Top 6 Pokémon that Have Gotten WORSE Over Time

[@deadlydingus1138]

“I used to be competitively viable.” “That’s nice, Grandpa. Let’s get you to bed.”

[@antoinewilliams290]

Persian: I've been out shine by a Meowth!? Raichu: First time?

[@supersaiyaneevee1573]

😂

[@jaschabull2365]

Persian: I used to be picked over meowth by potential mates, and potential human admirers like Giovanni and Cassandra, so it is my first time, you pathetic rodent.

[@startheangel9760]

Gengar getting levitate removed so an already glass canon gets an extra weakness from a common meta type

[@emperorcubone]

Just another reason Haunter is superior...

[@TheMLNtDChef]

Never thought I’d see a Evolite Haunter be better then Gangar

[@John_Smith_101]

To be fair, Gengar had no business getting Levitate in the first place, unlike Ghastly and Haunter.

[@wentoneisendon6502]

​@@John_Smith_101 gotta agree. Gengar is literally stood on the floor

[@Samrules888]

They still could have done better than cursed body. How about shadow tag intimidate or even prankster later on ​@@John_Smith_101

[@Ninja_Geek]

6:35 Dark types don't block Prankster screens or entry hazards. Dark types only block Prankster boosted moves that target the Pokémon.

[@macwelch8599]

What happened to Talonflame is tragic.

[@MojaveKnight17]

Its wings got crippled

[@enzoforgets9456]

A single nerf completely clipped his wings

[@haddy106]

I'd say that the best way to change Talonflame is that Gale Wings ALWAYS makes it that flying moves go first in the priority bracket (like a quick claw), as opposed to gaining +1 priority

[@macwelch8599]

@ interesting, OP, but not as much

[@Watch-0w1]

​@@haddy106nah. The effect is too much

[@Vegeta241]

I don’t remember exactly where I heard it, but the best way to describe Infernape’s “fall” is less that it got worse over time, and more so that while everything around it got better (including its Fire/Fighting brethren), Infernape more or less just stayed the same.

[@emperorcubone]

Yeah, I could see that. The definition of Power Creep that has plagued so many Pokemon over the years!

[@Watch-0w1]

So he peak in high school lol. Well I understand is he was good only with life orb. But damage with stealth rock , lifeorb n sometime sand maybe him easy to revenge kill

[@kazekamiha]

Doesn't help that Blaziken got Speed Boost.

[@KodyTauros]

Tauros got 3 new brothers and a signature move, so I'm glad to see he was just here for promo

[@emperorcubone]

Before Gen 9 Tauros would absolutely be one of the strongest downhill trends in Pokemon...

[@Kimnilsson92]

yeah it was really nice seeing tauros get regional variants that it deserved but i kinda feel the combat breed could have been left out cause lets be honest have any1 ever really used that one over having either a fighting/fire or fighting/water =)

[@Compucles]

But those are regional forms. Unlike Annihilape, they have no connection to the original Tauros, so the Kantonian version is still a victim like Kantonian Persian is. Meanwhile, Raging Bull isn't much better than Body Slam on the original form.

[@queenpen1398]

I still think breloom is still a great catching pokemon so atleast it still have that

[@Compucles]

Yeah, Spore + False Swipe works well for catching most Pokémon that aren't Grass or Ghost types.

[@enzoforgets9456]

Klefki CAN actually set up hazards on dark opponents Because the move isnt targeting the enemy, rather the field.

[@NickamonYT]

Im just glad Iron Fist+Drain Punch Infernape is a thing now

[@nintendolife25]

Poor Talonflame. The one time a regional bird breaks the mold and becomes competitively viable, it gets nerfed to heck one generation later. At least Corviknight also manages to be good and different.

[@emperorcubone]

I'm not denying that Corviknight is good, but MAN do I wish we could've had a fully evolved Pure Flying type instead...

[@haddy106]

Choice Band Brave Bird Spamming was insane

[@Watch-0w1]

Colvi stole skarmory job. "they TOOK our job!"

[@Mike-wt2xs]

Prankster can still set up screens against dark types because that’s not a prankster move against a dark type Pokémon.

