New Game + 3) Pokémon: Let's Go Eevee (2018)

The Challenge: Complete the game using only Poison type Pokémon.

As I had attempted to play through this game on numerous occasions, I decided the best way to compel myself to see it through to the end was to have some sort of challenge. The idea of doing a Nuzlocke was almost entirely out of the question as the mechanics in the game took away pretty much all incentive to do so. There are no truly random encounters, thus it would be easy to pick and choose what I got. Not being able to level up in the conventional way would present multiple problems, as would the complete lack of abilities. It seemed as though that while the game is easy, it's easy in a way that dissuades traditional challenge runs. So I decided to do a run I'd thought of doing in the past, one where I would only use one type of Pokémon for my run.

I decided on the Poison type for a number of reason, chief among them being how completely and utterly the type sucked in the original games. Psychic was the dominant type in generation one, and being weak to it and the powerful move Earthquake made the type pretty lackluster. Combined with a shallow and weak movepool and Poison could be seen as an okay secondary typing at best. Later games have done much to improve the balance, including the introduction of new types to weaken the stranglehold Psychic once had. In generation six, the introduction of Fairy type gave Poison a much needed offensive boost, and while it's a far more balanced type, it still carries that early stigma, especially in games set in Kanto.

The early game saw me catching the likes of Bellsprout, Weedle, the Nidorans, and Bulbasaur before the first gym, giving me a solid line up with plenty of type advantage. Brock was, as he usually is, a complete cakewalk, though the trainers on the road to Mt. Moon made up for it. My team had a particular weakness to Flying, and Pidgeys and Spearows littered our path. Once in Mt. Moon, the trainers, particularly Team Rocket, turned out to be more time consuming than difficult. As annoying as it was, there was an unexpected development that occurred that helped renew my interest at this early stage.

The unofficial mascot of my run.

While I wasn't excited to use a Golbat as I much prefer it's evolved form that is frustratingly absent, the appearance of a green Zubat certainly made the prospect more enticing. For those who don't know, every single Pokémon has a minimum of two color schemes, their regular color and a special alternate color known as a "shiny". Shinies are particularly rare, though each game usually has a few methods to make them appear more often. In a regular playthrough with no shiny hunting methods being utilized, there is a 1/4096, or 0.024%, chance of encountering a shiny. Considering I wasn't actively hunting for a shiny and that it just so happened to match the typing I was using for the game, I was left with little choice but to give Fritter the Zubat a permanent spot on the team.

The next few gyms posed little problem, with Misty and Erika being laughably easy and Surge providing a modest challenge. After the fourth gym, there is a massive gap between the next set of gyms and a pretty sizable level gap. After smacking Team Rocket around a bit more, I then had to scrounge to find enough trainers to help close the distance. While I knew there was little Koga could do against me, the Psychic gym leader, Sabrina, loomed large on the horizon. After adding a few more Pokémon to the team, I decided to utilize one of the unique features present in Let's Go, which is the ability to directly transfer Pokémon from Pokémon Go. The selection is limited primarily to the original 151, though the Alolan forms of these were also available. Thus I added Sludgeheart, the Alolan Muk to the team.

Alolan Muk takes everything that's already good about Muk, who is a shockingly bulky heavy hitter, and adds the Dark type to it along with a rainbow coat of paint. The Dark type, introduced in generation two, was designed to be a hard counter to Psychic. Immune to Psychic attacks and dealing super effective damage, Sludgeheart made quick work of Sabrina and her mind bending monsters. The fight I most feared turned into a laughable speed bump, I moved forward with nothing but confidence.

From there, the few remaining gyms presented no issues, as Tentacruel and Nidoqueen carved a clear path through to Victory Road. Breezing through the tunnel, detouring only to defeat the legendary birds, the only thing that remained was to challenge the Elite Four and become the Champion. While I had expected some resistance, my team made incredibly quick work of them with little to no challenge.

While I enjoyed doing a Poison only run, I found myself ultimately growing bored as the game itself just doesn't provide any real challenge. It's frustrating, as I would have loved to have been smacked down at least once or punished for the method in which I was playing, but that moment never came. What's more, the removal of HMs, or more accurately, relegating them to an Eevee that doesn't count as a team member, meant that I had no incentive to switch things up. While adding a lot of the mechanics and trappings from newer games helps make the region feel fresh, it also completely destroys the pacing and challenge. It's especially frustrating as the game is arguably one of the best looking in the franchise and takes a few risks only to ultimately play it safe in order to remain beginner friendly.