sinner]

Instead of silently altering our opponents stats outside of what the pokemon is capable of obtaining

???

I mean a fundamental rebalancing of stats for all the Pokemon, player and opponent alike.

Do you really want to go on an online match and deal with a Clefable that has Unaware and Magic Guard or an Cinccino with Technician AND Skill link?

That could happen if the developers use the design space of two abilities like retarded morons.

If you're clever you have low base stat shitmons offset by powerful abilities. You have powerful first abilities offset by STRICTLY NEGATIVE second abilities. Or you have two abilities that are kind of handy but perhaps a little niche.

I think it would be better to have every mon have a "Signature move" that they learn at a high level

Cool idea. The few pokes with unique or signature moves just have shit right now. Excluding legendary stuff like Sacred Fire, you got shit like Bonemerang, Triple Kick, or fucking Chatter.

Mons with small movepools tend to be dropped after a while due them being a one-trick-pony. Sure, they're really good at that one trick, but if I want it do more?

BINGO! You use a different pokemon! Thats the intended effect! Im trying to encourage the player to collect and experiment with the hundreds of fucking mons in the game and sometimes I gotta pull back the high BST monsters in with poor type coverage or something, or it crowds out those hundreds of mons.

Sometimes less is more.

 

[6MillionCoofs]

I'm list my problems with the base of SWSH

Bad music/Lack of music. Seriously the music is not great.
There is terrible map design. Too straight. Very little to do both outside of town. Areas feel so empty. They are unmemorable.
Dynamax and Raids seem really poorly thought out lore was. The Wild Area seems really disconnected from the rest of the Region.
The Sport League idea for a Pokémon League was criminally underused.
The plot seemed like an after thought and seemed to be wedged into the game really badly. There's really no sense of tension or importance to anything really.

Oh and why can't I fight the Queen?

Seriously, they make tea a literal Pokémon, give us a curry Dex and have and have London with a few ltters changed…and yet I don't get to fight the Queen?

Bollocks to it all.

 

[What the shit]

Bad music/Lack of music. Seriously the music is not great.

The only song I liked was the Gym leader music.

 

[Nauseated Courgi]

???

I mean a fundamental rebalancing of stats for all the Pokemon, player and opponent alike.

Oh, my bad.

That could happen if the developers use the design space of two abilities like retarded morons.

If you're clever you have low base stat shitmons offset by powerful abilities. You have powerful first abilities offset by STRICTLY NEGATIVE second abilities. Or you have two abilities that are kind of handy but perhaps a little niche.

Sounds like your looking a trait system rather than pokemon abilities. Could be cool and would potentially let those personality flavor text in the stat menu have a use.

BINGO! You use a different pokemon! Thats the intended effect! Im trying to encourage the player to collect and experiment with the hundreds of fucking mons in the game and sometimes I gotta pull back the high BST monsters in with poor type coverage or something, or it crowds out those hundreds of mons.

Sometimes less is more.

But wouldn't it be better to give every pokemon more utility rather than making every pokemon less useful?

What you're asking for is forcing a gameplay style that probably wouldn't go over well for the playerbase.

 

[Bixnood]

I was talking to my wife,
poor silly girl thinks that the new mons added in PLA will be in gen9.
but they are just going to do another dex cut and alot of pokemon from sun and moon didn't make it to sword and sheild. the ones added in PLA really could be PLA and pokemon home only.

God damn this serise has fallen off.

 

[Sincere Sinner]

What you're asking for is forcing a gameplay style that probably wouldn't go over well for the playerbase.

Ill concede its a risk for the playerbase. Any serious, fundamental change to the gameplay formula is.

But Id be willing to cut GF some slack for taking risks and actually trying! And Im not saying it has to be any of my ideas either. One of the worst things about modern Pokemon is that it manages to be so shit while being so fucking derivative. Its not even "they played it safe, but its good!".

But wouldn't it be better to give every pokemon more utility rather than making every pokemon less useful?

But then youre trying to correct for 8 generations of expanding movepools and feature creep.

Every Pokemon may be "less useful" in an absolute sense but in a relative sense, they have more identity, idiosyncracies, and reasons to be used relative to each other. You picked Arcanine because it had better stats? I picked Ninetales because it had Will-o-Wisp and Confuse Ray. See what I mean? The game benefits from having a spectrum of movepools and versatility, from Unown all the way to Smeargle.

 

[The Iconoclast]

I'm list my problems with the base of SWSH

Bad music/Lack of music. Seriously the music is not great.
There is terrible map design. Too straight. Very little to do both outside of town. Areas feel so empty. They are unmemorable.
Dynamax and Raids seem really poorly thought out lore was. The Wild Area seems really disconnected from the rest of the Region.
The Sport League idea for a Pokémon League was criminally underused.
The plot seemed like an after thought and seemed to be wedged into the game really badly. There's really no sense of tension or importance to anything really.

