Poll: Pokemon Generations

[-Dragmire-]

Undecided.

Gen 1 was my entry point and it contains quite a few dear memories that makes it more favorable to me. I'm currently playing Y and it's very entertaining with a mix of the familiar and new though I cringe when I see pokemon bounce using just the global control(all sense of weight is lost when they do that. The downside of 3d over sprites I guess). Anyway, I'd say Y almost reaches the level of my unfair nostalgia which is quite impressive. Diamond I played briefly but lost interest in quickly. I have a feeling I was just not in the proper headspace to enjoy that type of game at the time.

The others I haven't played.

 

[Ice Car]

Tie between Gen 4 and Gen 6 right now. Gen 6 had a lot of new mons and there were a lot of improvements and re-workings that made it an overall more solid experience. Same for the transition from Gen 3 to Gen 4. I liked the Sinnoh Region a lot and Gen 4 also had a return to Johto in HG/SS. It was my favorite Generation until now and it comprised most of my childhood.

When it comes to regions though, Johto will always be my favorite. I don't know why, but I've always had a soft spot for Johto. I don't even know why I like it so much because I barely remember anything about my experience playing the games first.

 

[Dr. Crawver]

Pidgeys. Always Pidgeys. I loved pidgeys. So gen 1 wins, though gen 6 is in second, with the return of pidgeys, and hawlucha, what I can only describe as El Fuerte as a bird.

 

[The_Echo]

Here's the list from best to worst as I see it: 6, 5, 3, 4, 1.

Gen II's placement is undecided because the last time I played Crystal was when I was a child and have since lost my copy. The only cool things I remember are Lance's theme, the Kanto postgame and that one of the Cool Trainers shared my name.

Gen V and VI have managed to make the games feel truly fresh again, VI especially. Gen III was just kind of cool and added a lot to the formula.

Gen IV, I felt, was incredibly lackluster and forgettable. Please note that I never played Platinum which is apparently fantastic.

Anyone saying Gen I is nostalgia'd into oblivion. It's dated to all hell, the mechanics are rough and unpolished, and I feel like it's really only memorable because it was the first one.

Gen V was my absolute favorite, because honestly, all the original Pokemon never really did it for me, especially the johto ones. Then out of nowhere we have Lilligant, Whimsicott, Darmanitan, Krookodile, and Volcarona? Yes please. Which makes me all the more depressed that almost NONE of the gen V Pokemon seem to be in X/Y. I'm serious go look practically none of them make an appearance and that is lame as lame can be. I was looking forward to bringing back my Whimsicott wall.

I'm looking at my Pokédex and the Unova portion of my National Dex is pretty well-represented.

Maybe you just haven't seen a lot because there are like a million Pokémon in every location?

 

[AlbertoDeSanta]

X and Y. It is, without a doubt, the best generation, and it's only been here 2 weeks. Gen I, whilst being the base, doesn't have much more then 'we are first, love us plz' going for it. Gen II expanded on it a bit, but did have the largest post game (Which also appeared in HGSS) which was good. Gen III is my personal least favorite, since the region was bland as all hell. Gen IV was the first Gen I played, but it had it's flaws (Specifically in the flow of battles and the UI not being too good). Gen V really started to get it right, in my opinion, since it quickened battles and made the animations more complex (for moves + Pokemon sprites). Gen VI, being my favorite. Where to begin and end? The switch to 3d, in my opinion, was much needed, and the addition of Mega evolutions really made X and Y shine. However, I won't continue to praise Gen VI, when I can criticise. I personally hated the ease of X and Y, since it was easier then pretty much any other game I'd ever played, and that was even with minimal usage of Pokemon-Amie and Super Training. The EXP share didn't need to be changed, since it worked fine prior to this gen, and I'll say this: The only part of the game I had trouble with and needed to grind for was the Second Gym, and once I'd grinded sufficiently (Nearly level 30 Bulbasaur), the gym was as easy pie. X and Y were too easy, imo, and that's something I'd like GF to address for the inevitable sequel(s). Alternatively, they could include a difficulty setting, which allows for Higher levelled Pokemon enemy teams and less XP gained. IT could also change the effects of some Items (not in multiplayer, obviously).

 

[Kayos]

Generation 2, simply for getting both gen's regions.
Plus tyranitar - my favourite pokemon
But X and Y would be a close 2nd place (tied with gen 1, for being the original)

 

[FPLOON]

I would have to go Gen V mainly for the game's opening before you even get pass the start menu... What I'm saying is that I want that "in-dept" story that just so happens to coexist with obtaining all of the gym badges and then later battling the Elite 4 of said region... Is that so much to ask?

