Who thought it was a good idea to put photorealistic walnuts in a Pokemon cartoon?
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(Little) Things that annoy you in Pokémon
- Thread starter BriarRose
- Start date
Who thought it was a good idea to put photorealistic walnuts in a Pokemon cartoon?
walking outside on Citadark Isle crag parts with the platforms, near the helix shape with 3 rare candies
random battle-
SUDDENLY BACK INSIDE THE VOLCANO.
(breaks immersion, mostly because Citadark has fantastic atmosphere).
random battle-
SUDDENLY BACK INSIDE THE VOLCANO.
(breaks immersion, mostly because Citadark has fantastic atmosphere).
I really dislike it when moves that formerly had low distribution/were signature suddenly get a much wider distribution. I know there is a balance that needs to be drawn between having too much signature stuff, but it really does make them feel less special, especially when the move has a thematic component that is ignored.
The worst case of this is probably with Sticky Web.
The only ones here I feel are justified in getting this move are Ariados, Galvantula, Araquanid, and (maybe) Leavanny. It makes sense on spider Pokemon for obvious reasons (even though tarantulas and diving bell spiders don't use webs in the typical way, they do still make them). The insect that Sewaddle is based on is notable for using silk to make shelters, which I guess is close enough.
Slurpuff's justification is that Swirlix is made of cotton candy, which as a sticky substance composed of strands is kind of like a spider web (eh, maybe). I don't think there's any reason for any of the others (some crickets do produce silk, but is that really communicated in its design at all?)
The worst part is that it seems like they're trying to give Sticky Web to all the 3-stage "Route 1 Bugs". The Grubbin and Blipbug lines both got it in Gen 8, even though neither of them spin cocoons in their pupal stages (or produce silk at all, as far as I'm aware). I don't even think that spinning cocoons alone should be sufficient justification to get the move, but these two don't even have that excuse. It just feels like they're mindlessly slapping it onto Bug-types as a "Bug buff".
Compare this to how Spiky Shield was made non-signature, it seems a lot more reasonable (Ferrothorn should probably get it too, though it'd be infuriating to play against).
The worst case of this is probably with Sticky Web.
The only ones here I feel are justified in getting this move are Ariados, Galvantula, Araquanid, and (maybe) Leavanny. It makes sense on spider Pokemon for obvious reasons (even though tarantulas and diving bell spiders don't use webs in the typical way, they do still make them). The insect that Sewaddle is based on is notable for using silk to make shelters, which I guess is close enough.
Slurpuff's justification is that Swirlix is made of cotton candy, which as a sticky substance composed of strands is kind of like a spider web (eh, maybe). I don't think there's any reason for any of the others (some crickets do produce silk, but is that really communicated in its design at all?)
The worst part is that it seems like they're trying to give Sticky Web to all the 3-stage "Route 1 Bugs". The Grubbin and Blipbug lines both got it in Gen 8, even though neither of them spin cocoons in their pupal stages (or produce silk at all, as far as I'm aware). I don't even think that spinning cocoons alone should be sufficient justification to get the move, but these two don't even have that excuse. It just feels like they're mindlessly slapping it onto Bug-types as a "Bug buff".
Compare this to how Spiky Shield was made non-signature, it seems a lot more reasonable (Ferrothorn should probably get it too, though it'd be infuriating to play against).
Sticky Web's not a case of that though? Shuckle, Masquerain, and Kricketune have all gotten Sticky Web from the start. Also, Sticky Web, much like Electroweb, don't actually refer to webs in their Japanese names but rather nets (Sticky Net and ElecNet).
Fair enough, this was recycled from something else I had written exclusively about Sticky Web's distribution. However, it still stands that it has been given to 5 evolutionary lines since its introduction, and I consider 4/5 of those cases to be unjustified. They also seem to be trying to set it up so that future Route 1 Bugs will also get it.
It's still clearly inspired by spider webs and the number of things that produce sticky nets is still pretty much limited to spiders (and a few other silk-producing insects).
