Day, Night, and Dusk - Lycanroc for Smash Bros. Ultimate

[DeltaSceptile]

Nice to see this place is still active. Now I can’t wait to see a Pokémon that isn’t Incineroar Gematsu the hell out of Vergeben.

 

[Delzethin]

Where did you from this?

Apparently rumors of such a thing were brought up during the latest Japan Time podcast (Shofu's thing). Things seem to be pointing toward some kind of reveal happening soon, but we don't know to what extent.

So, naturally, there's been a lot of tribal warfare over it.

Yeah, only one more information dump with relative silence leading up until release would be a letdown, but I don't think they would end with just one more broadcast anyway. Based on Sakurai's desire to slow down reveals, it's likely he wants to pace things perfectly so that we're getting news probably until late November. You'd have to wonder what an October direct would entail though, if we're not getting many reveals out of it. Probably story mode and maybe, hopefully, please please please something about online modes.

That's the thing, a final, full length Smash Direct this month would kinda go against what Sakurai said and make little logistical sense. Why show off literally everything about the base game so soon, and resort to radio silence for the final month and a half before its release? Wouldn't it make more sense to have a smaller reveal this month, then a Smash Direct in early-mid November?

If Sakurai chose Incineroar, do you guys think it would be because he would mesh with Greninja?

I was thinking he would avoid Incineroar because of that reason.

That's the thing. Sakurai has talked so much about uniqueness, about finding newcomers who can bring in ideas that haven't been done before, that to go against all of that and add someone who has so little of that would be...an anomaly.

Wouldn't be the first time such an anomaly worked against me, but damn it, all of you are here now too. I'm used to having my hopes crushed, but I sure don't see why you guys should have to endure the same fate.

 

[Garteam]

If Sakurai chose Incineroar, do you guys think it would be because he would mesh with Greninja?

I really doubt it.

Charizard is still on the roster, He may not be a solo character anymore, but he's still playable. That duology between the two is still there. Plus, the whole fire-water idea now feels a lot less necessary that we have Pokemon Trainer representing both the idea of starters and the full elemental trinity.

 

[Delzethin]

Was a quiet night, it seems. I suppose we've earned some rest, after how active things have been the last couple days.

Seeing everyone here still invested, still pitching in despite the odds, and even seeing more people joining us instead of barging in to gawk at us...it's all very different from what I thought would happen. Maybe things aren't quite as bleak as they feel at times.

Though it'd also help if my mind wasn't always preparing for the other shoe to drop...

 

[TCT~Phantom]

Was a quiet night, it seems. I suppose we've earned some rest, after how active things have been the last couple days.

Seeing everyone here still invested, still pitching in despite the odds, and even seeing more people joining us instead of barging in to gawk at us...it's all very different from what I thought would happen. Maybe things aren't quite as bleak as they feel at times.

Though it'd also help if my mind wasn't always preparing for the other shoe to drop...

I think part of it is a good number of people think Incineroar is likely, rather than wanting him. I am not denying that the cat has fans, but let's be real he has a pretty big hatebase right now.

Honestly the situation reminds me of Chrom in Smash 4 a lot. Chrom for most of the speculation period was seen as a lokc, and when a credible leak got behind him, people lined up to support. Ironically it was here where Robin started to gain most of their footing for support: people were looking for alternatives due to not liking the then likeliest outcome.

In many ways, Incineroar has parallels to Chrom in surface characteristics. Both are credited in big leaks of their speculation period. Both have gotten a good deal of potentially unwarranted hate due to their designs and moveset potential or lack thereof. Incineroar in my eyes has the unfortunate burden of not only being a bit of a divisive pokemon (remember when he was leaked for SM? People got mad af), but he just is not that much of a stand out mon. His role in the anime is relatively small as of now. Maybe if Ash's Torracat evolves, it would be different. But as of now, he lacks the breakout star power in merchandise and the anime. Now granted, Greninja did not have all this at the time of his reveal, but it was clearly planned for it to be the breakout star of Gen 6. Incineroar just is not the posterboy of the generation.

In many ways, Lycanroc fills that void that people want. It makes more sense than Incineroar, it's far more significant in the games and anime than Incineroar is. Merchandise for Lycanroc also is far higher. Lycanroc getting a whole new form for USUM alone makes me confident that GF would push it super hard in talks with Sakurai. While Sakurai does have the final say, I do not think that GF would want to just go with Incineroar given the planning they have done for Lycanroc. Lycanroc would have a moveset that would be more visually unique. It also would have more of a unique posture as well.

