Difficulty in Pokemon

[Bulletproof]

Are you feeling lazy/rushed/tired? Vote on the poll & go.

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Among fans, there has been Controversy of the difficulty of the games in the Pokemon series since day one. Some argue that the series is to easy, encouraging younger players to enjoy the games, while others think that the game may be too difficult, with major challenges preventing players from fully enjoying the game-play. What do you think?

Express your views on the difficulty or ease of the Pokemon series here, and drop a suggestion to fix the problem. We know that users have different views on the matter so avoid calling out users for opinion. Debate is fine here, but keep it as that, rather than an argument. Please post only to contribute to discussion, & I'll ask that you keep reason for your choice at at least 50 words to reduce spam, though this is not required. An example of what not to post.

Many different factors also go into how players gauge the difficulty of the series so we appreciate if you would provide some insight. I understand age is a sensitive field & obviously not required, though appreciated. This thread includes not only battles, but the open world difficulty as well, such as puzzles like Victory Road. You are welcome to include your opinion of spin-offs as well.

Spoiler: If you'd like a template, it's your lucky day.

Game Type(Main Series/PMD/Ranger/etc):
Difficulty(very easy/easy/moderate/hard/very hard):
Guide Usage(yes/ no):
Current Age:
Reason for choice:
Solution:
Difficulty when you started playing:

Discuss. If I made an error in this OP, inform me.

 

[salaswampert]

Game Type(Main Series/PMD/Ranger/etc):XD gale of darkness/pokemon coliseum
Difficulty(very easy/easy/moderate/hard/very hard):hard/moderate
Guide Usage(yes/ no):No/No
Current Age:15
Reason for choice:Because they took me about 2 days to beat. Most main series games take me around a day to beat. Pokemon ranger guardian signs was challenging to though. It took me 4 days to beat.
Difficulty when you started playing:easy

 

[Atratus]

I remember playing R/B and G/S/C and thinking it was pretty though. The elite four seemed intimidating, especially Lance because Dragonite was to me an unstoppable badass. But now that I know the type chart and know how to raise my pokemon to be stronger, battles have become unchallenged. As I said before, I think the main series is just too easy for veteran players, although for novice ones I assume it is alright. My solution for this is an option for different level of AI. As for puzzles.. Are there puzzles? I never really noticed, besides maybe Sky Pillar. Victory roads are not really puzzles for me, they are just HM-dragging. I would actually like to see actual puzzles in subsequent games.

 

[_Snivy]

Game Type(Main Series/PMD/Ranger/etc): Main series
Difficulty(very easy/easy/moderate/hard/very hard): very easy
Guide Usage(yes/ no): no
Current Age: 16
Reason for choice: Too easy! Gym leaders too easy too!
Difficulty when you started playing: Easy

 

[Moneyy]

Game Type: Main series, PMD was hard for me for some reason.

Difficulty: Easy

Guide Usage: No

Age: I've always thought the games were easy, so it was never difficult for me no matter how old I was.

Reason: Most gym fights and E4 fights are too easy.

Solution: Higher leveled gym/E4s, better AI

Difficulty when I started playing: Easy

 

[Calamity™]

I don't like templates. D:
The only Pokémon game that I found difficult at parts was Pokémon Gold. And by parts I mean a few Gym Battles. (Whitney) Apart from that I don't think the main series of Pokémon games are difficult enough. Saying that, it is also understandable considering it is a 3+ game.
I guess that's the reason that some fans love playing the hacks that are made of the games. They generally provide a much more difficult playthrough.

 

[.Ein]

I think that 3rd generation was kinda easiest. In 2nd and 5th generation are some tough gymleaders. And 4th generation has a powerful E4. All in all, the games are moderate.

 

[OceanHero]

I almost never have difficulty with games. But then aqain I beat twilight princess in about 9 hours total.

 

[zapto369]

I voted "they are moderate and should be harder" and that's pretty much my view on this subject. There are some aspects of the game that are easy and some that are hard. If pokemon is too easy for you then try clearing the Battle Frontier

 

[ShadowKyogre443]

As internet capabilities came in, the games got significantly easier.

 

[Inchtall]

Game Type(Main Series/PMD/Ranger/etc): All
Difficulty(very easy/easy/moderate/hard/very hard): Hard
Guide Usage(yes/ no): when I'm in a pickle
Current Age: 12
Reason for choice: I find this game rather easy, other that am couple of battles.
Solution: Create a harder version of each region E +10, and have the E +10 have a darker story plot
Difficulty when you started playing: Rather normal.

