Name at least one thing that each Gen did better than its immediate successor

[Esserise]

It's not all upward improvement! Sometimes a new generation brings along a new idea or interpretation that just doesn't quite work as well as the one it's trying to replace. I'm curious to see which "downgrades" stand out to everyone from each generational transition.

Just to be clear, this is not really a "big picture" sort of proposition, so I'm not really looking for things that "the series" as a broad entity might have handled better in older games than it does in newer ones. The exact nature of what it was that took a step back in each case can be anything - art style, gameplay, level design, you name it - but am specifically asking for opinions on Gen 1 in direct relation to Gen 2, Gen 2 in direct relation to Gen 3, and so on.

As for my choices:

Gen 1 > Gen 2
This one is pretty difficult, considering how bare-bones Gen 1 is in comparison to its successor. Gen 2 really did add a ton of improvements and additions to the game structure. But I suppose the first thing that comes to my mind is the storyline. I think the plot of RBY has always felt quintessential and timeless, with a clear goal and clear antagonists, while Gen 2 fumbles in trying to work like a sequel, and the story lacks a sense of momentum. To me, RBY feels like a quest, while GSC feels like a lark.

Gen 2 > Gen 3
Post-game content. I'm not saying they should have had us travel to Johto or anything, nor am I saying that GSC's post-game was flawless, but going from the amount of stuff there is to do after becoming the Champion in GSC to having basically just the Battle Tower and Contests is pretty jarring, and without having any online options to switch to, it makes Hoenn feel dead. Emerald's Battle Frontier does help to mitigate against this... provided you're willing to invest in it.

Gen 3 > Gen 4
Presentation of the new Pokémon. The Hoenn games are light-years better at showcasing the new species introduced in them than the Sinnoh games are. Obviously, Platinum makes efforts to make up for what DP failed to do, but Hoenn nailed it right off the bat, with so many new Pokémon faces to meet right from the beginning. Zigzagoon, Poochyena, Wurmple, Taillow, Wingull, Seedot/Lotad, Ralts, Slakoth, Shroomish, Nincada - you are likely to have seen all of those before the first Gym. It really makes a strong impression.

Gen 4 > Gen 5
Mythical Pokémon events. While I'm not the biggest fan of these in general, if they're going to exist, then I suppose I'd rather they have something interesting to say or have us do.

I also think there are a few miscellaneous features from Gen 4 that it would have been nice to see carried over. Nothing particularly big; I'm just thinking of things like following Pokémon (all those walking sprites still exist in the code of BW, and are used in the Entree Forest), Poké Ball seals, and a photography feature like the one in HGSS.

Gen 5 > Gen 6
There's actually a lot for me to choose from here, lol. For now, I think I'll just mention the music. While I do like XY's soundtrack (it produced some of my favorite themes in the series, after all), I missed the dynamic sounds that BW put to great use in so many parts of the game, as well as the personalised Gym themes from B2W2. In fairness, I can understand why the former probably had to happen, at least (I'm guessing differences in the DS and 3DS audio systems).

Gen 6 > Gen 7

But also, I think the post-game storylines were better in Gen 6. Questionable though its ethics may be, the Looker Bureau is a character-driven pulp detective saga that makes good use of Lumiose City's geography, while the UB round-up in SM relies way too much on copy-and-paste sequences and offers less character intrigue and development in favor of some neat, but ultimately pointless lore implications.

Furthermore, although I would say that Episode RR scores higher than the Delta Episode in terms of puzzles and boss battles, it's also a blatant mish-mash of fanservice with no semblance of logic holding it together, and while that's not necessarily a bad thing (especially in the context of the 20th anniversary), I think I just prefer the Delta Episode's approach of seriously trying to continue the story of the main game, rather than taking a sudden sharp turn to go to an unrelated nostalgia party. Also, that Deoxys reveal and subsequent battle in space is still awesome.