Electroweb's distribution is also weird, given that thematically it seems very much like it should be a Joltik line exclusive (which it is originally, with the exception that Spinarak can learn it through breeding). I also consider it a case of "previously rare move being given to too many Pokemon". (I guess it makes sense on Porygon as a pun on "Internet/the Web" and on Xurkitree because it has wire-based body parts, but most Electric-types don't have anything like that).
I feel sure that this topic has come up before but I was thinking today about how badly they wasted the chance to do something interesting with Sinnoh's distribution of Ice-types in Platinum.
Pre-release media made a really big deal out of Sinnoh being snowy in Platinum. It contrasted with Hoenn's tropical vibe and raised the question of whether something plot-related had made the region grow colder. And the answer was... no. It was just a very light reskin. Only the first few routes in the game have visible snow. It's like they added snow to Route 201 and 202 and then got bored and stopped. It's especially odd given that those are the southernmost routes in the game.
Ice has always been a late-game type so the prospect of an early focus on Ice-types seemed possible, and that was interesting. Platinum's dex distribution is really fun and really diverse, and the expanded listing adds a lot of types Sinnoh was light on, such as Dragon, Electric, and - infamously - Fire. Yet it didn't actually add that many Ice-types, which DP Sinnoh was already light on. DP's Sinnoh Dex only contains four Ice-types - Snover, Abomasnow, Sneasel, and Weavile - and Platinum adds a grand total of seven more: Swinub, Piloswine, Mamoswine, Snorunt, Glalie, Froslass, and Glaceon.
So, eleven in total. That looks good (it's actually equal to the amount of Fire types in the new Sinnoh dex) but they're still all restricted to the northern snow-covered routes, making Ice the latest type in the game. Wouldn't it have been cool to have them appear a little earlier? Imagine encountering Snorunt or Sneasel on some of the earlier grass routes, or perhaps even Spheal or Shellder or Lapras in the water routes. At the very least they could have shifted the location of the Ice Rock.
It's just such a waste of potential. Sinnoh isn't any noticeably colder in Platinum once you've got past Jubilife City, and the lack of Ice-type Pokemon in the region as a whole underscores that. It's kind of ridiculous that you can encounter Ice-type Pokemon earlier in Alola of all places.
Pre-release media made a really big deal out of Sinnoh being snowy in Platinum. It contrasted with Hoenn's tropical vibe and raised the question of whether something plot-related had made the region grow colder. And the answer was... no. It was just a very light reskin. Only the first few routes in the game have visible snow. It's like they added snow to Route 201 and 202 and then got bored and stopped. It's especially odd given that those are the southernmost routes in the game.
Ice has always been a late-game type so the prospect of an early focus on Ice-types seemed possible, and that was interesting. Platinum's dex distribution is really fun and really diverse, and the expanded listing adds a lot of types Sinnoh was light on, such as Dragon, Electric, and - infamously - Fire. Yet it didn't actually add that many Ice-types, which DP Sinnoh was already light on. DP's Sinnoh Dex only contains four Ice-types - Snover, Abomasnow, Sneasel, and Weavile - and Platinum adds a grand total of seven more: Swinub, Piloswine, Mamoswine, Snorunt, Glalie, Froslass, and Glaceon.
So, eleven in total. That looks good (it's actually equal to the amount of Fire types in the new Sinnoh dex) but they're still all restricted to the northern snow-covered routes, making Ice the latest type in the game. Wouldn't it have been cool to have them appear a little earlier? Imagine encountering Snorunt or Sneasel on some of the earlier grass routes, or perhaps even Spheal or Shellder or Lapras in the water routes. At the very least they could have shifted the location of the Ice Rock.
It's just such a waste of potential. Sinnoh isn't any noticeably colder in Platinum once you've got past Jubilife City, and the lack of Ice-type Pokemon in the region as a whole underscores that. It's kind of ridiculous that you can encounter Ice-type Pokemon earlier in Alola of all places.