Honestly, the fear of people coming in here to rub salt in our wounds is pretty baseless. In all honestly, it seems more like they wish to patch us up to help them take down the newcomer that they feel would kill their hype.

 

[RandomAce]

That's the thing, a final, full length Smash Direct this month would kinda go against what Sakurai said and make little logistical sense. Why show off literally everything about the base game so soon, and resort to radio silence for the final month and a half before its release? Wouldn't it make more sense to have a smaller reveal this month, then a Smash Direct in early-mid November?

Well, things do start to make sense when you look at the bigger picture.

You see, Sakurai’s famitsu column was supposed to be for Isabelle’s original reveal which would’ve been on the 6th of September instead of the 13th. In that time frame, we have had 6 fighters revealed in the span of a month.

Now that we’re nearing October 6th, if Isabelle was revealed as when she originally was, it would’ve been a month where we didn’t get a single reveal. Different to last month’s 6.

So, we’re most likely getting something for both October and November, seeing how Nintendo has most likely paced the reveals to keep the hype going thoroughly until release.

 

[GlaceonGD]

Hm guess today there wasn't really much to talk about, been a lot more quiet than usual. From what I've been seeing recently it does seem like a direct or reveal is very likely next week so let's all cross our everything and hope for our rock wolf. Most people in chats I'm in think the pokemon newcomer won't be until next month but I'm not too sure as I don't think they'd want to reveal a character along with the new games unless the character has representation in them. One things for sure, time is running thin, so let's just keep the support going till we're in or out.

 

[BluePikmin11]

Personally, I think if there is nothing new to talk about surrounding Lycanroc in regards to the anime, Smash, and marketing, I rather not recycle discussion for the sake of activity.

 

[RandomAce]

Personally, I think if there is nothing new to talk about surrounding Lycanroc in regards to the anime, Smash, and marketing, I rather not recycle discussion for the sake of activity.

Yeah that’s true, but I do like talking here when there is discussion sometimes.

Anyways, more fan art! This time coming from “Ivan Jhang“ once again. This one being pretty recent actually:

I always see people saying how they feel that Midnight feels too “beastly” and has to follow the Werewolf formula. But Ivan here shows that Midnight can still look awesome without having to follow that, and this one definitely isn’t a slouch on that font with an awesome pirate inspiration while still staying true to character (Midnight being more energetic).

Smash will probably dabble a little of the “werewolf” concept for Midnight if he ever gets in, but there’s a little more to them that meets the eye at first, and this can even be seen in some of the main line stuff like the anime and games where Midnight isn’t really seen as this “beastly” figure all the time as well.

So yeah here’s to Ivan for a unique awesome spin on Midnight’s design.

 

[BluePikmin11]

Then again, this, Professor Layton, and the Lip thread are the only support threads I visit frequently. I'm still hoping for the unlikely. :L

 

[Deleted member]

Still have not given up on Lycanroc let's see what happens.

Sure Incineroar has support but, Lycanroc still does too. And should continued to be supported despite everything.

 

[Delzethin]

There's a spark of life! I figure we can branch out into some tangentially related topics if there isn't anything new to talk about.

With that in mind: What does everyone think about Let's Go? Seems like there're a lot of mixed opinions about the upcoming games, so how do you guys feel about it and about the talk surrounding next year's new generation?

Let's keep the ball rolling. We've overtaken the Medusa and Takamaru threads just within the last couple days.

 

[BluePikmin11]

I am not buying it. I am waiting to see what Generation 8 will offer story-wise, character-wise, and game design-wise.

I moved on from Pokemon after seeing the many complaints of Generation 6 and 7 throughout the years.

Nowadays, when it comes to monster collecting games, I am only looking forward to Yo-kai Watch 4, mostly cause of the gameplay evolution and number of packed interesting content that Level-5 puts into each entry.

 

[GlaceonGD]

There's a spark of life! I figure we can branch out into some tangentially related topics if there isn't anything new to talk about.

With that in mind: What does everyone think about Let's Go? Seems like there're a lot of mixed opinions about the upcoming games, so how do you guys feel about it and about the talk surrounding next year's new generation?

Let's keep the ball rolling. We've overtaken the Medusa and Takamaru threads just within the last couple days.

I preordered it before I even bought my switch haha. To be fair the main point of interest towards the games for me is the fact that eevee is finally getting the spotlight with its own game, and if you couldn't tell already eevee is my all time favorite pokemon. I personally think the hate is undeserved and the game will be good but nearly everyone I talk with disagrees and I actually had to leave a discord server because someone attacked me specifically with a post about it.