Anyway, Gen III had it's moments, but were mainly done post-game on Emerald or something like that... Gens I and II were skipped and are still skipped on my part... (Even though FR and HG were given to me, I can't get over wanting to delete their existing saves... WHY ARE WE STILL ONLY USING ONE MAIN SAVE, GAMEFREAK? WHY???? I THOUGHT IT WAS "FIXED" IN BLACK 2/WHITE 2!!!) Gen IV never interest me in the slightest (and I still don't know why) and the current gen is now my #2 on the list, but just slightly over Gen III due to certain things that I liked in Emerald that are not in X/Y... yet?

 

[TheEvilCheese]

Generation 2 is my initial response, because Gold was the first game I ever bought for myself. That's a big milestone to me.

It also had 16 gyms, that epic red battle, the ability to catch both cover legendaries (eventually) and some of my favourite music in the series. Not to mention Umbreon, AKA the best Pokémon.

However, I'm also something of a competitive battler, and generation six is very much shaping up to be an excellent generation from that standpoint. I really like the new things they added, fairy type in particular. Mega evolutions are actually really cool, Xerneas is one of my favourite legends, the world is excellent (if a bit small feeling).

Assuming Z (yes it will be Z) adds the usual features of a 3rd installment (More postgame (frontier please), move tutors, more legendaries, improved story etc.) It will almost certainly be my top.

But at the moment? I'd have to say II, VI, V, III, IV, I.

Generation one gets little love because of the Myriad of bugs, crazy-low difficulty (mostly terrible AI) and the sheer imbalance of Psychic being the best type.

 

[spartandude]

I put generation 2 but it really depends on how you count the remakes. If Soul Silver/Heart Gold are gen 2 then thats my fav but if we count them as gen 4 then that has to be it.

 

[Aerosteam]

Not sure why gen 4 is disliked so much, it had the best music which is a huge deal for me.

Seems like not a lot of people take into account the musical aspects of Pokemon games that much when comparing them with each other...

 

[Get_A_Grip_]

I'm going to say Gen IV.
The physical/special move split introduced in this generation was probably the biggest mechanic change in whole series.
Also Hear Gold and Soul Silver were incredible.

 

[Dragonbums]

Now I wonder how are they going to implement Mega Evolutions in the new game. In the games it was claimed to be a well guarded secret in the Kalos region. You and only a few others can even use this ability at all.
It would surprise me if they broke that lore and just allowed that in another region.
Which could mean that many of the Pokemon that greatly benefited from such a mechanic will once again be totally useless the moment the next generation rolls around.
I honestly wonder if they really thought this aspect of Mega evolutions thoroughly.

I could've sworn Gamefreak said that this would be the only generation to have mega evolutions. Now this was a while back, and they could easily change their tune when it comes to making the next game. Honestly, I don't really find megalutions very interesting anyway, if they don't come back, I won't be disappointed about it.

It's not so much the aspect of Mega evolutions not coming back. But more or less the sadness that Pokemon like Mawile and Absol will once again be rendered completely useless in the metagame. Which is sad because Mawile is my favorite.

 

[Dragonbums]

Gen V was my absolute favorite, because honestly, all the original Pokemon never really did it for me, especially the johto ones. Then out of nowhere we have Lilligant, Whimsicott, Darmanitan, Krookodile, and Volcarona? Yes please. Which makes me all the more depressed that almost NONE of the gen V Pokemon seem to be in X/Y. I'm serious go look practically none of them make an appearance and that is lame as lame can be. I was looking forward to bringing back my Whimsicott wall.

Gen V also had the best attempts at a real story, which I think worked, and N was dreamy (WAY BETTER THAN SYCAMORE). Plus you could dress up and ride a Ferris wheel and in 2 you could constantly call that other cute guy with green hair and make him blussshhhh. It just felt like the most real game to date for me. A game where you could really be lost in the world, instead of arbitrarily trying to complete it by catching everything in sight. I never even felt any particular need to battle a gym leader in those games. I only did it to unlock more fancy places to go. Places that had their own backstories, where the people knew each other, and it was wonderful.

Gen III was nice too, and my previous favorite mostly because I finished it 100% and Blaziken is a baller.

I can't even remember I, II is hilariously overrated and I really cannot even bring myself to finish it, and IV just kind of lacked something for me, though the snowyness in platinum was neato.

Yes! Another Gen V lover!

