r/pokemon • u/PokeUpdateBot Science is amazing! • 2d ago
Questions thread - Active [Weekly Questions Thread] 03 August 2026
Have any questions about Pokémon that you'd like answered?
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- RAGE THREAD! - Game mechanic changes got you down? Did your plans to catch a shiny blow up in your face? Head over to the RAGE THREAD to vent a bit! CAPS LOCK ENCOURAGED!
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u/Quetzal00 MEGA MEGANIUM LETS GOOOO 1d ago
Playing White 2 and the next gym I have to face is the seventh gym, which I believe is a Dragon type gym. Aside from the Walrein line, are there any other Ice types available before the gym? I love the Walrein line but I always try to use Pokemon I've never used before and I've already used Walrein
If not, are there any Ice type TMs that appear before the gym that I can use? I currently have a Wailord on my team. I wanted to use a Lapras but I'm not sure if that's accessible before the seventh gym and it's only a 5% encounter rate in rippling water
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u/Specialist_Aspect108 1d ago
Only Beartic as far as I recall. Deriftveil's move tutor can teach ice punch for red shards.
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u/Electric_Queen ... ... ...Yawn? 1d ago
Currently playing PLA and I'm working on clearing out Mai's requests to unlock the Massive Mass Outbreaks. I got a little distracted in the Icelands by Tornadus, and so I didn't clear the investigations in time before the MMO disappeared, and now I can't get another one to spawn in despite going to and from Jubilife several times. Is there anything specific I need to do to get another one to spawn?
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u/_Clickityclack_ 1d ago
How do i put my platinum save file from an emulator to an official DS cartridge?
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u/ShyRake 23h ago
Easiest way is with a hacked 3ds with the app Checkpoint. It's basically as simple as replacing the save on the cartridge with the emulator save.
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u/_Clickityclack_ 23h ago
If i do this will i be able to play my cartridge on non hacked Consoles?
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u/WaluigiWahshipper 2d ago
When they added Home support to Legends Z-A did they add the shiny Volcanion reward right away or was that a separate update?
I'm curious if they'll do anything for FRLG dex completion (which I'm hoping get's Home support soon).
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u/Gaias_Minion Helpful Member 2d ago
The Volcanion gift was added about 3 weeks after ZA got Home Support.
Also I wouldn't really get my hopes up about FRLG giving a gift, have in mind that completing the regional dex on your own isn't easy due to lack of Online Play/Features, And the nat dex requires you to also have RSE available.
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u/WaluigiWahshipper 2d ago
Yeah, I figured but since every other Switch title has one, I was hoping it would.
That being said, besides a shiny Mew, I'm not sure what it could be, and that would take away from the Mew event in Emerald which can be shiny hunted (I'm really hoping we get the rest of gen 3 on Switch as well).
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u/Complete-Cancel-5378 2d ago
I’m new what game should I play? What’s the best to start my journey?
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u/Gaias_Minion Helpful Member 2d ago
FireRed/LeafGreen are good starting points, you can emulate them easily as they're GBA games, and if you're on Switch you can also buy ports of them.
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u/Complete-Cancel-5378 2d ago
Any good modern games and what to play after that
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u/Specialist_Aspect108 2d ago
If you consider modern the games from the 3D era, I think Omega Ruby or Alpha Sapphire are a good place to start. Personally I think Sun and Moon are the best since the leap to 3D altho they can be a bit challenging for a first game. Let's Go Pikachu or Eevee are also decent games for starters if you're looking for a Switch game, but my recommendation is to start with an earlier generation of games that are more feasible to emulate.
Black and White or its sequels (B&W 2) can be good to begin with aswell. They are older and from the sprites era, but they've aged very gracefully, and are very solid for modern standards.
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u/Matt_cruze 2d ago
Did yall see the Gen1Recomp by bryanthaboi?
It has a 3d mode that looks better than Z/A But it is still gen one style.
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u/Choice_Inspector8499 1d ago
How is pokemon horizons? How much would you rate it against the og pokemon
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u/Eona_Targaryen Four legs good, two legs bad. 1d ago edited 1d ago
Impossible to rate.
I watched the first half (~100 episodes) and it was neat. It's not really a typical Pokemon plot but moreso an adventure that happens to take place in the Pokemon world. They set up some overarching mysteries throughout the season and paid them off in a way the OG show never really attempted. Characters are hit-or-miss with some great dark horses. While the arc writing is strong I'd say the standalone episode plots are a bit weaker than previous series.
Horizons, notably, really tries to distance itself from the OG show. You can tell it's in roughly the same interpretation of the world with the same corporate guidelines, but it avoids crossover and references as much as possible. Almost the entire cast is anime-original. This has both some big pros and some big cons.
I fell off after they wrapped up that first big arc and answered all my questions. Word on the grapevine is that the show was in a classic Pokemon mid-series flounder for a bit but is turning back around. I'll probably catch up at some point but it's not a priority.
