>>46772885>>Gens 1-4, no Charizard pandering at allCome on, you know that's false.
Charizard pandering didn't start until the Alola games alongside the new "gameplay" style.
There's nothing wrong with referencing Charizard, the issue is when you shove it into integral parts of the game, its characters, or the story when the region itself doesn't even have it as a Pokemon.
Getting two megas was already pushing it but at least it was an interesting concept for the new mechanic. It's an easily ignored aspect, though. Explain to me why Alola needs it to show up constantly for PokeRide even though they were the first games to remove the National Dex and Charizard isn't even native to Alola?
Or what about Sword and Shield's champion using it and it being the ONLY thing he has out even though Dragpault is befitting of his design?
The issue isn't Charizard itself, but of the "Kanto pandering" as a whole. They were miniscule in Gens 1-6 because those games felt like a celebration of the entire series. Meanwhile Gen 7 and 8 cranked it up to 11 by basing their entire identity around KANTOOOOO despite not being anywhere near it geographically and other regions not getting anywhere near as much attention.
