#maybe. pokemon is nostalgic to me | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

ohthehypocrisy · 3 months ago

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Pokemon: Paradox Paradigms (a Third Person Shooter concept by me)

As a gamer, I'm well versed in a lot of genres. I owe this diversity to my upbringing, having grown up on Nintendo consoles and titles. Yes, I have played PlayStation games, but I've never owned one, and I've never even touched an XBOX controller. As a result, I had lived for a very long time without touching a Shooter game.

You might be thinking to yourself 'Ah, I see. Splatoon was your first shooter then?' and I'll tell you, no, it wasn't. I wanted to get into it, but I never got around to playing the games. I was well off watching my brothers play Splatoon and Splatoon 2 and figured it was a pretty decent experience, but not one I was willing to commit to learning about. Not that I have anything negative to say about Splatoon, it was just a matter of not the right time for me.

So what was my first shooter? Overwatch? I did want to try it out, but it wasn't available on Nintendo consoles when it came out. And also I still don't own a PlayStation console, even now. What about Call of Duty? Nah, too gritty for me. Fortnite? Too time-consuming.

Well, what was it? You might be surprised to learn that my first shooter had a solid hold on my attention span for nearly a year, and it wasn't even a conventional shooter in the literal sense of the word.

It all started on a whim, when I rented out Plants VS Zombies: Battle for Neighborville. I figured 'At worst I'll play it for a few days and then return it' only to get caught playing this game every day for nearly an entire year. The only reason I stopped was because the Daily Missions had glitched out on me and I couldn't get the cosmetic reward. I had tried reporting the bug, but all I got was silence and I had to question my commitment to a game lacking in support. Ultimately I decided it was time to shelf the game and move on to other experiences, but I still find myself feeling nostalgic over my best plays and KO streaks and wishing for a sequel.

Nothing more ever came of it, I haven't played another shooter since. There has yet to be another hero shooter that scratched that itch I got playing Battle for Neighborville. I mean, there is Marvel Rivals coming out soon, but it won't be available on the Switch console. Star Wars Hunters looks promising, but I'm not really a Star Wars guy. Eh, I wasn't really a PVZ guy either before picking up Battle for Neighborville, so maybe I'll check it out sometime soon.

But for now, the only way I know for sure I'll have another experience like PVZ is to pretend to make my own, which brings me to the topic of this post. What if we put the Paradox Pokemon, all past and future ones, into a third person hero based shooter? I made a similar concept before in a post featuring the Future Paradox Pokemon, but I excluded the Past Paradox Pokemon because I thought the concept wouldn't work for them. But now, I don't care all that much about cohesion, I just want to relive the wacky shooter experience of Plants VS Zombies, so of course I'm going to pit Past VS Future here.

Of course the game has to have a plot to justify the infighting. Let's say that the Paradox Pokemon are fighting for control in a land caught in between time, with the AI Professors from Scarlet and Violet leading charge from their command post. A similar story beat plays out in Plants VS Zombies, with Crazy Dave directing the plants and Dr. Zomboss commanding the zombies. They spoke in babbles in their games, though, which won't cut it for this game. They would HAVE to be voice acted, which would be a little strange for a spin-off game, if it weren't for Pokemon Masters already taking that first step for us.

Anyway, the playable pokemon are segregated into separate teams. As in, you either play for the dinosaur team or the cyborg team. It works this way for the Plants VS Zombies shooters, though because this is a pokemon spin-off, you can expect to have an unrestricted mode separate from the Ranked and Casual games.

The Control Scheme

As for the actual gameplay, first we have to look at the button layout and what they do. Here's a Nintendo Pro Controller for reference, since this game would most likely be on the Nintendo Switch, or Switch 2, I suppose.

Let's start with the shoulder buttons, since they simulate the trigger of actual pistols.

ZR - Primary Fire - You press this button to shoot. Do note that the bullet type, shooting speed, and recoil varies across all pokemon.

ZL - Aim - The camera zooms in to where your reticle is pointing to. Your Primary Fire will also change slightly while zoomed in, though it depends on the character. For example, sniper pokemon will shift to a scope view in order to get more accurate shots.

R - Defend - The defensive option your pokemon uses to try and evade damage. This button varies greatly across all pokemon and can be either a manual shield, a dodge, flight, invisibility, or even a counterattack. It should be noted that you cannot attack while holding your defense.

L - Jump - A short jump. A mildly evasive maneuver, but it varies with each pokemon, as per usual. Some can jump high, others not so much but deal damage upon landing. Some can even double jump or slow their descent while falling.

X & Y - Sub 1 & Sub 2 - Two customizable moves which change depending on what TM's you've taught your pokemon. You cannot use two of the same TM's for both slots but also not all TM's can be learned by all Paradox Pokemon. We'll go over the TM's later but it should be noted that, because the face buttons take the thumb away from the Right Control Stick, which is used for controlling the camera, moves set for Sub 1 and 2 will be typically proximity attacks like protective walls or bombs.

B - Melee - The close range attack used for when enemies are in your face. Again, it's different for all pokemon, but because it's a face button, the attack is tricky to aim. Most of them will cover a wide area so aiming won't be a problem, if it can be helped.

A - Paradox Paradigm - The so-called 'ultimate attack' of each playable pokemon. While Sub 1 and 2 are customizable, the Paradox Paradigm is a powerful attack unique to each one. It's also the move with the highest cooldown in your entire kit, so it shouldn't be used carelessly.

Left Control Stick - Movement - As with nearly all games, the left stick is how you'll move your pokemon around. But each playable pokemon is different in their own way, so naturally each one moves slightly different. Some are fast, some are slow, some make big loud stomps that can be heard across the map, while others are quiet like a gentle breeze. Also, if you hold forward for a while, the pokemon will start running. You can trigger running automatically by pressing in the control stick.

Right Control Stick - Camera - It wouldn't be much of a shooter if you couldn't aim, huh? The camera function is exactly the same for all pokemon, though the reticle will be different for each pokemon due to their unique abilities and projectiles. It's also used for the Quick Chat and Emote Wheel. Speaking of which...

Directional Pad - Quick Chat/Emote/Taunt/Pokeball - Communication is key for fighting as a team, so of course there's got to be a feature for getting your message across. Three of the four buttons of the D-Pad brings up a small menu of words, stickers, and animations that you can use to express yourself. They're preset, but you can swap them around in your Settings before each match. The Down Button, however, is called Pokeball and it sends the pokemon back into its pokeball to return to Base or to the Character Select screen. More on that later...

Playable Pokemon

So you know how the game will play, but what pokemon will you choose? Let's go over the Playable Paradox Pokemon in order of Dex Number and see what they can do in a shooter.

Great Tusk

Health: ★★★★★ Damage: ★★★★★ Mobility: ★☆☆☆☆ Range: ★☆☆☆☆ Support: ★★☆☆☆

Not a great first impression for a shooter, but Great Tusk can hold its own in the middle of a firefight. High HP and damage potential service it well when fighting one-on-one, but it lacks the guile to get around and can't hit far away targets feasibly. Still, if it does manage to get up close and personal, those wretched robots will be reduced to rubbish when Great Tusk is through with them.

Primary Fire: Great Tusk takes a moment to tear up the ground and pull up a giant spherical rock. After pulling it out, Great Tusk will hold the rock with its trunk and massive tusks, which acts as a shield from opposing enemy fire. The rock can take a lot of hits, but it's not invulnerable and can be shattered from heavy fire. Before that happens, press the Primary fire again to send the rock rolling like a primitive bowling ball. The rock explodes on hit with a wall or enemy, dealing massive damage to all nearby. This damage does not scale with the 'HP' of the rock. When Aimed, Great Tusk will chuck smaller stones instead, though its throwing arm, or trunk, isn't all that great. Great Tusk cannot dig up rocks or stones while airborne.

Defend: Great Tusk will attempt to reach out and grab an enemy with its trunk. If successful, it will pick up the enemy and throw it in the direction you're aiming. If you're holding the boulder picked up with your Primary, Great Tusk will swing it in a wide arc, swatting enemies away and dealing damage scaled off of the rock's HP.

Melee: Great Tusk brings up its trunk before slamming it back down in front of itself. If it was holding the big rock, it smashes it down in front of itself, dealing increased damage in a wider area.