Gen 7 > Gen 8
Boss battles. Literally none of SwSh's bosses are memorable to me other than Leon, Eternatus (admittedly only because of its presentation quality), the final battle against Mustard, and the first battle against Klara. Raihan is okay, but not consistently challenging. Meanwhile, in the Gen 7 games, most of the Totem battles were A+, and you also had tough climactic bouts like Lusamine 1, Guzma, Kukui, Ultra Necrozma, and the aforementioned RR bosses.

I've also talked about how Poké Pelago mops the floor with Poké Jobs, as it had a far more interesting and worthwhile economy, and it let me feel like my extra Pokémon were off relaxing on a nice island rather than enduring hard labor for other peoples' benefit. All that while also letting you passively accumulate treasure items, EVs, and happiness points, as well as offering the most convenient Berry farming system in the series.

 

[FinnishPokéFan92]

Gen I -> II: The reveals of the Champion and the final Gym Leader.
Gen II -> III: Post-game. Especially when compared to Ruby and Sapphire.
Gen III -> IV: Pokémon designs. Of course Gen IV had good ones too, but I feel Gen III had more good or above average ones.
Gen IV -> V: The region's layout. Especially when compared to Black and White's extremely linear region design.
Gen V -> VI: The Gym Leaders and Champion's involvement in the game's story. They basically regressed back to being boss characters and nothing more. Also, Gen V, especially the sequel games, had much more side and post-game content.
Gen VI -> VII: The PSS. Also, Gen VII has again a very linear region design that offers surprisingly little possibility for exploration and moving off the unbeaten path.
Gen VII -> VIII: Most of the Alolan characters were much more interesting than most of the Galar ones. Notable exceptions include Leon, the rivals, Opal, and Mustard.

 

[Daren]

Gen 1>Gen 2
Level scale. Johto's level scale is famously screwed after Morty, while R/B's works pretty well from after you beat Misty to the Elite Four if you only use one full party. Yellow cranked up the Gym Leader levels and threw it off a bit, though.

Gen 2>Gen 3
The rival.
I don't exactly love Silver, but the Gen 3 rival is a joke who never even fully evolves their starter.

Gen 3>Gen 4
Pokémon availability in Diamond/Pearl was awful, and everything just felt slow during gen 4.

(Didn't play gen V so I will skip everything connected to that)

Gen 6>Gen7
XY had an amazingly bloated Pokédex that was pretty fun to work through and Dexnav for ORAS was amazing.

Gen 7>Gen8
Poképelago is so much better than Pokéjobs it's almost painful.

 

[CynthiaLover]

Hmm... interesting topic. Let's see what I can add.

Gen 1 > Gen 2
Like the above post, the level scale was FAR more steady and smooth in Gen 1 compared to the atrocious level curve Johto games. While Yellow did shake things up a bit, overall Gen 1's level curves were much, much more consistent and was much easier to accommodate to compared to Johto. Also, the Kanto Starters, as much as I hate to say it, are vastly superior to the Johto Starters, who are all meh at best.

Gen 2 > Gen 3
This one is a bit hard since I only ever played one Gen 3 game, so I don't have a lot to work with. That said, the one thing that I can say Gen 2 did better was the rival. While I feel Silver is just as overrated as Blue, he's better than Brendan/May, as both gave up at Lillycove City and never fully evolved their starter. ORAS gave them a much-needed boost but that's not for here right now. Overall, while Silver was yet another jerk rival who the fandom worships like some sort of god, I will admit he was better than RS Brendan/May.

Gen 3 > Gen 4
The Mon distribution and designs in Hoenn were VASTLY superior to DP. While Platinum fixed many of the issues that DP had I will agree that Hoenn had a much better distribution of their resident Mons, especially early on. Especially compared to Sinnoh's lack of Fire Mons in DP. Again, Platinum did fix that for the most part, but Hoenn hit it out of the park right away. Plus, Hoenn had a much nicer map, with so many different terrains and environments compared to Sinnoh's mostly mountain and cave segments.