 

[DasBoot]

Game Type(Main Series/PMD/Ranger/etc): Main Series (Fire Red)
Difficulty(very easy/easy/moderate/hard/very hard): Easy
Guide Usage(yes/ no): No
Current Age: I prefer not telling, and age doesn't really matter when playing Pokémon unless if you are EV training or something, and need to have better understanding of it.
Reason for choice: No reason
Solution: Better AI as you progress through the game
Difficulty when you started playing: Easy

 

[Slayer Shank]

Game type: PMD - Depending on your teams types and how many reviver seeds you have the game could be a pain at times, mainly frustrating the only games that seemed "hard" to me.

Guides - Never necessary when you have over 9000 reviver seeds to spare.

Current Age - 16

Reason for choice - Main plot was pretty simple, thje aftergame is what's frustrating.

Solution - Less overkill moves like Roar of Time that can ohko both team members on your first move.

Previous Difficulty - Rather easy plotline.

 

[Zoruagible]

Game Type(Main Series/PMD/Ranger/etc): Almia
Difficulty(very easy/easy/moderate/hard/very hard): hard
Guide Usage(yes/ no): no
Current Age: 17
Reason for choice: the gem guardians were super hard
Solution: Make more time between attacks
Difficulty when you started playing: Easy

 

[RubyRemakeNOW]

They are WAY too easy. Although I have to say B/W did not disappoint, it was harder than D/P/P. However, B/W was way too linear for my liking.

 

[hyperion33]

This is for main series, but could be adopted to other games.

I think the games should have a "normal mode" and a "hardcore mode" (based off of Fallout and similar games).

Normal mode would be how the games are now.

Hardcore mode would have harder puzzles, opponents would have higher levelled Pokemon, you get less money from battling and selling, and things cost more. And maybe a few other minor tweaks. This would make the game much harder, IMO.

EDIT: @ZoruaGible: I actually find the Ranger games to be, in general, easy, especially when trying to capture a Pokemon (some of the timing on puzzles is tricky). That's just me though.

 

[kaiser soze]

Game Type(Main Series/PMD/Ranger/etc): Main series
Difficulty(very easy/easy/moderate/hard/very hard): Easy
Guide Usage(yes/ no): Yes
Current Age: 20
Reason for choice: There is little skill to the actual game. You need to solve some puzzles and win some battles, and poof, you're done. Usually their idea of a challenge is facing overleveld wild mons. Most of the hard parts can be solved with a simple Google search.
Solution: Better AI that doesn't accept a beating and covers type disadvantages better, strong postgame options, expanded multiplayer features
Difficulty when you started playing: Moderate at best.

 

[xXShinyUmbreonXx]

Game Type(Main Series/PMD/Ranger/etc): Main series
Difficulty(very easy/easy/moderate/hard/very hard): easy
Guide Usage(yes/ no): no
Current Age: 14
Reason for choice: The games aren't really all too challenging, the only difficult thing about B/W is the fact that the e4 level jump is huge, and there isn't a place to truly train for them. Then again, I beat them with a team of mid 60's, with some in the high 50's and some low 70's
Solution: Higher levels, harder/longer main storyline, more areas and challenges.
Difficulty when you started playing: Moderate/hard. I was only about 8, didn't know nearly as much about types and moves that I do now.

 

[Gelatino95]

The main series games are easy for those of us who make strategic pokemon choices, which makes up most of the users on SPPf. A lot of *cough*younger*cough* players tend to fill up their team with the dex fillers or other pokemon who are on the team simply because they look cool, and not necessarily because they're actually good or fill in a much-needed spot on their team. In addition, many of these people aren't well-acquainted with game mechanics or strategy and may end up filling their pokemon's movesets with all STAB attacks. These people are the ones who have the most difficulty in beating the game.

However, there are still those of us who like to make logical and strategic decisions when it comes to building an in-game team. For those of us, there is a multitude of post-game challenges. For example, catching all the legendaries can prove to be a difficult yet rewarding task. It took me a couple tries to find the way into Kyurem's cave. In addition, there are hard trainers such as Cynthia post-game who are incredibly hard to beat. They make a great goal for trainers to attain. It personally took me a few tries to beat Cynthia, and it felt very rewarding when I did so.

 

[Bulletproof]

EDIT: @ZoruaGible: I actually find the Ranger games to be, in general, easy, especially when trying to capture a Pokemon (some of the timing on puzzles is tricky). That's just me though.

I found almost every (major) boss in SOA to be a big pain in the rear, but thats just me. The past missions of GS are the only parts of the series as a whole that require major level grinding, when you consider most people play alone.

Game Type(Main Series/PMD/Ranger/etc): All
Difficulty(very easy/easy/moderate/hard/very hard): Hard
Guide Usage(yes/ no): when I'm in a pickle
Current Age: 12
Reason for choice: I find this game rather easy, other that am couple of battles.
Solution: Create a harder version of each region E +10, and have the E +10 have a darker story plot
Difficulty when you started playing: Rather normal.

If you'd like to create a game, bring it here.