A friend of mine wants to get into the series. What should they start with?
Pokémon GO :^)
Yellow
HG/SS.
FR/LG, Platinum/HGSS, maybe BW2 or Emerald/ORAS or XY, depends on what platforms they have available to them but those are the ones I'd most readily suggest to anyone wanting to start playing.
Pokemon Trozei
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XY or ORAS, since they're the most relevant and accessible if they have a 3DS.
If that's not an option, emulate FRLG on a phone.
>>27118702
A ds with fr or lg
>>27118734
Don't listen to fagtron over here.
Gen 6 sucks sweaty ass.
Play Platinum or the third Sinnoh game (forgot name).
If they never played Red/Blue: Red or Blue.
If they have: Whatever game came after the last game they played. So if they stopped at Gold/Silver, pick up Ruby/Sapphire. Play the games in order.
Or skip all the bad shit and just play Platinum. Just saying.
>>27118756
>play platinum or platinum
>>27118773
>recommending the first paired versions when the objectively superior third versions are readily available
>>27118793
:^)
>>27118702
Just skip all the bad games and play Pokemon Showdown. It's literally the only good Pokemon game.
X/Y simple and good.
The pokédex have a lot of variability so it´s perfect for new players.
And the best doesn't have grinding.
So yeah.
>>27118864
As long as you don't spam repels and fight trainers no pokemon game requires grinding, and being slightly underleveled is actually optimal since it adds some semblance of difficulty.
>>27118702
Autisim aside:. Yes. Really.
If they have played nothing and want a fun game that they can catch a lot of Pokemon *and* has an active player base so they can trade / battle: in short, the full experience: get XY or ORAS.
Why? Because once they have XY or ORAS, they have 100% of the modern content and conveniences available to them. Yes. It's a casual game for babies, but so was every fucking other gen. At least this way they have a framework towards catching them all.
Starting them on gen 4 is like a crime: because when gen 7 rolls out in a scant few months, they will not be able to bring all their gen 4 pokemon up to gen 7 without first buying *and completing* gen 5, and then they will not have any gen 6 experience. So by selling them on Platinum (which is excellent, all other arguments aside) you are really handicapping them, just in time for SM rollout.
Handicapping a new player. You dicks.
>>27118702
X/Y
if he starts with x/y he'll never like the other games, desu.
>>27119098
Emerald needed grinding in victory road. Only because Drake and the final guy (not steven) have very good and very high leveled pokemon.
HGSS or Platinum.
>Any answers other than blue, red or yellow