Overrated, underrated.

[PageEmp]

Special shoutout to most of the inanimate object mons, I'd say they are somewhat underrated. The only one I can say I don't like would be the Klink line, but it's mostly due to bad experience that I hate them. Even then, I have put Chandelure and Magnezone to good use in nuzlockes, I don't think Garbodor's design is that bad, and I'm slowly growing on Vanilluxe. I don't even see the fuss over mons not being animals in the first place, it's just a video game, everything is technically supposed to be fiction. If you prefer pokes being based off real animals, then that's cool, I'm not trying to insult your tastes.

I think the most overrated mon is the Cyndaquil family. It's a fine poke, no problems with it, but EVERYONE seems to use it, and to the point where I don't see Totodile pickers much nowadays. Quilava has been a bit of a mixed bag in my runs. One has proven to be a completely worthless teammate thanks to his nature, but the other has been doing ok so far. But seriously, the more I see others pick Chikorita and Cyndaquil, the less I like them, the less I feel tempted to use them, and the more I think Totodile's line is awesome.

If the choice didn't have to be a starter, then it would be a tie between Gyarados and Noivern. I don't hate Noivern, I just don't understand the hype around it, and I feel the game has been going really lenient on Gyarados lately. It got a mega(who isn't even that cool IMO), a monstrous movepool, and...Crunch. Out of all the badass Bite Pokemon out there, they picked him. And I know that he can be a beast, but I can't stand looking at it. It's technically a mutated alien slug with 60s hair? Well at least the dex was right about him, 'the atrocious Pokemon'.

As for an overrated game, it's freaking Black 2. I hate that complete mess of a video game. The plot seemed to be a step down from the originals, I found the post game content to be a DISAPPOINTMENT, the dex wasn't as good as what people say, and this game just makes me RAGE. It's technically the Hitler of the games, and we could do a lot without it. Whenever the time comes for Gen 5 remakes, I'm actually praying that this shitfest doesn't get revamped.

An overrated generation would have to be Gen 3. Say all you want, but I don't think the region was very good, and I'm starting to get sick of people nuzzing FRLG or RSE. Well, there are a LOT of Emerl runs I like, but I can't say the same about FRLG, so I tend to avoid reading runs of that game now unless the run is actually really good. Or maybe I'm just a 'Genfourer'.

So is there anything Pokemon-related you feel gets too much love/doesn't get much spotlight? Doesn't just have to be the creatures, can be other things, like characters, NPCs, playable characters, types, or as exampled above, games. I would also strongly suggest that when you disagree with other people's opinions, do not act like a complete ass over it until you make said person feel bad. It happened a lot on this kind of thread on on my previous forum.

 

[AdamN]

Pokemon game and plot really shouldn't be mentioned together, honestly I can't tell you the plot of any pokemon game even though I've beaten all of them (at least, 1 of each pair).
Also as a general rule of pokemon, the final form of the water starter looks terrible in design compared to their leaf and fire counterparts, which is one of the reasons it see's less people choosing it.
I feel that Pikachu is quite overrated just because it's the mascot and I think that the most underrated legendary would be Shaymin... It just feel so forgettable.

 

[PageEmp]

Pokemon game and plot really shouldn't be mentioned together, honestly I can't tell you the plot of any pokemon game even though I've beaten all of them (at least, 1 of each pair).
Also as a general rule of pokemon, the final form of the water starter looks terrible in design compared to their leaf and fire counterparts, which is one of the reasons it see's less people choosing it.
I feel that Pikachu is quite overrated just because it's the mascot and I think that the most underrated legendary would be Shaymin... It just feel so forgettable.

'General rule'? I've always thought the final evo of the water starter was almost always the most badass looking, and that's the main reason why it's my first choice for a starter, together with it having fewer weaknesses than the other 2 types and havimg access to the useful Surf. I don't think I have ever legitimately hated a water starter. And please, there have been plenty of times where the fire starter has a lackluster design, and maybe a few times where grasses aren't too threatining. But as many opinions people have, I guess.

 

[AdamN]

'General rule'? I've always thought the final evo of the water starter was almost always the most badass looking, and that's the main reason why it's my first choice for a starter, together with it having fewer weaknesses than the other 2 types and havimg access to the useful Surf. I don't think I have ever legitimately hated a water starter. And please, there have been plenty of times where the fire starter has a lackluster design, and maybe a few times where grasses aren't too threatining. But as many opinions people have, I guess.