I like Electroweb's wide distribution among Bug types(including many unevolved early game bugs that for the most part don't learn TMs like Caterpie and Weedle), since for in-game purposes having an electric move only marginally weaker/less accurate than Hidden Power Electric but with a Speed Drop added on is really nice. Specially-inclined Bugs mostly only get Psychic and Grass moves for coverage(alongside Shadow Ball in most but not all cases), so having it is great for them.
Simisage seems like the odd one out here since it doesn't have any visible spikes. The dex mentions it attacking with it's thorn-covered tail, but it's tail doesn't seem big enough to cover it's body and protect it.
All of the Gen I-IV learners of the Sticky Web can also learn String Shot, either via level-up or the HGSS Move Tutor. Galvantula, Leavanny, Slurpuff, and Vikavolt can also learn it. Only Araquanid, Ribombee, and Orbeetle can learn Sticky Web but not String Shot.
Electroweb to me is just a really weird move because I don't understand its flavor at all. It's an extremely odd mix of two themes (electricity and webbing, and they're not even combined very well, they're kinda just mashed together) and instead of being given to the few Pokemon who have themes of both electricity AND webbing, it's given to Pokemon who have themes of electricity OR webbing, so we have a bunch of Bug-types who inexplicably have electrokinesis and a bunch of Electric-types who inexplicably can replicate webbing.
There are other moves that pull off the OR function well (like Heat Wave being given to Pokemon with themes of heat OR wind) but they're less conceptually weird than Electroweb.
There are other moves that pull off the OR function well (like Heat Wave being given to Pokemon with themes of heat OR wind) but they're less conceptually weird than Electroweb.
I really don't know what you think is so weird about this particular thing because a lot of random stuff learns stuff like Shock Wave, Charge Beam, and Thunderbolt(especially Shock Wave, seriously look at its learn list, lots of stuff that can't learn any other Electric moves but can learn it). Normal-type rodents having electricity powers is a-ok, but when bug types do so it's suddenly weird?
I noticed that low-power special moves (Shock Wave, Water Pulse, Icy Wind, Incinerate) have many random learners that can't get any other moves of those types, but with Eletroweb it is actually a lot more internally consistent in what can and cannot learn it compared to them.
I will say this again
Sinnoh is worse handled for type balance than Gen 3 Hoenn
The fact the "too much water region" had more ice types (6 vs Sinnoh 4) and fire types (10 vs 5) than DP makes me laugh
Admittedly there's just more new Pokemon in general (136 vs 100), but still
Too bad Gen 3 had that dexit issue
The difference is that all those moves are pretty generic, and it's well established that random things just sometimes learn them for seemingly no reason. It's still weird, but since the distribution of these moves doesn't seem to have any sort of pattern (among the Pokemon you wouldn't expect to learn the moves, that is), it's easy to tune out.
Electroweb is not generic at all, and its distribution definitely follows a pattern. It's given to Electric-types and Bug-types, and not much else. Like I said, it's like Heat Wave in that it's something of a crossover between two types and can widely be learned by both types, but while Flying-types using Heat Wave doesn't feel too weird (they already have command over wind, doesn't feel out of place for them to heat up the wind, sort of like how it doesn't feel weird for Water-types to learn Ice moves) Bug-types widely learning Electroweb feels weird since it's not electrified webbing. It's electricity in the shape of webbing. And even if it was electrified webbing, electrifying something feels a lot weirder than changing something's temperature. And if was electrified webbing, now it doesn't make sense for so many Electric-types to learn the move.
Your link broke so I looked up spider lightning myself.
I guess it helps knowing it was inspired by a real thing, but there's still a greater suspension of disbelief required for something inspired by a real thing (spider lightning isn't literally webbing) vs just straight up a real natural phenomena (heat waves, hot wind, convection currents). If it was just limited to Galvantula and few others like Xurkitree, Regieleki, Vikavolt, and Porygon (that internet pun is fucking hilarious, thank you Wild Noob) then I'd probably appreciate its clever concept more, but giving it widespread distribution... nah, it just doesn't feel right.