[@ShadyRK9]

Thumbnail: Tauros: "Mr. Gamefreak, I don't feel so good!" ☠️

[@Watch-0w1]

All king fall but at least he will always rule RGY

[@MultiAmmar2000]

Snorlax, Alakazam, and Lugia could be on here as well.

[@emperorcubone]

My poor boy Snorlax used to be one of the strongest Pokemon ever!

[@JacobMcElhaney-cj6bv]

Golem, Tauros, Terrakion, Celebi and surprsingly Charizard could also be here as well.

[@Compucles]

Lugia doesn't really count, since it got a huge buff in Gen 5 with access to the Multiscale Ability.

[@likecat7886]

Lugia had A downfall (sorta😂) ... Cryptic doing the Lunar Dance and annoying Micheal in the process (and losing him the ,,Nuzlocke")

[@justinn8541akaDrPokemon]

Can I add Lugia. The developers only made it psychic type to "make it feel powerful". But now, the water type is considered more powerful than the psychic type due to type match ups. I say this because it's ironic.

[@emperorcubone]

Haha, that is ironic that it's unfitting type is now outshone by the one that makes more sense anyway!

[@Compucles]

Yeah, but the Psychic type had already been heavily nerfed when Lugia debuted in Gen 2. Yes, the Psychic type got nerfed somewhat further from Gen 3 onwards, but then Lugia got a huge buff with Multiscale as its Hidden Ability starting in Gen 5.

[@O.D25]

I remember basically sweeping through Sun and Moon with Mimikyu to nowadays not having played it since then.

[@emperorcubone]

Yeah, Mimikyu's nerf was pretty big too, although somewhat understandable if we're being honest...

[@nintavito546]

I'm okay with that because Mimikyu with Swords Dance and Shadow Sneak destroyed me in Showdown

[@DefileOdds]

Primate is the honey comb mascot, omg i played that CD game that came in the cereal box 30 years ago right before pokemon was a thing. Wow, WOW nostalgia mind bomb right there.

[@anthonytaliaferro6115]

I love all of your videos so much and this one made me feel better after a not so great day at school ❤❤❤ thank you

[@emperorcubone]

Thank you!! I'm glad I could help, and I hope your day improves tomorrow!

[@anthonytaliaferro6115]

@emperorcubone thank you

[@Xachpro5475]

Video idea Pokémon forms that could work as normal evolutions life if great tusk could be a donfan evolution and some mega Pokémon could work

[@emperorcubone]

Hmm, that could be interesting...

[@Watch-0w1]

The problem with great tusk is that it don't turn into a wheel( right?) So it lose that unique design of donphan line.

[@kirjoittajajoni]

To be fair, Breloom is still one of the best Pokemon to fill the pokedex with as it gets False Swipe with Spore + technician as a delicious bonus

[@thefirespecialist9007]

With all these massive power creep waves, please give Talonflame the OG Gale Winds again!!

[@TheHulkbuster13]

I recently played and finished Pokemon Yellow a few months ago with a self imposed challenge to use only the Pokemon Ash had in the 1st season. (I didn’t release any of mine) it was my 1st time using Tauros, was surprised how powerful it was

[@emperorcubone]

Unfortunately Gen 1 was when Tauros was at the height of its powers, only to go downhill after that...

[@TheHulkbuster13]

@@emperorcubone well he was part of my main party for the last half of the game. Also had Primeape as part of my main party ever since route 2

[@ZachaRicO]

Sceptile was decent in his debut generation; then the Physical-Special split really took the wind out of his sails, and from what I've heard, he never really recovered.

[@luxrayblast]

It's also neat Annihilape followed up on a previous dex entry, the one from Sun says that Primeape can get so mad that it dies, however its face looks peaceful in death. So, Annihilape is technically a follow up to a dex entry.

[@emperorcubone]

But... it's face Doesn't look peaceful. Are you saying the Pokedex isn't 100% true!?

[@luxrayblast]

@@emperorcubone I'm not saying that at all. If you look at Annihilape, it looks more at peace than you think. Although, it's harder to tell since it's, well... dead. But, it leans back instead of always looking battle ready. Whereas Primeape looks like it could arm wrestle Gorigan 50 times and never lose.