Jump: A stout jump that shakes the ground upon landing. If Great Tusk jumps or falls from a great height, the quake damage increases.

Paradox Paradigm: Great Tusk goes on a rampage and starts charging forward wildly. Enemies receive major damage and are knocked away.

Scream Tail

Health: ★★★★★ Damage: ★☆☆☆☆ Mobility: ★★★☆☆ Range: ★★★☆☆ Support: ★★★★☆

Do not mistake Scream Tail's cute front for an easy opponent, as it is neither weak nor merciful. Its high HP is beset by low damage output, but it more than makes up for this with its mobility, range, and supportive abilities. Scream Tail plays for the team more for itself, but it'll happily shout to its own tune when it brings discord to those dastardly droids.

Primary Fire: A wide ranged scream wave emitted in front of itself. This sound wave is harsh but not all that damaging, but it does cover a wide area. Enemies can hide behind walls to avoid damage, but the echoing shrieks will reveal their position to others, making it unsafe to be within earshot. When Aimed, the wide scream becomes a focused shout, which bounces off of walls. Holding the Primary Fire has Scream Tail take in air before shouting, increasing the size and damage of the echo.

Defend: Scream Tail puffs up and holds in its voice for a few seconds before deflating. If Scream Tail is damaged before it deflates, it'll let loose an ear-splitting screech which stuns nearby enemies for a bit. If Scream Tail does deflate, however, it cannot Defend again for a short while.

Melee: A wild whirl of its hair tail. The tail whips all around itself, knocking enemies away.

Jump: A floaty jump. Can be pressed repeatedly to gain a bit of height, or held down to drastically slow its descent, allowing it to cross wide gaps.

Paradox Paradigm: Scream Tail lets out a hangry scream for a short while before shifting into prowl mode, increasing its Movement Speed. Enemies that heard the screech will become targets for Scream Tail. If Scream Tail approaches an enemy marked by your Paradox Paradigm, it'll open its mouth drastically before taking one big bite. If this bite KO's the enemy, Scream Tail can hunt for another target.

Brute Bonnet

Health: ★★★☆☆ Damage: ★★☆☆☆ Mobility: ★★★★☆ Range:★★☆☆☆ Support: ★★★★☆

Now, Brute Bonnet would not have looked out of place in a Plants VS Zombies game, but unfortunately it has been branded with the pokeball symbol since the beginning of time, apparently. Even so, the irony of drafting it into a third person shooter is not lost on me. It may not be gunning down zombies, but blasting apart the ireful iron monstrosities from the future is a fair substitute.

Primary: Brute Bonnet launches a hardened ball of spores in an arc. This spore ball bursts with a small explosion, damaging other enemies nearby. The lobbing arc of the projectile means that it can be used to bypass walls that the enemy might hide behind, though this means that it has pathetically low range against enemies at higher vantage points. When aimed, Brute Bonnet launches slow moving spore bombs directly forward. These projectiles are pathetically slow, but they are very light, very persistent, and Brute Bonnet can launch a whole bunch of them to fill the sky.

Defend: Brute Bonnet guards itself with its pokeball pattern caps. Its defense increases greatly while guarding, but it can still be KO'd. If it receives an attack directly onto its caps, a cloud of spores is released to deal counterattack damage. Any enemy nearby gets bounced back as well.

Melee: Brute Bonnet claps its mushroom hands together like a pair of cymbals and release a small cloud of debilitating spores. The spores deal continuous damage passively for a short amount of time, but by the time they wear off, Brute Bonnet can use its Melee attack again.

Jump: The stretchy nature of mushrooms means that Brute Bonnet has one of the more intricate Jump functions in the game. It can Jump high initially, but if you Jump again when you land, you'll Jump even higher the second time. Stick the landing one more time and you'll Jump even higher. The third Jump is your maximum height, but if you hold the button instead, you can build up power before jumping up for the skies. Any more jumps after that will not gain any extra height, but Brute Bonnet can scale big cliffs or reach the roofs of big buildings on the map. One more thing, while Brute Bonnet is holding Jump, its body is squash so that it can build up tension. If an ally jumps onto Brute Bonnet while it is charging Jump, they will also be launched high into the air in the direction you're facing, allowing vertically challenged teammates to reach higher vantage points.

Paradox Paradigm: Brute Bonnet starts to shake and flail about wildly while a primal power builds up from within. After a short jig, Brute Bonnet unleashes its powerful spores in a mighty explosion, ejecting them so forcefully that a great mushroom cloud rises up from ground zero. The blast deals major damage to all nearby enemies but the damage increases further the less HP you have. Also, the survivors will be put to Sleep for a while afterwards.

Flutter Mane

Health: ★★☆☆☆ Damage: ★★★★★ Mobility: ★★★★☆ Range: ★★★★★ Support: ★☆☆☆☆

The destructive power of the Ghost and Fairy Type is made alive in Paradox Paradigm, as Flutter Mane wields some of the most damaging projectiles in the whole game. From relentless wisps that bypass barriers to sneaky shots from so far away, Flutter Mane is just what the Ancient pokemon need to turn the tide against those wrathful robots from the future.

Primary Fire: Flutter Mane starts to cackle as burning will-o'-the-wisps gather around itself. It'll keep gathering wisps for as long as the button is held, but once the trigger is released, Flutter Mane will unleash a volley of ghostly fire straight ahead. This is functionally similar to a 'minigun' in more modern shooters, complete with the telltale sound of the ammunition being loaded. Enemies will hear the cackle clearly, even during a raucous firefight, and they'll know they need to either make a break for it or take out the wailing banshee. The projectiles have a ghostly property as well, in that they can pass through up to 1 wall before bursting. Flutter Mane can only see through walls while Aiming, but it shifts into a sniper scope when it does so. While holding Aim, the pearls on its necklace glow with power, gleaming brightly when fully charged. Firing at this point launches a powerful single beam that deals major damage to enemies through headshots. However, the sniper fire cannot pass through walls. Either way, these attacks are powerful, but very clearly give away Flutter Mane's position when they're used.

Defend: Flutter Mane turns invisible, leaving behind only a shadow that gives its position away. It is still vulnerable to enemy fire, but it'll take a lucky shot to hit Flutter Mane. The invisibility will only wear off when released manually or if Flutter Mane gets incapacitated.

Melee: A terrifying shout that damages all around itself. The attack power doubles and can Stun enemies if Flutter Mane attacks an enemy's backside while invisible. Keep in mind that Defend normally prevents the pokemon from attacking while held, and Flutter Mane will become unable to turn invisible again for a short while afterwards if it jumpscares an enemy.

Jump: Flutter Mane flutters a bit and gains some height. Holding the Jump button has Flutter Mane hold itself in the air at max jump height and will remain there until the jump button is released. Alternatively, Flutter Mane will continue fluttering if you use your Primary Fire, Aim, or Defend, in which case it will only drop down when these effects end.

Paradox Paradigm: Flutter Mane amasses a huge amount of ghostly energy before unleashing a massive ghastly visage straight forward. The ghost projectile resembles Flutter Mane itself but with a mildly distorted laughing face. The projectile will travel across the map at moderate speed, passing through walls and floors and dealing great damage repeatedly to enemies caught in the attack.

Slither Wing

Health: ★★★★☆ Damage: ★★★☆☆ Mobility: ★★★★☆ Range: ★★★★☆ Support: ★☆☆☆☆

The ancient past was a world full of opportunity and potential, but not one of forgiveness. Every genetic mistake was swiftly corrected, leading only to the survival of the fittest. Slither Wing was a pokemon that was slowly developing its powers over the course of thousands of years, but as it is now, its power varies greatly. Still, it has enough power within itself to pulverize those pesky piles of pots and pans.

Primary Fire: A steady stream of flames shoots out from its tiny mouth. The flames reach far, but the rate of damage is much higher closer to the pokemon itself and deals pitiful damage from far away. Also, the fire stream takes a lot of air out of Slither Wing, so if it runs out of fuel, it needs to catch its breath before it can fire again. When Aiming, the player's sight shifts to a sniper scope. Slither Wing gathers solar energy from the sun while aiming, building up power for its sniper shot. Its wings flare up while at max power, making it highly visible from across the map.