As for gen 8 next year, I'm definitely getting those too, and I would like to see lycanroc make a return as well since I never got the chance to use dusk or midnight forms (I only had original Sun). I'm hyped for both games, and I plan on preordering gen 8 as well, certainly the highlights of the switch for me aside from smash ultimate.

 

[Garteam]

There's a spark of life! I figure we can branch out into some tangentially related topics if there isn't anything new to talk about.

With that in mind: What does everyone think about Let's Go? Seems like there're a lot of mixed opinions about the upcoming games, so how do you guys feel about it and about the talk surrounding next year's new generation?

Let's keep the ball rolling. We've overtaken the Medusa and Takamaru threads just within the last couple days.

I'm conflicted:

On one hand, I'm not inherently opposed to the idea of another Kanto remake. Last time we had a mainline Kanto game was Firered/Leafgreen in 2004, over 14 years ago. That's the longest gap between any Pokemon release and remake by a fair bit. Additionally, I wasn't actually too turned off by the removal of traditional catching as well, seeing how Colosseum and XD had untraditional catching and those games were awesome.

However, there are some questionable changes. I still do not understand the removal of held items and abilities. They're not gameplay elements that are really overbearing or necessary to win the game by any stretch of the imagination (I comfortably beat Leafgreen at age 8 without really being aware of either), but they're beloved mechanics that make the game a little deeper for anyone is looking for more advanced gameplay. Likewise, I'm unsure about the difficulty, Kanto is already one of the easiest regions by fair. Your starter is fairly capable of soloing the game by themselves, and them plus a strong backup Pokemon like Nidoking or Alakazam makes the game a walk in the park. Lowering the levels of trainers and forcing the EXP Share to be on strikes me as really underestimating how intelligent new players are. I just don't know how much more you can dumb things down before you get brain dead gameplay.

I'll probably still get Let's Go Pikachu, but definitely not at launch.

 

[DeltaSceptile]

With that in mind: What does everyone think about Let's Go? Seems like there're a lot of mixed opinions about the upcoming games, so how do you guys feel about it and about the talk surrounding next year's new generation?

Let’s go is a disgrace to anyone who ever went through the grind that is every Pokémon game before X and Y, except now Pikachu and Eevee can’t evolve, they’re constantly going to be around, and only they get super special moves. All that AND the capture mechanic has been completely turned into Pokémon go. I was really hoping these would be true Pokémon yellow remakes but clearly The Pokémon company just assumed everyone here was a dumbass for whatever reason. Is the modern generation of Pokémon really getting this bad? Just seeing the gameplay footage makes me realize how unbelievably easy this will be, especially since I’ve already beaten a Pokémon game or 2 from every other gen. I really hope gen 8 can drag them out of this mess next year or they might actually have problems. And also let’s just think about Blue’s replacement real quick... yeah, no. Not funny Pokémon Company. I actually enjoyed that sadistic asshat that waited outside of every cave and possible place where he could jump you when you’re entire team was half-dead. This game took every fun aspect of pokemon and got rid of it. I don’t know about you guys, but out of all the possible starters that exist, Pikachu and Eevee are pretty much the worst. Seriously, why the **** would anyone want Eevee if he can’t evolve? That’s taking 8 different possibilities and throwing them away just like that. Why?

 

[SilentSentinel]

I find Let's Go to be a waste of time and will be skipping it. It baffles me that people are using the "but the games are for children!" excuse for the dumbing down of these games when 5 year olds were beating Red and Blue with no Serebii or or YouTube guides, just some dubious playground rumors. Children in 1998 beat these games without the internet's help, there's no good reason to make them totally braindead for modern kids with Google on their side.

I'm sure it will sell just fine but I sincerely hope the casualization stays far away from the main series.

 

[BluePikmin11]

So it looks like next week's episode of the anime is going to feature Incineroar, with a TCG set of the Pokemon releasing around the same time. This sounds like good timing to reveal Incineroar honestly. This could be TPC's intentional build-up to the reveal with tie-in promotion like Isabelle and AC Switch, or it could be something else entirely. I am expecting the former to happen if I am being brutally honest.

 

[False Sense]

There's a spark of life! I figure we can branch out into some tangentially related topics if there isn't anything new to talk about.

With that in mind: What does everyone think about Let's Go? Seems like there're a lot of mixed opinions about the upcoming games, so how do you guys feel about it and about the talk surrounding next year's new generation?

I'm interested.

