Summary
Even afterPokemon ScarletandViolet’s DLC, not every Pokemon will have made the jump to current titles. Debates on why and whether this should be accepted have been raging sincePokemon SwordandShieldcame out, but this is the current reality for the franchise. There is a decent chance that the full Pokedex will be assembled again in the future, but it can’t be right now for reasons established long beforePokemon ScarletandVioletcame out.
Plenty of explanations exist for why, and they stretch beyond time or budgetary constraints. The complexity of catching every Pokemon has grown with each generation, and even inPokemon Red,Blue, andGreen, certain species had to be evolved through items or trading. Such methods tend to stay consistent across games, so a givenPokemontitle may need to go out of its way to accommodate thepresence of specific Pokemon like Eevee’s many evolutions. At times, separate species may even need each other to function, and, as evidenced by current absences fromScarletandViolet, those Pokemon may have an especially tough time sticking around.
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Escavalier and Accelgor Must Join Or Skip Pokemon Games Together
Certain kinds of Pokemon feel joined at the hip, with their separation either being perceived as impossible or actually being so. Generation 3’s Zangoose and Seviper are well known examples of the former thanks to their species-wide rivalry, but some Pokemon depend on each other for mechanical reasons.Pokemon BlackandWhiteintroduced the best exampleswith Karrablast and Shelmet, two Pokemon who could only evolve into Escavalier and Accelgor by trading one for the other. Lore-wise, Shelmet receives a speed upgrade from giving its knight helmet to Karrablast, resulting in their evolutions.
At the time, this was viewed as a clever iteration on the classic trade requirement specific Pokemon had to gain their final evolution. However, even with frustrations caused by the need to trade twice toregister both Shelmet and Karrablast’s evolved forms, trainers couldn’t know that things would get worse. ComePokemon SunandMoon, Accelgor and Escavalier’s evolutionary lines lacked new Pokedex entries and could only be obtained via thePokemon Bank. Now, it seems that Karrablast, Escavalier, Shelmet, and Accelgor may not be usable inScarletandVioletat all. These two Pokemon lines are in trouble, and their situation sets a dangerous precedent.
Dondozo and Tatsugiri are In The Same Boat As Escavalier and Accelgor
Pokemon ScarletandVioletintroduced an entirely new category of Pokemon, those being species that actively synergize with each other. Complementary Pokemon like Solrock and Lunatone have existed for a while, butDondozo and Tatsugiri’s strengths lie in Double Battles. When out together, Tatsugiri will automatically hop into Dondozo’s mouth with its Commander Ability, increasing all of Dondozo’s stats by two stages. Furthermore, Dondozo’s damaging signature move Order Up will also give it extra stat boosts based on which of three forms the Tatsugiri has. Two Pokemon have never been able to act as one withinPokemon’s battles before, making this duo unique.
Unfortunately, that uniqueness may be their undoing. Like Escavalier and Accelgor, these Pokemon don’t work without both present. Either they enter future games together, or both get cut. Although their traits have garnered some attention, neither species are standout newcomers from Generation 9, so both are prime candidates for cuts.Pokemonneeds innovations like the Commander Abilityto stay fresh, but having them around will lead to more situations like this. It’s a shame that these interesting, competitively-oriented Pokemon already may be barred from joining their trainers on future adventures.
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