[@VersusTim]

Breloom is still nice as a regular assistant in your first run through any Pokémon game. Sleep powder + False Swipe

[@onetallpheeesh]

They didnt need to nerf Talonflame that hard all things considered. There have been 4 generations of power creep since then that priority flying moves nowadays doesnt even leave a scratch on the meta 💀

[@Compucles]

Power creep doesn't do much to nerf OP priority. There haven't been many changes to blocking priority in the 3 generations (not 4) since it debuted. Gale Wings did need to be nerfed, just maybe not as badly as it was.

[@onetallpheeesh]

@Compucles yes that's what I said

[@Compucles]

@@onetallpheeesh No, you implied that power creep alone would've been enough to nerf Gale Wings, and that's not true.

[@onetallpheeesh]

@Compucles tf? I'm trying to say the opposite lol there's so much power Creep now that Gen 6 Gale Wings doesn't seem like that big a deal. It didn't need to get nerfed that hard in the long run. It was 1 single bird.

[@Compucles]

@@onetallpheeesh Yeah, and I'm disagreeing with you, aside from agreeing that the nerf went too far. Power creep alone doesn't have that much of an effect on priority abuse, so Gen 6 Gale Wings was *always* going to be that big of a deal and too OP no matter how much power creep occurs. While they went a little too far, a significant nerf was still badly needed.

[@SylviaMoonbeam1127]

Metagross was one of my favorites when I started to actually play the games in Gen 3. Reasonably bulky, and could decently utilize either attack stat, pre-split. Gen 4 saw The Split, which meant that, to remain competitive, Metagross would need better moves. Zen Headbutt was decent, but it was hard to actually get the flinch, due to Metagross’s lower speed. Bullet Punch had priority over Metal Claw at least, and Meteor Mash, while powerful, had lower accuracy and you didn’t get the buffs as often… so it was sometimes better to go with a slow Metagross and rely on Gyro Ball. Lots of options, but not a lot of great options, ya know? ORAS would add the amazing Iron Head into the pool, and with its Mega Evolution, Metagross actually felt GOOD again… and then Gen 7 happened, and the Mega was gone. Gen 8 would add Psycho Cut as an alternative to Zen Headbutt, which was nice, and Stomping Tantrum was a decent alternative to Earthquake in Doubles. And now we’re in Gen 9. Heavy Slam and Body Press are options very on brand for the heavy weight quadruped. Hard Press is… an option as well. The superior Psychic move now definitely feels like Psychic Fangs, since it can break screens. But, a lot of this comes at the caveat of a lot of Pokémon also getting these moves. My Runerigus and Corviknight already run Body Press, but at least Metagross doesn’t need to use Iron Defense first? Psychic Fangs is cool… unless their screen setter is Dark, like Grimmsnarl. You could try to remove your Ground weakness using Magnet Rise, but (correct me if I’m wrong) I believe that weakens Heavy Slam. I love Metagross dearly, but there’s just a lot of Pokémon that can do its role BETTER. It’s got a lot of toys under its belt, but nothing that’s particularly “wow worthy”. And I just want it to feel worthy of its PseudoLegendary status again, and not just “a metal spider with relatively good stats”

[@emperorcubone]

Metagross is in my Top 5 favorite Pokemon of all time, so it seeing any decline makes me sad...

[@PokeTom-y4r]

The main problem with Breloom is that sleep got banned in competitive singles, and Breloom was never good in doubles.

[@christianwalters2226]

I really think Talonflame and Mimikyu got hit the hardest by a change to the way their ability worked. It basically just boils down to Gamefreak coming up with a really cool and unique ability that gives a pokemon a extra bit of personality, but then not realizing that it's super broken, and then they have to immediately nerf that pokemon in the next generation.

[@emperorcubone]

Which is weird because there are other things that are OP in Pokemon that have no problem looking the other way with...