Ok maybe not all of them a terrible in design, but most of them in my opinion... At least in comparison to their fire and leaf counterparts. Gen 1 was by far the best water starter.

Maybe I should give my opinions on all the starters to sound less bias :P

Bulbasaur; Great design to start with but it's evolutions are very same-y it's appearance doesn't change much. It just gets bigger.
Squirtle; Great design to start, Adequately changes between evolutions, final evolution just feels to big and tank-y (as with all water final evolutions)
Charmander; Okay design to start, second evolution is forgettable, final evolution makes up for it.

Chikorita; As with bulbasaur it's evolutions all look very similar, just bigger.
Totodile; Final evolution is it's best evolution, but as with all water starters (you know, water type, the types that are supposed to move agilely through the water) it's way to bulky. I'd like to see that thing try to swim.
Quilava; Nice design to start, but all evolutions look pretty much identical, just larger.

Treeko; Amazing start, Okay second, Forgettable final... What's with the weird tree sticking out where it's tail should be ._.
Mudkip; Great meme first, why's it on 2 legs second, giant tank third.
Torchic; Okay start, disturbing second which shouldn't be seen by kids! Amazing final.

Turtwig; The bulbasaur wannabe.
Piplup; Okay start, forgettable second, What's that even supposed to be final.
Chimchar, the most forgettable starter to-date, final form is great but underrated.

Snivvy; Absolutely love the real world references with this one, final form looks like a green banana.
Osha..what?; Forgettable. Final form unicorn wannabe.
Emboar (because again, first form is forgettable and I can't be bothered to google names); Forgettable. All evolutions look the same.

I refuse to believe that the next starters are real starters.


Boy, this really isn't on topic of this thread, is it :P?

 

[queeniewolf]

So this is just in general about underrated/overrated things, no matter what category, right?

Probably lots of Pokemon in competitive that aren't Landorus or Mega Kengaskhan (*scoffs at Championships Masters Division*)
I personally really enjoy using Choice Banded Granbull! Granted, it definitely enjoys some Trick Room support, but its hits do hurt. A lot.

 

[HairyLoco]

Gen I is overrated. There's not much good about it other than Team Rocket being a pretty solid criminal organisation and Lorelei of the Elite Four (always liked her). The Sevii Isles are a pain to navigate through, the Pokémon aren't particularly interesting, and the entire region is the same. To elaborate on the last point, if you look at Unova, there's a desert, there's snowlands, there's mountains, there's grasslands, there's cities. But Kanto is just one pile of trees and grass and just uninterseting. It makes the whole region feel tiny.

I also think shinies are overrated. Sure, they're rare and all, but I don't like most of them. This is based entirely on my opinion. I don't find them good looking, while others may. There's only a handful of shinies I would actually hunt for.

 

[Megan]

Gen I is overrated.

Actually, the majority of the Pokemon community seems to hate gen 1 and most of those who like it, do so, because it was their first gen.

Now, gen 2 on the other hand is really overrated. And you know why? Well, would you like gen 2 as much, if they hadn't included an empty second region? Probably not.

As for underrated: Jumpluff is definitely out there. It has good defenses, good speed and access to stuff like Giga Drain, Leech Seed, Sleep Powder, Synthesis, Swords Dance, Acrobatics and Splash, which makes it a potent member on any ingame team.

 

[BettyNewbie]

Gen I is overrated. There's not much good about it other than Team Rocket being a pretty solid criminal organisation and Lorelei of the Elite Four (always liked her). The Sevii Isles are a pain to navigate through, the Pokémon aren't particularly interesting, and the entire region is the same. To elaborate on the last point, if you look at Unova, there's a desert, there's snowlands, there's mountains, there's grasslands, there's cities. But Kanto is just one pile of trees and grass and just uninterseting. It makes the whole region feel tiny.

The Sevii Islands are only in the rubbish remakes, so they're a fault of Gen 3, not Gen 1. They have zero relevance to RBY.

Anyways...

Overrated:

1. Hoenn. Sorry, but it's still the worst region in the world to navigate. Its layout is convoluted and unnatural and requires WAY too many HMs. 7.8 Too much water.