Gen 4 > Gen 5
Sinnoh was FAR less linear than Unova. While Unova did have some alcoves for exploring here and there, they were far and few between, along with minimal backtracking. While Sinnoh did suffer from the overabundance of HMs that cramped some of the exploration, at least you had to backtrack to certain places more than once to get to the next area (Jubilife City is a good example, as you have to go through it at least three times during the story to get from one point to another after obtaining a certain HM). At least B2W2 fixed that to a degree, but Sinnoh has the edge over Unova in terms of how the region is laid out.

Gen 5 > Gen 6
This one's a doozy. The story in Gen 5 knocked it out of the park compared to Gen 6 (or at least XY), which went right back to the idiot plot. The characters were SO much more well-developed, with greater personalities. All three rivals (four if you count N) had fleshed out personalities, good teams, and are vastly superior to Gen 6's (or, again, at least XY) lackluster ones. The Gym Leaders were much more involved in the plot, had well-defined personalities, and even actual jobs outside of their Gyms. The villainous team was actually threatening with a really vile leader that made you love to hate him. The sheer selection of new Mons was a much-need reprieve, forcing everyone to start from scratch, which is something I appreciated, along with many of them being outstanding in both battle and design. NO KANTO PANDERING!

Gen 6 > Gen 7
The PSS was VASTLY superior to the Festival Plaza. So simple yet elegant, making trading, battling, and adding friends so, so easy. It hugely simplified the whole process, which was a much needed addition and a great and logical way to evolve from the "union rooms" of past gens. DexNav and Soaring were incredible, the former of which the Rotom Dex should've had, as it would've been so, so easy to add it into the Rotom Dex's functions and made it less of a novelty (or less annoying).

Gen 7 > Gen 8
The stories of Gen 7 were much better than Gen 8's, as you actually get more involved in them compared to Galar where you're forced to say on the Gym trail and not get involved until things go to Hell in a handbasket. Also, Team Yell and Macros Cosmos were a blatant rehash of Team Skull and Aether Foundation, only with Macros Cosmos feeling more forced, as it almost comes out of nowhere near the end of the game with no hint of them being "bad" whatsoever until that very moment. At least Aether felt more natural, if no less obvious. The "message" of the Gen 8 games also tends to trip over itself. Is it about the spirit of competition? Or is it about environmental problems? The former is played out for most of the game while the latter suddenly drops out of nowhere near the end of the game, outside of certain moments like dex data. Also, Gen 8 is FAR more linear than Gen 7. At least Alola had the excuse that it was a small region, and the trial system worked more of a coming-of-age ritual, thus its linear nature was a bit more understanding. Galar was basically a region of corridors with minor dead-end spots littered about for no real reason.

 

[wanderist]

Gen 1>2
That godawful level curve is all I can really think of. I didn't really play GSC so I can't speak much on it but I know from others that it wasn't fixed in HGSS. I did have to grind a bit in Gen 1 but it wasn't nearly as bad and the levels weren't nearly as weird.

Gen 2>3
I guess post-game content. I find the whole Kanto post game overrated and boring, but I remember playing through Emerald as a kid and just...going through the Elite Four over and over again. There was the Battle Frontier, but if that scene isn't your thing like with me you're kinda screwed.

Gen 3>4
Pokemon availability. DP only having one fire-type if you didn't pick Chimchar is the prime example. Platinium did make that better, but I still don't think it's as good as Hoenn. And yeah, Gen 4 is just so slow to play for me that I always have problems enjoying it.

Also, Hoenn is still my favorite region design to this day (besides maybe Galar). I felt like Sinnoh was a bit of a downgrade compared to it.

Gen 4>5
The Pokemon in general. I loved the designs of Gens 3 and 4, but Gen 5 has a lot of hit and miss designs for me.

Gen 5>6
I guess the story. I actually liked XY's story and characters, but Gen 5 set the bar pretty dang high there and it always felt like there was something missing from XY's.

Gen 6>7
The PSS. Hated Festival Plaza.
Also the "super effective/not very effective" text on moves even if it is on mons you've already fought.

