GamesAdventurePokemonThe hardest Pokemon challenge isn’t a Nuzlocke, it’s playing one of the RPGs in a language you don’t speak with an absurd list of rules and exercising every time you mess upWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
GamesAdventurePokemonThe hardest Pokemon challenge isn’t a Nuzlocke, it’s playing one of the RPGs in a language you don’t speak with an absurd list of rules and exercising every time you mess upWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
(Image credit: The Pokemon Company)
There are many,manydifferent ways to play through the Pokemon games, ranging from absurdly hard to straight-up ridiculous, but one player may have found the perfect middle ground with one of the strangest but most difficult challenge runs I’ve ever seen.
Just to make matters worse, Smallant was barred from using Pokemon Centers to heal his team, as well as stat-boosting X-items to make fights easier. On top of that, he couldn’t evolve any Pokemon, and was forced to learn new attacks when leveling up every time he had the option (even if they were awful). Other rules were even more strict – every time he had a Pokemon faint, he had to do 10 push-ups in real life, and in the case of a full team wipe, he had to release his strongest companion.
Pokemon Ultra Sun but we made it far too difficult. - YouTubeWatch On
Pokemon Ultra Sun but we made it far too difficult. - YouTube
Pokemon Ultra Sun but we made it far too difficult. - YouTube
Otherwise, there was the language barrier, and there’s perhaps no better example of this than when Smallant was trying to complete a quiz in Pikachu Valley, where you’re asked five very basic questions about the Pokemon mascot. Not knowing what he was being asked or what he was saying, this took many, many attempts to complete – and after all that, all he got was a shirt and hat to wear. Booo.
The lack of permitted evolutions also meant that he had to get creative with his team as the challenge progressed. Solid options included Pokemon that don’t evolve in the first place, like Miltank and Mawile, since they’re usually tougher than unevolved first-stage Pokemon. Otherwise, he had to look for fully-evolved wild Pokemon, like the notoriously elusive Salamence that can sometimes be found at a hilariously low level on one of the early routes if you lower a Bagon’s health. During this process, Smallant ended up finding not one, buttwoshiny (rare, alternate color palette) Bagon, which he was forced to knock out thanks to an extra rule that banned him from catching any male Pokemon. This genuinely hurts to watch, but he did end up finding a level 9 female Salamence eventually.
In the end, Smallant emerged victorious in just under 30 hours, which is pretty dang impressive considering the tough conditions and, y’know, lack of understanding of what he was actually doing. His arms are probably feeling a bit stronger now, too, as throughout the run, he was forced to do 536 push-ups. The grind never stops, I guess.
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Laughing then crying in the face of 1-in-8000 odds, the luckiest and unluckiest Pokemon Sapphire player finds 2 shiny starters at the same time and then immediately loses them both
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GAME REVIEWSMOVIE REVIEWSTV REVIEWS
1Nemesis review: “A magical sense of tension”
1Nemesis review: “A magical sense of tension”
1
Nemesis review: “A magical sense of tension”
2Arcs review: “A whole lot of game in a small package”
2Arcs review: “A whole lot of game in a small package”
2
Arcs review: “A whole lot of game in a small package”
3Path of Exile 2 review: “A stellar start to a thrilling and brutal dark adventure”
3Path of Exile 2 review: “A stellar start to a thrilling and brutal dark adventure”
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Path of Exile 2 review: “A stellar start to a thrilling and brutal dark adventure”
4Indiana Jones and the Great Circle review: “The best adventure Indy has embarked on in over 30 years”
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Indiana Jones and the Great Circle review: “The best adventure Indy has embarked on in over 30 years”
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3Kraven the Hunter review: “The insistence on an R-rating helps save this, with a decent helping of bloodthirsty action”
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4The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim review – “An uninspired expansion of the most iconic screen take on Tolkien”
4The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim review – “An uninspired expansion of the most iconic screen take on Tolkien”
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5Nightbitch review: “Amy Adams' disappointing dark comedy is all bark and no bite”
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Nightbitch review: “Amy Adams' disappointing dark comedy is all bark and no bite”
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1
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2Secret Level review: “An uneven experience with serious highlights that ultimately make up for the misses”
2Secret Level review: “An uneven experience with serious highlights that ultimately make up for the misses”
2
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3Skeleton Crew review: “Perfectly captures the vibes of classic Star Wars with a swashbuckling twist”
3
Skeleton Crew review: “Perfectly captures the vibes of classic Star Wars with a swashbuckling twist”
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4Creature Commandos review: “James Gunn’s heartwarming, R-rated tale about super-monsters proves that the DCU is in good hands”
4
Creature Commandos review: “James Gunn’s heartwarming, R-rated tale about super-monsters proves that the DCU is in good hands”
5Cobra Kai season 6, part 2 review: “Returns to the sort of hard-hitting form that made it such a fan favorite in the first place”
5Cobra Kai season 6, part 2 review: “Returns to the sort of hard-hitting form that made it such a fan favorite in the first place”
5
Cobra Kai season 6, part 2 review: “Returns to the sort of hard-hitting form that made it such a fan favorite in the first place”