Rival Discussion & Speculation

[Pebbles]

i don't care about any of that, as long as the rival doesn't look hotter than my character ;)​

 

[Zakariya]

What are your hopes in regards to how rivals are handled in Sun & Moon? Are you hoping for a return to the classic bratty rival, a typical friendly rival or multiple rivals?

I honestly think a return to a hostile rivalry would be more beneficial for Sun & Moon, since "friendly rivals" have been quite overused.

The post Generation III rivals did not seem like rivals, they felt like friends you occasionally had battles with and their reactions to losses resembled poor sportsmanship rather than anything else. May even felt closer to being a rival, and even then there was still a blatant friendship.

As of the present, the only place friendly rivalries should remain in Pokemon games is in the remakes. Outside of that, modern Pokemon games should definitely ditch the concept of friendly rivals and stick to the adversarial rivalries.

 

[LilBueno]

I don't even count anybody besides Serena/Calem as a rival for XY.
On top of a hostile rival, I'd like to see repeat trainers. A small handful of normal trainers that you battle early on, but you get to battle them a few more times with stronger teams. It always feels like the player and the rival are the only trainers actually advancing through a Pokemon League journey or going for an adventure.

 

[Jacrad]

I think it'd be a lot of fun to have a rival that betrays you.
Who says we can't have a little of the new mixed with a little of the old? Have the rival be a fairly amicable trainer that you clearly seem to be friends with but is ultimately trying to undercut you so they have a better shot at becoming the next champion. Make them seem flighty and inexperienced, giving you ineffective strategies or making suggestions that detract from progressing efficiently. Like taking a longer route or a route that has weaker Pokemon so your team is under leveled. And they could give you items that, on the surface, seem helpful but have negative side effects as well. Like Energy Powder which heals 50hp but lowers friendship.

That'd be a fun way to shake things up. It could even lead to a redemption arc post game and really develop the character. Maybe go into why they're so cutthroat in the first place?

Umbreon would be a smart Pokemon to have as their signature 'mon. Since it's a dark type and requires friendship it would parallel their trainer's underhandedness and show that they are more competent than they let on.

 

[AeroDragoon]

I think that it would be cool if we had a rival who started off nice and optimistic like the others, but slowly turned evil as we kept beating him, which eventually leads him to do something bad at the story's climax and make him the final story boss

 

[BettyNewbie]

What I want to see, at minimum, is a female version of Blue or Silver. I've never liked the friendly rivals of the later games, and the series still has yet to have a good female rival, especially one that isn't just an opposite gender PC.

 

[HyperJono]

What I want in the rival for Sun and Moon is some one like Blue/Green who is always ahead of you and rubbing it in that he is better than you sorta thing but also has the complexity of N and a similar backstory to Silver. It would also be great if the rival was female because the female "rivals" we've don' feel like rivals more like friends. Also the gender of the rival shouldn't the opposite gender to your character. For me I feel we haven't had a proper rival since Silver

 

[MarinoKadame]

Bianca didn't felt like a Rival since she was so weak, Shauna felt about the same way with her cute theme.

 

[HyperJono]

Bianca didn't felt like a Rival since she was so weak, Shauna felt about the same way with her cute theme.

It was the same for May and Serena

 

[MarinoKadame]

It was the same for May and Serena

But those are just the same for Male since they are just the gender you didn't picked so they don't really count since both Male and Female are the same in that case unlike Bianca and Shauna who are the same character for any gender you pick.

 

[HyperJono]

But those are just the same for Male since they are just the gender you didn't picked so they don't really count since both Male and Female are the same in that case unlike Bianca and Shauna who are the same character for any gender you pick.

True. You do have a point

 

[Hikamaru]

Bianca didn't felt like a Rival since she was so weak, Shauna felt about the same way with her cute theme.

I wouldn't rub off Bianca as "weak", especially given her rematch team was quite powerful, especially with Pokemon like Mienshao, Stoutland and Chandelure being present in it. But we do know Bianca and Shauna are the first female rivals regardless of gender picked, since May and Serena only serve as "rivals" if you picked the male character.