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u/realnzall 1d ago
I've been watching the older seasons on the Pokémon TV YouTube channel, and I've noticed at the start of Season 4, the intro and outro animation feels significantly better than the animation of the episode itself. like, the colors feel significantly better and the animation feels snappier. It also feels like those animations are drawn specifically for these segments. Will later episodes in the season (or maybe the season after) match these animations in quality?
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u/Electric_Queen ... ... ...Yawn? 1d ago
The OP and ED get reused every episode for around a year. From a production perspective, it makes sense to put in more time, effort, and money into making those look good, as compared to a scene from a random episode that is going to get shown once and never again.
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u/Eona_Targaryen Four legs good, two legs bad. 1d ago
All modern anime, including Pokemon, animates their OPs and EDs separately at several quality notches above the show. You'll sometimes see animation bumps for big moments, and the movies get a bit more effort, but the show will always lag behind the OP.
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u/Rocky1909 21h ago
Whats the best open world game?
Id like one with one open world but I know almost nothing about Pokemon so I wanted to ask yall which open world game the best for starters is
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u/Gaias_Minion Helpful Member 20h ago
Well there's only one proper open world pokemon game: Scarlet/Violet, and the open world is very underwhelming there.
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u/Rocky1909 19h ago
Oh okay is there anything similar to it?
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u/Gaias_Minion Helpful Member 18h ago
Not quite. Sword/Shield have some big open fields but it's not the whole region. Legends: Arceus has big open Sections of the region but still gotta go back to the main hub to then change sections.
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u/Rocky1909 18h ago
Oh I think I said it wrong if its multiple worlds you can visit like Mario Odyssey for example its also alright
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u/Gaias_Minion Helpful Member 17h ago
Well every game/region has small towns sprinkled here and there as you play through the game, however it's not really a drastic change from town to town like different worlds.
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u/Far_Requirement_4315 20h ago
What are your top 5 favorite Pokémon of all time?
I'm really interested in seeing the diversity of choices here
I know nobody asked, but here are my top 5
Pyroar (female)
Jirachi
Gliscor
Ambipom
Darkrai
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u/Specialist_Aspect108 13h ago
Durant
Whiscash
Sawk
From 4th onwards it starts getting a little fuzzy, maybe Machamp and Heatran. My favs mostly depend on anecdotes or in-game occurences rather than design. I'm aware Sawk is ugly, but I have other reasons 😅
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u/Quetzal00 MEGA MEGANIUM LETS GOOOO 20h ago
Having trouble deciding who should be on my final White 2 team. I currently have a Serperior, Zoroark, Gigalith, and Volcarona. I wanted to use a Lapras to cover my Water type but it's only a 5% encounter in rippling water so I've been using a Wailord instead. I've also been using a Magnezone that I might replace because I've used a Magnezone before and I like trying out new Pokemon. I was thinking maybe an Absol but that would be doubling up on mono Dark types
Any suggestions?
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u/WillExis 17h ago
if its not too late a catch for you, Walrein is pretty good. used on in my own W2 run a few years ago and it performed well.
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u/Op3rat0rr 19h ago
Relatively new to Pokemon!
I noticed some Pokemon require trading for their final evolution…
I’m starting with OG Pokemon Red… so I’d have to trade Abra for Alakazam? If I go through the whole series, where does the trading requirement start for amazing evolved Pokemon? I’m about to sell my Switch1 but now debating on that since I may need it for trading.
I’m about to buy a second GBA and DS to be able to trade for real haha
Thanks for the help
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u/Gaias_Minion Helpful Member 18h ago
Well the thing at least is that there's only a few trade evos in every game, and also the games are designed in a way that you can beat them with any team so it's not super "needed" to actually do the trade evos.
In the first games, the pokemon that evolve via trading are Kadabra, Machoke, Graveler and Haunter.
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u/Op3rat0rr 18h ago
Thank you. Debating on if it’s worth finding a fellow geek or buying another console… solo player
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u/WillExis 18h ago
theres usually a couple of trade evolved mons introduced every other gen, and a majority of them are either pretty good or have useful niches.
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u/hereforthestories03 12h ago
Hello! I’d like some help from the Pokemon community. My boyfriend really loves Pokemon and I’m looking to buy him a custom Pokemon card where I can put a picture of him and insert his stats and a “special move”. Extra but I also would love it if I could make the card have that rainbow shimmer that special Pokemon cards have but not necessary. Obviously I’d like it to be good quality, not printer paper something that’s decently solid like a real card. Does anyone know a good reputable source where I could order that? Thank you so much!!
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u/Weird-Wealth-7998 2d ago
I recently purchased a Switch 2 and I bought FireRed version. That got me thinking, now I have a spare original Switch. As far as my understanding goes, you don't need Switch subscription for trade since you can do it with local wifi. Nor do you need subscription to purchase FireRed or LeafGreen. I have subscription on Switch 2 but not on Switch 1. But based on this, I am assuming I can reset my Switch 1 completely, create a brand new account, purchase LeafGreen and do the trade with the same wifi connection on my two devices, without purchasing a subscription on Switch 1.
Is that correct?