jstinftw!
hey trainer
First of all, Pokemon is not a kids game. ANYONE with a DS in their house plays the new Pokemon games, but they're just so lost/uninterested now that they quite. Calling Pokemon a kids game is like calling Mario, or Zelda a kids game. And YOU tell a kid to do all this math involved with Pokemon; see how much of a kids game it is then.
Second of all, yes. There is no right or wrong way to play Pokemon. Wrong way; playing Black/White with a Game Boy Color. Playing it with a PS3. Throwing the cartridge at passing object/people. Right way of playing; using the appropriate system for the game. Turning the power on. Saving. Loading. Walking around. You can run in circles for all I care, if you can get the game to function, you're playing it right.
You see, the answer to this entire thread is Ignorance. Intolerance. And Rage. Maybe a little bit of Childishness or Naivety to be safe. And of course the 'Soul of Pokemon.'
Ignorance or lack of knowledge. People don't understand, don't know, so they take the first opinion stated to them, and assume the worst out of something they have no grasp on. Or they don't know anything about Competitive Battling, so they hate on those who do to no end because they simply do not know/understand.
Ignoranceis your new best friendagain. People do not understand that Smogon does not just go around blessing certain Pokemon with certain move sets/stats/whatevers and put them in OU/RU/NU/whatever. YOU. The player. YOU decide that. Smogon's tiers are based on use. If suddenly the whole world decided Splash+Bounce Magikarp with Rattled was the best Pokemon ever, and everyone had one on their team, it would become OU.
Intolerance, or BLAH BLAH BLAH MY OPINION IS THE ONLY ONE THERE IS. Once they've learned a little, they decide to block out all other opinions. Their own opinion is the only correct one, and anyone who tries to even just reason with them is attacking them, and they go on the defensive, and no one tries to learn, or accept. Intolerance also leads to people being intolerant of those who otherwise would leave them alone.
Intolerance, except the other way around. There are a handful of Smogonites that are spiteful, are rude, are intolerant. Heck, some are here on Serebii too, but the OP is why Serebii users hate Smogon. This is why.
Rage. WHOA!? WHAT IS THIS!? WHAT. IS. THIS!??? GARCHOMP IS SUCH A BEAAAAST! I'M GONNA USE HIM! Wait. He's banned? Darn. Well. HEY! EXCADRILL IS A BEAST IN SANDSTORM! HAHA! THEY'LL NEVER- Wait. Him too? Uhh... Ok. Well. I can use Thundurus! PRANKSTER+AWESOME STABS+DECENT MOVEPOOL!? OH YEAH HERE WE- HEY! HE'S BANNED TOO! WHAT GIVES!? ARE YOU. WHAT IS. I. BUT. ARIOHBIAHGHABOIBVIHAIVA. SMOGON SUCKS FOR DOING THIS!I CAN'T STRATEGIZE BEYOND BASIC PLOW THROUGH STRATEGIESI CAN'T USE MY FAVORITE POKEMON BECAUSE THEY'RE BANNED!
(Ties in to Ignorance/Intolerance. Smogon does not force anyone to play by any rules. Smogon just has its own set of rules and, low and behold, they actually do somewhat work. So everyone is over there, playing by those rules, but if you don't like it, by all means don't. I PROMISE. No one will die/suffer a heart attack/get mad/rage/commit suicide or genocide because you didn't play Smogon rules. I don't play by Smogon rules; VGCs FTW.)
Rage, 20 PP, 20 Damage, 100% Acc, and Physical.
I lost. I lost again. What? Why isn't my team winning? Ugh. Same Pokemon over and over again. Why can't I win?
Basically, a lot of people lose while playing Smogon rules. A lot of people don't like to lose, especially in large quantities that aren't spread out. Not Smogon's fault, but everyone needs something big to blame. Smogon just put a nice red bow on their heads by a.)Creating the rules b.)Creating analyses for Pokemon c.)Becoming known for them.
I guess that^ ties in with Intolerance and Ignorance though. It's not their fault that you don't know the specifics/logistics/mechanics of the game. It's also not their fault if they put a lot of time/effort/knowledge into Pokemon. But it's there; to say "HEY. You shouldn't be thinking so much when it comes to playing Pokemon!" is like saying "HEY! You're actually thinking! That's bad and now you're playing it wrong!" Plus, if you were winning, you wouldn't care if they put 1000000 hours into their game (I know, it stops at 999:99). You won, so no complaints, right?
And then for the other percent that argues for the "Spirit of Pokemon," Smogon's never said anything against that. I'm pretty sure there are tons of Smogonites that love their Pokemon to death as well. They just like to win, and are willing to put a little/lot more effort in winning than others. It's like the Olympics; they train their Pokemon to do well. If you don't train for the Olympics, you don't do well (unless you're EXTREMELY lucky). No, you train your Pokemon to be as good as the other competitors.