I would like another female rival, but I still feel like males tend to get more important roles so I probably see it being unlikely.

 

[Guest123123]

I don't care if the rival(s) is/are friendly or antagonistic. I'm fine with both personalities, as long as the rival is interesting.

However, if they do go with an antagonistic one, I don't want one that brushes off defeats with stereotypical lines like "You got lucky" and "I was going easy on you" like Blue did. People praise Blue as one of the best rivals because he was a jerk and apparently people feel motivated to beat him because of that, but I just thought he was a boring egotistical kid and his above mentioned lines are so cliche. I don't think Silver used either of those excuses, but at the end of the Burned Tower battle he said he wouldn't battle weaklings anymore because it was a waste of time. Weaklings? I won the battle and we're 3-0 at this point. And the Azalea Town battle: You only won because my Pokemon were weak. Like, that's literally basic Pokemon battle logic??? You win by being stronger than your opponent or outsmarting them (or I guess having more healing items). That's like saying "You only got the valedictorian spot because your grades were higher than mine." THAT'S. THE. ENTIRE. POINT. CAPTAIN. OBVIOUS.

Both of the jerk rivals just make excuses when they lose (Blue until you dethrone him, Silver until the Radio Tower takeover), and so do the jerk rivals in all the fangames I've played. That's not interesting at all. That's just "I'm trying to sound tough but it doesn't work because I just got my ass kicked". No, I want an antagonist rival that dislikes the player but acknowledges our skill and doesn't attribute defeats to luck or them holding back (why would a jerk character hold back anyway?). I know that Silver came around eventually, but I mean someone who does it from the start.

 

[Yuutsa]

At the rate GF is going at, the whole region is going to be your rival soon enough.

Frankly I don't care if we have 1, 2, 3, ..., 100 rivals, so long as they aren't just crammed in there, and actually have some level of development.

Like even in XY the group could've been made so much more interesting if they actually challenged you, ever.
But they don't, even Serena/Calum's Team were somewhat easy, and they were always training.

If it's too much to ask for to have multiple challenging battle rivals, then make them rival you in other aspects. Like Contests(If they should return), Pokedex filling, Gym-Challenging, etc.

Just please let them be challenging.

 

[MirraJade]

The rivals now days don't feel like rivals I just view them as another trainer to battle for xp I liked blue and silver also barry you really felt like you were competing against them

I sometimes feel that they are trying for a younger and younger audience with each passing game like X and Y was really easy with not much of a challenge what would be great is if they had a difficult setting you can choose at the start

 

[Abby]

I was just playing X and noticed something that became really annoying.

Every time Your rival wants a fight they call you and arrange it. While I'm sure they meant well, I want it where they shring up on you out of nowhere.

I want it where you've beaten the gym, your pokémon are battered and weak. You get out and SUPRISE Rival battle!

 

[OuterTsuchinoko]

I was just playing X and noticed something that became really annoying.

Every time Your rival wants a fight they call you and arrange it. While I'm sure they meant well, I want it where they shring up on you out of nowhere.

I want it where you've beaten the gym, your pokémon are battered and weak. You get out and SUPRISE Rival battle!

Now I would truly hate that rival if they battled me after a gym. That trick would only really work once though since people would make sure to bring more healing items. I know I would for every gym just to show him up. What would also be cool would be them appearing more often after caves and such. I'd also like to be out at sea and get into a rival battle, especially since I am never prepared for anything when I'm in the water for some reason.

 

[Lynda]

I want a combination of the pompous stuck up attitude of Ronald from Pokemon Trading Card Game, and the level of power Barry had in Platinum specifically. It'd be nice to bring back the arrogant rival who could actually talk the talk rather than just walk the walk....as they say.

 

[kiloudeCaterer123]

how about taking things a little higher this time like your rival having a speculative crush on you and always tags along you and making their you inspiration whatever? and a little hint of romance at the end where the evil organization was about to destroy the region and he/she saved you then they'll tell you that ever since they liked you and that shit.

~~but the bratty rival is something to look forward also~~~~

 

[OmegaRuby and AlphaSapphire]

OrAs was pretty close to a romance with the unchosen character rival.