Pokemon players reveal their ideal starters – and they’re not what you’d expect 

As a Pokemon fan, you’ve likely got quite a close attachment to the starter Pokemon that you picked in your very first game.

Starters – or first partners, as they’re often called in official Pokemon content – act as the perfect introduction to a new Pokemon region, giving players a reliable buddy to help tackle Gym Leaders and prepare for the Elite Four. They’ve often got memorable designs and Abilities, too.

Pokemon players debated on X which Pokemon would be their dream starter outside of the standard trio and the results were fairly surprising. Other than a slew of Squirtle stans, plenty of Pokemon players picked peculiar Pocket Monsters to have as their first partners.

Content creator @lithehax shared a shot from the Pokemon anime to X, asking fellow players to chime in with their dream picks, clarifying in the replies that their personal pick would be Azumarill.

Some players decided to give themselves an early head start in their theoretical journey, opting to pick Legendaries like Rayquaza as their first partner Pokemon. One fan decided to speed-run the whole process by simply picking God, citing Arceus as their dream pick.

Aside from picking immortal beings with the powers to warp time and space, plenty of players opted for Gen 1 Pokemon as their starters.

Jigglypuff and Eevee got a fair amount of hype in the replies, with one player sharing a cute Eevee GIF and saying, “No matter how many awesome new Pokemon are discovered I always default to this guy” before wishing for a solid Eevee deck in the Pokemon TCG.

Alongside the cute and cuddly picks, one of the most surprising trends was the sheer amount of Ghost-type and Dark-type Pokemon being picked as beloved first partners. Litwick was one of the most frequently chosen starters here by a mile, rivalling popular ‘mons like Gengar and Zorua.

Amidst all the debate about the best possible picks, some Pokemon fans couldn’t bring themselves to choose a favorite.

One player summed it up perfectly, saying, “I normally would have said something like Aipom or Treecko, but maybe I’d just go with the Pokemon that chose me. At the start. I feel like that’s where the real connection and journey would be!”

Starter Pokemon are arguably some of the most iconic critters from the franchise as a whole. With Pokemon Legends Z-A on the horizon, it’ll be fascinating to see whether the traditional Fire, Grass, and Water format is stuck to, or whether fans will be treated to a brand new line-up of first partners.