Now, say, you're some random guy on the street and you try to beat the Olympic trained athlete. Usually, doesn't work. Same with Pokemon, only instead of using your body, you're using numbers. Does that mean they're any less of a 'soul'? No. Not necessarily. Sure, some will, some view them that way. But that's not a Smogon specific problem, nor is Smogon the root of it. Some people just aren't that into Pokemon. Again, not Smogon's fault.
Again, I will reiterate because this is important.
1. No one is forcing you to use any Pokemon.
2. No one is forcing you to play by Smogon rules.
3. Tiers are based on how often certain Pokemon are used. YOU, the player, decide what is OU, RU, etc.
4. Bans are there for a reason. Why don't I bring my Mewtwo out while they use a Butterfree! Hmmm.... I WONDER WHO'LL WIN?
5. You can't avoid rude people; don't join them and blindly hate on someone/something who's innocent.
6. POKEMON IS NOT A CHILDREN'S GAME. IT IS A GAME. PERIOD. You can put a lot of work, and thought into it, or you can mindlessly derp around in the game. Neither make it a children's game. It's aimed at children, yes, but that doesn't make it a children's game. Nintendo's just smart enough to create games that appeal to varying age groups ranging from 4 years old-99+.
7. There isn't a wrong way to play the game. Just play.
8. The 'Spirit of Pokemon' does not go away when you train them competitively. YOU are what determines whether your Pokemon is a mindless killing machine or your partner. You can derp around in circles in-game if you want; doesn't make your Pokemon any more or less of an individual. It's YOUR PERSPECTIVE.
tl;dr Go away then. This is a discussion; if you can't read an argument, well, I'm sorry. This isn't the place for you. Go read, I don't know, a comic book or something. Go to the Polls section and click Yes/No/Maybe/Kanto/Blue or whatever. Maybe make a quick post on why you agree/disagree/have no oppinion/like Kanto/blue is your favorite color.
(Disclaimer: I'm sorry if I sound rude, harsh, mean, etc. I'm on Rage Mode from reading about SOPA/PIPA and it's carrying over. I'm not just pulling this out of thin air though; everything I said up there^ is still true. Just blunt.)
EDIT: Complaints about OU being boring? I'll give you that.
Honestly, if you don't care about JUST winning, and you want to see some interesting strategies flying around, go lower tier. RU, NU, UU, etc. Those all get kind of interesting. And if worse comes to worse, check out VGC. Few bans, no tiers, just check it out if you're that desperate.
But don't get mad at Smogon for that. You wanna shake it up? YOU be the difference. Stop complaining at others to make the change.
Second of all, yes. There is no right or wrong way to play Pokemon. Wrong way; playing Black/White with a Game Boy Color. Playing it with a PS3. Throwing the cartridge at passing object/people. Right way of playing; using the appropriate system for the game. Turning the power on. Saving. Loading. Walking around. You can run in circles for all I care, if you can get the game to function, you're playing it right.
You see, the answer to this entire thread is Ignorance. Intolerance. And Rage. Maybe a little bit of Childishness or Naivety to be safe. And of course the 'Soul of Pokemon.'
Ignorance or lack of knowledge. People don't understand, don't know, so they take the first opinion stated to them, and assume the worst out of something they have no grasp on. Or they don't know anything about Competitive Battling, so they hate on those who do to no end because they simply do not know/understand.
Ignorance
Intolerance, or BLAH BLAH BLAH MY OPINION IS THE ONLY ONE THERE IS. Once they've learned a little, they decide to block out all other opinions. Their own opinion is the only correct one, and anyone who tries to even just reason with them is attacking them, and they go on the defensive, and no one tries to learn, or accept. Intolerance also leads to people being intolerant of those who otherwise would leave them alone.
Intolerance, except the other way around. There are a handful of Smogonites that are spiteful, are rude, are intolerant. Heck, some are here on Serebii too, but the OP is why Serebii users hate Smogon. This is why.
Rage. WHOA!? WHAT IS THIS!? WHAT. IS. THIS!??? GARCHOMP IS SUCH A BEAAAAST! I'M GONNA USE HIM! Wait. He's banned? Darn. Well. HEY! EXCADRILL IS A BEAST IN SANDSTORM! HAHA! THEY'LL NEVER- Wait. Him too? Uhh... Ok. Well. I can use Thundurus! PRANKSTER+AWESOME STABS+DECENT MOVEPOOL!? OH YEAH HERE WE- HEY! HE'S BANNED TOO! WHAT GIVES!? ARE YOU. WHAT IS. I. BUT. ARIOHBIAHGHABOIBVIHAIVA. SMOGON SUCKS FOR DOING THIS!
