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SUPER POLL: What is your FAVOURITE main series Pokémon game (or games) of all time?

Which is the best main series game/s in your opinion?

  • RGB

  • Yellow

  • Gold/ Silver

  • Crystal

  • Ruby/ Sapphire

  • FR/LG

  • Emerald

  • Diamond/ Pearl

  • Platinum

  • HeartGold/ SoulSilver

  • Black/ White

  • BW2

  • XY

  • ORAS

  • Sun/ Moon

  • Ultra Sun/ Ultra Moon


Results are only viewable after voting.

Boss1708

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I made a similar thread before the release of Sun and Moon, and I think now is the time for an updated version of that thread, to include Gen VII. Also, some people might have changed their ranking of favourites since 2016.

So:

1. Choose your favourite main series game from the poll: the game you consider to be the best, in your opinion. If you happen to consider more than one game as the best, you can select up to THREE different games from the poll, if you consider them equally great.


2. In the comment section, rank your Top 3 or Top 5 games, or just rank all the games from RGB to USUM, and say what you like about said games. Whatever you feel like. :)

I expect a lot of you guys to vote and comment, otherwise the poll won't mean much... So, C'mon!
 
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This is a real toughie for me! Crystal has longtime been my favorite, because it was pretty much just perfecting of an already amazing game (G/S). I loved finally being able to play as a female trainer. That's the thing, though. It's been a very long time since I played through Crystal (2006, maybe?) and I don't remember everything. Lol.

In recent years the games I have enjoyed the most have been Black and X. Of course, Black 2 was great, too, but Black just really got me with the requirement to play only from the new Pokemon. It was very refreshing. I would probably put X below Black, but I also love X and know it will need some love in the polls because that generation is so hated now. =(
 
This a nice thread for me to come back on

Emerald's been my favorite ever since I started playing the games, and still is mainly because the post-game content is my favorite, which includes, but not limited to, the Battle Frontier, an extended Safari Zone, Legendary hunting, and Contests.

Runner up is Black 2/White 2, which is Black/White but better in many ways, including a darker story, a much more challenging game, and, just like Emerald, a great post-game including the PWT and exploring a new part of the region.

Third's a relatively surprising pick for me: Ultra Sun/Ultra Moon. It's my third favorite as well as my most mixed, since I loved Sun/Moon, and this was an enhanced Sun/Moon game, however it was promoted a lot to be a separate game, which in the end was 20% true, making me relatively annoyed that I paid 40 bucks for something I thought would be original, like Black 2.

This list has actually changed a lot since 2016 (though I don't remembering posting about it), since XY and HeartGold/SoulSilver were second and third, respectively.
 
Depends on whether or not I can count BW and B2W2 as a singular entity. I never play one without playing the other, so they’re pretty much welded together in my head.

If not, then my Top 3 would be BW, then B2W2, then Crystal. BW were the games that got me back into the series, and they either lived up to or exceeded every expectation I had based on the material I’d seen. They completely changed my conception at that time of what Pokémon games were capable of doing, and all in all are just very special to me. B2W2 are arguably the better games by virtue of having much more content, and I do love that aspect of them. Honestly, it’s a matter of decimals between them or BW taking the top spot. But what puts BW over the sequels for me is that BW were the bold ones that overturned all of the formulas and took big risks in the spirit of innovation. B2W2 are only able to move about so confidently and pack in so much stuff because of the road paved for them by the work of their predecessors (also, the brain-shakingly disastrous handling of the Easy and Challenge Modes loses them some points).

After that comes Crystal, which is just a really beautiful game. The animated sprites are so crisp and characterized, the Suicune plot is actually interesting and has an amazing atmosphere unlike HGSS’s cheap knockoff, and the upgrades (visual and mechanical) to the initial pair are all very nice, albeit not quite as extensive as I think they could have been (but I’m willing to cut a lot of slack for the first two generations when it comes to stuff like that - it’s the fact that HGSS still fail to rectify those issues that actually limits my appreciation for those games in comparison to the original GSC). Also, Kris is just really freaking cool. And I suppose I should mention that, much like with BW, Crystal just happens to be a very personally meaningful game for me, because it’s the game that I got the most into back when I was young. I had a rough relationship with RBY, and GS were certainly cool and fun, but something about Crystal just really hooked me. Shame about Mareep getting the axe, though.