I take a rather different point-of-view than the reactionary "this one spin-off doesn't pander specifically to me so my childhood is ruined" mentality that some corners of the internet display. Let's Go is, obviously, a fundamentally different type of experience than a standard Pokemon game with a radically different target audience. This is Game Freak's attempt to tackle the immense challenge that is converting an audience who's likely only familiar with Pokemon Go into console players.

And frankly, I just find that sort of endeavor fascinating. I want to see just what kind of experience is created by this unique combination of variables. How does the gameplay feel in the absence of some of the more complex mechanics the series has introduced over time? How do the stylistic choices affect the experience? Can the game actually succeed in moving players from Mobile to Console? Is this really just a shallower version of the main series games, or is it something more?

So I'm interested in the game as a unique, standalone entry. At the very least, it's still Pokemon, so I imagine I'll have fun with it, but I'm curious to see the cumulative effect of all these changes.

 

[Delzethin]

So it looks like next week's episode of the anime is going to feature Incineroar, with a TCG set of the Pokemon releasing around the same time. This sounds like good timing to reveal Incineroar honestly. This could be TPC's intentional build-up to the reveal with tie-in promotion like Isabelle and AC Switch, or it could be something else entirely. I am expecting the former to happen if I am being brutally honest.

For what it's worth, the anime episode seems to be a red herring. It's actually focused on Kukui, at least based on the synopsis (or the translation of it, anyway). The gist of it is that the Masked Royal is doing a meet-and-greet of sorts, and Ash and Burnet ask Kukui to take them to it...which is a problem, because Kukui is the Masked Royal and he doesn't want his secret identity to be revealed. So, he recruits Faba (who got outed as a Masked Royal fanboy during the Necrozma arc, lol) to put on the costume and pretend to be him, and hilarity ensues.

It's a filler episode, more than anything, and no kind of evolution has been getting built up. No lead in, no tease, and two more filler episodes are coming afterward (a Lillie one and a Halloween episode). Even the episode where Mallow's Steenee evolved was upfront about an evolution happening in it! So if something does happen...well, it'd be unexpected, not to mention definitely not ace material.

Not that it'd stop most speculators from assuming it had to be, but...


Anyway, I have mixed feelings toward Let's Go. Between retreading Kanto yet again and the watered down mechanics, there isn't much that interests me. I understand the purpose of the games--to appeal to fans of Go and potentially bridge the gap and get them into the main series--but I'm worried that the way they're playing things too safe and banking too much on nostalgia means it won't sell as well among current fans.

But on the other hand, they've said next year's games--the start of Gen 8--will appeal more to the hardcore crowd, which is...most of us present, I'd imagine. I know a lot of people have had a bone to pick with all the appeals to nostalgia in the past couple generations, how Kalos handed you a Kanto starter and an available Mega Evolution, how Alola added new forms for a bunch of Kanto 'mons (and how stuff from Gen 1 is actually easier to encounter in Alola than stuff from Gen 7). I think this might be their way of making it so the main entries no longer need to shoulder that burden. Perhaps Gen 8 will get the chance to appeal to fans on its own terms instead of being caught up in TPC's constant campaign of trying to win back the fans they had 20 years ago while underestimating the fans they've gained in the time since.

Basically, while I don't plan on buying Let's Go because it doesn't appeal to me much, I do think the games serve a purpose and may even make the ones next year better due to freeing them up to be more of their own thing.

 

[Cosmic77]

So it looks like next week's episode of the anime is going to feature Incineroar, with a TCG set of the Pokemon releasing around the same time. This sounds like good timing to reveal Incineroar honestly. This could be TPC's intentional build-up to the reveal with tie-in promotion like Isabelle and AC Switch, or it could be something else entirely. I am expecting the former to happen if I am being brutally honest.

Even if Incineroar gets revealed, I'm inclined to believe it was just a coincidence. TPC rarely goes out of their way to tie-in promotional material to anything that isn't specifically Pokemon.

Besides, like you said, Isabelle was the only character to get any type of promotional tie-in. The announcement of a new AC game along with Isabelle is likely something that was planned out several months in advance, as that's a pretty big deal. Not saying it couldn't happen again, but... Kudos to Nintendo if they went out of their way to reveal Incineroar just because of a new card and a filler anime episode airing only in Japan.

 

[RandomAce]

Even if Incineroar gets revealed, I'm inclined to believe it was just a coincidence. TPC rarely goes out of their way to tie-in promotional material to anything that isn't specifically Pokemon.

