Feeling bored with Pokemon? How to keep your runs interesting

Feeling burnt out by your latest Pokemon adventure? Here are some ways to keep your playthroughs feeling more interesting.

Regardless of how much you love the Pokemon games, it’s hard to deny that they can get a little monotonous at times. This does vary from game to game of course, but the general format of leveling, beating Gyms, and catching ‘mons is fairly repetitive.

If you’ve been playing Pokemon for years and you’re feeling a bit burnt out by the games, there are a few ways that you can keep things interesting during your next run.

How to keep your Pokemon playthroughs exciting

One of the first things that’s worth taking a look at if you’ve never experimented with alternate game modes before is Nuzlockes. Nuzlockes are tricky yet intriguing community challenges that ask players to complete a Pokemon game with a new set of self-imposed rules.

Nuzlockes originate from a comic drawn by a community artist called Nick Franco. They’ve shot up in popularity in recent years thanks to the Pokemon community on YouTube, Twitch, and Pokemon forums.

As an example of a Nuzlocke rule, if a Pokemon faints then it’s considered gone for good and you can’t use it again. If you’re interested by the idea of Nuzlocke challenges, have a look on YouTube for playthroughs of the following challenges and see if you want to try them out:

• Standard Nuzlocke. Standard Nuzlocke rules mean that if a Pokemon faints, it’s gone for good. Players can also only catch one Pokemon per route.
• Hardcore Nuzlocke. Hardcore Nuzlockes add extra rules on top of the Standard rules, like not letting players use items in battle and playing on set mode.
• Monotype Nuzlocke. These Nuzlockes are played with one Pokemon type exclusively – for example, you can only have Bug-types on your team.
• Characterlocke. Characterlockes take characters from the Pokemon anime and wider series as inspiration. For example, some people will try to beat the game using a team that Ash used in the anime.

The downside of Nuzlockes is that they can be quite tricky and they give off the same energy as roguelike games, making you start over and over again if you wipe out. For a simpler approach to making your games more enjoyable, why not play with a team of ‘mons you’d never usually use?

This idea popped up on Reddit lately, with Pokemon fans discussing how they add variety to their runs. Many mentioned picking out “weaker” Pokemon to build teams with, and others noted that they favor underappreciated types like Bug Pokemon to add some extra depth to their playthroughs.

It’s also worth looking into completionist gameplay if you’re feeling bored in Pokemon, too. Why not try Shiny hunting or try to 100% the Pokedex? This will be fun for some and boring for others, but it’s worth taking a look at if you’ve never explored it before.

Having a YouTube video or Twitch stream to follow along with while doing something like Shiny hunting can make it even more fun, too.

Replaying older games is a great way to connect with your interest in Pokemon, too. For example, if you’ve never played Pokemon X or Y, now is a great time to do so with Pokemon Legends Z-A on the horizon. It’ll give you a better understanding of Lumiose City and the lore surrounding it.

All in all, if you’re feeling truly burnt out or bored then it’s worth taking a break from Pokemon or picking up another game entirely. But if you’re looking for a Pokemon fix and just want something different, try out a community challenge or two. Alternate game modes can be a lot of fun and can add a new level of difficulty to the overall experience.