Gen 7>8
I guess the story and characters again. Gen 7 had my second favorite storyline, so it was a pretty high bar. Loved the lore around the puppies, the DLC storylines, and Hop's story and all in SWSH, but did take some issues to the climax and Rose. Meanwhile, Gen 7 really made me love and want to cheer for Lillie, and the adventure we went on together made the ending a little more emotional. Just felt a deeper connection to some of the characters, mainly Lillie and Gladion. Even felt more for Lusamine and her issues than I did for Rose.

 

[SeanWheeler]

Gen 1>2
Kanto. The region happens to be in both generations, but because it was a post-game area squeezed into the Johto games, and three years have passed, a lot has changed. The Safari Zone has been closed down. Viridian Forest was turned into a tree maze on Route 2. Cinnabar Island was destroyed by a volcano that popped out of nowhere to erupt, making Blaine move his Gym to the Seafoam Islands. Pewter Museum is closed. The abandoned Power Plant is being used for the new Magnet Train. Cerulean Cave has been sealed up. You can't restore any fossils. The Legendary Pokémon are gone. Kanto's Radio Tower replaces the Pokémon Tower. The cave layouts are different.

Gen 2>3
Backwards compatibility. Due to the new hardware, you can't trade with previous games. We needed to wait for FireRed and LeafGreen to have the classic Pokémon back. Generation II has a benefit of it's Time Capsule that later generations that brought back cross-gen transfers don't: You can actually trade between the two generations, meaning you can put your Charizard back in your Red game after transferring it to Gold.

Also, Brendan and May don't evolve their starters or give you any rematches after Lilycove.

Gen 3>4
I'd say cutting off a bunch of Sinnoh Pokémon from their own Pokédex is a bad thing. Platinum got most of them back in, but they were still missing seven Legendaries.

The Sevii Islands that were in the Kanto remakes didn't show up in the Johto remakes. Well, at least they brought back Viridian Forest, Pewter Museum, Cerulean Cave, fossils and the Kanto legendaries and starters to HeartGold and SoulSilver after Gold and Silver removed them.

This is the generation where the Game Corner got censored and then removed in international releases, while the luck mechanic in catching Pokémon with expensive balls are still present to this day!

Believe it or not, I loved how FireRed and LeafGreen limited you to the original 151 Pokémon until the post-game. I don't like how they added five Sinnoh evolutions to Johto's Pokédex. Those were the Pokémon that evolved through level up and they were added because there was supposedly no preventative measures against them. I see one: Take the evolution-triggering moves out of their Johto learnset and put some Move Tutors in Kanto!

Gen 4 > 5
Well, at least there's no Seasons in Gen 4. Such a dumb mechanic to have to wait for certain months to catch Pokémon. And the seasons don't even match the real world's months! They cycle three times a year in game.

Rematches are now limited to Pokémon Breeders. Not a Vs. Seeker to be given. Come on, we need to grind our Pokémon and get enough money to afford Poké Balls to gamble... er, I mean CATCH the new Pokémon. We can't gamble in Unova, there are no Game Corners, ha ha! *Sees a 1HP sleeping Vanillite. Looks at Ultra Ball in my hand that I paid $800 for. Chucks Ultra Ball. Vanillite pops out before the Ultra Ball shook.* DARN IT! *Chucks 100 Ultra Balls at it.* That's $8,000 down the drain for all that failing!

Gen 5 > 6
Post-game. Eastern Unova has some areas full of Pokémon for your National Dex, while Kalos doesn't have anything to offer in terms of post-game. Also, Unova had exclusively new Pokémon in it's regional Dex, which made it really easy to tell the National Dex Pokémon from the native Pokémon, while Kalos put so many past Pokémon in the Dex, they split it to three even though Kalos has the least amount of new Pokémon so far. They even put in the Kanto Starters and Legendaries in the Kalos Dex!

Also, Generation VI was when the games went full on 3D, so there aren't any sprites anymore.