Also that photograph looks so damn cool. Electricity is real-world magic, y'all. We live in a world where the sky just does that sometimes.
I don't really understand this tbh. I've never been a huge fan of how any of these moves are distributed and I'd prefer it if movepools were generally less expansive than they are now, but a bug Pokemon electrifying something doesn't seem more or less strange to me than a random bird Pokemon learning Heat Wave or a random fish using Ice Beam. The bird Pokemon that use Heat Wave are implied to just be flapping their wings to blow the air at their opponent, so unless the act of flapping is supposed to be heating the air up too (which I'm sure would be one of those buckwild physics calculations that's impossible to justify) then the heat is just coming from general Pokemon move magic. If we accept that Pokemon moves are often just arbitrarily-assigned magic powers, I don't see why generating electrical energy should be any more complicated than adding or removing heat energy.
You could actually argue that it should be easier to handwave the electric half of Electro Web, since there are more real-world examples of animals wielding electricity to attack compared with heat or cold. There are no 'cold' attacks in nature that I'm aware of and the only heat attacks that come to mind for me are the bees that use their body heat as a group to cook a hive invader alive (which doesn't translate well to a single attack) and the pistol shrimp's pincer attack, where the high temperature is really more of an incidental consequence of cavitation pressure.
Electroweb has the interesting thing that despite being weird flavour-wise, it makes perfect mechanical sense. Electric has an association with speed control between Paralysis, Electro Ball, and a lot of Electric-types being naturally fast, so an Electric-type attack that reliably applies a speed drop fits right in.
It was also pretty common as a tutor move in B2W2, so I'm not sure about its distribution increasing that much over time. Pikaclones, Thundurus, and the Mareep line got it in gen 6, but that's about it.
It was also pretty common as a tutor move in B2W2, so I'm not sure about its distribution increasing that much over time. Pikaclones, Thundurus, and the Mareep line got it in gen 6, but that's about it.
All this talk on Electroweb and nobody has mentioned by far the strangest case of Electoweb's distribution! For some reason... Passimian learns it. The only thing that would slightly relate it to the move is that a dex entry notes it sticks leaves to its body with its saliva, but having saliva is certainly not a sufficient requirement to be able to spin a web and then electrify it. The only other Bug-Type move Passimian learns is U-Turn, and the only other Electric-Type move is Shock Wave only in Gen VII which damn near everything learns.
It's actually the only Pokémon that learns the move that isn't Electric- or Bug-Type, aside from Mew because it's a TM in Gen VIII and Porygon with the aforementioned pun.
Hell, it's even stranger because Passimian has a very shallow special movepool. The only non-universal special moves it even learns are Electroweb, Shock Wave, Energy Ball (makes sense, it uses a plant as a ball), Grass Knot (nigh-universal but not quite there), Focus Blast (most Fighting-Type Pokémon learn that), and Shadow Ball. Shadow Ball doesn't make the most sense to me either, but it lives in dark forests and literally plays team ball sports, Shadow Ball is fine. 1/3 of Passimian's non-Normal-Type special movepool is Electric-Type, and one is the very specific Electroweb. What gives?
Edit: Huh, this isn't the Movepool Oddities thread. Wild.
It's actually the only Pokémon that learns the move that isn't Electric- or Bug-Type, aside from Mew because it's a TM in Gen VIII and Porygon with the aforementioned pun.
Hell, it's even stranger because Passimian has a very shallow special movepool. The only non-universal special moves it even learns are Electroweb, Shock Wave, Energy Ball (makes sense, it uses a plant as a ball), Grass Knot (nigh-universal but not quite there), Focus Blast (most Fighting-Type Pokémon learn that), and Shadow Ball. Shadow Ball doesn't make the most sense to me either, but it lives in dark forests and literally plays team ball sports, Shadow Ball is fine. 1/3 of Passimian's non-Normal-Type special movepool is Electric-Type, and one is the very specific Electroweb. What gives?
Edit: Huh, this isn't the Movepool Oddities thread. Wild.