If I could count BW and B2W2 as one entity, then my third choice would be... a tie, between Ruby & Sapphire and X & Y. For very similar reasons - mainly I’m just constantly impressed by how far both of them go as grand opening “statements” about what Pokémon can be and do on their respective new consoles. They both charge in, guns blazing with a host of brand new ideas, hardly stopping to second-guess themselves at any moment. Not everything works quite as well as it could, but that’s a kind of confidence that I really appreciate in general. I also think that these two games introduced the best overall waves of new Pokémon, and XY are like the most replayable games ever for me, so that earns them a lot of points in my book despite their shortcomings.

(For the record, I played fair and voted for BW, B2W2, and Crystal.)
 
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I voted Emerald, Platinum, and BW (I still haven't played BW2 yet, other than up to the second badge on a ROM, so I can't really compare it with BW)

Sapphire was the first Pokémon game I owned, so there is some Gen III bias. Regardless, I've always found Hoenn to be a particularly fun region to explore. And Emerald simply has a bunch of upgrades that make it stand out from R/S, plus I do think the plot was a little better fleshed out in this version. ORAS is an upgrade in that department, but loses points for me due to alterations from the original, like the removal of the Berry Blender minigame (the much cited lack of the BF is another one, though it wasn't in RS either. Still, they could have at least included the Tower). Beside that, I really love the selection of Pokémon it offers. Also, the diving routes and abandoned ship are just interesting. It's a fun way of going around the region. Oh and I shouldn't forget about Secret Bases. Exploring the Hoenn region feels like a proper adventure.

Just like Emerald, I choose Platinum cause it's a far smoother experience compared to D/P. And again, a region I really enjoy exploring. The region design is immersive and diverse, which genuinely makes it a joy for me to explore over and over. It also fixes the Dex issues D/P had, and gives access to a lot more Pokémon. Additionally, things like the PokeRadar are fun to use (though also frustrating sometimes). Lastly, I really enjoy how so much of the lore is presented in the region design itself. Actually, I forgot one more thing. The Underground is a great way to pass time and gain valuable items.

And that brings me to BW. It was actually released around the time I started losing my interest in the franchise for a while. I was excited for BW, loved it, but then after decided to skip BW2 (which I regret a little now). First of, I was never bothered by the linearity of the region. There is so much to explore, and you're allowed to travel from 'bubble' to 'bubble', so even if there's only one direction you can go in, which is noticeable on the map, while adventuring through the region it didn't bother me. I also really like the selection of Pokémon the region offers. A lot of my favourite designs were introduced in Gen V. Add in things like seasons, a good, well-written plot, a large post-game, and you got pretty much the total package.

So, that's my top 3 in no particular order. Mostly cause each of them, while in my top 3 because of similar criteria, also offer things unique to them. features not found in the others. For example, I enjoyed Contests, but Super Contests were a downgrade for me, and Musicals... eh the less said, the better.
 
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I voted for Emerald, BW2 and HGSS, in that order. They are my absolute favourites. Besides, they represent the best parts of my 3 favourite regions: Johto, Hoenn and Unova.

1. Emerald: I came to realize that this is the best Pokémon game for me, bar none. It's the best game in a purely gameplay perspective. It shows the fantastic Hoenn region in its full awesomeness, with a memorable trumpet heavy soundtrack, beautiful colour palette and art style... and tops it off with what is the most important thing in a Pokémon game for me: tons of game content. Contests, Secret Bases, a Battle Frontier with 7 facilities (and actually interesting ones, unlike the Gen IV Frontier...), and even the Trainer Tower from FRLG is added as a bonus, for a total of a whopping 8 battle facilities. Plus some cute minigames on top of that. All of the aforementioned things combined, coupled with the all-around stunning atmosphere and unmatched sense of exploration, make Emerald N1 for me.