Also, a bunch of Normal Pokémon changing to Fairy-types was so awkward for my Blaziken's Sky Uppercut attacks.

Gen 6 > Gen 7
Replacing Gyms with Island Trials. Sorry, but why change a standard Pokémon game mechanic?

And why isn't Rotom not upgrading to the National Pokédex after I beat the game? Every island has a Pokédex. I don't like having to check my collection through Pokémon Bank when X and Alpha Sapphire data are mixed in. Sun does not have any data for the Ash-Greninja I got from the demo.

Also, in the Let's Go games, it's very hard to grind because not only can you not rematch trainers, you can't even battle the Wild Pokémon! At least they finally changed the capture mechanic so that it's less gambling and more timing. But I don't catch Pokémon I already caught, or evolutions! Without any way to grind, I find myself underleveled at Gyms.

Gen 7 > Gen 8
Pokémon entirely cut from the games' coding! You know what I'm talking about. Dexit. While I would just use the team I beat the Elite Four with, and I don't transfer Pokémon between generations, I feel for the guys who like to take their favorite Pokémon through the generations. Well, at least the Isle of Armor and the Crown Tundra brought back most of the Pokémon.

And while Sword and Shield brought back Wild Pokémon in the overworld, that ring capture mechanic is gone. It's good to be able to battle Wild Pokémon, but my head hurts trying to reverse-jinx my chances every time I catch a Pokémon.

 

[RK9]

Gen 1 > 2

The Pokémon themselves. I'm not a fan of most Johto Pokémon (Only a handful really catch my attention) unlike Kanto's Pokémon.

Gen 2 > 3

No idea, truth be told. I see everyone going for the rival but goddamn, if May didn't fuck me up on the route to Mauville City with her unevolved starter. I also don't really find Kanto in GSC that notable as post-game to be considered as post-game when all it is is a boss rush to get to Red as fast as you can. I guess the fact they had day and night mechanics? I don't even know, truly.

Gen 3 > 4

Pokémon Distribution. Gen 4's was god awful at times so a lot of teams just ended up the same.

Gen 4 > Gen 5

Again, no idea. Truthfully. Maybe more reason to revisit certain places? Then again, I remember finding that a huge drag to backtrack, even if I had Fly and Surf available.

Gen 5 > Gen 6.

Do you want one or multiple? Story, Pokémon Design, character personalities, meaningful messages within the story, I can go on and on really.

Gen 6 > Gen 7

The fact that the region actually looks different. In Alola everything looked the same except for one town (I forgot the name). I feel Kalos has a lot more variety here.

Gen 7 > Gen 8

I don't... really have anything? I guess a good explanation for the Legendaries? With the Ultra Wormholes it's easier to handwave one of a kind legendaries into existance and explain them to now suddenly be in Alola up for catching, unlike the Dynamax Adventures. Other than that, I kind of have nothing here.

 

[Nicolas721]

Gen 1>2: Rivals and evil team prominence, which makes you feel more invested in the game. Also, the small quests like the coffee or the Gold teeth thing give the region more personality.
Gen 2>3: Since the postgame is too much of an obvious answer, I'm going to go with the handling of the daily events (looking at you, Mirage Island) and the day/night cycle.
Gen 3>4: HOENN. It's amazing and has very cool biomes and gimmicks, which Sinnoh tried to replicate but failed.
Gen 4>5: The Poketch is the best thing ever, the C-Gear is such an useless downgrade.
Gen 5>6: Like in Gen I, rival and evil team prominence. Also, the features, even if I prefer Gen IV's.
Gen 6>7: Pokedex distribution. In Kalos every zone feels unique and alive, whereas in Alola only the secluded zones feel like that whereas the main routes spam Trumbeak, Yungoos and Pelipper.
Gen 7>8: Difficulty, it's weird that the "vacation" region has harder challenges than the "competitive" region. Also, the villains are more developed.

