>>51071427I like looking for Pokémon in every nook and cranny and hunting them all down. Pokémon are interchangeable in battle, you can use nearly anything and beat the game. There is nothing memorable about using Aggron over Tyranitar over Quagsire. There is no context to them.
I care about finding Articuno in the Seafoam Islands. I care about finding Lapras on a Friday in Union Cave. Yeah, I did get a Munchlax from a honey tree. In fact, I got 6 in the span of a week because it's not actually that hard. I used mine, my brother's, and my friends GBA cartridges to get all dual slot Pokémon. I like how the Pokémon you find are relevant to the game you insert, like Solrock with Ruby, and how instead of shoving them all in some lame area like the Friend Safari, you get them in relevant areas like Fuego Ironworks for Magby and Valley Windworks for Elekid. I got Feebas, I got Spiritomb, I got Garchomp, and I remember all those experiences. I don't remember the majority of random grass encounters unless it's something rare like Pikachu in Gen I or Yanma in Gen II.
Pokémon are not fun without the context of encountering them. I can't clap at Pikachu and Charizard for existing, I don't get dopamine like a baby does at jingly keys or like Star Wars fans do at anything with the name Star Wars on it. Never forget that Pokémon are inherently nothing and that it's game design that makes them interesting.
