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A video by GameXplain says he may be the Shauna of this game while the protagonist you don't pick will be the true rival just like Calem/Serena in X/Y. They also speculate that the male protagonist may have the default name Shohei which is the name of the boy in the Japanese trailer while the rival may be named Hoku which is the name of the boy that Shohei befriends in the trailer.
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They seem more likely to be a bit of a generic nice-guy kind of faux-rival, as have been used commonly in recent games. They are likely to be one of multiple rivals, as you say, due to the choice. This might lead to something quite similar to recent games when it comes to the 'rivalry' section, which wouldn't really be worth noting.
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Imma guess, it would be another rival. Fuck you Barry.
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If he's chose the starter that is weak to yours, I wonder who picked the remaining starter? Surely we'll also have a rival that has the advantage over us, either that or GF are just making the games even easier.
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I am skeptical of this. I honestly just don't think that he is your rival. Firstly, from what we have seen he picks the starter that is weakest against yours (Ex; You pick Litten, he picks Rowlet) which makes me think he is just a friend character and the battle against him in the trailer is just for fun.
Second, lets not forget that there are THREE starters. If he picks the starter that is weakest against yours, then perhaps someone else picks the starter that is strongest? I firmly believe that whoever claims the third starter, the one that is strongest against yours will be the true rival. Hoping to see some bad blood rivalry this generation like back in Red and Green. P.S.-- What are the chances that the kid in OP's picture is Hoku? He looks somewhat like the Hawaiian boy from the Japanese trailer and they are dressed pretty much exactly the same. |
His design is cool.
I'm disappointed though because he seems too casual. Like we need another rival that beats you to the champion spot. Hardened. Tough opponent. Like not sure about you guys but I'm not afraid of this guy at a glance. |
This guy seems like a friendly person. But they could add a second rival, who's more like Gary, Silver, Barry, or Hugh. He could pick the starter that's strong against yours.
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As I said, I am really hoping that the opposite gender of what we choose is the 2nd rival. I would be disappointed not to see the female at all if I start as a guy, because she just has the better design in my opinion.
But how do we have proof that he choices the one weaker to your choice? Have I missed something in one of the trailers? |
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Here it is again: http://www.serebii.net/sunmoonpokenchi.jpg The player has Litten and the maybe-rival has Rowlet. |
Ah ok thanks. I saw the photo, but I didn't even pay attention to it. That gives me hope that there is indeed a 2nd rival. I don't see them giving him the weaker one if he is the main rival. That just isn't something they do I don't think.
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Personally, I'd be fine if they did away with the 1 main rival and 1 weak rival dynamic and simply make them both strong and worth fighting.
There are plenty of plot points they could use for it: 1 rival who helps against the bad guys and the other is doing the Pokemon League challenge; 1 Pokemon League rival and a Pokedex rival; 1 rival who simply wants to get stronger for a personal reason and the other is more story involved; a traditional rival and the other with a team centered on a battle gimmick (Mega Evolution, for instance). |
Seeing as Hoku (this is his name right?) is the "friend" rival, I'd like to see a really rival-rival, like the opposite gender you chose, it's seriously that easy. I mean you're both in the ceremonial stage, and your journy is together, you fight and evolve...basically somehwat like Serena's seriousness
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If that guy is the rival then I hope we get a competitive kind of rival. We've had enough friendly ravals tbh, we need a change.
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I think you should have one rival at the beginning then you meet another 2 rivals at the professor's lab. The characteristics I'm not so sure about.
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I want only 1 rival. I like how in BW, they were more your friends but the posed no real challenge. In XY I like how you had to catch Pokémon to beat one of your rivals but there was no real challenge. It was just a nuisance. Even if you beat him or if you lost he was not a real challenge. In all the other games you had to actually beat the rival to advance in the game. It was annoying if your pokemon weren't ready but it still did not take very long to beat him. I do like how in ORAS you could go back to the routes to face other trainers which would train your pokemon. The only problem was that the only way to go back to the first routes without going through pokemon most likely weaker than you was fly (which was you got at the 6th gym) or use the eon flute (which you get right before you get access to the gym). If they had one rival I would be happy. One harder than May, but not one that got on your nerves like Barry. I want the rival to be hard like Hugh or Blue. I want you to actually have to grind in the different routes. That is what I would want in a rival
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Friend/Rival Name Speculation
This may be reaching a bit, but I have strong evidence to suggest that the hawaiian (or Alolan) boy who is to be your friend and/or rival in Pokemon Sun and Moon is named "Hoku". This stems from the Japanese live action trailer in which the center character, Shohei, bore a striking resemblance to the new game's male protagonist.
"Hoku" In-Game (Enhanced) http://s32.postimg.org/mov2pxplh/Hoku.png He shares the same backpack http://s32.postimg.org/zd0luxtjp/Hoku2.png And the necklace he wears is the same shape as the decoration on the in-game character's shirt http://s32.postimg.org/3liungsid/Hoku3.png I know this is nothing huge, but it is at least enough evidence to justify a discussion on the matter. I realise that certain things could change in the nearly 6 months to the release but I firmly believe that this is the case and that thw character's name in Pokemon Sun and Moon IS and WILL BE "Hoku". |
Hoku is probably the name to be honest. It also just seems to match him. I am not 100% sure what the females name would be or our name.