Defend: Slither Wing leaps backwards quickly, leaving behind some glittery dust from its wings. It is completely invincible while jumping away, but the evasive jump always sends you backwards and can be difficult to aim. The glittery dust damages enemies continuously while the dust cloud lingers. The dust can be ignited with your Primary Fire, dealing increased damage and inflicting Burn.

Melee: A lunging bite. A direct hit restores HP. If Slither Wing is airborne and uses its Melee attack, it will latch onto enemies and bite repeatedly if the attack is timed correctly. The last hit heals for a lot of HP if it KO'd an enemy.

Jump: A slow but mighty jump. Slither Wing uses its large wings to lift itself off of the ground, leaving behind glittery dust. Just like with Defend, the glittery dust can also be ignited with Primary Fire. Slither Wing deals damage to enemies if it lands on them with Jump, causing it to bounce again in any chosen direction.

Paradox Paradigm: Slither Wing harnesses the full power of the sun and casts the entire area around it with a primordial glow. The glowing light deals damage to all enemies within range. At the same time Slither Wing is healing itself, and the amount of HP restored turns into extra damage for this attack.

Sandy Shocks

Health: ★★★☆☆ Damage: ★★★☆☆ Mobility: ★★★★☆ Range: ★★★☆☆ Support: ★★★★☆

Of all the Future Paradox Pokemon, Sandy Shocks has the biggest grudge against them. As one of the early pioneers of electricity and magnetism, the white noise emitted by the futuristic Paradox Pokemon screams like relentless thunder to its ears. It wants nothing more than the peace and quiet of a less noisy future.

Primary Fire: Controlling electricity wasn't exactly perfected yet back then, so the main source of damage coming from Sandy Shocks is a controlled stream of energy. Electricity flows out of one horseshoe, out into the open, before curving back around and completing the circuit on the other horseshoe. It covers a wide area, but in a shooter, it hardly covers much distance. However, this charged line carries with it floating ironsand particles, from Sandy Shocks own body. It doesn't deal extra damage to enemies, but it does coat allies in a bit of protection, granting them Armor that builds up slowly over time. When the attack shifts with Aim, each eye will instead shoot a condensed beam of energy. There is an 'autolock' feature with Aim where up to 3 enemies will be shot at with a separate beam, one for each eye, and will continue to deal damage until they move out of sight.

Defend: Sandy Shocks amplifies its magnetism to pull in all the ironsand within reach to come together and form a wall directly in front of itself. The wall can take a bit of damage before crumbling apart. Sandy Shocks can only make one wall at a time, so using Defend again takes all the sand away from the last wall made. It's also solid, so it can take a beating, but you can't really see through it.

Melee: Sandy Shocks powers up its magnets again to charge the area around it and pull enemies inward. It's only for a brief moment, but enemies will be Stunned as they're pulled in.

Jump: A short jump, but one with a secret trick. If you hold the Jump button and jump into a wall, Sandy Shocks will cling to the surface and can walk around on it as easily as it could on land. It only has about 10 seconds to make use of this mobility, but Sandy Shocks can actually still attack with Melee and Primary Fire while wall clinging. Once you jump off though, whether it be because you ran out of time or were shoved off by an enemy, you cannot cling to the wall again until after you touch the ground for a couple of seconds. It can get disorientating, though, so don't overdo it.

Paradox Paradigm: Sandy Shocks launches a giant lightning bolt straight forward after a brief charge. The lightning bolt magnetizes the area around itself, drawing in even more ironsand with its residual energy. This causes Sandy Shocks to overflow with electricity, gaining Armor with its excess ironsand and improving the Armor granted to allies with its Primary Fire as well as increases the size and HP of its ironsand wall made with Defend.

Iron Treads

Health: ★★★★★ Damage: ★★★☆☆ Mobility: ★★★★☆ Range: ★★☆☆☆ Support: ★★☆☆☆

The wheel, as an invention, is proof of evolving ingenuity, and it is a testament to the advancements of technology that the shape continues to persist in the future. Yes, everything that floats can fly, but gyroscopic motors are the backbone of futuristic designs. It's understandable to us, at least, and definitely beyond the understanding of those undignified dinosaurs.

Primary Fire: The dirt that gets chewed up as Iron Treads rolls around the earth is collected and processed for its projectiles. Out of its trunk pops concussive blasts of silicone and carbon, usually used to blow apart walls and obstacles. They have a bit of a curve to them, so they can't reach very high, but they do pack a punch. When Aimed, the constitution of the projectiles changes to become sticky, more like mud, and they will stick to walls without exploding. They still can't reach very far, nor can there be too many in play at once, but the Ability to Aim these proximity mines makes for precise traps.

Defend: Iron Treads retracts its trunk and begins to spin its 'wheels' around at high speed. The centrifugal force deflects some of the power of the projectiles that strike it, reducing damage. Your movement speed increases greatly, though, and you can deal damage to enemies by ramming into them, knocking them away a short distance.

Melee: Same as Defend, except Iron Treads spins its wheel much faster, you cannot move for a second, and when it fully revs up, Iron Treads launches itself forward at high speed, dealing great damage to enemies and knocking them up into the air. You have about a second to turn around while Iron Treads is charging, because you cannot move or jump until the attack ends and Iron Treads screeches to a halt.

Jump: A short jump, but Iron Treads lands with a damaging quake, just like Great Tusk. However, it can also cling to walls using its magnetized treads, just like Sandy Shocks can, granting Iron Treads excellent mobility.

Paradox Paradigm: Iron Treads spins very quickly, ripping up the earth under itself and slinging chunks everywhere. These stray slags are actually its Primary Fire being loaded and launched very quickly in a wide area around itself. The shots detonate upon landing or after hitting an enemy.

Iron Bundle

Health: ★☆☆☆☆ Damage: ★★★★★ Mobility: ★★★☆☆ Range: ★★★☆☆ Support: ★★★☆☆

Iron Bundle used to be a pokemon that spread joy and holiday cheer everywhere, but times changed, so instead it dispenses refreshingly ice-cold water to thirsty patrons. It can still fight in a pinch, and it's more than happy to wash the filth off of those deplorable dinosaurs from the dark ages.

Primary Fire: The water in its bundle doesn't come from nowhere, it has to draw in moisture from the air before it can be shot out. This extraction process is very noisy, but once Iron Bundle has enough water, it shoots a powerful stream straight forward. The ice cold water slows down enemies on hit, but Iron Bundle also has to slow down in order to hold its canister steady. This attack operates just like a minigun in traditional shooters, which suits a small pokemon like Iron Bundle very well. When Aimed, Iron Bundle holds the canister over its head and launches ice cubes rapidly. The projectiles are weaker, but it's quicker to attack in this way.

Defend: Iron Bundle puts its ice maker into overdrive and starts building a pillar of ice. It starts out as a short wall, optimal for cover and returning fire, but the more ice you add to it, the taller it gets. It'll only get as tall as three 'blocks' but you can move Iron Bundle while holding Defend to make more ice pillars. It's slow, but the pillars are slow melting and are handy to make a decent fort in anticipation of a raid.

Melee: Loads of snow are thrown from its canister pointing forward. It has less range than it looks, but it can slow down enemies approaching from the front. Additionally, Iron Bundle's movement speed increases when it is moving backwards while holding Melee, due to the snow propelling it backwards a bit. Also, the Melee attack is used automatically when Iron Bundle is moving normally, but the canister is pointed backwards instead, slinging snow behind it.

Jump: A short jump. If Iron Bundle falls from a great height and holds Jump, it points its canister straight down and starts blowing snow forcefully, slowing its descent and damaging enemies underneath.

Paradox Paradigm: Upon activation, Iron Bundle takes its canister and starts to shake it vigorously like a bartender and his favorite tumbler. This shaking accelerates the ice maker in the canister but also is very loud and pervasive. After about two seconds, Iron Bundle points the canister forward and launches a dense ice ball into the air. A trail of snow follows the projectile as it flies, until it hits a wall or enemy, in which case it'll explode into a flurry of slush. The snow lingers for a while and increases your team's movement speed while also decreasing that of the enemy team.

