Pokemon players propose how to make their favorite companions better

Scott Baird
Meganium in the Pokemon anime

Pokemon players think their favorites need improvement, as some are popular with fans but are terrible in competitive battles.

Some of the most popular Pokemon in the franchise earned their fandom for looking cool, being cute, or having a great concept. The ghostly Pikachu cosplayer Mimikyu hit all three when it debuted in the Gen 7 era and is still beloved by fans today.

Then you have Pokemon like Charizard, which has been popular since the days of Gen 1 but struggled in battle. This was especially apparent when Stealth Rock was introduced, pretty much killing Charizard’s chances until Mega Evolutions were introduced.

They say every Pokemon is someone’s favorite, so fans have gathered together to make the case for why their beloved ‘Mons need a boost in competitive battles, as they lag behind the competition in their current form.

Venomoth in Pokemon anime

Pokemon players want their favorite ‘Mons improved

A user on the Pokemon Reddit created a thread asking users what Pokemon they wish were improved. They made the case for Venomoth needing better moves, Grumping requiring more team support moves, and Flygon needing something to deflate its x4 weakness.

“Houndoom,” one user said, “It’s my favorite Pokémon. It has good typing, good stats in special attack and speed, but can’t take a single hit. It got shown some love and Gen 6 with a Mega Evolution, but since Game Freak hates fun, it’s much worse off nowadays.”

“Xatu is A cool concept. It would’ve been cool if it had a gigantamax that was an even more accurate totem pole. Also Octillery could’ve gotten something too I guess,” one user wrote, while another said, “Ledian could be so much more.”

“Golurk. He’s a giant hulking stone statue that can’t take a hit for shit. 89/80/80 defences are so at odds with its appearance that I’m willing to bet most players don’t even realise how frail it is,” one user wrote, while another said, “Slaking, I would rather have him be functional with 540-550 base stats, than 670 bst with a trash ability.”

“Ledian,” another Bug-Type lover said, “My poor bug was done dirty. It actually does nothing. Ive tried everything, even in nuzlockes and regular playthroughs it’s downright worthless, it literally just does nothing. I’ve even tried a power-up punch/Agility/Baton pass set and it did nothing.”

Not every Pokemon can be the next Lucario or Annihilape in competitive battles. The Pokemon series keeps adding new Pokemon and powers, so, naturally, some will be left behind. It’s up to the poor Dodrio and Zangoose fans of the world to keep praying for attention in the next generation of games.

About The Author

Scott has been writing for Dexerto since 2023, having been a former contributor to websites like Cracked, Dorkly, Topless Robot, Screen Rant, The Gamer, and TopTenz. A graduate of Edge Hill University in the UK, Scott started as a film student before moving into journalism. Scott specializes in Pokemon, Nintendo, DnD, Final Fantasy, and MTG. He can be contacted on LinkedIn.