[@christianwalters2226]

@emperorcubone Exactly. Gamefreak is so two-faced, they could make a Zweilous blush

[@Gigabowser20]

Good video overall! Though I disagree with primape being number 1-i think an evolution alone keeps it from the bottom as it's been less neglected than the others, but also it's arguably better than ever before since it can now run eviloite plus rage fist which is busted. Id argue talon flame should probably be 1 as it's the most nerfed pokemon ever, while Gengar and mimikyu could arguably be in the list to as they were heavily nerfed

[@SonicMeters]

I think gengar was the worst when it lost its levitate but talonflame man theruin it ability so I use flame body now

[@joltx9909]

I actually had a blast training an anger point primeape in ultra sun. it was surprisinigly satisfying

[@Mikethekappa299]

I agreed with everything on the list until #1. When has primeape ever been viable? And getting a new evolution was a positive thing for it, not a negative. If getting new evolutions (even if we are only counting gen 9 new evos for some reason) is a negative, where is girafarig or dunsparce on this list?

[@HesGotaGun505]

Anime Primeape was pure aggression incarnate. A pig-monkey hybrid built for ambushes.

[@fishfox]

I remember the days where Volcarona was plain impossible to use solely due to Talonflame. Infernape is an example of everyone getting new toys while it mostly stayed the same. I suppose you can say the same for Starmie and Gengar. Right now the only use I can think of for Gengar is as a last ditch attempt to haze Dondozo being faster than non jolly ones after commandeer boosts. I can't even think of a use for Infernape, considering Blaziken and speed boost means whatever Infernape can do barring fake out, Blaziken likely can do better. And honestly if you want a fire type with FO and not use Incineroar, something is wrong.

[@slammy118]

I would never say that annihilate has replaced primeape, I'd argue it means more people will use primeape in the story in order to get an annihilape

[@trexyyyy]

only moves affected by prankster that affect a target are nullified by a dark type pokemon. for example if klefki used thunder wave on something like darkrai, darkrai wouldn't be affected. but screens, hazards, or other "non-target" status moves will still work

[@jonahdengler3858]

Yeah, I guess I can admit Infernape has lost its spunk.

[@zaeemnasarullah]

Aegislash also got worse. In Gen 6, its Attacking stats and Defensive stats were at 150 depending on which form it was in, but then in Gen 7, they got dropped to 140, a full 20 points.

[@jgr7487]

Persian should have received the ability Super Luck in Gen IV.

[@emperorcubone]

I could see that; it would make a lot of sense!

[@Compucles]

Bibarel - No longer needed for its main role as an HM slave.

[@ashblossomandjoyoussprung.9917]

Breloom getting Poison Heal is really annoying because the apparent strategy is to set up substitute, then poison itself to heal every turn, then once that is set up you can freely use Focus Punch. Focus Punch is very scary on Breloom, but I feel like Breloom having bad bulk and bad speed makes the strategy not worth the effort.

[@emperorcubone]

Yeah, all you need is one Flying attack and then the Substitute is broken so Focus Punch isn't the best strategy...

[@supersaiyaneevee1573]

I wonder if Gale Wings would be more balanced if it only worked for attacks and not status moves like Roost. Or what if it only worked at half health and below rather than full health..... hmmmm. Just a shame that talonflame got such a huge nerf.

[@chinolebron6233]

I've always loved Primeape. In my opinion, it didn't have a great move pool. Which is why I rarely used it and often chose Hitmonchan over it.

[@TheLonelySoulja]

You always have great writing.

[@Compucles]

How about Hypno? It was really good back when Psychic types were king back in Gen 1, but it has had nothing holding it up since the type was heavily nerfed in Gens 2 & 3, plus its Special Attack stat was heavily nerfed with the Special split in Gen 2. At least Alakazam is still a powerful glass cannon (that also had a Mega Evolution for a while), while Mr. Mime was retconned as a partial Fairy type and got some really good Abilities.

[@karatgaming5792]

What about Metagross, hasn't it gotten weaker over the years because of power creep? It needed a Mega just to try and compete against stronger mons...

[@emperorcubone]

It's too sad for me to think of one of my favorite Pokemon no longer being on top...

[@karatgaming5792]

@emperorcubone I don't blame you for not including it, Metagross is one of my favorites, and it's sad to see it fall off.

[@pokeperson1000]

“Searing Simian” = Infernape Simiaear, get out of here.

[@emperorcubone]

Yes, please do!

[@aliastheabnormal]

Unfortunately you still need to play a Primeape since Ahnillape doesn't appear in the wall.