(Ties in to Ignorance/Intolerance. Smogon does not force anyone to play by any rules. Smogon just has its own set of rules and, low and behold, they actually do somewhat work. So everyone is over there, playing by those rules, but if you don't like it, by all means don't. I PROMISE. No one will die/suffer a heart attack/get mad/rage/commit suicide or genocide because you didn't play Smogon rules. I don't play by Smogon rules; VGCs FTW.)
Rage, 20 PP, 20 Damage, 100% Acc, and Physical.
I lost. I lost again. What? Why isn't my team winning? Ugh. Same Pokemon over and over again. Why can't I win?
Basically, a lot of people lose while playing Smogon rules. A lot of people don't like to lose, especially in large quantities that aren't spread out. Not Smogon's fault, but everyone needs something big to blame. Smogon just put a nice red bow on their heads by a.)Creating the rules b.)Creating analyses for Pokemon c.)Becoming known for them.
I guess that^ ties in with Intolerance and Ignorance though. It's not their fault that you don't know the specifics/logistics/mechanics of the game. It's also not their fault if they put a lot of time/effort/knowledge into Pokemon. But it's there; to say "HEY. You shouldn't be thinking so much when it comes to playing Pokemon!" is like saying "HEY! You're actually thinking! That's bad and now you're playing it wrong!" Plus, if you were winning, you wouldn't care if they put 1000000 hours into their game (I know, it stops at 999:99). You won, so no complaints, right?
And then for the other percent that argues for the "Spirit of Pokemon," Smogon's never said anything against that. I'm pretty sure there are tons of Smogonites that love their Pokemon to death as well. They just like to win, and are willing to put a little/lot more effort in winning than others. It's like the Olympics; they train their Pokemon to do well. If you don't train for the Olympics, you don't do well (unless you're EXTREMELY lucky). No, you train your Pokemon to be as good as the other competitors.
Now, say, you're some random guy on the street and you try to beat the Olympic trained athlete. Usually, doesn't work. Same with Pokemon, only instead of using your body, you're using numbers. Does that mean they're any less of a 'soul'? No. Not necessarily. Sure, some will, some view them that way. But that's not a Smogon specific problem, nor is Smogon the root of it. Some people just aren't that into Pokemon. Again, not Smogon's fault.
Again, I will reiterate because this is important.
1. No one is forcing you to use any Pokemon.
2. No one is forcing you to play by Smogon rules.
3. Tiers are based on how often certain Pokemon are used. YOU, the player, decide what is OU, RU, etc.
4. Bans are there for a reason. Why don't I bring my Mewtwo out while they use a Butterfree! Hmmm.... I WONDER WHO'LL WIN?
5. You can't avoid rude people; don't join them and blindly hate on someone/something who's innocent.
6. POKEMON IS NOT A CHILDREN'S GAME. IT IS A GAME. PERIOD. You can put a lot of work, and thought into it, or you can mindlessly derp around in the game. Neither make it a children's game. It's aimed at children, yes, but that doesn't make it a children's game. Nintendo's just smart enough to create games that appeal to varying age groups ranging from 4 years old-99+.
7. There isn't a wrong way to play the game. Just play.
8. The 'Spirit of Pokemon' does not go away when you train them competitively. YOU are what determines whether your Pokemon is a mindless killing machine or your partner. You can derp around in circles in-game if you want; doesn't make your Pokemon any more or less of an individual. It's YOUR PERSPECTIVE.
tl;dr Go away then. This is a discussion; if you can't read an argument, well, I'm sorry. This isn't the place for you. Go read, I don't know, a comic book or something. Go to the Polls section and click Yes/No/Maybe/Kanto/Blue or whatever. Maybe make a quick post on why you agree/disagree/have no oppinion/like Kanto/blue is your favorite color.
(Disclaimer: I'm sorry if I sound rude, harsh, mean, etc. I'm on Rage Mode from reading about SOPA/PIPA and it's carrying over. I'm not just pulling this out of thin air though; everything I said up there^ is still true. Just blunt.)
EDIT: Complaints about OU being boring? I'll give you that.
Honestly, if you don't care about JUST winning, and you want to see some interesting strategies flying around, go lower tier. RU, NU, UU, etc. Those all get kind of interesting. And if worse comes to worse, check out VGC. Few bans, no tiers, just check it out if you're that desperate.
But don't get mad at Smogon for that. You wanna shake it up? YOU be the difference. Stop complaining at others to make the change.
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