Iron Hands

Health: ★★★★★ Damage: ★★★★☆ Mobility: ★☆☆☆☆ Range: ★★☆☆☆ Support: ★★★★☆

There is no such thing as a perfectly designed robot. Each automaton is built to specific measurements meant for its function. Iron Hands may be very large, but it is built that way for one thing and thing only. It was made to pummel those primitive pokemon from the past. And also to guard things, I guess.

Primary Fire: Iron Hands holds its hands out and generates a powerful electrical field in front of itself. This electric field acts as a mobile barrier that it can carry and summon whenever possible. It can also damage nearby enemies that touch the barrier, though the damage is weak. The barrier can take a certain amount of damage until it breaks, in which case it cannot be made until the shield has fully regenerated. Beyond that, it regenerates normally when not in use, and dealing damage with your other moves accelerates the shield's regeneration. When Aimed, Iron Hands launches shots of its electrified palms forward. These palm shaped projectiles are slow moving, but they can intercept enemy fire. They cannot block laser beams, though, due to the property of the different projectiles.

Defend: Iron Hands clasps its hands together in an attempt to grab an enemy. If successful, Iron Hands will lift them up into the air before throwing them in the direction of the player's reticle. The thrown enemy will be damaged upon landing and can also damage other enemies on hit.

Melee: Iron Hands charges its palms before bringing them together in a loud clap. The clap unleashes a powerful shock wave that stuns nearby enemies.

Jump: A short jump. It should be noted that Iron Hands can Jump during the grab and throw effect of its Defend ability.

Paradox Paradigm: Iron Hands performs a traditional sumo stomp with both feet before launching a supercharged shock wave from its hands. The shock wave moves slowly, but it behaves like a moving wall, damaging and pushing enemies away as it flies. Enemies squashed by this Paradox Paradigm attack will take massive damage.

Iron Jugulis

Health: ★☆☆☆☆ Damage: ★★★★☆ Mobility: ★★★★★ Range: ★★★★☆ Support: ★☆☆☆☆

Two heads are better than one, so naturally three heads are superior. You put a machine like this in the skies, and nothing will escape from its sight. It's a good thing too, as those pesky primal pokemon are very unsightly and must be obliterated on sight, as decreed by Iron Jugulis' programming.

Primary Fire: Iron Jugulis breathes an evil flame into the air. This flame covers a wide area and is easy to hit. The attack sets opposing pokemon on fire, dealing damage continuously to them. Also, the two other heads of Iron Jugulis will automatically attack nearby enemies, prioritizing those set aflame by your Primary Fire. When Aimed, the flames turn into an explosive fireball launched intermittently. The two other heads will also target enemies damaged by your attack.

Defend: Iron Jugulis retreats backwards while its two other heads linger in place, shooting a stream of fire forward. The attack lingers for a while or until Iron Jugulis attacks again. This attack can only be used while Iron Jugulis is 'grounded'.

Melee: The two heads reach out to bite and grab an enemy. If successful, they'll pull the enemy inward for a short distance before letting go. Iron Jugulis can fly over gaps, so it's possible but difficult for the player to drag an enemy off a ledge and pull them into a bottomless pit.

Jump: Instead of obeying gravity, Iron Jugulis can increase its elevation by holding the Jump button. It can fly very high, nearly up to the top of the map, and becomes very difficult to shoot down once it gets here. If you do get hit, though, you'll be forced to fall a few meters before Iron Jugulis recalibrates its position. You can manually descend by holding the Defend button. You move faster by using your Primary Fire without Aiming.

Paradox Paradigm: Iron Jugulis and its other two heads charge up powerful shots in its mouths before launching them in the direction of the player's reticle. Each shot will explode on hit with an enemy or the ground or wall. Also, each shot can inflict a random status effect like Poison, Burn, Confuse, Slow, Freeze, or even Blind. This Paradox Paradigm is one of the quieter ones, though the charging effect is bright and noticeable.

Iron Moth

Health: ★☆☆☆☆ Damage: ★★★★★ Mobility: ★★★☆☆ Range: ★★★☆☆ Support: ★★☆☆☆

In the future, the sun becomes a limited resource for the planet. Instead of fighting for it, humans decided it was more important to make our own, so we turned a pokemon revered as a sun god into a portable Vitamin D dispenser. Unfortunately, there isn't enough sunlight to go around, and Iron Moth will certainly not share any of its sunny rays with those uncivilized dinosaurs, unless it's administered directly to their faces.

Primary Fire: All six of Iron Moth's wings light up with intense heat before unleashing a ray of sunshine. The beams are very damaging but Iron Moth has to slow down in order to attack. When Aimed, the reticle turns into a sniper scope and solar power fills its wings. It takes a while to reach full power, but the shot is extremely damaging even if it grazes an opponent.

Defend: Iron Moth takes one of its wings and holds it out, pointing forward. Holding the button for long enough causes the wing to detach and linger in the spot it was used at, becoming automatic. The lone wing will fire at any enemy within sight, and multiple wings can be detached in this way. However, each wing detached cuts down the power of your Primary Fire and Melee attack, so be discerning in where you deploy the wings.

Melee: Iron Moth brings its wings forward and closes them down on any enemy in front of itself. The residual solar energy being discharged heals you for a bit of Health, though the amount of damage dealt and Health regained varies depending on how many wings you have.

Jump: A lengthy Jump. Holding the button causes Iron Moth to send out a signal to all of its detached wings to rendezvous back to it. Iron Moth will float as it does so and will float for the same amount of time each time, regardless of number of deployed wings.

Paradox Paradigm: Iron Moth puts its wings together and creates a fireball of great heat and intensity before launching it forward. The more wings you have, the bigger it is. In contrast, the less wings you have, the faster it flies out. The charge time and damage dealt is the same regardless of how many wings you have.

Iron Thorns

Health: ★★★★☆ Damage: ★★★★★ Mobility: ★☆☆☆☆ Range: ★★★★☆ Support: ★☆☆☆☆

Huh, I think I saw this in a movie once. Well, that's not important. What is important is that Iron Thorns is a Paradox Pokemon made for demolition and destruction. With an indestructible hide, razor sharp thorns, and a penchant for revelry in obliteration, Iron Thorns is our strongest spearhead against those dastardly dinos.

Primary Fire: Iron Thorns builds up power within itself before unleashing it out through its mouth. It takes a while for Iron Thorns to build up to max power, and it slows down while doing so, but the damage it deals is deadly. The charge time cannot be changed and you can't perform any other attacks, but you can use Sub 1 and Sub 2 freely if they're available to you. When Aimed, Iron Thorns launches its electro barbs forward instead. It needs a valid target, though, as to not waste precious ammo. In exchange, the barbs have a homing function. All you need to do is to lock on to a viable target, hold for long enough so that Iron Thorns can lock onto the enemy's signature, then release the button to let those barbs fly. It's slower generating locks onto a single target, but each 'new' target gets a new lock instantly. The electro barbs can get blocked by walls and obstacles.

Defend: Iron Thorns reveals its namesake, a series of hidden electro barbs shoot out from its body in defense. These sharp thorns damage nearby enemies and increase its defense for as long as the button is held. Iron Thorns cannot do anything else while holding Defend. Dealing proximity damage to nearby enemies supercharges the batteries within Iron Thorns, though. Basically, the more damage you deal with Defend, the faster its Primary Fire charges up. It also speeds up the 'lock-on' effect of its Aimed Primary Fire as well.

Melee: A series of claw swipes with its stubby arms. Holding the button shifts its posture as its tail extends, and letting go of the button has Iron Thorns twist its body around, thwacking enemies with its extra long tail, knocking enemies away. Just like with Defend, damage dealt with Melee charges Primary Fire.

Jump: A short jump that deals quaking damage. If pressed in midair, Iron Thorns shoots a powerful beam from its mouth, propelling it upwards. The beam deals damage but cannot be aimed well, and Iron Thorns will eventually run out of power for its flying beam. It does move very quickly while airborne in this way.

