Generation with best graphics

[The Silver Fox]

Which pokemon generation had the best looking graphics/tilesets for you?

For me gen 4 was the best especially the HGSS versions.

 

[janejane6178]

gen 6 and gen 4

 

[Ogu]

I really like how Leafgreen and Firered improved on Kanto

 

[Flowerchild]

gen 3 doesn't look amazing on its own imo but some hacks/fangames have managed to make it look absolutely incredible with just some tweaks and custom palettes.
and exact opposite for gen 5. it looks awesome in game, but nearly all attempts to use that style for fan works turn out awful haha.

 

[Ogu]

I can only agree to that. I love playing rom hacks of 3rd Gen Games especially FireRed/LeafGreen ones. I would love to do one of my own. I even have 151 Pokemon for the region sorted out already but it's so time consuming and really not easy to do. But it is fun nonetheless. If only I could design my own Mega Evo Sprites...
I would love to be able to make my own Megas. Who wouldn't love to see Mega Golduck with added Psychic Type or Mega Luxray with added Dark Type

 

[Nah]

Gen 5 graphics would look fantastic if it wasn't so pixelated half the time. I liked the graphics for the cutscenes in XY and Gen 7 tho.

I'm curious to see what Gen 8/Pokemon Switch will look like though. Think about it--Pokemon's gonna be on a much more powerful system than the 3DS/a handheld, there's a lot of room for graphical improvement I would think. Especially considering that the 3DS seemed like it could barely handle Gen 7.

 

[VisionofMilotic]

I think gen 6 is just total eyecandy. Walking into Parfum Palace in XY still takes my breath away. The trainers were ridiculously beautiful, just look at how well Valerie is designed or even Diantha with her Audrey Hepburn inspiration. The pokemon look sweet enough to eat, from Florges to Auroras to Xerneas. In my humble opinion there is not one really bad design. It is just a walking art show. There is extraordinary detail when you play with you pokemon in Poke Amie or when they mega evolve or you watch the cut scene. From an visual standpoint these games are magic, I think they are so underrated.

I do like gen 4 graphics though too, especially HGSS when you could see your Pokemon following you. The games look adorable and I love how they overhauled the gyms, making Morty's gym more like a haunted house or Bugsy's a ride through the insect hive. I think the introduction of the 3d mix was really fun but did not in my opinion stray far from the peaceful world Johto is meant to be.

 

[Zeostar]

Gen 6 and 7 are my favorite, the 3D makes everything feel more lively.

 

[icycatelf]

This may just be nostalgia talking, but I'm still a huge fan of Gen. II graphics. They feel more mature to me, less cartoony than later generations (especially the player backsprites). I honestly wouldn't complain if they started making the games with these kind of graphics again, but I know there are plenty of others who would think otherwise.

HGSS were also great (I especially love the Ecruteak/Bell Tower area), but I'm kind of disappointed that they didn't add a "Nostalgia Goggles" item in addition to GB Sounds, enabling you to play the game with Gen. II graphics with devamp sprites of Gen. III-IV Pokémon. What disappointed me most about these games, however, was the lack of room customization. I want my N64 and Big Lapras Doll. :(

 

[Flowerchild]

gen 6's world graphics are nice but the bobblehead people just take me out of it instantly lmao

 

[Mawa]

I would say Gen 2, but it is because I prefer 2D games to 3Ds.

 

[Gigadweeb]

I'm going to say Gen II is my favourite visuals-wise. A lot of the battle sprites are dynamic, feel imposing, and all around just look great for the GBC area.

Gen III could've looked a lot better if it weren't so washed out, especially in battles.

 

[BlazingCobaltX]

No one mentioning Gen V? That was peak DS performance. Gen IV is also very charming.

 

[LyokoGirl5000]

Definitely Gen II graphics. I like the retro style with actual color instead of the added color in Red and Blue. I also like Gen III a lot, except Fire Red and Leaf Green.

 

[Damien.aspiring.fandev]

WALL OF TEXT LAUNCHED!

