>>517143983 > 5 > 2 > 4 > 6 > 1 > 7 > 8
gen 2 would probably be higher if it aged better, same for 1 (the PC especially is torture to use); both are brimming with soul but sort of hard to go back to
3 and 5 have less soul but enough to still feel like the games had a few peoples’ passion put into it instead of just being products of the marketing machine.
4 is almost there but has the same problem as 1 & 2 where it’s really hard to go back to, but to a lesser extent than 1. DP are trash, Plat is a bit of a slog despite a great effort, HGSS carries hard
6 is saved by XY’s absurd replayability (mostly in regards to challenge runs), but only because of the broken level curve (w/out exp share on) and the huge dex. The actual games suck, as does ORAS, and if XY held your hand just a little bit more (Alola-style) or had a more standard kind of dex, it’d be right at the bottom with the rest of the quarter-finished marketing vehicles