Paradox Paradigm: You know how pokemon are shrunk down to fit into pokeballs? Well the opposite happens here. Iron Thorns grows to massive size with the power of a tyrant and goes on a rampage. While supersized, Iron Thorns deals damage with each step it takes in a wide area. Its Primary Fire becomes a plasma breath that coats the ground in flames. Its Melee attack is a 1-2 hook combo. And its Defend is a brutal slam of its tail aiming backwards. This supersized form has a separate HP bar from Iron Thorns and can be depleted, but it is about 3x bigger. It also cannot be used in areas with a ceiling and you cannot use your Subs.

Roaring Moon

Health: ★★★☆☆ Damage: ★★★★☆ Mobility: ★★★★☆ Range: ★★★☆☆ Support: ★☆☆☆☆

I do think it's kind of weird that, of all the Mega Evolutions left behind in Gen 7, Mega Salamence came back to us in the form of a Paradox Pokemon. Quite literally a blast from the past. Well, it just proves that these superpowered forms are timeless, meaning they'll outlast those hunks of junk from the future.

Primary Fire: Roaring Moon builds up dragon power in its mouth before shooting it outward. The projectile explodes on hit with an enemy or obstacle. Holding the button extends the charge time which increases the size of the explosion as well as the damage it deals. When Aimed, a stream of dragon fire is shot out. splaying outwards on contact with an enemy or obstacle. The flames linger on the ground where the flames hit and opposing enemies will be set on fire for a short while.

Defend: Roaring Moon flicks its wings forward, creating a powerful wind current that pushes enemies away while also propelling itself backwards.

Melee: Roaring Moon lunges forward and swipes with its claws.

Jump: A short jump, but holding the button causes Roaring Moon to glide if it has enough air space. While gliding, Roaring Moon can gain elevation by aiming upwards and using Melee, or aiming downwards and using Defend. Its descent stalls a bit while charging Primary Fire or while Aiming and firing.

Paradox Paradigm: Roaring Moon leaps into the sky instantly, flying very high until it reaches the moon. Once it reaches the apex of its jump, Roaring Moon will aim itself downwards onto the map, giving you a short amount of time to adjust your reticle. Afterwards, Roaring Moon will fly straight down and slam into the ground with a burning quake, damaging all enemies in a wide area and setting the ground ablaze with a crescent shaped brand. Roaring Moon cannot use this attack while under a ceiling.

Iron Valiant

Health: ★★☆☆☆ Damage: ★★★★★ Mobility: ★★★☆☆ Range: ★★★★☆ Support: ★☆☆☆☆

As life on earth evolved, two things fazed out of the gene pool; weakness, and gender. One cannot afford to be merciful when it's survival of the fittest. That is what Iron Valiant embodies. That and the destruction of gender norms. Oh, and it also hates dinosaurs too.

Primary Fire: A wide psychic blade is launched forward from its arms. Holding the button charges the attack, unleashing a wider beam forward. Because of its orientation, the projectile can easily be stopped by a wall or corner, but the upside is that the projectile can pass through multiple opponents. When Aimed, the psycho blade projectiles shrink, behaving more like proper pellets in a shooter. Also, the psycho blades weaken the enemy and softens them up for Iron Valiant's Melee attack.

Defend: A quick dash in the direction of the control stick. This dash is immune to all damage and effects.

Melee: The psycho sabers are formed into a dual edged staff and Iron Valiant spins it around like a baton. This spinning can deflect weak projectiles except for lasers, as long as the button is held down. If Iron Valiant attacks while jumping, it lands with a large psycho sword swinging downward. This jumping slash cuts in a large area and deals bonus damage to enemies damaged by your Primary Fire. The multiplier is reset afterwards.

Jump: A normal jump. If the button is held, Iron Valiant will start running along the wall for as long as the button is held. However, it cannot run for long, nor can it turn around or run up to get more height. It can, however, jump for greater height and can run along another wall if one is nearby.

Paradox Paradigm: Iron Valiant extends its blades outwards and begins to zip about, moving like lighting and covering the area in cuts. The attack covers a wide area as Iron Valiant shifts about slightly. Before the final slash, all enemies are coated in the same psycho energy as the Primary Fire. The last hit deals major damage in a wide area, dealing extra damage for the amount of psycho energy the enemies were afflicted with.

Koraidon, The Winged King

Health: ★★★★☆ Damage: ★★★☆☆ Mobility: ★★★★☆ Range: ★★☆☆☆ Support: ★★★☆☆

Very little needs to be said about Koraidon, the most familiar Paradox Pokemon of them all, along with Miraidon, but there is something to be said about its overwhelming control over its territory. It sits at the top of the hierarchy of the world of the past, so it doesn't take too kindly to the robots of the future laying waste to the land it owns. As such, it leads the charge against the cyborgs, uniting the normally ambivalent creatures of the past against the mechanical monstrosities.

Primary Fire: Within Koraidon's wheel shaped dewlap, a concentration of fighting energy is made and expelled forward. The projectile looks and behaves like a runaway tire, bouncing along the ground and rolling forward until it hits a wall or enemy. It can't shoot very high, but it can be used to hit enemies behind cover. When Aimed, the wheels are launched sideways. They gain more distance this way, but they still can't reach very high and lose their ability to bounce. However, hitting an enemy causes the spinning wheel to ricochet, bouncing off and flying towards another nearby enemy. They'll bounce one time, but score a headshot and it'll bounce two times instead.

Defend: Koraidon shakes the ground around itself and lets out a loud roar. The quake stuns enemies in place and the roar knocks them away. Airborne enemies cannot be stunned by the quake but they will still be sent flying by the roar. If Koraidon is airborne, it'll descend rapidly to the ground to use this attack.

Melee: With a powerful twirl, Koraidon sweeps the ground around itself with its tail. This attack knocks enemies upwards. Any ally riding on your back is forced off behind you. In the air, this attack grants you a second jump. If Koraidon is running, this attack turns into a sideways charge. Holding the button while running causes Koraidon to 'drift', damaging enemies as it slides and releasing the button allows it to take a sharp turn and continue running in another direction.

Jump: Koraidon leaps up with its powerful legs and head wings. Holding the button charges the jump, allowing you to jump higher. Also, an ally can 'hop on' to your back while you are holding jump, as Koraidon leans down to charge. The ally sits on Koraidon with their back turned and can only Shoot and Aim while on Koraidon's back. The ally can dismount by pressing Jump or Defend, or wait for Koraidon to force them off.

Paradox Paradigm: Koraidon summons intense primal power with its Orichalcum Pulse, causing it to float in the air briefly. Allies riding on Koraidon are forced to dismount. After a while, Koraidon begins to spin with great speed before shooting off in the direction you are aiming. On hit with a wall, the collision creates a massive explosion of fighting energy, damaging all enemies nearby.

Miraidon, The Iron Serpent

Health: ★★☆☆☆ Damage: ★★★★★ Mobility: ★★★☆☆ Range: ★★★★☆ Support: ★★☆☆☆

Very little needs to be said about Miraidon, the most familiar Paradox Pokemon of them all, along with Koraidon, but there is something to be said about its stranglehold on the power reserves of the future. A built-in generator provides the paradox pokemon of the future with a stable power source, and as such it commands the others like a king. This self-established monarchy is beyond the understanding of the underdeveloped dinosaurs of the past, and so it seeks to maintain its dominance over the ecosystem with its infinite power reserves.

Primary Fire: A bolt of electricity launches from Miradion's mouth. On hit, the bolt will deal damage, but if an enemy is nearby, a second bolt splits off and deals damage to them as well. When Aimed, the view shifts to a sniper's scope. Holding the button down charges power for the shot and it takes a second to reach max damage, but enemies will see this sniper shot powered up from afar due to Miraidon's brightly glowing electrical antennae flaring up.

Defend: Miraidon overclocks its circuits for a short while before restoring its settings. If Miradion is damaged during this effect, it unleashes horrible static discharge all around itself, stunning nearby enemies. Holding Defend while airborne causes Miraidon to float for a bit.

Melee: A quick slash of Miraidon's electrified tail aimed forward. The lash is quick and has greater range than it appears. It can also be used repeatedly and can destroy weaker projectiles. Ally pokemon riding Miraidon will be forced to dismount when this attack is used.