Besides, like you said, Isabelle was the only character to get any type of promotional tie-in. The announcement of a new AC game along with Isabelle is likely something that was planned out several months in advance, as that's a pretty big deal. Not saying it couldn't happen again, but... Kudos to Nintendo if they went out of their way to reveal Incineroar just because of a new card and a filler anime episode airing only in Japan.

Couldn’t have said it better myself. It’s most likely a coincidence if that were the case, since using a GX card and a filler episode isn’t anything “noteworthy” to amp up a character in this little amount of time. It’s not impossible, but I don’t think it’s that likely. They’d most likely have to built up the charcater over time to have a lasting affect. Which is why Lycanroc is pretty likely.

In terms of the Let’s Go games. It’s definitely not for me. I understand that it’s toned down to be a lot to be easier in order to bring in those who played Pokémon Go. So it isn’t targeted at me since I’m more of a “hardcore” fan, even though I’m new to Pokémon I’m not that new. Not to mention that this game probably isn’t going to have replayability. It’s just catching Pokémon and doing some battles on a linear map through a pretty basic story. And by the time you’re done, that’s it. So I’m not going to consider buying it.

Maybe the 2019 Pokémon game, though I’ll have to wait and see on that one.

 

[Deleted member]

Pokemon Let's Go Pikachu and Eevee? I think they look cool but I have no interest in them.

It's cool their going back to Kanto but it looks to easy. And it's just not my type if game.

The new game I will be looking forward to that.

 

[Maikou]

I really doubt it.

Charizard is still on the roster, He may not be a solo character anymore, but he's still playable. That duology between the two is still there. Plus, the whole fire-water idea now feels a lot less necessary that we have Pokemon Trainer representing both the idea of starters and the full elemental trinity.

Precisely! It's not like losing one move means much to Charizard, and in addition we get a character who embodies the very core of Pokemon. Pokemon Trainer represents the three types of Starter Pokemon you choose at the beginning of every game, the different roles each member of your team can/will fulfill, and the manner in which you switch between each one strategically for the sake of using whoever's stats and skills best suit the situation at hand. And in the mean time we still have a fully-evolved Fire-type Starter and a fully-evolved Water-type Starter.

There's a spark of life! I figure we can branch out into some tangentially related topics if there isn't anything new to talk about.

With that in mind: What does everyone think about Let's Go? Seems like there're a lot of mixed opinions about the upcoming games, so how do you guys feel about it and about the talk surrounding next year's new generation?

Let's keep the ball rolling. We've overtaken the Medusa and Takamaru threads just within the last couple days.

Honestly, while I don't like the dumbed down mechanics and forced Experience Share, I'm interested in Let's Go for multiple reasons. First and foremost is the absolutely gorgeous animation from what we've seen so far. Seriously, Pokemon has only ever looked anywhere near as good in Pokemon Battle Revolution, and that was really mostly the human models, the Sinnoh mons, and the older mons who got updated models. Secondly, Eevee finally has its own voice and it is SO ADORABLE! Eevee has always been cute, but its first 3D model was the slightest bit hideous. I nearly died from cute when I heard Eevee's voice for the first time!

I don't like that the Starters can't evolve at all, especially Eevee seeing as its whole gimmick is being the Pokemon with the most evolutionary forms ever, but I ADORE how they actually interact with the trainer, constantly riding your shoulder/head, and reacting to things in cutscenes to the point of joining you in your celebrations for every Gym Badge earned. I've always wanted a Pokemon game like that, where your starter is always outside of its ball just like Ash's Pikachu in the anime. I'm also really happy to see that we have the ability to have any of our party Pokemon walk around with us and that we can ride big Pokemon like Charizard. It's all stuff I've been wanting since pretty much the first time I saw an episode of the anime. I mean, our Pokemon would walk with us in HeartGold/SoulSilver, but those sprites weren't very detailed and the Pokemon never really react to the story.

I also love that we can freely dress Pikachu or Eevee in a variety of outfits. Again, something I've been wanting for a while, though I was only really hopeful for it in X/Y since that game brought in the ability to customize the Trainer. We sorta half-got that in ORAS with Cosplay-chu, but.......it was lacking, and Cosplay-chu has since exclusively become Pikachu Libre. Though Rainbow Pika does have the advantage of a way better personality than Thundermouse Mishima.

Oh, and the removal of HMs as long as the HM Moves themselves aren't removed is in absolutely no conceivable manner a bad thing.