The only thing that slightly lowers the final score, is the lack of some needed mechanical improvements, like the physical- special move split from Gen IV onwards, no reusable TM, a less comfortable touchscreen interface, etc. This is the only flaw of Emerald.

2. BW2. A fantastic game that comes close to being my favourite. The world and atmosphere are great and perfectly depict the busy Unovan life, the music is very good for the most part and the gym leaders and E4 are more interesting than in most other games. And again, the game has a lot of content. The PWT is especially remarkable, but there is a lot more.

This game comes so near to the N1 spot in my ranking, especially because, aside from being a fantastic game, it has all the needed modern mechanics (unlike Emerald and HGSS). Aside of reusable TM and easier Max Repel spamming, one thing that I really appreciate is the "Super" lines in Battle Facilities, meaning that after you lose a streak in the Battle Subway, you don't have to start from the very bottom of fighting Pidgeys and Rattatas for 15 battles in a row, but you directly start off against tough rivals from the start. This is a big bonus that BW2 has for me.

3. HGSS: Until recently, I considered HGSS to be n1 in my ranking, tied with Emerald and BW2. But I realized that it falls slightly behind these two for me.

I absolutely love the regions (especially Johto is great), the art style, the music (everyone seems to dislike it, but it's awesome imo), the atmosphere, etc. But the one thing that makes HGSS be "just" third in my ranking, is it's Battle Frontier; contrary to the amazing Hoenn BF, the Gen IV one that we see in HGSS and Platinum is a lot less interesting for me, not to mention smaller.

I am not a fan of rental battles, so other than your classic battle tower, you have three decent facilities that are not really very exciting or different. I guess if I had to choose one, that would be the Battle Arcade, which at least has an element of surprise I like. But it can't really compare to the Dome, Arena, Pike and Pyramid in Emerald, or the PWT in BW2. Those are the pinnacle of battle facilities for me.

Still, HGSS is great, and the Pokeathlon is one of the best features ever.

4. Platinum. I will be very clear here. Platinum is as great as HGSS content wise, and it has the same good (but not great) Battle Frontier. However, imo Super Contests are vastly inferior to the Pokeathlon, which makes me rank the game below HGSS. The other point why I rank it lower, is because I like Johto plus Kanto a lot, whereas Sinnoh I do like, but definitely not as much. And I find some parts of Sinnoh a bit claustrophobic. But Platinum is a solid game despite that.

5. US/UM: it is a game that tries to be great, but doesn't quite achieve the level of quality of the previous third versions. It is still good though, thanks to the interesting plot, and some solid features like Mantine mini game, the Battle Tree and Royal, etc.

However, it disappoints a lot in terms of exploration. And the amount of cutscene dialogues.

5. ORAS: imo ORAS could rank even higher, because it has a lot of solid things going for it. A beautiful interpretation of Hoenn, great atmosphere, beautiful small touches that other games lack (wingulls flying over your head, luvdiscs and chinchous under water , etc) that make the whole world feel alive and the DexNav which makes wild encounters more exciting, and so on.

However, when put into the context of our previous remake (HGSS) and the previous Hoenn game (Emerald) ORAS feels a bit lacking, unfortunately. Even half assed, in certain things (no gym leader remaches, no Battle Frontier, no replacement for the Game Corner). In short, ORAS is good, but also disappointing cause we all know it could have been a lot better.

Honorary mentions go to Crystal, which is a great game for its time (but is mostly overshadowed by HGSS today) and BW1, which is one of the most groundbreaking games in the franchise, and the best beginning of a generation to date.
 
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the music (everyone seems to dislike it, but it's awesome imo)

The music is one of the things I actually do like about HGSS, which I’m otherwise not a big fan of. I think I still prefer the original chiptunes overall, but a lot of the remixes were pretty good. Dark Cave and Bell Tower especially. I also like that they gave Ecruteak and Cianwood their own distinct versions of the same theme.
 