Spoiler:

Fellow players, it's not about the generations but, rather, about the titles :
in fact the term generation alludes to a period, and said period includes
also a few side-games.
The 6th and 7th gen core games as well as the 3D mystery dungeon games sure do,
seem to have rather pretty graphics, at least from what I see in the pictures and videograms.
Of course, seeing them directly on a 3DS or an emulator would be all an other story...
maybe one day I should consider getting a 3DS and copies of those games, so 'sis and I can
play in tandem... oh, someone mentioned Parfum palace...

Seriously, baroque? Man, I've been living under a rock... and I'd really enjoy if
I could make my secret base look like that :tongue-poke:.
Sadly however 3D graphics might not be the main interest of a rom-hacker or fan-dev,
unless you have in-depth knowledge of 3D modeling... well, I suppose you can still make sprites
based off some in-game props. If you enjoyied the 3D graphics thus far, you might be curious
to try out Colosseum and XD:Gale of Darkness : a fully 3D adventure before the core games
made it cool (or Gates to Infinity for that matter... too bad most fans didn't receive the game too well...). It's too bad Orre doesn't have much greenery.

The 5th gen core games have the most detailed overworld sprites of any core title, and the
official sets come along with finely sprited pokémon overworlds up to the 5th gen, thus
I tend to consider a core gen5 style a go-to for the making of rom-hacks and fan-games.
The problem, again, would be the fact since the arrival of D&P the surroundings(buildings,
vegetation, overall props) are fully 3D modeled... but again, loads of people have made
various different sprite adaptations of those. Things are getting more tricky if you don't
wish to use stuff that already appeared in-game and make your own buildings, vegetation & props.
If you're a fussy about details you might also bother about the overworld characters' very
shapes, which might be overwhielming unless you're an experienced spriter.
If that is the case, you might wish to go for gen4 core instead, since the overworlds are
easier to handle.

Now, about the Mystery Dungeon sprited graphics... both the Rescue and Exploration games
feature rather nice looking locations which sadly you won't frequent much since most of the
time you'll be roaming through rather monotonous looking dungeons. Still, the fairly detailed
areas, dungeon tiles and the smooth, simple pokémon overworlds with black silhouettes
are an experience you ought try out if you haven't already. I think I prefer the looks of the
Exploration games over the Rescue games, since areas and tiles look more saturation-filled,
whereas in the Rescue games they look rather washed-out, this might also be due palette
technical limitations(they were released on GBA and NDS respectively, remember?), which
also explains why the Wigglytuff selling "friend areas" has black eyes in his portrait.
Despite the MD world is a world/dimension/plan of reality/continuity on its own, you still
may find something handy if you're a rom-hacker/fan-dev.

Dulcis in fundo, my fave sprited graphics thus far...
Lo and behold... *effect pause*
Fitting OST out of nowhere

Spoiler:

It's the RANGER side-games!VIA ALLA CATTURA!
Communication error : the wild Damien got over-exhalted
and is now jumping across the living room. Forgive us
for the inconvenience, we'll be back as soon as possible.
Uh... what was that about? Ah yes, the graphics!
Search pictures and videograms, and you'll get the idea...
The original title, implied to happen sometime after the events of Emerald, and released
right before the arrival of D&P, features areas quite finely sprited that apparently were blurred
on purpose in order to give a more "natural" feel (Safra sea, you're an exception : your bicolor
waters look way too funny for a DS game...) and the overworld sprites can easily compete with
core gen 4 and 5 overworld sprites (oh, and don't feature the bobbleheads).
No, Ranger games don't take place in a universe where pokéballs don't exist, a few npcs will
mention trainers oversea, battles and pokéballs. A mother of Ringtown who once aspired to
become trainer also clearly names Kanto and Johto. Not enough proof? Well, the first game has
unused sprites for the Ranger trainer class, May, Red, Leaf, Brock, Misty, Prof. Oak and Birch,
Lance, Steven Stone and even Todd-forsaken-Snap.
In the sequel the developers decided not to blur and thus Shadows of Almia has rather
sharper looks that are easier to edit. An other change were the overworld sprites, which were
enhanced a bit. Then the last title, Guardian Signs... hands down, my fellows, we might have
the best sprited graphics of the franchise right here... here's some screenies...

