>>11883288>>Horrendous level scalingI have seriously never noticed that, neither in G/S nor in HG/SS. Not even noticed such thing when I nuzlocked it.
>>Bland main regionJohto is, in my opinion, the nicest region. There is a warm, smooth feeling to it that no other region has.
>>Lack of Pokemon varietyTrue, although I was always okay with that. I wouldn't really mind if Gen VI added less than 80 pokemon; you can make a good game without adding so much, but I'll agree more variety is always better.
>>Laughable evil teamI couldn't disagree more. ALL evil teams in pokemon are silly and ridiculous to some extent EXCEPT team rocket, seriously.
>>Mediocre startersThey're not any worse than Gen I's and V's, although I do think III and IV had the best ones.
Design wise, they're my favorite.
>>Stuff like Houndour is post-E4This I didn't mind either, but I can see how it is a bad thing to most people.
>>Most of the Pokemon in Johto are from KantoSame as above.
I would have to say what's good Gen II to explain why HG/SS is so popular, but I think it's a fact that it combined the good things from that generation with the good things from III and IV and added other pretty cool features that managed to transmit a good feeling rather than just being fillers, making a game that feels very polished and whole.
It is my favorite pokemon game to date, but it mostly comes down to what you appreciate about pokemon and what you would rather not have in them.