Jump: A lengthy jump forward. Holding the button has Miraidon jump further when charged and released. Miraidon leans down to charge its jump, so an ally can approach from behind and hop on. While riding on Miraidon, the ally can only Shoot and Aim. They can dismount by pressing Jump or Defend, or wait for Miraidon to force them off.

Paradox Paradigm: Miraidon becomes overloaded with electric power bursting forth from its Hadron Engine, causing it to float for a bit. When its reactors are at full power, it launches a burning column of light forward. The attack is a carpet of electricity that trails along the ground, unleashing a powerful beam straight up into the sky. The attack runs on until it hits a wall or falls off a ledge.

Walking Wake

Health: ★★☆☆☆ Damage: ★★★☆☆ Mobility: ★★★☆☆ Range: ★★☆☆☆ Support: ★★★★★

Is this the pokemon that was brought back to life in the Burned Tower in Johto? Not likely, but it's fun to imagine dinosaurs wandering around sacred grounds like they own the place. Speaking of sacred grounds, the territory of Walking Wake and its buddies are jeopardized by the existence of the future paradox pokemon running around, so it's time to power wash those dirty 'droids.

Primary Fire: A blast of scalding water is shot forward. It doesn't reach very far, but it deals a lot of damage up close. When Aimed, a condensed bubble of steam is shot forward. It bounces along the ground and pops with intense power when it hits a wall or enemy, blowing them back. It should be noted that Walking Wake can extinguish fires with its Primary Fire, on the ground and on allies, and they heal for a bit of HP when cured.

Defend: Walking Wake makes a large puddle of cleansing water around itself, which slowly restores the HP of itself and nearby allies. It cannot move while healing.

Melee: A powerful stomp with its long legs. It should be noted that Walking Wake can cross bodies of water if there are any on the map, which are functionally pits of death otherwise. They aren't all that common, but Walking Wake can use Melee while standing within water to make a huge splash. Realistically, this is only useful against Iron Bundle, who can also travel over water by skiing.

Jump: A normal jump. If the button is charged, however, Walking Wake creates a geyser at its feet, which send it upwards when the button is released. The geyser lingers for a while, allowing allies to climb the geyser as well to reach new heights.

Paradox Paradigm: Walking Wake lets out a loud roar as it fills the earth underneath with thermal hydro power. Shortly afterwards, multiple hot geysers erupt from the ground, damaging enemies and healing allies a little bit passively. The geysers erupt randomly for a while, but cannot penetrate ceilings, failing to damage enemies hiding above them.

Iron Leaves

Health: ★★★☆☆ Damage: ★★★☆☆ Mobility: ★★★☆☆ Range: ★★★★☆ Support: ★★★★★

The existence of Iron Leaves proves that the planet in the future is still thriving with plant life, at least enough plant life to build a robot with the stuff. This means that the efforts of the present day to preserve the environment are not for naught, and that humanity can thwart natural selection with enough perseverance. This love of nature is beyond that of the beasts of a bygone era, who tear through the lands as if they own the place, so their numbers must be culled to save the planet. At least that's the excuse.

Primary Fire: Sharp leaves are launched forward from its neck. The leaves deal damage, but they stick to allies on hit. Each leaf lingers for a while before restoring a small amount of HP. The leaves disappear if the ally receives damage. When Aimed, Iron Leaves launches a large psychic blade from its head forward, which can destroy weaker projectiles. The blade can be charged to increase its size.

Defend: A wall of iron leaves is made in front of the pokemon. Each leaf represents the amount of HP the obstruction has, and the more damage it takes, the smaller it gets. Using Defend again deletes the old wall and makes a new one.

Melee: The psychic leaf blades on Iron Leaves neck spin quickly, dealing damage all around itself. The button can be pressed rapidly to spin the blades quickly like a fan. In the air, this rapid mashing can be used to slow your descent. If you mash fast enough, you can even cross large gaps with the extra hang time.

Jump: A tall graceful jump. Holding the button creates a platform of iron leaves underneath you, holding you up in the air. The platform lasts only for a while, as the iron leaves fall one by one before it dissipates. You cannot make another platform until you touch down on solid ground. The iron leaves platform also can only be made above solid ground.

Paradox Paradigm: Iron Leaves summons a whirlwind of iron leaves around itself before launching it forward. The massive torrent of leaves damage enemies but also stick to allies, just like its Primary Fire. However, these leaves are faster to heal and do not disappear when the ally receives damage.

Gouging Fire

Health: ★★★★★ Damage: ★★★☆☆ Mobility: ★☆☆☆☆ Range: ★☆☆☆☆ Support: ★★★★★

The reveal of a past paradox Suicune sent our imaginations running wild as to what the other beasts could look like, especially since they were all going to be based on dinosaurs. A couple of us were correct in guessing that Entei was going to be a shield-faced triceratops or something, so the actual reveal was met with plenty of excitement. As for Raikou...not so much. But hey, at least we know that dinosaurs are cooler than robots.

Primary Fire: The burning bulwark on Gouging Fire's head ignites with great heat, emitting in such a way that it forms a wall in front of itself. When Aimed, the fire is ejected forward in a shield shape, blocking other projectiles. The fire shields travel slowly and have a low shooting speed, but they can block multiple projectiles except for lasers.

Defend: Gouging Fire's shield crown absorbs thermal heat from the area. In this state, Gouging Fire takes reduced damage and stockpiles attacks aimed at it. At the end of the charge, the fire shield erupts into flames, dealing damage to all enemies nearby while also launching a flaming projectile directly forward. The more damage absorbed, the more damage this counterattack deals.

Melee: Gouging Fire charges forward headfirst a short distance before tucking in and launching the enemy upwards with a fierce horn jab. Enemies caught in the attack are sent flying upwards.

Jump: A short jump that deals quaking damage, except instead of ground type damage, it deals fire type damage. Gouging Fire ignites the ground when it lands and creates a burning trail for a while.

Paradox Paradigm: Gouging Fire unleashes a terrifying fire fueled roar straight forward, setting the ground and walls ablaze for a short while. Only what is visible to the player will be set ablaze.

Raging Bolt

Health: ★★★★☆ Damage: ★★★☆☆ Mobility: ★★☆☆☆ Range: ★☆☆☆☆ Support: ★★★★★

You know, that long neck is a bit of a detriment to a pokemon meant to be used in a shooter. I mean, nothing sticks out to the enemy more than an exposed head like Raging Bolt, but it's a matter of principle that it's playable, along with Walking Wake and Gouging Fire. We can safely say that it is the most interesting design of the Paradox Pokemon, which again, proves that dinosaurs are cooler than robots. Which also, again, is a statement self imposed by those who have read the Scarlet Book.

Primary Fire: Raging Bolt lets loose a vindictive thundercloud floating forward slowly. The cloud floats at a steady altitude until it hits a wall. If an enemy is detected underneath, the cloud shoots thunderbolts down at the enemy in random intervals. When Aimed, the cloud remains static in the air. If an enemy approaches close to the thundercloud, a powerful bolt is sent at the enemy. All nearby clouds join in on the attack. The clouds disappear after launching a thunderbolt.

Defend: Raging Bolt coats itself in a powerful circuit of electricity. The electric field deals damage to nearby enemies.

Melee: A powerful stomp with both front legs. If Raging Bolt is standing on a thundercloud, a thunderbolt is released downward at nearby enemies.

Jump: A surprisingly high jump. Holding the jump button has Raging Bolt create a solid thundercloud underneath, allowing it to stand solidly in the air. The thundercloud lingers for a while and can only be used once until you touch the ground.

Paradox Paradigm: With a great roar, Raging Bolt fills the sky with black thunderclouds. The clouds bring down thunderbolts at random, aiming at nearby enemies for a while. The thunderbolts will not be able to penetrate roofs.

Iron Boulder

Health: ★★★★★ Damage: ★★★★★ Mobility: ★☆☆☆☆ Range: ★★☆☆☆ Support: ★★☆☆☆

Bigger, badder, boulder. What more can you say about this modified form of Terrakion? Sure, it may have lost much of its fighting spirit, but mastery of technology comes with a full understanding of one's mind and the limits of the body, now untethered. This additional psychic power also gives it total mastery over the face of the earth, allowing it to completely crush those feral fiends from the past.