In other news, I'm making progress in Pokemon Sun. I'm on Route 10, and in one more level, I'll have a Baton Pass Vaporeon carrying my team to inevitable victory. Sadly, Chibi has done very little since evolving, mostly because with that goal met I'm more focused on my Eevee and getting some extra Pokemon trained up. I'm actually rotating my team a little, which surprisingly isn't working out too badly besides Cap-Chu being seriously underpowered for this point in the game, but he's working with way up decently fast. Fun little thing happened back on Akala though: when I fought the Team Skull grunts alongside Hau in the Diglett Tunnel, I sent out my Eevee while Hau sent out his Pikachu. It was flawless, and I really wish I'd kept Helping Hand for that battle so Hau could've finished it instead of just having Jay steal his thunder. .....I swear the pun was accidental.

Oh yeah, and I've been watching the anime. Unfortunately, Netflix ends with "When Regions Collide!" I THINK I found the next part on Amazon Prime Video, but can anyone tell me the episode after "When Regions Collide" for certain?

Anyway, Lycanroc remains a cute puppy even after evolution. Besides that life-altering fact, Litten. I have so far seen absolutely no Torracat or Incineroar at all, and while Litten had three episodes to itself before Ash caught it, it's missed entire episodes and been largely irrelevant besides a few cute gags or Delia Ketchum doting on it. And I don't remember seeing any Litten besides Ash's own. Meanwhile, there's been four Lycanroc besides Ash's, a few episodes surrounding Rockruff, it hasn't missed many full episodes, and I've seen the first few berserk mode freak-outs our favorite rock pup's had. I'm really enjoying the show so far. I really had my doubts at first about the art style and Ash's portrayal-- Honestly, I terrified we were in for another Unova saga-- but surprisingly, I don't really have many problems so far. Ash is just as competent a battler as he's supposed to be, and Pikachu's suffered a great deal of slapstick, he remains a powerful member of Ash's team. I'm really happy about this. Honestly, I only really dislike how easily Faba Diabolus Ex Machina'd a victory against Gladion. Even WITH Alakazam's power and Miracle Eye removing Umbreon's immunity, Umbreon is still a powerful tank, and Gladion is NOT stupid enough to stare at Hypnosis like that. If they wanted me to believe his victory, he should've been using Sleep Powder or Sing with a Pokemon that knows those moves. But that moment is the only issue I really have so far. Everything else is pretty great, or at least acceptable.

 

[Delzethin]

Another quiet night.

Alright, another question: What one thing are you most hoping to see from next year's Pokémon games?

Besides more Lycanroc-related stuff. That's a given, heh.

 

[LukeRNG]

Alright, another question: What one thing are you most hoping to see from next year's Pokémon games?

TBH, there's only 1 hope i have: i want the story to feel more personal to the player + do something to really feel connected to your team (stuff like amie/refresh, pokemon walking with you; and my personal favorite, that scene with your starter in ultra sun/moon before the league).

 

[GlaceonGD]

Another quiet night.

Alright, another question: What one thing are you most hoping to see from next year's Pokémon games?

Besides more Lycanroc-related stuff. That's a given, heh.

inhales more eeveelutions

On a more serious note I'd like for the following pokemon mechanic to stay in because it just looks better than walking around alone. As I already stated and even though you said besides that, I do want to see more of lycanroc in this gen, and maybe bring back z-moves but only character specific ones that require a lot of effort to obtain so you don't wreck house during every fight from the start (I feel like all the type specific z-moves were way too easy to get and made the game a bit too much of a breeze to get through, but I did like the concept). Not really much else I can think of, I'll being buying it regardless of what features they put in it.

 

[Luigifan18]

Another quiet night.

Alright, another question: What one thing are you most hoping to see from next year's Pokémon games?

Besides more Lycanroc-related stuff. That's a given, heh.

More evolutions and Mega Evolutions for Pokémon left behind by power creep (or just wimpy to begin with), like Arbok, Corsola, and Chimecho.

 

[PeridotGX]

Another quiet night.

Alright, another question: What one thing are you most hoping to see from next year's Pokémon games?

Besides more Lycanroc-related stuff. That's a given, heh.

You know all the Gen 1 pandering that's been going on? Make it gen 2 getting that love.

 

[False Sense]

You know all the Gen 1 pandering that's been going on? Make it gen 2 getting that love.

Let's Go Marill.

 

[Guynamednelson]

Let's Go Marill.

I'd buy that.

 

[Garteam]

Let's Go Marill.

Introducing Pokemon: Let's Go Marill and Pokemon: Let's Go Mareep!

Experience the Johto region again in stunning HD! Battle with your partner Pokemon in an exciting new adventure! Challenge opponents such as your friendly rival, Catch all 251 Pokemon with the power of HD Rumble or the Pokeball Plus, and show the world you were born to be a winner!

