Gotta Play 'em All! [A journey through all 35 main series games]

DAY 74 [08/03/2022] ー POKEMON LEAF GREEN
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DAY 75 [09/03/2022] ー POKEMON DIAMOND
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DAY 76 [10/03/2022] ー POKEMON HEARTGOLD
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DAY 77 [11/03/2022] ー POKEMON BLACK
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I recently decided to return to the "start" and play through the games. I decided to take a different approach as in not race to the end, I have been enjoying taking time to talk to all NPCs, catching pokemon in each area as I move through the game. My planned route of the games is:

Leaf Green (on last gym, currently saved beside Moltres as 60 Ultra balls wasnt enough last night)

Heart Gold

Emerald

Brilliant Diamond / Something Pearl

White

White 2

X

Ultra Moon

Sword



I chose these games (which are being played via legit original copies) as they all sync to Home (eventually) so I can keep any mons I like for future. I also chose Emerald over OSAR as I never played the original Gen 3, I fell away from Pokemon during Gen 3 and returned in Gen 6. So I am looking forward to my first play through of Gens 3-5.

So far my Leaf green journey has been great fun, im 23 hours in! Have 2/3 Leg Birds and have to say my game MVP has to be Pikachu/Raichu, the amount of water/bird trainers is unreal! My team currently consists of:

Raichu

Starmie

Butterfree (getting dumped soon)

Charizard

Primeape

Gyarados

Any tips or hints of fun side quests in future games is much appreciated!

I am glad I have managed to shake of my MMO min/max mentality on this play through.
 
DAY 78 [12/03/2022] ー POKEMON WHITE 2
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DAY 79 [13/03/2022] ー POKEMON X
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DAY 80 [14/03/2022] ー POKEMON ALPHA SAPPHIRE
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DAY 81 [15/03/2022] ー POKEMON SUN
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DAY 82 [16/03/2022] ー POKEMON ULTRA MOON
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DAY 83 [17/03/2022] ー POKEMON LET'S GO PIKACHU
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Surprise, surprise ー This challenge is not dead!

I got a full-time job and can no longer afford to stick to my original schedule. However, I have been playing whenever I can and decided to just focus on one game at a time now that I'm decently far into all games. The first one I finished is Pokemon Red with the following team:

[PokeCommunity.com] Gotta Play 'em All! [A journey through all 35 main series games]


Arrabiata the Charizard
Lv. 55

HP: 172
Attack: 133
Defense: 118
Special: 137
Speed: 145

- Swords Dance
- Earthquake
- Strength
- Flamethrower

Thoughts: Charizard is very...underwhelming. It struggles against the early game gym leaders, then by the time it could get better, its only STAB move is Ember with its pitiful 40 base power. Even after evolving into Charizard, its damage output was lacking compared to my other team members. It does get Flamethrower eventually but at that point, there are very few battles to use it in. The final part of the game consists of a bunch of water routes, a Fire and a Ground gym leader and the E4 with an Ice type trainer whose Pokemon are almost exclusively Water type as well. ^^;; I only sent out Charizard into battle once during my whole E4 run and it got frozen by Jynx' Ice Punch upon switch-in, remained frozen and then fainted to a critical hit on the next turn. So yeah, Charizard gets a 4/10 from me.

Alfredo the Raichu
Lv. 56

HP: 153
Attack: 143
Defense: 97
Special: 138
Speed: 142

- Thunderbolt
- Swift
- Quick Attack
- Thunder Wave

Thoughts: Even though Raichu is technically outclassed by Jolteon, I still enjoyed using it. Pikachu is quite frail but Raichu could take hits decently well and was a huge help against Misty's gym as well as all of the water type trainers during the latter part of the game. It performed quite well in the E4 as well, pretty much soloing Lorelei's team and taking care of my rival's Pidgeot and Blastoise as well. There isn't much Raichu can do against Ground types with its lackluster coverage, but I had other team members to take those on, so it didn't pose much of an issue. A solid 7/10

Carbonara the Arbok
Lv. 55

HP: 156
Attack: 127
Defense: 105
Special: 106
Speed: 128

- Acid
- Body Slam
- Rock Slide
- Dig

Thoughts: Arbok was the underdog pick of my team but it definitely performed! Wrap strats are fun to abuse early on and poison/rock/ground/normal is decent coverage for most of the trainers and boss fights in the game. Carbonara took on Lt. Surge, resists Erika's grass type moves and also did well against Koga since Poison types aren't affected by Toxic. During my E4 run, it took out most of Agatha's team but then confusion hax screwed us over as her final Gengar managed to take it out. Overall, I really enjoyed using Arbok and I would definitely recommend him! In Gen I, you have Wrap and 100 BP Dig to benefit from, but in later generations there's the elemental fangs and Crunch as good coverage options too. 8/10.