On that note, I did run into a decent number of Gen V Pokemon. I've run into Emolga, Durant, Heatmore, Woobat, ducklett, Sandile, Axew and Stunfisk. Oh, can't forget Druddigon, but I don't think trainer Pokemon count.

I'm pretty sure I'm leaving out 3 more Pokemon's but you get the drift.
They shoved a lot of Pokemon in there. Mainly I and II gen Pokemon to get the old fans hooked.

There are probably more, but I haven't gone much into end game yet. Too busy breeding the fuck out of them for metagame.

Personally Gen V get's unnecessary flak from a lot of people that only know Vanilluxe and Trubbish from that generation. I even had one Genwunner chick say some of the "monsters" I drew in my sketchbook were cool not realizing they were all from generation 5.

 

[Story]

Here is how I would rank them: 2/3/6/5/4/1*

I gotta give it to gen2 for the "best" generation. It just had more content than any other games in the pokemon series. there were 16 badges with 300+ pokemon to collect in the game. You could even re-battle trainers daily if you wanted to. There were just more things you could do in the game everyday than in other series. At the time the games also felt like a big leap forward for the franchise, introducing 2 new types, new poke balls, planting things, ect. With a game like pokemon, where you only have 1 save and you are not likely to start over again, so contant means everything to me. I don't even have my Crystal version anymore (unlike all the other gens, where I still have at least one game) and yet I remimber it being my favorite even to this day.

On a personal level, gen3 was my favorite. I like the variety in the environments, the weather system, the fact that it looked prettier compared to the Gameboy Color generations, the contests (seriously),the PokeBlock mini game (seriously), and the secret bases (I wonder if anyone else even remimbers that feature). Also, it had some of my favorite Pokemon in terms of design, becuase most of the new pokemon seemed to draw their inspiration from real animals which I dug.

Gen6, is the most polished game and by far the prettiest in the series. I love Pokemon-Amie (yup, I'm serious), Super training, and pretty much all of the new features introduced in the game. Especially the online system, which is robust and easy to use. The music was really a stand out, and I like all of the few new pokemon the game introduced. But I felt it was really undone by its weak story, well, mainly just Team Flare who was by far the most forgettable bad-guy team to date. In addition is there is very little after game content to look forward to (DLC might fix this however). This would be my second choice for best if I wasn't so nostalgic for gen3.

Gen5 had the best story hands down, but I don't think that's really saying much for this series to be completely honest. There wasn't much else in the game that stood out. Expect the animated sprites, which looked cool at first, but I felt was an ugly design choice overall, given how blocky and muddy the pokemon would look from time to time.

Gen4's introduction to the global link system did very little to impress me as a non-compentive player. This generation's new Pokemon designs were my least favorite becuase of how in-organic looking most of them were. But most importantly noting really stood out to me as a player in this generation, except maybe the Underground (does anyne remimber that?). Which I thought was a nice distraction at the time. I liked the Poffin mini game, but I did not like the Super Contests as much as the beauty contests of the pervious gen.

Gen1 has not aged well at all, it's incredibly clunky at times and it looks pretty ugly to boot.

*That little essay should have given a hint at what type of player I am. I don't care much about the meta game or competitive battling. I'm mostly superficial and prefer a good single player experience overall.

 

[2xDouble]

I've played all of the Pokemon games more or less at the height of their respective popularities. They're all been pretty consistently fun, but none impressed me quite so much as Black and White. The valiant attempt at story, the cool new 'mons (though Blaziken and Blastoise are still positively boss), the polished, semi-animate sprites... all well and good, but what really sold me was the dynamic music. Music that changed depending on what you were doing? some of which you have direct control over? that's downright mindblowing attention to detail and fourth-wall breaking... in Pokemon of all things!? When I first encountered the pianist and drummer in the first city, I was expecting a little jingle or solo sound (such as in Final Fantasy or Legend of Zelda). Much to my surprise, they both contributed to the background music rather than playing over it. I'd spend far too much time walking around Route 3, listening to the little drum and whistle track that played as you walk, or listening to and playing with Opelucid City's violin "solo" by moving in and out of range to simulate fade-in and out, (though the theme and keytar in Black version was pretty lame compared to that), or remixing the different tracks in Village Bridge to suit my tastes.

No other Pokemon game has let me fiddle with background mechanics like that since messing with color settings on the GBC, and none have brought it to a "foreground" mechanic; making it an actual feature of the game you could interact with and characters acknowledged the existence of.