I recently did a countdown of my favorite games in the blogs. My top 3 are
3. Black & White
2. Black 2 & White 2
1. HGSS

I doubt that will change any time soon. I haven't liked the new games since XY and SUMO are some of my most hated games.
 
In order:

1. Platinum
2. HGSS
3. BW2

None of the others are even close, they all have significantly flaws that detract from the experience. These 3 are easily the most balanced experiences.
 
1. Platinum - this is mainly cause gen IV is my favorite generation of games and Sinnoh my favorite region. It's also a better gen IV experience compared to DP imo.

2. HGSS - my favorite of the remakes, also following Pokémon is great + the Pokeathlon was fun, spent many hours there. Loved going through Johto again in these games.

3. BW - gen V is my second fav generation and it introduced a lot of Pokémon I like in these games. Also liked the story and the PC characters are my favorites design wise of the bunch.

Runner ups: BW2, ORAS, XY, Emerald, Crystal, and USM.
 
1. Platinum
2. HeartGold / SoulSilver
3. Black 2 & White 2

And what I couldn't vote for:

4. X/Y (despite it's many flaws, I just love the games)
5. Tie: Black & White & Omega Ruby & Alpha Sapphire

Honorable mention goes to Sun & Moon / Ultra Sun & Ultra Moon - these games would have been great if the post games weren't so meh. GameFreak should take note of this poll, there is a lot of love here for B2W2.

Note: I've never played Pokemon Emerald and I only recently played Crystal on Virtual Console. I can understand the love for Crystal, but since I played HG/SS prior to Crystal, Crystal just seems like a cheap stripped down version of HG/SS. Diamond and Pearl didn't get ranked because those games are essentially cheap stripped down versions of Platinum.
 
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The music is one of the things I actually do like about HGSS, which I’m otherwise not a big fan of. I think I still prefer the original chiptunes overall, but a lot of the remixes were pretty good. Dark Cave and Bell Tower especially. I also like that they gave Ecruteak and Cianwood their own distinct versions of the same theme.
I really like the Cerulean City theme and the Dark Cave one.
 
i never got the 3DS so black and white 2 are the most recent games i've played and i would rank that second after black and white with heartgold/soulsilver being an obvious close third for me
i was overwhelmed that first time playing pokemon black and crossing the major bridge at night when i left nacrene. I could see the twists along the way and see the trucks passing along from down below. Also, castellia city really does humour you when all those people are rushing past and won't stop for no one!
 
Remember that this is only my opinion people!

1 - Emerald I find Emerald to be the best Pokémon game out there for now. It’s just very well done in all areas.

Hoenn has a desert, jungle, volcano, city, islands, and sea routes all in one. It wasn’t like Kanto or Johto where although not everything was the same, every area had the same style and concept.

It also has a vast set of Pokémons, unlike D/P where they were limited and B/W and FR/LG where there are only Pokémon of one generation. Another thing is that it wasn’t exactly the hardest game out there, but it was no walk in the park, like the newer games. This is a big issue for me. Unfortunately they make it too easy these days.

And while I prefer Team Rocket because they’re actually a criminal organization unlike the other ones where they want to destroy the world, Team Magma and Aqua were great. They didn’t want to destroy the world, but modify it in their twisted ways. The addition of Rayquaza made the story even better: I don’t really like it when the stakes are too high, like what they are doing recently, involving the universe and all.

And of course the Battle Frontier. It was one of a kind and exclusive to this game only. Great postgame.

I’d actually include ORAS as my second favorite just because I love Hoenn and seeing everything (my childhood!) revived. But I’m not gonna do that. you know at this point I’m fanboying

2 - B2W2

The only thing B/W has that is better than its sequel is its story. Other than that, B2W2 improves in every aspect. Exploring Kanto again in HG/SS was sometimes VERY boring but in B2W2 it actually feels like a sequel. I had fun exploring Unova all over again for some reason and it made many Unova characters more memorable. PWT was amazing, it almost rivals the Battle Frontier. The reason why it ranks so high is that b2W2 made me like Unova. When I played B/W I hated it and I still think Unova has the worst Pokémons.