 

[Gligarman]

Gen 2 - Let you organize you items.
Gen 3 - Let you run on the map before getting the bike.
Gen 4 - Introduced Bibarel who could learn almost every HM.
Gen 5 - Had a region set outside of Japan (which was based on my home city!!!)
Gen 6 - Added customizable trainers.
Gen 7 - Added ACTUAL skin color options and also got rid of those dreaded HM's.
Gen 8 - Introduced EXP candies, Nature mints, increased vitamin limit, and Ability Patches to finally take the tedium out of raising battle-ready Pokemon!

 

[Phosphene]

Gen 2 - Let you organize you items.
Gen 3 - Let you run on the map before getting the bike.
Gen 4 - Introduced Bibarel who could learn almost every HM.
Gen 5 - Had a region set outside of Japan (which was based on my home city!!!)
Gen 6 - Added customizable trainers.
Gen 7 - Added ACTUAL skin color options and also got rid of those dreaded HM's.
Gen 8 - Introduced EXP candies, Nature mints, increased vitamin limit, and Ability Patches to finally take the tedium out of raising battle-ready Pokemon!

Uh... I think you've got the wrong thread.

 

[Gligarman]

Uh... I think you've got the wrong thread.

Did I not list at least one thing that each gen did better than the previous one?

 

[swiftgallade46]

Did I not list at least one thing that each gen did better than the previous one?

Successor refers to the generation following; not previous

 

[RileyXY1]

Here's my picks.

Gen 1 > Gen 2
The level curve is by far more manageable in the Gen 1 games, making it easier to train up Pokemon and ensuring that the Gym Leader's levels are around that of your own Pokemon. Also, evolutionary stones are much easier to obtain in RBY.

Gen 2 > Gen 3
GSC have more post game content, which is not really fair, as GSC have a whole second region to explore after beating the game while RSE just has a bunch of extra features. GSC also has a much better rival who doesn't give up after the sixth Gym (and you actually get to see their fully evolved starter).

Gen 3 > Gen 4
There are a lot of things that RSE did better than DP. First off, the Hoenn games have better Pokemon distribution and more type variety available, but Platinum fixed these issues. Hoenn was also less convoluted to navigate, even in the water areas. Some of DP's new Pokemon are also locked behind convoluted methods, such as Drifloon, Spiritomp, and Munchlax.

Gen 4 > Gen 5
Unova is just a straight line from start to finish, unlike in Sinnoh which is a massive sprawling region to explore (even if much of the complaints against HMs come from this game, as the Sinnoh games are the games where you are the most reliant on HMs). The Gen 4 games also have a lot of personalization features that didn't make the transition to Gen 5, such as Accessories, Ball Seals, and of course, the following Pokemon feature from HGSS.

Gen 5 > Gen 6
Unova has a much better story and deeper characters than Kalos does. Also, you have a lot more to do in Unova after beating the game than in Kalos. With only new Pokemon available until the postgame, Unova's new Pokemon are front and center while in Kalos they are drowned out by the massive number of old Pokemon.

Gen 6 > Gen 7
The obvious thing is online connectivity. The PSS is better than the Festival Plaza. Kalos also has far better Pokemon variety than Alola does, with each area in Kalos being it's own ecosystem with its own Pokemon found there, while in Alola the same common Pokemon appear everywhere while rarer Pokemon are drowned out and hard to come by.

Gen 7 > Gen 8
Alola does region design far better than Galar, as Alola is home to many areas off the beaten path to explore (even if the game itself is linear) while Galar is just a series of corridors with some dead end areas here and there, but not as much as Alola does. Also, the story twist is much less forced in Sun & Moon than in Sword & Shield. The Ride Pokemon feature is also better than the Rotom Bike.

 

[Gligarman]

Successor refers to the generation following; not previous

Ah, misread the title. In that case.

Gen 1 > Gen 2
Collecting all of the Pokemon required less games and therefore was far more manageable.

Gen 2 > Gen 3
Not only expanded on the first game by making the Kanto map accessible, but it also felt like a genuine sequel whereas Gen 3 is basically a reboot.