From a roster perspective, I have to give credit to gen IV. It was the first time they demanded players use and learn new pokemon rather than fall back on old favorites. It was a risky move, but I think the game was better for it. If I remember correctly, Diamond and Pearl introduced the largest rosters of new pokemon, and I don't care what anyone says, the gen IV 'mons look pretty darn cool.

In terms of sheer polish and "TLC", I have to give that to X/Y. Game Freak and Nintendo have clearly learned from every iteration they've done, especially the most recent ones, and Gen 6 is hands-down the best Pokemon game to date. It didn't impress me as much as it probably should have, but it feels very much like the console game I've been waiting for since Colosseum.

 

[Miss G.]

Gen 2 is my favorite-favorite because they were my first games and gateway to the hobby I haven't put down since. I still remember my original team, the hundreds of hours sank into my Gold (because the internal battery died after the first hundred and I had to start over) and Crystal, and only being 2 Pokemon away from having a completed Pokedex.

After playing Gen 2 first, it was kinda hard to downgrade to playing Gen 1 and I only used my Blue version to transfer stuff via the Time Capsule to fill up my Pokedex.

While I did enjoy Gen 3, all I can remember now is that I had a Blazekin in one version and a Sceptile in the other. Same with FR/LG but I did enjoy the updated mechanics and graphics it brought to Gen 1.

I actually didn't finish D/P/P and I barely remember anything from them besides using them to fill up the Pokedex for SS, which I did enjoy and finish the hell out of.

I loved Gen V as it was, to me, a good leap from playing SS minus the fact that I no longer had my mons following me around or at least an option for it and no Pokeathalon. Some of my favorite Pokemon are from this gen, like Serperior, Braviary, Chandelure, Keldeo and Volcarona so I'll always remember it fondly.

Gen 6 is now my new favorite, I love the updated mechanics, look, feel, sound/music, shopping, new Pokemon (Gourgeist FTW) and characters (AZ in particular and I can't wait to see if there will be more of him in "Z") and the fact that

Spoiler

you actually, finally get some recognition as Champion and savior of the world/region.

 

[Hero of Lime]

It's not so much the aspect of Mega evolutions not coming back. But more or less the sadness that Pokemon like Mawile and Absol will once again be rendered completely useless in the metagame. Which is sad because Mawile is my favorite.

I would've preferred that the megalutions would be like Black and White Kyurem, where you change the Pokemon outside of battle, and allow them to hold another item besides their mega stone. Anything to make the system less cumbersome to use than it already is. I would also rather have the likes of Absol, Mawile, Heracross, and Aerodactyl get other evolutions, instead of just changing form in battle.

Not sure why gen 4 is disliked so much, it had the best music which is a huge deal for me.

Seems like not a lot of people take into account the musical aspects of Pokemon games that much when comparing them with each other...

Giratina's and Cynthia's battle themes alone make the gen IV soundtrack amazing.

 

[Dragonbums]

It's not so much the aspect of Mega evolutions not coming back. But more or less the sadness that Pokemon like Mawile and Absol will once again be rendered completely useless in the metagame. Which is sad because Mawile is my favorite.

I would've preferred that the megalutions would be like Black and White Kyurem, where you change the Pokemon outside of battle, and allow them to hold another item besides their mega stone. Anything to make the system less cumbersome to use than it already is. I would also rather have the likes of Absol, Mawile, Heracross, and Aerodactyl get other evolutions, instead of just changing form in battle.

The problem with that method is that Gamefreak has a bad habit of only allowing Pokemon only to be transferred to next generation games and not the items. (I want to believe they will stop this after Pokemon Bank, but I'm not getting my hopes up.)
Which would still render those Pokemon useless again after Gen 6.
So unless they make us do the tedious re run of acquiring all the mega stones again in the new game, I honestly wish for the lesser Pokemon they just made them actual evolutions.

 

[TheSapphireKnight]

Gen III Hoenn is probably my favorite singular Region, but Gen II I like better from a content perspective. I wasn't expecting to go back to Kanto so when we get to go through a whole separate set of Gym badges and final fight I really loved it. Really nothing else has matched that in terms of content after that.

 

[Naeras]

Generation 2, easily. It improved on practically every aspect of the former games. It was bigger, better, prettier and all that stuff, and it didn't start to feel like they were really milking the concept yet.

Other than that I've only really played gen 1, gen 2 and gen 4. Gen 1 gets nostalgia points, but it was horribly balanced even by pokemon standards(hello, psychic type and sleep). I have about 130 hours played on Platinum, though, so even though I prefer gen 2, I definitely enjoyed that game.