2. Steven. Speaking of Hoenn... While ORAS fleshed him out a little better, he's still a boring Gary Stu. And, I just LOVE how people praise him for being a type specialist who uses Pokémon of other types, yet turn around and trash another Champion (Lance) for doing the exact same thing. :rolleyes2:

3. Cynthia. Or, as I call her, Champion Barbie. There are few characters in Pokémon that I completely and utterly hate, and she's one of them. They keep on shoving her into the spotlight and propping her up as the Greatest, Most Awesomest Trainer Ever, yet is really just the most boring and vacant Mary Sue in the world. Seriously, she has no character traits beyond being beautiful and having an overpowered team. And, fans, of course, eat it ALL up (especially the male ones). :rolleyes2:

4. Red. Have I mentioned that I hate boring Gary Stus/Mary Sues? Seriously, he's a freakin' player avatar with NO personality or dialog, whatsoever! He's not some deep, brooding "badass" with a dark, troubled past, or whatever backstory you invented for him in your fanfiction. And, no, he definitely does NOT have the best design of any PC... That would be Kris. ;)

5. Charizard. You know, I actually like the Pokémon, but "Greatest Ever," it is not. And, I hate how it constantly gets shoved into the spotlight, usually at the expense of other Pokémon (especially, the other Kanto Starters, and very especially, Venusaur).

6. Adventures. People treat it like it's this epic, awesome piece of fine art, but all I see is a mediocre dark!fic of the games with rubbish artwork.

7. Competitive Battling. Maybe, I'm just too right-brained, but I don't see the fun in mindless number-crunching. People take this stuff way too seriously, and I hate how it's literally taken over the fandom.

8. Youngster Joey. Seriously, he's just some random NPC with a Rattata. Last I checked, you DON'T have to get his number. :rolleyes2:
​

Underrated:

1. Pokémon Yellow. Better sprites, fewer glitches, and more polished gameplay. So, what if it borrows a few things from the anime? Most of those things make the game better, and the one that doesn't (the non-evolving Pikachu) can easily be dealt with (box the yellow rat).

2. Kris. Still the best player character design, bar none. GF made a HUGE mistake in retconning her out of HGSS.

3. Lorelei. Great design and with a lot of potential, even if most of it went unutilized. Sadly, both GF and the fandom have mostly forgotten her, and whenever she's acknowledged, it's for the big "thingies" she had in the anime and nothing else. :rolleyes2:

4. Karen. Sure, people like her for her quote, but otherwise, she's pretty much ignored unless objectified, just like Lorelei. Yes, she didn't get much in the games, but that hasn't stopped people from giving epic backstories to the likes of Red, Youngster Joey, and the "I like shorts" kid, now has it? :rolleyes2:

5. Lance. Sad that I have to put him here, but so many people just love to trash on him for being a "cheater" or having a "bad team." Many go out of their way to make him look evil/hypocritical in fanfiction, despite him being one of the most selfless, good-hearted, and heroic (and sexiest and most beautiful {<3}) characters in the games.

6. Dragonite. So WHAT if she's not tough and "badass" looking? Not all dragons are supposed to be like that! I happen to love that she isn't some generic monster like Charizard, Salamence, and Garchomp.

7. Persian. Poor kitty, always being screwed over in the games and being made out as a bad guy in the anime.

8. Elite Four members in general. A lot of them are potentially interesting characters, but they rarely get even as much spotlight (from either GF or the fans) as the most boring, underdeveloped Gym Leaders. And, they're constantly overshadowed by the Champions, even the worst/lamest ones.
​

 

[HairyLoco]

The Sevii Islands are only in the rubbish remakes, so they're a fault of Gen 3, not Gen 1. They have zero relevance to RBY.

Good point.
Let's replace the Sevii Isles with the fact that the boxes were a mess, then. All you got was the name of your Pokémon and the level. Back when I was a kid I didn't know all the Pokémon names, I just knew what they looked like. The boxes were a pain to navigate through.

 

[BettyNewbie]

Good point.
Let's replace the Sevii Isles with the fact that the boxes were a mess, then. All you got was the name of your Pokémon and the level. Back when I was a kid I didn't know all the Pokémon names, I just knew what they looked like. The boxes were a pain to navigate through.

Yeah, definitely with you on that one. It was SO easy to fill a box up, and you didn't even know a box was full until you tried to use a Poké Ball. Hope you saved before battling Mewtwo!

Gen 1 had the worst bag system ever, too. Only 20 items, max, and there's no rearranging anything. And, the PC item box can be filled up, too. Shudder.

 

[Shiningsuicune]

Honestly, I don't find Pikachu overrated. I find it overHATED. Seriously, Pikachu doesn't deserve it. If Clefairy were the mascot, people would hate on it just as much. On the other hand, I do find Raichu underrated, he's always been in Pikachu's shadow.
As for overrated... Lucario. I've never seen the appeal, especially for the mega. It's a blue dog with...dreadlocks? Fennekin is another overrated one. Even though she's my favorite Pokemon, Fennekin does seem to be a bit overrated.