For Passimian honestly I think it might be, like...a sports thing. Like it carries around a ball all the time. Sports balls are often carried around in, among other things, nets. So it can generate a net/webbing to...store them????
e: Or like making nets to throw the rugby balls in
e: Or like making nets to throw the rugby balls in
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Should have been Hatenna, Hattrem and Hattterene
I’m playing Sword again and it’s really annoying that I can’t just throw myself off ledges and fly around the wild area on an eagle.
okay so I love old Sugimori artwork but I found out there's a very silly thing they did with Furret with GSC to HGSS art.
GSC:
HGSS:
it's like literally the exact same pose, minus some shadows. I know art is difficult and all that, but yeah. It just sticks out when other Pokemon got different poses from GSC to HGSS artwork. Qwilfish at least got a slightly different angle.
GSC:
HGSS:
it's like literally the exact same pose, minus some shadows. I know art is difficult and all that, but yeah. It just sticks out when other Pokemon got different poses from GSC to HGSS artwork. Qwilfish at least got a slightly different angle.
Glaceon shouldn’t exist.
Glaceon is my third favorite Eeveelution after both Gen 2 evos, but if GF cared about symmetry it wouldn’t exist.
For the sake of argument, we’ll disregard the “special type Eeveelutions” theory.
Let’s say that instead of Fire/Water/Electric for the Gen 1 Eeveelutions, GF decided to retain the equality of the starter types. The Gen 1 Eeveelutions would be Vaporeon, Flareon, and Leafeon.
Then, in gen 2, it makes sense to instead of only having a new Eeveelution for one of the new types, have representatives of both Dark and Steel. The Gen 2 Eeveelutions would be Umbreon and a Steel type.
In Gen 4, the obvious choices are the ones that they would have done earlier if not for symmetry: Jolteon and Espeon.
Therefore, in a world where GF maintained balance between things like starter types and legendary pairs, Glaceon would be nonexistent.
Unless the lack of an obvious elemental type caused them to add a new Eeveelution or pair in Gen 8, consisting of Glaceon and something like a Ghost or Poison type! That’s neat to think about.
I couldn’t really find a better place to put this, lack of symmetry always annoys me but this is more of a musing than anything.
Glaceon is my third favorite Eeveelution after both Gen 2 evos, but if GF cared about symmetry it wouldn’t exist.
For the sake of argument, we’ll disregard the “special type Eeveelutions” theory.
Let’s say that instead of Fire/Water/Electric for the Gen 1 Eeveelutions, GF decided to retain the equality of the starter types. The Gen 1 Eeveelutions would be Vaporeon, Flareon, and Leafeon.
Then, in gen 2, it makes sense to instead of only having a new Eeveelution for one of the new types, have representatives of both Dark and Steel. The Gen 2 Eeveelutions would be Umbreon and a Steel type.
In Gen 4, the obvious choices are the ones that they would have done earlier if not for symmetry: Jolteon and Espeon.
Therefore, in a world where GF maintained balance between things like starter types and legendary pairs, Glaceon would be nonexistent.
Unless the lack of an obvious elemental type caused them to add a new Eeveelution or pair in Gen 8, consisting of Glaceon and something like a Ghost or Poison type! That’s neat to think about.
I couldn’t really find a better place to put this, lack of symmetry always annoys me but this is more of a musing than anything.
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I'm afraid you're mistaken on what the design philosophy of Eevolution types is. It has nothing to do with starter types.
Eevolutions simply cover all the types that were previously Special before offense split. + Fairy which (possibly) would have been special type as well.
There's no lack of simmetry or anything, in fact, it's perfectly in line with its original design.
Still peeved there wasn't a Dragon Eevolution that paired with Sylveon just like Espeon/Umbreon and Leafeon/Glaceon. Dragon was even a Special Type too.
It's still weird that Dragon is still missing.
Maybe they're saving it for its grandiose return in gen 9 COPIUM
Eevee's evolutions are based on ways to evolve not types though.
Gen 1: showcase stones
Gen 2: showcase day/night
Gen 4: showcase location
Gen 6: showcase affection