My only complaint is that Nate’s design is abysmal. Nobody in real life looks like that, especially a 13 years old...

Other than that, B2W2 ranks very high on my list and was a great Pokémon adventure.

3 - HG/SS

It was more of a challenge than the games they’re based on (G/S/C), also Johto looked much more beautiful than before. It’s the game that has the longest post game content of the series: 2 regions, and many legendaries to capture. It added more character to Silver in that Celebi event. And of course, one of the best feelings is to re-visit Kanto. The Johto games are the only games that directly link one region to another. I love Fire Red (I love all the Pokémon games honestly but Gen 3 holds a special place in my heart) so re visiting Kanto just to know what happened to everyone that was in my Kanto adventure was great. Bonus points for making Pokémons follow you: unique and cool feature.

What this game suffers from, however, is what makes it cool: even though exploring Kanto again is cool, it’s a whole region and you’re exploring it with no story and all, so it gets pretty boring after a while. Also the game in itself is slow, something that every Gen 4 game suffers from. The level curve is the worst in the series too.

Honorable mention - Sun and Moon

Didn’t play the Ultra versions because I was afraid of the whole “Yeah we only changed 10% of the game but it’s completely different trust me”

Ignoring this, Alola was charming for sure. Reason why it especially gets a honorable mention is because it’s very unique and original while still having the Pokémon charm. Considered it the best game when I first finished it but looking back it wasn’t as memorable as the other three. Z-Moves were completely unnecessary too. Rivals were great though, and some of the Totem Battles would hit you hard if you weren’t careful. (Surprisingly enough)
 
Remember that this is only my opinion people!

1 - Emerald I find Emerald to be the best Pokémon game out there for now. It’s just very well done in all areas.

Hoenn has a desert, jungle, volcano, city, islands, and sea routes all in one. It wasn’t like Kanto or Johto where although not everything was the same, every area had the same style and concept.

It also has a vast set of Pokémons, unlike D/P where they were limited and B/W and FR/LG where there are only Pokémon of one generation. Another thing is that it wasn’t exactly the hardest game out there, but it was no walk in the park, like the newer games. This is a big issue for me. Unfortunately they make it too easy these days.

And while I prefer Team Rocket because they’re actually a criminal organization unlike the other ones where they want to destroy the world, Team Magma and Aqua were great. They didn’t want to destroy the world, but modify it in their twisted ways. The addition of Rayquaza made the story even better: I don’t really like it when the stakes are too high, like what they are doing recently, involving the universe and all.

And of course the Battle Frontier. It was one of a kind and exclusive to this game only. Great postgame.

I’d actually include ORAS as my second favorite just because I love Hoenn and seeing everything (my childhood!) revived. But I’m not gonna do that. you know at this point I’m fanboying

2 - B2W2

The only thing B/W has that is better than its sequel is its story. Other than that, B2W2 improves in every aspect. Exploring Kanto again in HG/SS was sometimes VERY boring but in B2W2 it actually feels like a sequel. I had fun exploring Unova all over again for some reason and it made many Unova characters more memorable. PWT was amazing, it almost rivals the Battle Frontier. The reason why it ranks so high is that b2W2 made me like Unova. When I played B/W I hated it and I still think Unova has the worst Pokémons.

My only complaint is that Nate’s design is abysmal. Nobody in real life looks like that, especially a 13 years old...

Other than that, B2W2 ranks very high on my list and was a great Pokémon adventure.