 

[AdamN]

Honestly, I don't find Pikachu overrated. I find it overHATED. Seriously, Pikachu doesn't deserve it. If Clefairy were the mascot, people would hate on it just as much. On the other hand, I do find Raichu underrated, he's always been in Pikachu's shadow.
As for overrated... Lucario. I've never seen the appeal, especially for the mega. It's a blue dog with...dreadlocks? Fennekin is another overrated one. Even though she's my favorite Pokemon, Fennekin does seem to be a bit overrated.

Agreed. Lucario is treated as a Legendary, when it's clearly not.

 

[LilyGardy]

Agreeing with BettyNewbie a lot here. (I like Hoenn and Steven though)

Overrated

Lucario - Yes it's cute but I have never seen the big deal about this Pokémon. In X it is said to be the first Pokemon to mega-evolve and then you are forced to use one against the flat-out annoying Korrina. People hate on Pikachu for being overexposed but Lucario is just as bad if not worse.

Cynthia - She is a solid character but that's it. Other than she uses a Garchomp I can't remember much about her. I don't remember her team giving me any trouble either. She is pretty but so is Karen, Sabrina, Flannery and practically every female in the games.

Youngster Joey - Never knew who he was before I was on this forum and don't understand the fuss about him.

Zoroark - A big deal was made about it in Gen 5 but it was unobtainable in B/W without an event Pokemon. You got a Zorua in B2/W2 but combined with what to me seems a bad design Zoroark may be the most overhyped Pokemon of all time.

Underrated

Gardenia - She uses a Roserade despite being an early Gym Leader and acknowledges the weaknesses of her type. She seems stronger than Erika and gets some nice character development by worrying about a potential Ghost/Grass Type.

Karen and Sidney - Both have great quotes after you beat them particularly Sidney who says he had fun after you beat him. For me playing the Pokemon games is about playing the games with your favourite Pokemon win or lose. Karen got a good redesign in Heart Gold but neither really has any backstory which is a shame.

Raichu - Overshadowed by Pikachu but is a fun Pokémon to use and needs a Mega.

 

[mew_nani]

Overrated:

Mega evolution - I'm not really all that fond of it, as it produced some seriously dorky designs and turns creatures that normally metamorphose into Sailor Moon-esque transformations that work through the power of friendship and last only for the duration of the battle. Sure some of the megas like Mega Diancie and Mega Pidgeot were rad as heck, but others like Mega Alakazam and Mega Rayquaza made no sense and either weren't necessary or just broke the game wide open.

Team Flare, and by extension, Lysandre - These guys are just plain meh. They're the same petty thieves we're used to seeing until the 11th hour of the game when Lysandre decides to inform the world he's going to committ mass genocide and murder EVERYBODY. We don't even get a decent excuse for this besides "ooh the world's overpopulated and there won't be enough resources for everybody and people are mean," and Lysandre is treated sympathetically in game as if he were some anti-villain. The fact they attempt to and fail to harness a legendary like 4 different teams before them only add to their blandness. The only reason they are unique is because they're gunning for the extinction of the human race, and this trait makes them too serious to just snicker and laugh at like Team Magma and Team Aqua.

Garchomp - I get the thing looks neat and can royally shred a team up but did it really need a Mega Evolution?

Klefki - It's a gosh darn KEY CHAIN. It doesn't even look that neat. There's loads of neat designs you cound do for a key chain Pokemon; why just make a key chain with eyes? It's also very annoying, so there's that.

Underrated:

Gulpin, and by extension Swalot - I don't understand why this thing doesn't get more love. It's cute. It's gummy. It's a giant stomach. And it's not that bad in battle. Why doesn't anyone like them? They're adorable Poison types.

Sevii Isles - These islands were very under developed and essentially just existed for you to get some Johto Pokemon and let you breed them (and let you trade with Hoenn for some dumb reason.) But you have to admit they were a bit more intriguing than Kanto, with all those little alcoves and areas that could have hidden secrets. I spent hours on these islands exploring Pattern Brush and wondering what all those ruins were for, and I'd love to come back there, albeit if they were better developed.