Connect with Pokemon Let's Go Pikachu or Pokemon Let's Go Eevee to unlock the Kanto region upon completing the game. Pre-order now to obtain the mythical Pokemon, Celebi. Spiky-Eared Pichu DLC sold seperately for $9.99. Also, we're removing double battles and TMs for the sake of simplifying gameplay.

 

[Delzethin]

A lot of interesting answers so far! Goes to show how many different ways they could go with Gen 8.

One thing I'm hoping for that goes under the radar a lot of the time? More new moves that cover more thematic niches. Seems like for the past two generations, most of the new moves we've gained have either been signature moves restricted to one line or extremely gimmicky stuff that'd never be worth using normally (seriously, think of how situational Rototiller is). We could use a sizable batch of viable ones coming in, like with what happened in Gen 4.

And there're so many ideas that have hardly been touched so far! How about a couple more Special Fighting moves? Or Special Dark attacks that emphasize the element of darkness more, with how under-utilized it is? Or how about a few more Fire moves based around heat and not just flames? Or more Ground attacks that weaponize sand? Or Fairy moves based around conjuring magic missiles?

We could use more Fairy moves in general, honestly. There's still only one non-signature physical one, and Gen 7 didn't help at all!

 

[Guynamednelson]

Introducing Pokemon: Let's Go Marill and Pokemon: Let's Go Mareep!

Wouldn't the counterpart be Let's Go Togepi? Anyway, I'd like a feature that lets you redistribute 20 of a Pokemon's base stat points.

 

[RandomAce]

A lot of interesting answers so far! Goes to show how many different ways they could go with Gen 8.

One thing I'm hoping for that goes under the radar a lot of the time? More new moves that cover more thematic niches. Seems like for the past two generations, most of the new moves we've gained have either been signature moves restricted to one line or extremely gimmicky stuff that'd never be worth using normally (seriously, think of how situational Rototiller is). We could use a sizable batch of viable ones coming in, like with what happened in Gen 4.

And there're so many ideas that have hardly been touched so far! How about a couple more Special Fighting moves? Or Special Dark attacks that emphasize the element of darkness more, with how under-utilized it is? Or how about a few more Fire moves based around heat and not just flames? Or more Ground attacks that weaponize sand? Or Fairy moves based around conjuring magic missiles?

We could use more Fairy moves in general, honestly. There's still only one non-signature physical one, and Gen 7 didn't help at all!

Hadn’t thought about that, that is definitely something I want for Gen 8. It feels like Pokémon could use some more viable and interesting moves that many can use.
And hopefully some of those moves can benefit Lycanroc in the long run. Actually, if you don’t mind me asking (since it seems that you’re the one asking the questions). Since this is the Lycanroc thread...

1. What changes/new things do you think Game Freak might do to Lycanroc in Gen 8?

2. What changes/new things do you want Game Freak do to Lycanroc in Gen 8?

 

[BluePikmin11]

Something new I wanna discuss:

One thing to consider for Pokemon newcomers is that these additions come later in the project plan.

There might be newcomers decided before that would have made deciding on a certain 7th generation Pokemon difficult to implement distinctly for Sakurai.

Like if Steve was decided first and had a play-style based on crafting, it would have been harder to create a completely unique play-style for Isabelle that would not revolve around her public work project, thus relegating her to a semi-clone, assuming she was decided later than Steve.

Or if in the unlikely scenario Isaac got decided upon first, Lycanroc would have been a choice seen as redundant due to his play-style sticking to earth-based powers.

I am just thinking outside the box for possible reasons for Lycanroc's exclusion. The possible reasons for exclusion might go beyond just the Pokemon corner.

 

[RandomAce]

Something new I wanna discuss:

One thing to consider for Pokemon newcomers is that these additions come later in the project plan.

There might be newcomers decided before that would have made deciding on a certain 7th generation Pokemon difficult to implement distinctly for Sakurai.

Like if Steve was decided first and had a play-style based on crafting, it would have been harder to create a completely unique play-style for Isabelle that would not revolve around her public work project, thus relegating her to a semi-clone, assuming she was decided later than Steve.

Or if in the unlikely scenario Isaac got decided upon first, Lycanroc would have been a choice seen as redundant due to his play-style sticking to earth-based powers.

I am just thinking outside the box for possible reasons for Lycanroc's exclusion. The possible reasons for exclusion might go beyond just the Pokemon corner.

Oof I’ve been considering that.