Gen 3 > Gen 4
Much easier to explore the map thanks to significantly less emphasis on HM's.

Gen 4 > Gen 5
Better anime adaptation.

Gen 5 > Gen 6
Better map, better story, better characters. This was the best Gen in my opinion!

Gen 6 > Gen 7
Also had a better anime adaption (the best so far!)

Gen 7 > Gen 8
Being able to grown your own berries but most importantly, this was the last game to have a proper National Dex.

 

[Rantaro]

Gen I>II
Gonna echo the level curve issue many have noted. The biggest issues was making Pryce the 7th gym leader--his strongest Pokemon is weaker than the 6th gym leader's level wise. If they had done Falkner>Bugsy>Whitney>Morty>Pryce>Chuck>Jasmine>Clair it would've worked much better. Level curve would've evened out and there'd be more space between the rocket hideout and radio tower takeover, which I felt were too close together even back in the day.

Gen II>III
The post game in gen II give you much more to do than the post game in gen III (excluding the battle frontier, but that was at the tail end of the gen so). I also prefer Gen II's soundtrack, personally.

Gen III>IV
Gen III was significantly better optimised for its hardware than Gen IV was. Anyone who remembers going from RSE to DP remembers how horrifically SLOW they ran (and they're essentially unplayable for me now). It was fixed in Platinum, but we had already had to deal with two years of a snail's pace with DP at that point. The type distribution was also much better in Gen III than it was in Gen IV (I'm looking at you, DP, with your two fire types).

Gen IV>Gen V
Sinnoh was much more interesting to explore--I didn't even mind the backtracking in the region. Unova is just very linear. However, it has the story to back it up, which helps. I also feel Gen IV had more consistently good Pokemon designs than Gen V. Don't get me wrong, Gen V has some fantastic designs, but they're very hit and miss.

Gen V>Gen VI
Gen V's story, characters, and post game blew Gen VI out of the water. The biggest blow too me was how the gym leaders when from important characters to boss fights again. Honestly, in hindsight we went from arguably the best generation, to arguably the worst.

Gen VI>Gen VII
PSS was brilliant and sorely missed in SM. Also, the easy EV training in Gen VI was fantastic. It was the only time I had a competitive team.

Gen VII>Gen VIII
Gen VII had a much better story than Gen VIII did (although the protagonist's lack of character expressions does kind of ruin it times). I guess you could also argue for it having every Pokemon available, though personally Dexit never bothered me.

 

[Epic Spheal]

Gen 1 > Gen 2: Making the region stand on its own two feet, I feel like Johto leaned too heavily on it's relationship with Kanto which is sad because I like the idea of the interconnectivity of regions as it makes the Pokemon World feel alive

Gen 2 > Gen 3: Post-game content

Gen 3 > Gen 4: Pokemon design and spread across the region, The region itself

Gen 4 > Gen 5: Better anime adaptation

Gen 5 > Gen 6: Better use of the characters and a storied while flawed actually was fleshed out.

Gen 6 > Gen 7: PSS, Better Pokemon Variety

Gen 7 > Gen 8: Team Skull was better than Team Yell, As much as I hate both the Aether Family Foundation Plot and Macros Cosmos plot, the Aether Family Foundation made more sense (even though it still feels out of place and takes away the charm of Alola). You could customize your trainers throw (I wanted a left handed throw in and custom Dynamax animation for my player character). Ride Pager > Rotom Bike.

 

[Esserise]

I wanted a left handed throw

Yeah, what's up with removing that? I'm not left-handed myself, but I am always happy to see more inclusivity in customization. Especially since SwSh do have a left-handed Trainer (Bede), so it's not like they suddenly forgot about lefties.