As for the Manga names, I am thinking Orange, Purple, and possibly Brown, looking at the covers which are both orange or purple. I same brown because I do not know of another name currently that would match a third person. And brown matches Orange and Purple better than other unused names. Like I have said before, nothing in Live Action pokemon trailers is accidental. They plan well. Edit: Hoku is actually on of the supposed gym leader names. However, it could be his father or something. |
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I completely think that live-action!Hoku was meant to symbolize the rival, who will be named Hoku, but the necklace/shirt comparison really seems to be reaching.
That said, have we had a rival whose parent was a Gym Leader or Elite 4? That could turn out to be an interesting plot point especially if the same rival is also taking on the Pokémon League. Maybe that's why Hoku takes to the newly-moved player, his family is a part of the Alola Pokémon League so he decides to act as your welcome wagon. |
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There was also a Caitlin, which we already have an E4 member for. I am not exactly sure why they would name a gym leader that when we already have a member. Unless she reverted back a gym leader because she want to teach beginner trainers. If you are wondering about the 9th, there is one to the far left in the corner that can hardly be seen. Which could associate the player. |
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If the names are an easer egg at all, then the other names are likely the names of the other friends who will join the player on their journey across Alola's many islands. Yes, I am making assumptions, but I am making assumptions based on the more likely scenario. There is little to no evidence tying those names to Gym Leaders, but there is spoken proof connecting the hawaiian boy to the name Hoku. |
I'm not sure if anyone has noticed this yet, and it really bugs me.
Your rival in this game chooses the starter that is weak to yours. I wish gamefreak would treat us like we weren't complete idiots when it comes to video games, and give us a proper challenge. |
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We had Bianca as a Rival kind of.
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Maybe this has been brought up but what if your rival was your sister/brother? That would, at least for myself, make the rivalry that much more heated. Idk just an idea. I agree with everyone for the most part that we need an actual rival, not a peer or a friend or a fucking gang (even though an actual gang would be pretty tight but not how it was in X and Y that was lame af). |
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Bianca and Shauna have so far been the only female rivals outside of the opposite gender protagonists, but they didn't have the same spirit of a rival so you can see why people didn't enjoy them, but Bianca at least had notably good character development. |
My only real input into this speculation is that I think Hoku is already very charming and cute! Can't wait to see his artwork, and find out more about him. Here's hoping our friendship with him in the game is as thought out and detailed as say, with Bianca and Cheren. Hopefully he has a sizable input into the story, perhaps teaming up with our protagonist to a greater extent than the Kalos rivals, as an example.
I can 100% see Hoku training a Ludicolo or a Golduck! |
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As for Hoku, I think he's an Alola native and he wants to be friends with you when he realizes you're not native to the region. |
I would like the Silver kind of rival, who would be too bratty and impolite. His words always pumps me up to do my best.
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What if we had another rival who started off with a pokemon that isn't one of the starters, like how Wally started off with Ralts?
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One thing I've noticed replaying Yellow is Blue isn't as terrible as I remember.
I'm at Rock Tunnel so I still have a few battles with him left so my opinion may change as I encounter him again, but he isn't as mean as I remember. He's got an attitude and a bit of a complex, yeah, and he's no Barry/Wally/Calem/Serena, but he still gives the player a few tips (seeing Bill, talking to the captain of S.S. Anne) and isn't trying to beat the player just for the sake of being better (though that is definitely the core of it) but also to see how you've progressed compared to him. With that and how Silver turns around at the end, all rivals have had a redeemable quality. I do want that level of meanness back, but I kind of want a nonredeemable rival. I doubt GameFreak would ever go down that path as their games are so kid-friendly so it's usually the Evil Team that ends up nonredeemable. |
Both Wally and May/Brendan had great character progression in ORAS particularly. It really felt like they were rivals right until the end yknow? They showed up several times, they helped you out and gave you items when needed. Compare that to X/Y and it's kinda like a whole different story. In those games the abundance of rivals just ruined it for me, having too many at once didn't really give any of them a chance to shine or show true character progression. Shauna stood out a little, but having an extra 3 showing up randomly just threw it off. I think that's why I prefer only having one or two rivals similarly to ORAS or BW.
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And let's not forget the terrible Rival Gauntlet at the bridge.
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It also taught me that too many rivals is not the best thing for Pokemon. I'm hoping for something like Hoenn or BW Unova where we had two rivals which I think was a perfect balance. |
The way he said "that gave me chicken skin" just wierds me out. I think I may end up hating him :p
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I know lots of people are tired of getting multiple rivals each time, but I'm really hoping that Hau getting the starter weak to yours means someone else gets the one you're weak to. Because if not, what's the purpose of that? All it would be doing is making the game easier than it already is...
Also what is up with that translation? Is "chicken skin" actually a saying? Why not just go with goosebumps? Besides that, though, Hau is totally cute. He's truthfully the character helping me stay positive about SM. I genuinely hope he isn't as annoying as the XY Brigade or Brendan........... (knocks on wood) |
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N didn't like battles at all, even more so than Lillie. Yet he still battled. One of the translations say "I... I am not good with battles when pokemon get hurt. But I will cheer for you." This could mean that she will still battle the hero because she trusts them. And if she is working for the evil team, which I am honestly doubting, at least not directly, she will probably have to battle eventually. Not giving her a starter is just a bad move. And giving Hau the weak starter, I don't think effects difficulty at all. Before we battle a rival for a second time, we will usually be able to catch a pokemon that is stronger than the other starters. People are also looking at early early game play. We will probably circle the island before we even go to the next island, and by then, anything could happen. We could encounter another rival. We could have another rival like N who will battle us. |
Maybe once we learn more on Lillie, we could try and see how it'll play out.
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