How do you feel about the SOS mechanic?

[Stratelier]

I have only seen it a few times so far -- Wild Diglett called for help! ... but nobody came.

I agree that a 1-vs-2 wild Pokemon battle is potentially quite nasty, but that is kind of the point. One bitten twice shy, you should prepare at least one member who can deal with two Pokemon at once, either with a move that hits multiple targets or enough speed+power to finish off the weaker Pokemon first to even out the numbers again.

 

[Arceus the Dragon]

I managed to find a shiny Sandle because of this mechanic and I didn't had a shiny charm either!

 

[Usagi-Zakura]

Its a pain.. I've been trying to get a Happiny with it all day. Ended up with one shiny Eevee though but now I've been in one chain for 3 hours without anything interesting showing up...

(And of course said Eevee kept calling for help too)

 

[TwistedxMind]

the mechanic never really bothered me, comes in handy with chaining.

 

[Falconwing]

When I'm trying to catch something the mechanic is annoying. When I'm trying to chain or find an SOS exclusive mon it can also be annoying.

But taken as a whole I actually really like it. It's been great for level grinding my team up actually.

 

[HatBasedTraining]

I'm thoroughly on the fence about it.

On one hand, it can give catching mons and gettin' dat dere 'dex completeion or even just catching at all a new level of challenge, which for a guy whose played these games for nearly his entire life, knows the type match-up chart like the back of his hand, and has played competitively some anything that adds challenge to the games is a plus for me.

...On the other hand, there're those times that you're just trying to catch a 'Mon and they summon an ally twelve turns in a row, they call for help nonstop, always get it, and all you want is one, just one turn to throw a damn ball.

I like the idea, but in implementation there should be diminishing chances each time a 'mon successfully summons an ally, negated if you use an Adrenaline Orb in the case you WANT to summon a billion things in one fight.

 

[Master Cyrus]

When I want to catch something the SOS never stops.

When I want to EV train they never come.

 

[GhostLucario]

I HATE it, this is the worst thing. They took away hordes and dex nav for this?!
It is very annoying, makes it hard to catch pokemon, makes it hard to train weaker pokemon. Truly a disgrace.

 

[Bolt Strike]

It's really starting to get on my nerves. For one, they're a nuisance when you just want any Pokemon. I can't count how many times a Pokemon called another one when I was just ready to throw Poke Balls at it. Chaining is also more unrewarding than it seems, I've had chains of 30-40 Pokemon (which is about the point where I run out of PP and can't stall any more) and I still get junk. Overall, it just doesn't work the way you want it to, it's too random and unrewarding.

 

[venusboi79]

Overall, I enjoy the SOS mechanic. It's an interesting way to introduce harder to find 'mons into the routes. It also makes the world seem more "alive" to me.

It can be frustrating when I just want to book it somewhere, or need to catch something. But no more than scouring a large patch of grass for one rare Pokémon while constantly battling commons.

I'd love them to see SOS in future games (with a few tweaks) as well as the return of hordes.

 

[King Robert]

On the other hand, it can get quite hilarious. One time I faced off against a Diglett (Alolan), who summoned another Diglett. The first Diglett had his health down into the red zone, and the second used Bulldoze, damaging my partner slightly while knocking out the first.

I was like "Way to go, genius. You just killed your buddy."

 

[Absolclaw]

Never again.

 

[Ereshkigal]

The first time was a fun surprise.

Time 387, I started using it as a measure of pokemon not worth my time to catch. Might not get a full dex or every Alolan form, but it's honestly no longer worth the effort to me. I've had less frustration hunting for the Muffle enchantment in Skyrim.

 

[Soki]

When I heard about the chaining you can do with it for shinies and EV's I was extremely enthusiastic. But that was before I knew that any wild Pokémon can do this and they'll do it right after the first trial.

As someone who's trying to complete the regional dex as soon as possible, it's driving me absolutely nuts

What I thought it would be and what I would've preferred: Only some wild Pokémon can do this and you can 'summon' these Pokémon by using Honey/Sweet Scent, just like how it used to work with hordes. I mean, they have the same function as hordes when it comes to finding shinies and EV-training, so I really did expect it to work like that...

 

[Beth Pavell]

I reckon something as simple as only the original pokémon being able to call allies would alleviate the annoyance. At least then you could stop the battle getting out of hand if you're just looking for a simple catch: Zubat appears, you weaken Zubat, Zubat calls for help, second Zubat, splat the first Zubat, catch the second

 

[Alola]

I don' like it. Especially in early game because the Pokemon summoned can easily gain an overwhelming advantage that may knock you out. Easy Pokemon encounters suddenly turn into battle nightmares you hope to succeed in.

For example, after defeating my first Trial, my first SOS Battle experience was with Vullaby in Route 3. These things, at the time, were defensive powerhouses and had strong moves in Pluck and Fury Attack, while also able to lower my defenses with Leer. It was so frustrating running into one (or Spearow for that matter).

I think SOS Battles would be more appreciated if the Pokemon summoned were of a lower level, like how Horde Battles were done. That way you don't have to worry about being 2HKoed by Wild Pokemon (unless you're over-leveled for example) and catching/battling is easier. That, or make certain areas liable for SOS Battles (like Unova's dark patches of grass) rather than allowing every Pokemon the chance to successfully call for help.

Lastly, the fact that a handful of Pokemon can only be encountered by SOS Battles is also unnecessary. Keep that phenomenon sure, but I should also be able to fish up a Mareanie on its own accord too-not just by callously keeping a Corsola close to death in an effort to summon one.

 

[Beth Pavell]

I don't know, part of me likes the new challenge this brings to catching pokémon. Most of what was my completed National Dex wasn't especially difficult to obtain - trying to catch a Magby today became something to actually think about. I say "I don't know" quite deliberately, because part of me thinks that adding layers of fighting the random number god (Trying not to fish up a damn Magikarp in the first place, and then trying to get Mareanie to appear, for example) isn't so much difficult as tedious. I mean, it was obnoxious enough back with Gen V's shaking grass

 

[Sakuraa]

I don't mind it myself. It can be helpful if I find a Pokemon with a certain ability or gender that I don't want and then it calls a buddy that's what I do what. Plus it's not like they're guaranteed to be successful in their call. Heck, more often than not, I tend to see them fail I agree that it's annoying if your're trying to make a capture though.

 

[AmethystLeslie]

I found a shiny Mimikyu in 1 SOS call, so I'm inclined to call this the best thing to ever exist.

Eh, if only.

It gets annoying quick when I'm just trying to get through an area, and frustrating when you actually want pokemon to spawn and they don't. Yeah, this is kinda a step down from hordes.

 

[Muur]

It's annoying cuz when I'm trying to catch something it makes it take 50 times mroe d;

Allow you to choose who the throw the Pokeball at and I don't mind...