Mega Evolutions VS Dyna/Gigantamaxing

Pokemon is a franchise that has been known to not rock the boat too much and stick to what they know. The franchise has evolved over time, and things were added to try and spice up the formula, but very often, these innovations feel more… tacked-on and easily-disposable.

 

One such addition was Mega Evolutions, in which you could use a Mega Stone to temporarily evolve Pokemon beyond their final stage, akin to a Digivolution in Digimon. In essence, it was a power boost to one pokemon in a given battle. Mega Evolution was very powerful, with the only downsides being that it was only usable on one Pokemon per battle, and it used up an item slot.

 

There was some strategic process behind Mega Evolutions as it would normally not be advisable to put a Mega Stone on every Pokemon in your party, since only one of them could Mega Evolve in a given battle. That Pokemon could only equip that specific item, and so you would strategically build your team around getting them other kinds of items. Your Pokemon would also get a given boost in stats, and could even have a change in type. For example, one of Charizard’s Mega Evolutions actually gave him a dragon type. Furthermore, skills could be changed, such as giving Adaptability to Mega Lucario, which made him do 2X damage with Steel and Fighting type moves, as opposed to 1.5X. It would turn him into a powerhouse, albeit he’d lose his immunity to flinching for example. Kangaskhan could even get a second hit from the baby in its pocket for example, helping to to take down Pokemon with the Sturdy ability, or the Focus Sash item. The implications of using Mega Evolutions led to more than just a stat boost; it led to game-changing elements that could admittedly make battle interesting. The disadvantage is that not all Pokemon have Mega forms, and this can lead to some Pokemon being overly used in tournament settings.

 

On the other hand, Dynamaxing has the ability to be used on every single Pokemon. No matter the Pokémon, it can Dynamax. There is also Gigantamax, which does bring Mega Evolution-like appearance changes that can make these Pokemon look almost as unique. It also only lasts three turns, which means that there is some strategy in when you actually choose to Dyna/Gigantamax your Pokemon, as opposed to Mega Evolutions lasting the entire fight. However, it is also a much more simplified version of the Mega Evolution idea, where instead of still having your general moveset, it gets replaced by a generic “Max-Something”, which does the same thing, no matter which move you use, with only the power changing a little. It boosts your power, makes you hit hard, more tanky and not much else. It is essentially just a stat injection for three turns. Yes, some have slight special effects, but again, most of the time, these are generic. In my opinion, it’s just not as entertaining to use.

 

Still, this is not to say that there isn’t good in both. Personally, I would bring back Mega Evolutions, but limit them to three turns per battle as Dyna/Gigantamaxing does. I would also allow every Pokemon to “get stronger” with Mega energy by equipping a stone not tailored to them (E.G. a Pinsirite on a Mr. Mime for example), in which they would gain stat bonuses, a surrounding glow, but remain in the same form. That would open up options, letting people use their favourites as front-runners even if they lack a Mega Form. I would then add Mega forms over time, letting more and more Pokemon Mega-Evolve, giving better bonuses to Pokemon that are a bit more… underwhelming.

 

By combining the two concepts, we could create a system that has some level of complexity as well as giving players more control over which Pokemon they wish to use. The ability to have multiple Mega stones for one Pokemon means that you could technically have two mega evolutions for different tactics, for example.

 

In my opinion, those added gimmicks are pointless to invest in if they just do not become a long-term staple. In my opinion, Mega Evolution could be used for far more than just being a cool transformation gimmick. It could be a tactical power boost that leads to fun upsets, not unlike what meters are used for in fighting games. It can also be used as a means to balance out the roster a little more. Perhaps a Mega Evolution could take a weak Pokemon like Dunsparce and actually turn it into a legitimate threat. You could even use Mega Stones as a way to learn new moves on given Pokemon to give them some nice buffs if they need it. If a Pokemon is already very strong, the benefits of Mega Evolving could simply be less potent. Clearly, I prefer Mega Evolutions over Dynamaxing. However, it doesn’t mean that you can’t improve on a given option by looking at the alternative for inspiration.

 

Ideally, I would like to see Gamefreak stick to a design decision and to perhaps not introduce new gameplay elements only to remove them one or two games later. It’s okay to sometimes polish over innovating. I would like to see Mega Evolutions taken to the next level and see what they can do with it.