3 - HG/SS

It was more of a challenge than the games they’re based on (G/S/C), also Johto looked much more beautiful than before. It’s the game that has the longest post game content of the series: 2 regions, and many legendaries to capture. It added more character to Silver in that Celebi event. And of course, one of the best feelings is to re-visit Kanto. The Johto games are the only games that directly link one region to another. I love Fire Red (I love all the Pokémon games honestly but Gen 3 holds a special place in my heart) so re visiting Kanto just to know what happened to everyone that was in my Kanto adventure was great. Bonus points for making Pokémons follow you: unique and cool feature.

What this game suffers from, however, is what makes it cool: even though exploring Kanto again is cool, it’s a whole region and you’re exploring it with no story and all, so it gets pretty boring after a while. Also the game in itself is slow, something that every Gen 4 game suffers from. The level curve is the worst in the series too.

Honorable mention - Sun and Moon

Didn’t play the Ultra versions because I was afraid of the whole “Yeah we only changed 10% of the game but it’s completely different trust me”

Ignoring this, Alola was charming for sure. Reason why it especially gets a honorable mention is because it’s very unique and original while still having the Pokémon charm. Considered it the best game when I first finished it but looking back it wasn’t as memorable as the other three. Z-Moves were completely unnecessary too. Rivals were great though, and some of the Totem Battles would hit you hard if you weren’t careful. (Surprisingly enough)
You have the same exact Top 3 games like me: Emerald, BW2 and HGSS, in that order.

Nice taste XD
 
1. Platinum
2. Black/White
3. RGB

Oh gosh I'm the only one with RGB on my list that makes me feel a little odd considering everything. I feel like Platinum and black/white don't need an explanation. I do feel the need to defend my like of RGB though. While not the most technically impressive on the list I feel like there are lots of overlooked aspects of gen 1 that disserve praise, I think the original 150 had the best Pokémon distribution. Even in sun and moon I feel like I have to wait until I have a good sized team, I love black/white but the Pokémon distribution is crap if you don't want a dog or a cat your going to have a hard time in the first few hours of the game. Not so in RGB, and in addition gen 1 is really good at making you feel powerful very early on, you can have a nidoking or nidoqueen by mt.moon and there really isn't any reason not to get these powerful Pokémon right away. I always feel like a scrub again starting off in new Pokémon games where level up moves and Pokémon distribution is carefully monitored to make sure I can't do to much to early. There really is no other game in the Pokémon franchise quite like RGB.
 
Hm... I feel like this is too hard because my nostalgia is clashing with actual facts. On one hand, I LOVED diamond and pearl because it was the first game that really felt like MINE, as I was young growing up with siblings before that. But I also feel like I can't put DP over platinum because Platinum is just an objectively better Sinnoh experience... It's weird. I'll put in parentheses games which are somewhat the same but can't quite be treated the same.

1. Platinum (DP)
2. Black and White (B2W2)
3. HeartGold and SoulSilver

While I know that BW2 definitely have some parts that are completely better than BW, I just enjoyed my original journey through Unova more. Maybe it was the lack of old Pokemon (yes, I'm on of the few that actually liked that), or maybe it's the pokemon I picked. Either way, the sequels we're good, possibly better games, but not a better experience for me personally, if that makes sense.
 
1)Platinum - the best special edition/third version by far. It fixed pretty much every flaw Diamond/Pearl had (the slow surfing/battling speed, awful regional Dex, clunky Poketch), most Move Tutors are accessible before beating the game, Distortion World is amazing, the region is very large and explorable, the Gym Leaders/Elite Four are't complete pushovers, and the game has tons of content, including the Battle Frontier.
2) Black 2/White 2 - a definite step up from the disappointing Black/White. Love the fact (again) most Move Tutors aren't locked until post-game, Join Avenue, PokeStar Studios, the new locations (especially Neo Victory Road and Seaside Cave). Too bad the difficulty levels are so poorly implemented, and the remixed battle themes in PWT also leave much to be desired.
3) HeartGold/SoulSilver - love the Pokeathlon, the large number of starters and legendaries available. the walking Pokemon feature, the region (especially the areas west of Cianwood). The awful level curve and Kanto critters getting too much focus are still there, though.
 
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