Empoleon - This is my favorite Gen IV sarter Pokemon. I mean sure all of them were neat and Infernape was pretty cool with the flames, but geez it's a metal emperor penguin that cuts into ice floes like a hot knife through butter. Empoleon is very regal, much like Serperior is, and that Steel typing sure doesn't hurt. It certainly needs more love.

Gen I - No, not for the reasons you're thinking of. I don't think Gen I is underrated because I'm old or a genwunner or have nostaglia goggles duct taped onto my head. Gen I in general has one of the buggiest engines I've ever seen in a video game, and it's broken in just such a way that if you know what you're doing, you can make the games do anything you wish. Wanna get all the Pokemon? Wanna summon eldritch abominations and distort the fabric of reality? Wanna reprogram the game to play Snake or Pong when you tell it to, or play funny animations, or heck even replace Pallet Town with Twinleaf, complete with collision and warps? You can do ALL of those things, and more, without cheat codes, because the game is broken in such a way that all of that is possible. You can do that in Gen II or Gen III as well, but it's easiest to do in Gen I, and most people have no idea what they can do with that old Blue cart sitting on their desk.

 

[Nah]

Overrated:

Team Flare, and by extension, Lysandre - These guys are just plain meh. They're the same petty thieves we're used to seeing until the 11th hour of the game when Lysandre decides to inform the world he's going to committ mass genocide and murder EVERYBODY. We don't even get a decent excuse for this besides "ooh the world's overpopulated and there won't be enough resources for everybody and people are mean," and Lysandre is treated sympathetically in game as if he were some anti-villain. The fact they attempt to and fail to harness a legendary like 4 different teams before them only add to their blandness. The only reason they are unique is because they're gunning for the extinction of the human race, and this trait makes them too serious to just snicker and laugh at like Team Magma and Team Aqua.

Wait Team Flare's overrated? People actually like Team Flare? Idr there being a lot of Team flare love. I know I didn't like them much anyway. They did actually have a bit of potential but Game Freak went and completely wasted it, and like you said, basically ended up being just like every other villain team in the series.

 

[Sun]

Fennekin is another overrated one. Even though she's my favorite Pokemon, Fennekin does seem to be a bit overrated.

I've seen a lot of Fennekin evolutionary line hate. The Froakie line on the other hand, is a truly overrated Pokémon as well as among the Kalos starters.

 

[mew_nani]

Wait Team Flare's overrated? People actually like Team Flare? Idr there being a lot of Team flare love. I know I didn't like them much anyway. They did actually have a bit of potential but Game Freak went and completely wasted it, and like you said, basically ended up being just like every other villain team in the series.

Well I've heard rumors of people liking them. I'm not that sure, but I think they have a few fans, and I know when they first came out they were liked at least a little bit, or at least Lysandre in particular was. I guess I mentioned them in particular because even in game they're considerably overhyped and mishandled. Lysandre in particular is a murderous nutcase and happily wanted to exterminate billions of Pokemon and people, and yet he's still treated sympathetically, as if he was just misguided and should be pitied and forgiven.

I'm not entirely sure it fits the definition of overrated, and I apologize if it doesn't.

 

[Shiningsuicune]

I've seen a lot of Fennekin evolutionary line hate. The Froakie line on the other hand, is a truly overrated Pokémon as well as among the Kalos starters.

I have too, but from what I've seen, Fennekin is more popular. Thing is, there's this other community somewhere ele that I belong to for collecting Pokemon merchandise and like half the people there collect her. Froakie may be more popular around here though simply because this community is more focused on the gaming aspect.

 

[Centipede Chan]

Overrated:
Aegislash. Yes I love them, but the fact that people almost always use one, like in the pokemon world championship, annoys the crap out of me. Because then people use them more when higher up people use the same pokemon, and then competitive developments revolves more around that pokemon than others. Out of 721 monsters on my PC, I'd much rather see some weaker ones to show more variety in battles.

Underrated:
Eelektross. Ok I am kinda biased on this one as it's one of my top 5 favorites ever. He's slow, which I don't mind, but has so many uses, special attack or physical, which is great. I wish it got more love in the games and everywhere else. But sadly Eelektross gets the Lumineon treatment.

 

[Geltza]

There's a million things I think are over and underrated, but I'm just going to go simple and go with one Pokémon that I've never really understood the hate for. Electivire. I've seen people bashing his design since he was released along with Magmortar. It took me a while for Magmortar to grow on me but I've always thought Electivire was really cool. I love his design better that Elekid and Electabuzz! I love using him through my play-throughs and he's one of my favourite Gen IV Pokémon.