Spoiler:

Sophian island's Aqua Resort (not sure if settlement or just hotel... well, Oblivia is less inhabited than the Sevii islands, so I guess it doesn't matter much...)

Renbow island's lapras beach

Sophian island's Oblivia ruins

Daybreak ruins

Formations inside Mount Layuda

Murph on the turf

The stand in the middle of Kokona village, Renbow island

Sprites from the Ranger games could undoubtedly be used in hacks and fan-games,
the issue is that the side-series has pokémon sprites from the first 4 gens only (and not all
of them anyway), plus said sprites are always facing diagonal directions...
Still, take into consideration those sidegames, be it through DS card, emulator, WiiU virtual console
or videograms : the Fiorese, the Almian peninsula and the Oblivian archipelago don't have much,
but that few is certainly whileworthy, and not just because of the looks...
You'll be capturing pokémon with your feelings, rock-climbing, soaring in the sky before
it was core-game, jumping from ledges that are over 3 meters high and more!

If you're going to actually play them, I'd recommend doing so in the chronological release order.

Join the ranks of the Ranger Union and, together, we shall safeguard society and nature!
Always there to lend a helping hand. Rangers, unite!

 

[Sheep]

Gen II for me also. There was something so charming and visually appealing in the tiles and sprites that even now I love looking at them and playing. DPPt were also breakthroughs with graphics when you compare them to their third generation predecessor games. Love all the Pokémon games, but these two did and still do stand out to me!

3D is okay, but didn't grab me as much as these games did. Especially since the 3DS doesn't handle Pokémon 3D very well with FPS drops and such.

 

[moon]

Yea definitely Gen 2. I always loved and still love that style of graphics, relatively simple pixel style but with quite a lot of detail. Note, I mean the battle sprites more than the overworld areas here, as there could certainly have been much more done with them even with the technology of the time than Gamefreak chose to.

 

[LadyJirachu]

Gen 6 cuz kalos is just sooooo cute imo. :3

Not just cuz Korrina's from it either. The whole french theme to the region is just cute to me. Also, the graphics for gen 6 in general seemed more brightly colored to me. I liked that :)

I'd say gen 2 johto is my second favorite. I remember my old crystal pretty fondly, also a lot of pastel tones =)

 

[Fabbix96]

3rd gen games, but the nintendo ds and 3ds pokemon games are too much pixellated for the type of graphic that wants reach... yokai watch have a good graphic, but i don't like that game, I only hope that the gamefreek can recreate this type of graphic on future pokemon games...

 

[colours]

Gen 7. Yeah, I'm in the minority and no, I don't really care.

While everyone grew up oodling ever their Gen 2 and Gen 3 pixels, I spent more of my time playing things like Pokemon Stadium and Pokemon Colosseum, and these games got me super hooked on the idea of 3D Pokemon fighting each other in action-filled battles that felt more... real compared to just being crammed in a GBA or SP or whatever. Don't get me wrong, I've loved the main series games during that time, but there's a charm in 3D Pokemon that sprites just can't match to me. I suppose a part of me just loves realism when it comes to executing moves, I guess. If a Pokemon uses hyper beam, I want to see how actually destructive that hyper beam is. It's things like this that mattered to me a lot.

And that's why the more 3D games will be my favourite (except for ORAS, the graphics in that generation is massively questionable). When Gen 7 was a thing, it blew my mind how amazing everything looked. Yeah, I get it, the modeling isn't perfect and neither are the colouring (hello my name is pastel, of course that stuff mattered to me), but in the grand scheme of being a Pokemon game, this was about as close to living a childhood dream as I can get of Pokemon being real. Every move felt fluid to me as you gave your Pokemon commands instead of seeing a static sprite all the time.

So there's that.