Bolognese the Dodrio
Lv. 55

HP: 149
Attack: 150
Defense: 102
Special: 96
Speed: 132

- Drill Peck
- Agility
- Tri Attack
- Fly

Thoughts: Dodrio is solid all around and definitely the best bird to use in Kanto. While not as bulky as Pidgeot, it hits so much harder and gets great STAB moves in Drill Peck and Tri Attack. Not much coverage aside from that but since there's no Steel typing in the game, a high BP Normal type moves goes a long way. Fly is a little stronger than Drill Peck but can miss so I mostly just used it as an HM to take me from one place to another. I don't think I clicked Agility once but hey, I needed something as a 4th move. While Dodrio did not do much during my E4 run, it could take on most of Bruno's team and does well against Agatha as well because of how frail her Ghost types are. I also used Bolognese in Erika's and Sabrina's gym. A fast, hard-hitting physical attacker is the best Alakazam counter in the game after all. Another 8/10.

Vongole the Cloyster
Lv. 56

HP: 148
Attack: 146
Defense: 235
Special: 122
Speed: 120

- Surf
- Swift
- Ice Beam
- Withdraw

Thoughts: Water and Ice are such a great STAB combination, there is no way Cloyster could be bad. Since I could evolve it upon catching a Shellder and immediately teach it both Surf and Ice Beam, I could start using him right away as well. (Granted, the grind was a big pain in the ass.) Any Water type with Surf pretty much wrecks the final two gyms in Kanto so having Vongole was a great help there. Ice Beam is also a foolproof way to easily get through Lance so that was definitely helpful as well. The only downside to Cloyster is that its physical attack is actually much better than its Special, but there's no physical Water or Ice moves in Gen I. Other than that, a very solid Pokemon which deserves a 7/10.

Spinaci the Exeggutor
Lv. 56

HP: 193
Attack: 147
Defense: 133
Special: 177
Speed: 94

- Psychic
- Stomp
- Reflect
- Mega Drain

Thoughts: Exeggutor is probably the MVP of the run with its massive special stat and STAB Psychic to abuse it. Psychic types are always busted in Gen I and while Exeggutor is not a speedy boy by any means, I could still outspeed most in-game opponents and absolutely wreck them. It helped out against Koga despite being weak to Psychic and also solo'ed Bruno team in the E4. Not to mention the massacre it could cause on the water routes surrounding Cinnabar Island. Spinaci unfortunately fell at the very end when my rival power-predicted my switch and went for Blizzard instead of a Water type move even though I had my Charizard out. I enjoyed using it as a team member a lot though, which is why I'm giving Exeggutor an 8.5/10.

General impressions: The Generation I games are so straightforward, there isn't much you can stay about them in terms of gameplay or plot. They are buggy for sure, yet I always find myself enjoying these games whenever I play them. There's just something endearing about the simplicity. Sure feels nice knowing you can just play the game and not fear a 5-minute cutscene popping up every time you enter a new town or city. My biggest issue with these games are the movesets of the Pokemon. A big chunk of the Pokedex is borderline unusuable because they learn ZERO good/stab moves. Sure, there's TMs but they're single use so you have to really plan out your team to make sure that you don't need the same TM twice to make a Pokemon viable. Grinding can also be rather tedious in these games, especially with the huge jump in levels between Erika and Koga/Sabrina. Not to mention this is when a lot of new areas open up (fishing/safari zone/...), but the wild Pokemon in them are only around lv. 15-20 which means you need to do a lot of training to get them caught up with the rest of your team.

Overall, I would give my Pokemon Red run a 7/10. I had fun and I got to use some Pokemon I've never used before, but there was definitely some frustration along the way as well.
 
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Another update already? You bet! I decided to try the Red battle on Pokemon Silver today even though my team was only lv. 65 and I actually beat him first try, so I didn't have to bother putting in extra hours just to grind.

[PokeCommunity.com] Gotta Play 'em All! [A journey through all 35 main series games]


Peppermint the Feraligatr ♂
Lv. 65

HP: 227
Attack: 184
Defense: 164
Special Attack: 149
Special Defense: 155
Speed: 145

- Earthquake
- Surf
- Bite
- Ice Punch

Thoughts: While the Totodile line might not be my favorite Gen II starter, it is definitely the best. Good offensive and defensive stats combined with decent speed and a very diverse movepool which can handle most opponents in the game. Sure, it does suffer a bit from the lack of a physical/special split but STAB Surf is still plenty powerful. You can basically take on the entire Indigo League with just Feraligatr if you have the right moves on him. Honestly, there was not a single point in my playthrough where I felt like my starter was lacking behind and the final evolution at lv. 30 is pretty sweet too. For those reasons, I give Feraligatr a 9/10.

Camomille the Ampharos ♀
Lv. 65

HP: 214
Attack: 129
Defense: 127
Special Attack: 195
Special Defense: 162
Speed: 117

- Thunder Punch
- Iron Tail
- Fire Punch
- Thunder Wave

Thoughts: Ampharos is another staple on any Johto team and for a good reason. Mareep and Flaaffy are very useful early on against Falkner's Flying types and Bugsy's Scyther. Flaaffy's bulk also helped me against Whitney's Miltank. Even later on, Ampharos is still good against Chuck's Poliwrath and can help out in the E4 as well by taking on Will's entire team with the dual elemental punches, as well as Lance's Gyarados. Its movepool is a bit lacking with no good options for ground types, but I had plenty of other team members who could handle those. Also Ampharos is just adorable. How could you not love it? A solid 8/10.