Since Isaac does seem likely now, I sometimes wonder that Incineroar was chosen with the wrestler motif and passed over Lycanroc because Isaac and Lycanroc both use rock powers.

But at the same time, Isaac and Lycanroc most likely will use their earth powers a lot more differently. Isaac is able to access is grass, pyserngy, and swordplay alongside his earth moves, not to mention that Isaac is a human being. On the other hand, all the forms are predominantly rock users and will probably use it in ways that Isaac wouldn’t such as using stealth rock, rock climb, and the forms signature moves.

Not only that but Isaac and Lycanroc’s potential play style will differ as well while also offering unique things not on the roster. Isaac can incorporate Move to be able to hit and potentially combo into his opponents in a distinct way, and access his grass and rock abilities for Smash attacks or specials with different ranges and damage values so Isaac can have a potential answer to a lot of situations, while having a disadvantage to balance him out, such as long end lag, mediocre recovery, etc. I’m sadly not that familiar with Isaac’s potential moveset, but based on what I have seen (and played in SSF2) there are a lot of things that you can easily do with Isaac that makes him stand out.

Lycanroc has a more bait and punish playstyle for all forms (more predominantly Midnight) while also having a form of stage control with Stealth Rock and more earth related moves like Stone Edge, Rock slide, and some others for their entire moveset. Not only that, but the Dusk form can access a stat boost mechanic unique to him that allows him to gain a boost of power for a certain period of time due to certain circumstances. Or you can include a stance system that uses two (or three) Lycanrocs with their Midday, Midnight, and potentially Dusk forms for a stance fighter with similar moves and playstyle with different execution (different speeds, Midday and Midnight’s signature move, damage) that can make Lycanroc stand out too.

I’m not going to deny the possibility of Lycanroc not getting in, but I do think that Sakurai knows the differences between Lycanroc and Isaac and how both have a lot of things to be unique from the roster and distinct from another. Plus, there are two earthbenders which is still short of the large roster.

 

[BluePikmin11]

I think it would be very difficult for Lycanroc to be considered in that scenario, because Sakurai decides each Pokemon with concept art and a couple of notes. A couple of general notes about Lycanroc I feel would make Sakurai struggle on how to make him distinct from Isaac. Sakurai probably will not be given the same degree amount of specific information about the Pokemon's abilities as a normal newcomer to critically think about the potential differences IMO. I think the worst case scenario would happen, he would just move on from Lycanroc quickly I feel, in sort of the same way as Mimikyu because of the thematic similarities to Isaac.

 

[Garteam]

Wouldn't the counterpart be Let's Go Togepi? Anyway, I'd like a feature that lets you redistribute 20 of a Pokemon's base stat points.

I suppose that would be a better choice. Admittedly, it's been awhile since I picked up Gen 2.

Maybe Let's Go Pichu and Let's Go Togepi to have 2 baby 'mons?

Something new I wanna discuss:

One thing to consider for Pokemon newcomers is that these additions come later in the project plan.

There might be newcomers decided before that would have made deciding on a certain 7th generation Pokemon difficult to implement distinctly for Sakurai.

Like if Steve was decided first and had a play-style based on crafting, it would have been harder to create a completely unique play-style for Isabelle that would not revolve around her public work project, thus relegating her to a semi-clone, assuming she was decided later than Steve.

Or if in the unlikely scenario Isaac got decided upon first, Lycanroc would have been a choice seen as redundant due to his play-style sticking to earth-based powers.

I am just thinking outside the box for possible reasons for Lycanroc's exclusion. The possible reasons for exclusion might go beyond just the Pokemon corner.

I suppose this is a real possibility. I still don't think Isaac in the game (ballot is the only thing he really has going for him, and even then he didn't do as well as many people claimed he has), but if he is, then there could be a chance that Sakurai wouldn't want to double dip thematically with two geomancing newcomers.

Although, this scenario would not answer any of the questions surrounding Incineroar's possible inclusion. If Sakurai was really so concerned with having two earth users, then why would he green light another grab-based character with a fire aesthetic? Also, wouldn't K. Rool using wrestling moves put Incineroar into a situation similar to Lycanroc in this scenario? At least with Decidueye you could argue that we have no characters with Ghost-powers yet, and botanokinesis and archery are relatively underused in the roster.

 

[Guynamednelson]

I suppose that would be a better choice. Admittedly, it's been awhile since I picked up Gen 2.

Maybe Let's Go Pichu and Let's Go Togepi to have 2 baby 'mons?

I was thinking Marill and Togepi because the two were heavily featured in pre-gen 2 media.