[@Watch-0w1]

I love primeape but i do appreciate the evolution. The fallout came for almost everyone but now he in spotlight. I mean powercreep brought down mew to NU and one of djinn into untier. ThAt hurt

[@yeahyeahwowman8099]

Pokemon that needed help getting nerfs is what always pissed me off. Needed people to always fear Vespiquen, alright take away heal order. To be fair we do not want a metagame cenralized around the powerhouse that is Vespiquem, quick take moves away😂

[@Mag_the_goat]

Vespiquen still has roost, identical to heal order and got spikes and toxic spikes in Scarlet and Violet as well 😭

[@Watch-0w1]

Beyonce not happy

[@yeahyeahwowman8099]

​@@Mag_the_goathas no reason to not have it, it doesn't matter if it's the same, Gamefreak just randomly takes moves away.

[@Mag_the_goat]

@ i mean yeah, I think it lost all of its signature moves but either way, it wasnt necessarily nerfed since it literally has roost anyway

[@edwardramos4591]

The one and only time I'll slander this company. GameFreak: Give Slaking and Archeops limiting Abilities. Also GF: Creates FNAF Deliberd and Bad Hair Day Misdreavus

[@futureDreamer4]

Smeargle made Darkrai get nerfed so I destroy them in Darkrai's honor.

[@emperorcubone]

That's fair, I won't defend the thing...

[@Littledog0808]

Infernape is one reason I don't use recoilcor stat lowering moved

[@emperorcubone]

I've never really liked recoil moves anyway, but especially on Pokemon that already can't take a hit!

[@jmurray1110]

Also the flying gen got removed as a final kick whike it’s down

[@1musamune]

I mean as a slight Bonus Eviolite Primeape is now a doable thing.

[@CalebBlack92]

I hate to say it but gen. 1 could have been on this list a lot more. Psychic types that used to dominate. Pokémon with a high special stat that couldn’t hit as hard or takes hits as well after the split (Not saying Chansey isn’t good but remember when she could hit hard? Went from basically a special attack of 105 down to 35). When abilities were introduced, obviously not everyone could get a useful ability. Not everyone benefited from the physical/special split. It made more options useful.

[@Compucles]

Um, Primeape no longer belongs on this list in Gen 9, *BECAUSE* it now has a new evolution. While it technically doesn't do anything for Primeape itself, it's still a much better Pokémon just by virtue of having the ability to evolve into Annihilape. This is an addition, not a replacement like it is with new regional forms that get an extra evolution.

[@Bebeue]

I CANT GET OVER IT JUST GIVE BRELOOM TRAILBLAZE

[@PokeTom-y4r]

Where are Gengar and Alakazam? Gengar dropped off hard after it lost Levitate, and Alakazam is the poster child for Pokémon that got screwed by the Physical/Special split.

[@ItsFireTiger]

Alakazam benefited from the Physical Special Split bruh. It always was a special attacker

[@jaschabull2365]

Honestly, after all those times meowth got shunned for persian, be it by potential mates, Giovanni, Cassandra or whomever else, persian's being overshadowed by meowth feels a tad karmic. It always felt unfair that the whole philosophy of "just because you're the unevolved form doesn't make you inferior" that was made so clear with pikachu apparently didn't apply to meowth. I wouldn't say the likes of infernape technically got worse. Sure it's ranked worse than it was, but if that's not due to any changes made to the pokémon itself (which could be argued to be the case with persian, who actually lost its ability to use its speed to land lots of critical hits, or klefki, who actually lost its ability to use priority status moves against dark types), it didn't get worse, its competition just got better. Like, if a bunch of people are chilling in a room and then a basketball team shows up, the person who originally was the tallest no longer is, but they didn't actively get shorter. And I'm really not sure what you mean about primeape, from what I quickly looked up, it seems it was ranked the lowest it's been in a while in gen 1 (which stands to reason, fighting stood no chance back then against all those unchecked psychic types), and mostly got better after that before peaking in gen 4, and never being ranked as low as it originally was until gen 9.

[@joeyteter9383]

Poor Persian, I love it so much lol

[@oliverleonard7730]

Chansey was much better in Gen 1 since it's amazing Special Defense was it's Special stat.