Primary Fire: Iron Boulder carves into the ground and creates a boulder with its psychic powers. The rocks condense closely together, and the longer you hold the button, the more rocks you gather and the bigger the boulder gets. The boulder behaves as a mobile shield for Iron Boulder, taking damage from the front. The boulder splinters off when damaged, but the shards linger around with psychic power. Using Primary Fire again launches the boulder and any rock shards forward in the direction you're aiming, with the shards moving faster and the boulder moving slower. When Aimed, A small rock is shot forward, dealing damage. It will, however, bounce when it hits a wall and it deals more damage if it bounces a couple of times.

Defend: Iron Boulder arches back before digging its horns into the ground, dealing damage and knocking enemies away. If you're holding a psychic boulder, the attack deals more damage the more 'HP' the boulder has, but this attack also weakens the boulder, breaking it down further into rock shards.

Melee: Iron Boulder charges forward with its horns scraping along the ground. The attack deals extra damage for each rock shard you have floating, but this attack recombines the boulder, reducing the number of shards you have and restoring the 'HP' of the boulder.

Jump: A short jump with a damaging quake. The shock waves reach further out than normal, reacting to the positions of nearby enemies. Jumping and landing reveals the position of nearby enemies for a short while.

Paradox Paradigm: Iron Boulder is filled with heroic might before charging straight forward recklessly. This charge does major damage to enemies hit and will also completely demolish barriers set up that try to stop it. If Iron Boulder runs into a wall, all nearby enemies at the point of impact will be stunned if they were earthbound and have their positions revealed through walls for a while.

Iron Crown

Health: ★★★☆☆ Damage: ★★★★☆ Mobility: ★★★☆☆ Range: ★☆☆☆☆ Support: ★★★★☆

A common misconception about future Paradox Pokemon is that they are called 'iron' but most of them aren't Steel Type. Well, that's because they aren't made of steel, but rather a combination of different materials like silicone, aluminum, copper, synthetic rubber, etc. You know, we are also made of different stuff as well, but we aren't defined by a single type. Iron Crown is most definitely made of Steel, though, and it is perfectly suited to running through fleshy beings like us, or the past paradox pokemon rather.

Primary Fire: Two tachyon blades shoot out from its iron horns, curving in a wide arc before returning to the pokemon. Enemies caught on the return will be dragged inward slightly. When Aimed, the blades reach further and fly in a straight line. A direct hit will pull enemies further in. Iron Crown cannot use its Primary Fire again until both blades have returned to it.

Defend: The chromatic plates on Iron Crown's body refract the light around itself, turning the pokemon invisible for as long as the button is held. The pokemon moves faster while invisible, but receiving damage interrupts the refraction process, making Iron Crown briefly visible.

Melee: A sideways swipe with Iron Crowns large horns. If Iron Crown was invisible by using its Defend, the strike becomes a downward swing. Not only that, the invisible attack deals extremely high damage if it lands on an enemy's back.

Jump: A regular jump, but Iron Crown can double jump. If Iron Crown is invisible, it can triple jump.

Paradox Paradigm: Iron Crown lets loose a brilliant flash of light, stunning nearby enemies and turning invisible for a while. Iron Crown shifts into a hunting stance and turns invisible. Iron Crown can then approach any enemy hit by the attack and strike them down with its super sharp horn blades. If the attack resulted in a KO, Iron Crown becomes invisible again and can use this finishing move a second time against another enemy.

Phew, that's every single Paradox Pokemon known to exist. It seems like such a small roster, though. If they don't make any new Paradox Pokemon after Scarlet and Violet, this game would be the perfect opportunity to add some more.

Like, say, a Paradox form of Tinkaton for both past and future. The past form would resemble a stout little caveman, adorned with bones on its waist and as ties for its hair, and would be called Bone Sledge, and also would be a Ground/Fairy Type. Meanwhile, the future form would wield a large grenade launcher and would be called Iron Bazooka, being a Fire/Steel Type.

I say that there should be loads of new Paradox Pokemon added into the game over time in this way, since for story reasons, we most likely won't see any more Paradox Pokemon, unless we run into more extraneous time travel shenanigans. That would undercut the impact of Scarlet and Violet's story ending, so if we can only get more Paradox Pokemon through a spin-off title like this one, so be it.

Technical Machines

Way back in the Control Scheme section, I mentioned that the X & Y buttons are reserved for Subs, which depend on what TM you've assigned to them. In game, you can assign a Technical Machine, or TM for short, to nearly all of your buttons, not just X & Y, to add an extra effect. Each TM is different and offers a small boon when assigned to a button other than X & Y, but usually it makes a big difference depending on how it's applied.

In the mainline games, TMs are limited in distribution, and the same applies here. If a TM sounds like it'll be really busted or not work correctly on a particular pokemon, it's safe to assume that that pokemon would not be able to use that TM. Now, I'm not going to reference the eligibility list of TMs in Scarlet and Violet for every single Paradox Pokemon listed here, and neither should you. This is a spin-off game, and some TMs can or can't be learned by a pokemon for balancing reasons. No room for fickleness here.

I won't list every single TM for the game, just enough Moves to give you an idea on how customizable you can make your pokemon.

Sub 1 & Sub 2

Protect - Prevent hindrances for a short while and gain a small amount of shield.

Water Pulse - A short ranged expulsion of water that knocks enemies away.

Synthesis - Heals a bit of HP. Heal a little more HP when you are standing in an area without a ceiling.

Earth Power - Plants a proximity mine in the location you are standing, which erupts when an enemy approaches.

Reflect - Creates a bubble that can absorb damage before breaking. The shield can absorb other bubbles made by allies to reinforce itself.

Fly - Sends the pokemon flying straight up. Deals heavy damage if the user collide with an enemy while ascending.

Volt Switch - When activated, the pokemon teleports back to the point of activation after a short while.

Shadow Ball - Creates a black hole that absorbs projectiles for a short while, and also damages nearby enemies.

Light Screen - Creates a wall of light that reflects back lasers.

Iron Head - The pokemon takes less damage and becomes resistant to head shots for a while.

Agility - The pokemon can move faster and jump higher for a short while.

Swords Dance - The pokemon deals more damage and its Melee comes out faster.

Stealth Rock - Invisible floating stones are cast, which damage enemies on hit and exposes their location for a short while.

Gravity - Creates a pressurized atmosphere that slows down enemies within and also weakens their Jump.

I'll also include TMs that can modifiy your other buttons. Remember, it's one TM for each slot, and not every playable pokemon can learn all of these TMs;

Primary Fire

Flame Burst - The enemy creates a huge explosion when KO'd.

Charge Beam - Deals more damage over time until you miss.

Muddy Water - Scoring a head shot blinds the enemy for a while.

Vacuum Wave - Your projectiles fly faster.

Hyper Beam - Your lasers reach farther and last longer.

Bullet Seed - Extra ammo.

Aim

Scary Face - Slows down opposing approaching projectiles while Aiming.

Stored Power - Your Primary Fire deals more damage the more Ammo you have.

Smart Strike - Landing a head shot refunds some ammo.

Psychic - Enemies are revealed to the pokemon through walls.

Defend

Charge - Holding Defend refills your ammo gradually.

Fake Tears - Receive reduced damage while holding Defend.

Mud Slap - A splash of mud is made when Defend is used, blinding nearby enemies.

Disarming Voice - A shock wave is emitted when Defend is used, revealing the location of all nearby enemies to all allies.

Zen Headbutt - Receiving damage while holding Defend refills your ammo.

Imprison - Prevents hindrances from affecting the user while holding Defend.

Jump

Heavy Slam - The pokemon deals damage to enemies by landing on them. The greater the fall, the more damage dealt.

Earthquake - Adds a quake when the pokemon lands, or increases the damage and size of the quaking landing.

Acrobatics - Adds an extra jump to the pokemon.

Aerial Ace - The pokemon deals more damage while airborne.

Brave Bird - Your movement increases while airborne.

Dragon Dance - Each jump refills your ammo.

Melee

Poison Jab - Deals damage over time, which worsens the more hits you land.

Smack Down - Deal increased damage to airborne enemies.

Drain Punch - Steal ammo as you deal damage.

Leech Life - KO's restore a lot of Health.