Leave it to Game Freak to inadvertently stumble upon a good QoL feature by looking for ways to pad out a far more niche mechanic and then never realize what they found. (see also: Difficulty modes)

 

[Minya_Nouvelle]

This is actually harder than I thought:

Gen 1 > Gen 2: Better use of legendaries all around. I literally didn't know that the beasts were even catchable for a long time as a kid because I never had the random encounter. The way the legendary birds and Mewtwo were tucked away in different sections of the map was always a lot of fun. Lugia, Ho-oh and the beasts felt a bit lack luster in comparison.

Gen 2 > Gen 3: Better utilization of clock-based events.

Gen 3 > Gen 4: It did secret bases much better. I also liked the regional dex a lot more. It had a good amount of brand new pokemon while gen 4 felt a bit bogged down by most of its new pokemon being evolutions of old Pokemon or completely forgettable pokemon like burmy and combee.

Gen 4> Gen 5: Is it cheating to compare Super Contests to Musicals? If so, I would pick the music, I think. I'm not a fan of most of the Black/White soundtrack. The linear feeling of Black and White only really applies to the 1st game, so I'll give it a pass on that.

Gen 5> Gen 6: Much better post-game content. Gen 5 had so much post game content. Even if you took out PWT; it still has way more. It is ridiculous.

Gen 6> Gen 7: Better clothing options? It's hard to compare these gens, but I feel like the Kalos map/region has a better look and feel to it overall. It minimized the need for HMs while still having a pretty substantial victory road and other puzzle-y caves.

Gen 7> Gen 8: I think it handled Regional Variants better.

With the Ultra Wormholes it's easier to handwave one of a kind legendaries into existance and explain them to now suddenly be in Alola up for catching, unlike the Dynamax Adventures. Other than that, I kind of have nothing here.

Actually, they used exactly the same explanation for Dynamax Adventures (or at least kind of hinted at it),

 

[WyndonCalling]

This isn't really something Kanto does 'better' than Johto since the latter has a fair number of interesting species gimmicks and the 251 are really meant to be considered as a cohesive whole, but I think it's worth noting how experimental a lot of the RBY roster is, despite being the progenitor titles. Though we may think of it as fairly mundane groundwork, Gen 1 brought us gender differences, branching evolutionary trees, trade and stone evolutions, fossil Pokémon, Magikarp's shtick, and perhaps the most conceptually ambitious species ever with Ditto.

 

[Lanstar]

Gen I > II: The Pokemon Sprites. In one way the artwork of the Pokemon may have looked crude in R/B. However, they felt much more alive than Gen II, and even most other generations. The odd perspectives and angles they are shown, and the sense of emotion they try to invoke make them very iconic and memorable, as opposed to later gens, where they went more static and representational.

Gen II > III: The continuity. Johto was an expansion and continuation of the lore and story created by Gen I, which is still the most canon part of the series to most pokefans. Gen. III feels too isolated from the other 2 generations, and it also enforced the "Start all over again" stagnation of the anime, which I still despise as of today.

Gen III > IV: The Region. I liked Hoenn so much more as a region overall than Sinnoh - The Hidden places for secret bases, the contrast and design of the towns, the waterways to dive through, and many of the routes as well. Gen. IV may have had great exploration, but Gen. III had better aesthetics to me overall.

Gen IV > V: I haven't played Gen V yet, but one thing I'd put IV over V confidently is the Lore of the Legendaries. The loftiness of their powers is still unmatched: Controlling time and space, a distorted realm, embodiments of knowledge, emotion and willpower... They've yet to make anything as powerful lorewise ever since - As if they put all their eggs in one generational basket, in a way.

Gen V > VI: The depth of the postgame. All the glorious hidden places I've heard about in BW/2, as well as things like seasons really make me want s to play those games someday. Gen IV was a big regression in such content in comparison, even compared to Gen IV.

Gen VI > VII: The Online Features and Interface. Enough said.

Gen VII > VIII: Haven't play SW/SH, but I'd say S/M had much better Character and Pokemon designs. I liked the Alola Starters and Evos bar Incineroar a lot more than the Galar ones, and the characters in Alola were incredibly well designed and memorable. The Anime adoption of those characters only improved my impressions of them even more.