Matcha the Bellossom ♀
Lv. 65

HP: 196
Attack: 142
Defense: 152
Special Attack: 153
Special Defense: 166
Speed: 95

- Razor Leaf
- Toxic
- Cut
- Acid

Thoughts: Oh boy, the loopholes I had to jump through to get an Oddish with Razor Leaf. I do think it was worth it in the end because I wasn't going to wait until Erika to get a better STAB Grass type move than absorb. The high critical hit ratio on Razor Leaf definitely came in clutch a couple of times as well. On top of that, I was surprised by Bellossom's bulk. She could take quite a few hits and just slowly chip away at the opponent. In terms of offense, she definitely wasn't the strongest team member, but I also didn't struggle using her. I believe Gloom was actually the Pokemon I used to take out Whitney's Miltank because of its nice bulk. Unfortunately, Grass types don't do too well in the Johto league so Matcha didn't really get to shine there aside from taking out Bruno's Onix and Karen's Umbreon. I will give her a well-deserved 7/10.

Chai the Venomoth ♂
Lv. 65

HP: 192
Attack: 129
Defense: 122
Special Attack: 146
Special Defense: 126
Speed: 157

- Gust
- Psychic
- Giga Drain
- Sludge Bomb

Thoughts: Just like Bellossom, Venomoth is not the strongest Pokemon but it does have one thing going for it: coverage. Psychic, Giga Drain and Sludge Bomb are all very powerful moves and even though the latter is physical by default in these games, it still hit pretty hard being a STAB move. I did have Leech Life on my Venomoth during the earlier parts of the game but honestly, it did pretty pathetic damage even to Psychic and Dark types so I ended up taking it off his moveset. Venomoth was mainly useful against all of the Rocket Grunts and their Poison types, as well as against Jasmine and Koga. Bruno's fighting types were no match for Psychic either, but I did have other options for Bruno as well. Being just slightly better than Bellossom due to the coverage, I'll give Venomoth a 7.5/10.

Oolong the Magmar ♂
Lv. 65

HP: 188
Attack: 162
Defense: 119
Special Attack: 168
Special Defense: 148
Speed: 151

- Thunder Punch
- Flamethrower
- Rock Smash
- Strength

Thoughts: Magmar is one of those Pokemon which I tend to forget exist because for some reason, Blaine doesn't use one in RBY. I have to say, I was surprised by its power. Flamethrower hits like a truck and with Thunder Punch being special in this gen, it's a great coverage move to take out any slower Water type. While Magmar never quite stole the show, it was always decent and performed consistently throughout the whole run. Therefore, he also gets a 8/10.

Earl Grey the Lugia
Lv. 65

HP: 234
Attack: 161
Defense: 208
Special Attack: 155
Special Defense: 238
Speed: 179

- Psychic
- Fly
- Shadow Ball
- Waterfall

Thoughts: This is probably a controversial pick because using legendaries in a regular playthrough is pretty 'cheap'. Usually I don't care for legendaries because their designs don't appeal to me, but Lugia is an exception. Not only does it look extremely majestic, but I also loved the Pokemon 2000 movie as a kid and still listen to Lugia's Song on repeat at times. I used a very diversed moveset on mine for this run and just like Feraligatr, you can pretty much run through the entire E4 with just Lugia. (Don't worry, I didn't actually do that because I wanted my other Pokemon to shine too). While I don't see myself using legendaries for every playthrough, I don't regret spending all those hours trying to catch this thing. 9/10.

General impressions: The Generation II games are a VAST improvement over RBY in pretty much every aspect. I really like the bright colors and how everything looks so vibrant after playing a Gen I game. While the movesets are nowhere near perfect, they've also gotten a lot better. No longer do late game opponents use Growl and Leer. ^^;; Another thing I really like about these games are the sprites! There's some amazing poses and artwork considering these were released in the late 90s. Honestly, these Pokemon look much more alive than the 3D models, even if they don't move.

My biggest fear with playing GSC was the level cap and the immense amount of grinding. However, for some reason I felt like I had to grind less in these games than I did in my Red run? During the mid-game, I mainly used the sea around the Whirl Islands to grind since both Mantine and Tentacruel are fairly common and yield a bunch of EXP. During the later parts of the game, I used the route south of Blackthorn City and Victory Road. Then once I beat the E4 once, I just continued to re-challenge them to train my Pokemon.

Johto isn't perfect and Kanto does feel much more empty in these games (it's just battling trainers and gym leaders) than it does in HGSS, but I still had a lot of fun with this game. I definitely enjoyed it more than playing Pokemon Red, hence why it gets the slightly higher score of 8/10.
 
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