Oh and why can't I fight the Queen?

Seriously, they make tea a literal Pokémon, give us a curry Dex and have and have London with a few ltters changed…and yet I don't get to fight the Queen?

Bollocks to it all.

Only thing I really don't agree with was the music, I actually really liked it for the most part.

Aside from that, yes yes yes yes yes. Only town that I actually liked a fair bit was Motostoke, since IIRC it was a bigger town than it appeared, and I kind of enjoyed exploring it. There was also the water route just south of Circhester that actually felt like a normal pokemon route, with twists and turns and (I believe) several paths around, not just a simple straight path.

 

[CrippleThreat]

Oh and why can't I fight the Queen?

Or, why wasn't Magnolia modeled after the Queen?

It would have made a great scene for her to induct you into the Hall of Fame by knighting you.

 

[6MillionCoofs]

Only thing I really don't agree with was the music, I actually really liked it for the most part.

As I could not really remember any of the tracks I went back and listened to this OST. Can't put my finger on what it is just something feels not right. It might be that most of what the music goes with I feel is bad so I forget what is otherwise ok. Would explain why I remember Marnie and Hop's theme.

Or, why wasn't Magnolia modeled after the Queen?

It would have made a great scene for her to induct you into the Hall of Fame by knighting you.

Yes. Especially when the Legendaries are essentially protectors of the realm. Now I am am sad you did not have to get knighted to use the dogs and then get sent off to catch Eternatus.

 

[Rotollo 2]

but they are just going to do another dex cut and alot of pokemon from sun and moon didn't make it to sword and sheild. the ones added in PLA really could be PLA and pokemon home only.

I think they will be in gen 9 or at least it's DLC, not all mind you since some like alolan geodude got forgotten but most of them, what will really show the state of the franchise is if gen 9 is a 2022 or a 2023 release date

 

[Zeke Von Genbu]

But then youre trying to correct for 8 generations of expanding movepools and feature creep.

Every Pokemon may be "less useful" in an absolute sense but in a relative sense, they have more identity, idiosyncracies, and reasons to be used relative to each other. You picked Arcanine because it had better stats? I picked Ninetales because it had Will-o-Wisp and Confuse Ray. See what I mean? The game benefits from having a spectrum of movepools and versatility, from Unown all the way to Smeargle.

I think either way you slice it trying to correct 8 generations of changes is going to be a mess be it going backwards or forwards. Adding two abilities for example would massively complicate any sort of balance alongside stats, typing, or movepools.

I feel a large chunk of pokemon can with some tweaking (hidden abilities, improved stats for embarrassingly bad pokemon, an evolution that doesn't suck) or do have an identity, just the games' enemies are so basic bitch that you don't get to see any of it mattering or it is locked by post game. Using your Arcanine vs Ninetails, Arcanine is a phys. attacker with extremespeed while having Intimidate and Ninetails has Drought while being a special attacker. These are vastly different traits that do different things (phys vs special, Intimidate vs Drought).

But really, who cares if you use Intimidate properly or if you run a sun team in the average pokemon game experience? The AI kind of sucks, the movesets suck, the pokemon used also sort of suck (especially none E4 or Gym Leaders) so these traits don't matter. So without those factors mattering Ninetails and Arcanine can be boiled down to just single type fires that have flamethrower, instead of Intimidate pivot vs sun setter or having Extremespeed vs having Confuse Ray.

Hard rom hacks tend to fix this because they give random trainers some pretty baller movesets, threatening pokemon, and more then 3 pokemon is a constant. In a nuzlocke (especially without items) for example your run can just randomly end to some random sailor because he has Gyarados with Dragon Dance, you didn't one shot it, and now you're dead because Gyarados outspeeds everything in your team and it uses Waterfall to one shot kill you. You ever had to deal with Dragon Rage at say level 15? That shit is scary because it very nearly 1 shots all your mons due to the forced 40 damage and potions can't keep up with that damage.

You also have exp curves like with Gible who is a colossal pain in the ass to get to Garchomp in a timely fashion, so even if Garchomp is awesome Gible and to an extent Gabite are pretty whatever by comparison and you're using those two for most the game. Same with every psuedo legendary really, but these traits don't matter because most people just care about the endgame because the early game is almost always a joke unless you play with hard nuzlocke rules or something. Pokemon is a game with potential to be engaging as-is, but the game is far too soft ball and afraid to challenge literally anyone that it doesn't matter which is why nuzlockes are a thing.