All Pokémon Games and Generations, Ranked from Best to Worst

It’s exhausting to pinpoint the explanation why the Pokémon franchise has remained a worldwide sensation for greater than 20 years. Maybe it actually is the will to catch ’em all. Maybe it’s that the fundamental method, of changing into the perfect coach, has remained largely the identical since its debut on Game Boy.
A way of consolation and familiarity, whereas implementing sufficient new options to evolve, retains bringing players again in droves. No mainline Pokémon sport has been something lower than nice, and all of them have been business successes. Pokémon is likely one of the uncommon franchises that each children and adults obsess over.
Pokémon Sword and Shield, the primary core Pokémon experiences for a house console, arrive on Nintendo Switch later this yr. With that in thoughts, we determined to rank the mainline Pokémon generations from greatest to worst — worst being relative as even the final entry on this listing is nice. The mainline video games are literally solely a fraction of video video games within the Pokémon universe, so we additionally included our picks for the most effective Pokémon spinoff video games after the primary occasion.
1. Pokémon Gold/Silver/Crystal (Gen 2)
Starters: Chikorita, Cyndaquil, Totodile
Pokémon Gold and Silver added 100 Pokémon to the unique 151, together with arguably the most effective trio of starters Pokémon has seen. Beyond including to the Pokédex, era two made nice strides in a number of areas over the unique. For starters, you now had to consider the time of day when attempting to catch new associates, because the day/night time cycle well added a layer of depth to your time spent within the lengthy grass.
Adding to the techniques seen in Pokémon Yellow, era two leaned into dual-types, permitting you to make a extra different and strategically numerous group to convey into battle. The Johto area occurs to be our favourite to discover as effectively and has the most effective legendary birds (Lugia and Ho-Oh).
We’d be remiss to not point out Coronary heartGold and SoulSilver, the improved DS remakes of Gold and Silver. Coronary heartGold and SoulSilver added the Kanto area to the map, connecting Johto with the land mass that began the phenomenon. With 16 gymnasium leaders to greatest, Coronary heartGold and SoulSilver stay the deepest, lengthiest Pokémon video games ever created. If we might solely play one Pokémon sport for the remainder of our lives, it’d be Coronary heartGold or SoulSilver.
2. Pokémon Red/Blue/Yellow (Gen 1)
Starters (Blue/Red): Charmander, Squirtle, Bulbasaur
Starter (Yellow): Pikachu
Partly as a consequence of nostalgia, partly as a consequence of how these video games nonetheless really feel nice at the moment, era one’s trio of wonderful Pokémon video games take our second spot. To at the present time, era one has the most effective assortment of Pokémon. The authentic 151 won’t ever be forgotten and neither will Ash’s first journey. From the opening moments in Pallet Town to picking your first starter to racking up gymnasium badges and defeating the Elite Four, Pokémon Red and Blue simply feels proper.
Sure, a number of the deeper mechanics the sequence is understood for now aren’t current within the authentic video games, however there’s one thing about their streamlined id that also brings a smile to our faces. Pokémon Yellow introduced the sequence to full colour and having Pikachu by our aspect made us actually really feel like we had been Ash, on a journey to catch ’em all. Generation one will all the time maintain a particular place in our hearts. It’s magical.
3. Pokémon Ruby/Sapphire/Emerald (Gen 3)
Starters: Treecko, Torchic, Mudkip
Generation three is when Pokémon video games actually began to lean into natures, EV, and IV techniques, inserting an emphasis on not solely the species however the particular member of that species in your occasion. The energy of the Game Boy Advance made every mannequin of the now 386 Pokémon extra vibrant.
While we predict the 135 new Pokémon, as a gaggle, didn’t examine to the 100 added in gen two, Ruby and Sapphire had one of many neater areas. The Hoenn island area felt bigger than earlier areas and was typically a extra fascinating space to discover. A pair of stellar gen three remakes, Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire, can be found on Nintendo 3DS.
4. Pokémon Ultra Sun/Moon (Gen 7)
Starters: Rowlet, Litten, Popplio
The most up-to-date mainline video games, Sun and Moon and the improved Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon, switched up the usual Pokémon development a bit. Set throughout the islands of Alola, Sun and Moon launched gamers to Team Skull and the Aether Foundation, a gaggle devoted to defending Pokémon. Rather than progressing via varied cities’ gyms, you needed to full island trials, which usually included a small dungeon and a battle with a robust Pokémon. Afterwards, you’d have the ability to battle the island’s Kahuna.
The 80 new Pokémon had been a number of the most fascinating to be added because the early video games, and the Alolan variations of authentic Pokémon felt impressed. Z-Moves, Ultra Beasts, and an expanded tackle Mega Evolutions added welcome mechanics into the fold. There was even a Pokémon Snap fashion mini-game.
5. Pokémon X/Y (Gen 6)
Starters: Chespin, Fennekin, Froakie
Pokémon X and Y marked the sequence’ first actually 3D expertise. The digicam perspective switched from top-down to a more in-depth, behind the physique angle, giving the world of Pokémon a way of scope it hadn’t seen earlier than. France impressed Kalos area had aptitude and elegance and featured one of many largest mega-cities we’d seen so far.
Though X and Y solely launched 72 new Pokémon, it did mark the start of Mega Evolutions. The storyline considerably disappoints, although. The increased constancy presentation offered by the Nintendo 3DS made Pokémon fashions actually pop throughout battle sequences, permitting for crisper preventing animations.
6. Pokémon Diamond/Pearl/Platinum (Gen 4)
Starters: Turtwig, Chimchar, Piplup
Pokémon Diamond, Pearl, and Platinum served an essential function within the evolution of Pokémon. They seemed markedly higher than era three due to the Nintendo DS, however they primarily confirmed the place the franchise would finally go. Generation 4 introduced an important characteristic, although: Online buying and selling and battling. This made filling out the Pokédex, which then neared 500 with the assistance of the brand new 107 pocket monsters, extra of a world effort.
You didn’t must know individuals with copies of the sport to commerce with. Instead, you may simply hop on-line and make a commerce for what you wanted. Online battling allow you to actually see who was the most effective coach for the primary time in sequence historical past. Generation 4 is nice due to its technological improvements, however it’s one of many extra forgettable Pokémon time intervals total.
7. Pokémon White/Black and White/Black 2 (Gen 5)
Starters: Snivy, Tepig, Oshawott
Generation 5 was an oddity. It was the primary within the sequence to get a direct sequel, with Black 2 and White 2 releasing a yr after the originals. The sequels did retread acquainted territory, however informed a brand new story and featured some new areas in addition to Pokémon. Generation 5 additionally holds the report for probably the most Pokémon, with 156 new Pokémon to catch.
Even extra so than Diamond and Pearl, although, era 5, particularly the sequels, felt like a cease hole for the sequence’ subsequent evolution. While we regard era 5 because the “worst,” we nonetheless suppose it’s fairly darn good. It didn’t introduce a lot new in any respect, however the true sequel idea was intriguing nonetheless.