[@Noir_Baa]

Prankster didn't get nerfed. The annoying and cheap (especially with Klefki) ability got balanced. Anyone saying otherwise has a skill issue. Talonflame, on the other hand, didn't just get nerfed. It got screwed royally, and the same skill issue people thought it was ever good in the first place. A frail, fire and flying type with mediocre stats and many weaknesses, both offensive and defensive, not just to stealth rock and rock-type attacks, needed the old fashioned gale wings and so much more to actually be good. Too bad these skill issue people were way more worried about priority brave bird and roost attacks... 🤭

[@rikkaqueen6974]

I thought my favorite pokemon Tauros was going to be on this list

[@DartagnanEarl]

Its sucks too cause they give broken abilities to pay dlc Pokemon starters and many others in but don't give them a draw back like you can not tell they think a Slaking is more busted with a helpful ability then Ushifu a Pokwemon that has altomatic critical hit moves but also a ability to go through protect is beyond me plus they need to update game to not only run right but buff or nurf some mons due to you know it clear its effecting competive play not that i do that.

[@frankcapria8399]

Taurus got nerfed big time imo

[@kylehammack2025]

EC, are you a kalos fan? I’ve just noticed you tend to use kalos music in a lot of your videos

[@emperorcubone]

Well I do like X and Y a lot more than most people seem to, but you've got to admit that Kalos has some banger tracks!

[@madmikedisease7486]

Top 6 victims of power creep right here

[@mihai1997]

"So people probably prefer either Machamp or Hitmonchan".... in gen 1? Not a chance You either had to trade to evolve Machamp, and Hitmonchan was not even worth using when the elemental Punches were special before Gen 4. Besides Primape has the same BTS as the Hitmons.

[@Wren40]

I still love Berloom and infernape regardless😊

[@waltterikoponen8426]

One sad "nerf" that I remember is in gen 9 and it's that luvdisc cant lear scald anymore :'( And for some reason never learned chilling water :'( Luvdisc was too strong, huh?

[@emperorcubone]

Not to mention making Heart Scales useless sense you can learn Attacks from anywhere now, so there's not even a reason to farm them!

[@yeahyeahwowman8099]

Nerf aside, luvdisc is an awesome support pokemon in gen 9 double battles. Luvdisc moveset is entrainment, soak, protect, rain dance. Is awesome giving my partner pokemon swift swim, then sweeping through teams.

[@Watch-0w1]

That thing need a evolution

[@canaldobesouroazul9180]

No Exeggutor?

[@DXKramer]

Slaking

[@payrysdoscs4903]

*sad bull noise*

[@MrBrewskiDrewski]

VIDEO SPOILER When I was younger, I didn’t use Primeape because of its Dex entries talking about how angry it gets. I then made the (wrong) connection that it won’t listen to you more often because of how mad it is at you. Once I figured that out a few months later, I still didn’t use one because of those same Dex entries. I didn’t want a Primeape to suffer on my team, so I leave them in the wild. I was six or so at the time, give me a break.

[@emperorcubone]

Well it was nice of you to consider where Primeape might be happiest instead of cramming it in the PC forever...

[@MrBrewskiDrewski]

@ I was quite the considerate and empathetic kid. Probably on par with the guy that just bred Lapras just to release them so the population grows.

[@arrozzblanco]

Any normal type has dropped off hugely since gen 1. I miss the guaranteed crits with my kitty cat

[@emperorcubone]

Chansey is still pretty useful, but that's mostly from Eviolite...

[@arrozzblanco]

@emperorcubone true but I'm not one for stall normally. If I wanted to do that back then I would poison/sleep seed everything with Venusaur and whirlwind Pidgeot

[@nickdentoom1173]

Tauros has found some return to form in gen 9 due to Raging Bull, which in the competitive scene, is pretty useful, since it removes screens (And Aurora Veil).

[@darthmaul5413]

Wrong Primeape was the fastest Fighting for 3 generations until Infernape in generation 4 primeape base speed was 95 blaziken was 80 base speed and in gen 3 blaziken only has Blaze

[@Dice_0ne]

Normalize eviolithe primeape

[@TheLonelySoulja]

2:39 sorry man am out after that statement.. jk

[@nireas570]

Primeape was never good tho... TAUROS THO. From BEST to Mid at best.

[@Adeel808s]

the games have definitely gotten worse

[@Kaiji...]

Not really a “top” list tbh