Poltergeist - Deals more damage to enemies high in ammo.

Reversal - Deal more damage the less ammo you have.

Giga Impact - Knock enemies away on hit.

Left Control Stick

Surf - Increases your running speed and deals damage on collision.

Grassy Terrain - Creates small patches of healing grass as you walk.

Electric Terrain - Generates electrified ground that increases shooting speed.

Sludge Wave - Leaves behind puddle of damaging poison as you walk.

Flame Charge - The pokemon deals more damage while moving.

Rest - The pokemon's Health is quicker to restore.

The only button you can't assign a TM to is the Paradox Paradigm, as that is the unique, unchanging skill of the pokemon you're playing as. It would be overkill to add an extra effect to those moves and stuff.

The Pokeballs

One other thing that you can customize, however, is the pokeball your pokemon comes in. In the mainline games, these balls don't really do anything other than look flashy and are a means to an end when it comes to actually catching pokemon. But due to the nature of how KO's work in this game, the pokeballs are decidedly designed to add more than flair to the game.

During normal gameplay, when a pokemon is KO'd, they play a quick fainting animation before retreating into their pokeball. At this point, the KO'd player has three options. One is to wait out the 7.5 seconds of the respawn timer before they reappear back at the checkpoint on the map, ready to try again. Alternatively, if an ally is nearby, they can try and manually revive the ally by approaching the pokeball. It takes 5 seconds of uninterrupted focus to successfully reduce the ally, but it may win the game to continue the attack rather than wait for the respawn and rendezvous at key objective points.

Of course, the player can respawn manually by holding Down on the Directional Pad to skip the wait time and reappear at the checkpoint. It's up to the players what is the best option in the moment.

Outside of reviving, if you hold Down on the Directional Pad, the pokemon will play a cute farewell animation before retreating into their pokeball. This takes 5 seconds total and can be cancelled if the pokemon receives damage, but if successful, the player will return to the character select screen where they can either change pokemon, switch out TMs, or even change their pokeball.

As you can imagine, the pokeballs themselves have differing functions when the pokemon is forced into their pokeball via KO. What they do is listed as follows;

Paradox Ball - Revive with 75% Health instead of 50%.

Great Ball - Gain a great movement speed boost after reviving.

Ultra Ball - The ally reviving you gains increased defense and cannot be interrupted.

Heal Ball - The ally reviving you restores Health.

Dusk Ball - Become invisible for a while after reviving.

Repeat Ball - Shortens the revival period after each successful revive.

Lure Ball - Can be revived from further away.

Timer Ball - Revival speed hastens the longer the match timer runs for.

Net Ball - Traps nearby enemies for a while when the pokemon fully retreats into their pokeball.

Friend Ball - Hastens revival if both players are the same pokemon.

Nest Ball - When revived, both pokemon have their ammo expanded.

Quick Ball - Shortens the revival timer as well as the respawn timer.

Master Ball - The revival timer is shortened for each KO the player has earned.

I'm sure I'm forgetting some pokeballs, or excluding a few, but this is already a sizable list. Some archetypes are better suited to using a particular pokeball over others, but you gotta remember that an ally needs to commit to the attempt to revive you in order to activate some of these effects.

Game On

The very last thing I'm gonna talk about is a bit about the experience of playing this game. I can't really go into too much detail without any screenshots of a menu or maps, so you're gonna have to follow me with your imagination on this one.

When you start the game for the first time, you'll be thrown right into a firefight against either the Past or Future Paradox pokemon. Which side you'll join is entirely random, and you'll be playing as either Roaring Moon or Iron Valiant. From here, you're going to figure out the controls for yourself, but this is more to get a feel for the game and its responsiveness.

You aren't able to pause or access any emotes and stickers, but don't worry too much about losing, it's literally impossible. The score will be up by 50 points and the enemy will have no TMs in their loadouts and will be played by the lamest CPU AI that can be programmed. Also, it's 1:30 to Time Over and your allies are very aggressive. Basically, it isn't possible for your team to lose enough points to actually lose the game, so take the time to figure out your buttons and stuff.

After the game ends, you'll appear in the hub world where you can shop for in-game items, manage your TMs and pokeballs, join Online in either Ranked or Casual, or do a bit of Recon in the available maps. Like most shooters, the maps are rotated weekly, but you'll be able to visit maps out of rotation if you feel like it. You can even switch sides easily, though expect a snarky comment from the AI professor when you leave.

If you do decide to join a game, you'll have to pick which mode to play in first. Ranked is unavailable to you right away until you have enough TMs to fill out all of your buttons. Matchmaking works by looking for open games and pitting you in against other players of a similar skill level, though don't expect the system to work favorably if you have any bad behavior documented against you. IE; leaving losing games frequently, harassing players, using foul language in your name, etc.

When you do join a game, you'll first have to select a pokemon and their loadout. You can switch teams if you want, but only if there's enough room on the other side and that switching sides would not leave your team with too few players. Also, you'll almost never join a game that is nearly finished, unless there are no other games to join, in which case you won't see much change to your Rank whether you win or lose.

Also, while this game is technically a hero shooter, there is no draft pick enabled. Meaning you can load out your team with 5 Great Tusks and a Scream Tail or 6 Iron Bundles if you wanted to. You'd have to coordinate with the team, though. Oh, and the more serious games limit both sides to 6v6, just like in the mainline pokemon games.

I mentioned Rank earlier, and it's something that rises or drops based on your performance in Ranked Games. The game will keep track of all of your efforts throughout the game and keep a tally for you outside of battle. You can look this up in the hub world when you have a moment to spare. You'll be able to see the number of head shots you landed, your KO streaks, number of successful revives, the Rank mastery on each pokemon you've played, the Rank mastery total, all kinds of stuff. Each tally is shown as a medal, and each tier unlocks some custom titles for you to show off online. You really want players to shiver when they see xXBumBonker_68Xx the Relentless and Hungry on their Kill Feed.

Oh, speaking of which, you will be KO'd a lot while climbing the ranks, but instead of feeling sorry for yourself, you need to pay attention when it happens. Upon getting KO'd, you'll see the enemy who got you, their name, rank, any flairs they've established on their names, titles, and graphics, but more importantly, you'll see what Move they got you with along with the TM they have affixed to that function. As the meta develops, every bit of information is vital, so take the KO on the cheek and keep it all in mind for the next encounter. It's important to know if they've got a Melee attack that drains HP or one that slows you down, and it's all info you can share with your team if you've got comms opened.

As for the actual maps, they'll be all mostly original. I can't imagine GameFreak giving any special permissions to use key locations for maps for this game, like Spear Pillar or Sootopolis City. That said, I don't think they would've fit the theme of the game even with special privilege, as the game is centered around Past VS Future, with nothing to do with the Present.

And I really want the whole Past VS Future dynamic established strongly in the maps themselves. Picture this, take half of an ancient island with an active volcano and splice it with half of a floating futuristic city, held together with the cosmic glue of the space time continuum. The side with the volcano belongs to the past paradox pokemon, whereas the city holds the future paradox pokemon, obviously. It looks freaky but impressive, and also establishes whose side belongs to who, and all the other maps are like this too. A large, lush cave system spliced with roadways littered with abandoned cars, or an intricate primitive village mixed in with a futuristic abandoned mall. There'll be unique maps for the more interesting game modes, but these are the ones everyone will be playing on throughout the map rotations.

Although, it would be fun to play in strange areas like the Distortion World or something for extra special events. It'd be fun to dream about... and that's what this whole post is, a dream. Not unlike these Paradox Pokemon but still, a fun dream nonetheless.

After I finished with 'Plants VS Zombies: Battle for Neighborville', I had a newfound respect for the shooter genre as a whole, but I still had my preferences. I mean, I now understand why games like Call of Duty and Overwatch and even Fortnight bring in the number of players that they do, but I have a special fondness for the whole fun, wacky hero shooter that was the PVZ shooter spin-off. Maybe I'll pick up a shooter in a similar vein and see if I can't recapture that magic, but there's a reason I haven't done so already. All I can do right now is wait for the right game to come along.

Until that happens, I'll still be here having fun with pokemon spin-offs like Pokemon Unite and Pokken Tournament.

See ya next time.

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