I wasn't even sure there was going to be an OT for this with how little hype there was for this release glad to see I was wrong!
Pokemon Gold was the first game I ever imported and I played through the entire game in Japanese despite not knowing a lick of the language. Still managed to get through all of it and beat it (although I do remember a tree giving me a loooot of trouble XD). This was also when as a kid I started falling out with Pokemon, despite beating Gold in Japanese I ended up not even playing the English release so this will be a first for me.
Although all that said... Pokemon is pretty great and always fun but its generally just a little to easy...
So thats why I really can't play Pokemon games the normal way anymore and instead I'll be doing a Nuzlocke! Best way to play Pokemon IMO because it truly gives the game a sense of challenge and changes how you play and generally makes you a better player because you end up learning to use Pokemon you normally wouldn't even touch.
For those who are unaware (and since it hasn't been brought up in this topic already) a Pokemon Nuzlocke is playing the game with additional rules to make it more interesting and challenging. There are many many many variations of rules you can use but the three that are generally required are...
1. If a Pokemon faints it is considered dead, you can't revive it you must release it. (or Box it forever to transfer to Sun/Moon for collecting purposes XD)
2. You can only catch the first Pokemon you see in every new route. If you kill it or it teleports or something then your chance is gone and you can't catch anything else in that route.
3. You must nickname all of your Pokemon.
So just these three rules make it much more interesting to play. The first rule makes it so you have to be a lot more careful since if it faints its gone, losing your starter early can have a huge effect and leave a major hole in your team. It also makes enemy critical hits much more devastating as having your star get taken out from a random crit can truly feel like the worst thing in the world.
The second rule is designed to limit your Pokemon and your options. Since what you get ends up being random you end up generally having to use different Pokemon and types you wouldn't normally consider running which helps you learn more about all the various Pokemon in the game as you play. There is also extended rules to this that make it more interesting that I'll get into down below.
The third rule is just used largely to give you a general attachment to each of your Pokemon. It's surprisingly that giving them a name and having perma death in effect can really make you actually care if they live or die since losing someone whose been with you a long time or been so strong can end up making you actually miss them once their gone.
There are various other extended and additional rules as well that can make the runs more interesting, for me personally the ruleset I generally use when doing a Nuzlocke is as follows...
1. If a Pokemon faints it is considered dead, you have to release it. No reviving!
2. You can only catch the first Pokemon you see in each route, if it is killed or runs away I cannot catch anything else on that route.
3. I must nickname all of my Pokemon
4. No items are allowed in battle outside of Pokeballs (No healing items!!).
5. Duplicates Clause: If the first Pokemon I see in a route is a Pidgey and I already have caught a
Pidgey I can catch the first Pokemon I see that I haven't already caught.
6. Species Clause: If I have a Weedle and it is ALIVE and UNEVOLVED and I run into its evolution a Kakuna I can catch it but upon doing so
I have to release the Weedle.
7. Battle Style is SET
8. Gift Pokemon are allowed and don't count towards any other rules (including starters).
9. If I manage to run into a Shiny Pokemon (1/4000 chance) I can catch it even if its something
I already have or its found on a route I already have caught something on.
10. Safari Zone Rule: I can catch up to 3 Pokemon in the zone. Other catching rules apply.
11. Trading Pokemon is not allowed.
12. If I 'white out' and have all of my team faint it is considered game over even if I have other Pokemon in the box.
Also just as an additional note: I don't consider this a rule but I randomize every choice you get, from the starters to even which version I'll end up doing the Nuzlocke run on. Things like the fossil choices and stuff like that make it much more interesting.
So my rules make it pretty hard. The no items in battle rule is really what makes it difficult because you cannot just spend money on like a 1000 full restores and just tank the stronger Pokemon until they run out of PP (which is something that I see people who do runs like this on youtube actively doing and it annoys the hell out of me because its basically cheating) and forces you to really come up with a strategy for each Gym and boss encounter. Then you have things like the Duplicates and Species Clauses which I have to make it so I can't ever catch more then 1 of a line of Pokemon. It both gives you more options then just ending up with 20 Pidgeys but it also can make it harder because its possible that some routes you'll be unable to catch anything new. The gift Pokemon rule I have is basically a mercy rule and also helps to prevent complications in certain games (Gen 3 you get your starter in the first route, locking you out of that first route if you follow the normal rules).
Overall these rules don't end up making the game all that more complicated but it does make it very difficult but also really really fun. With these rules in place I will freely admit that actually beating the game is pretty much not going to happen but the thing about Nuzlockes is its really all about the journey, learning about new Pokemon you'd never even think about using, growing attached to them only for them to end up being taken away, and overcoming impossible odds because of the skill you've got as a player (and a little luck!) and beating those odds when everything seems impossible. It makes battles like the Miltank in G/S so much more interesting when you know not only can it take out your best Pokemon but it could wipe your whole team if your not careful and beating it even after it wrecks your party can be one of the greatest feelings ever.
So that said, anyone else going to join me in a Nuzlocke? You don't have to make it nearly as hard as I do, again its only the first three rules listed above that are really whats 'required' but I do want to encourage people to try doing a Nuzlocke if you haven't done one before, it really makes the games so much more interesting and really can open your eyes onto certain Pokemon that might normally seem awful that end up being really quite useful (Zubat/Crowbat is this 100% he seems like such a common cannon fodder Pokemon but trained up its actually really quite good and very useful for various strategies) and frankly I find it hard to play a Pokemon game normally anymore because its just too easy.
