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On the Pokemon anime, Ash's Pokemon's strengths don't always reflect the same in video games. A prime example is Pikachu, who is undoubtedly one of the most powerful allies on the TV show, yet has had an unremarkable run as a frail glass cannon in the lower tiers in the earlier generation video games.
Considering that Ash Ketchum has captured a few dozen different mons throughout the generations, there are bound to be some competitively viable juggernauts in his repertoire. This article is primarily about how competitively viable the Pokemon were based on Smogon's tiers throughout the generations (a.k.a., 6v6 single battles).
Note: OU stands for OverUsed, the most popular singles tier. VGC is the official double battles format (associated with the Pokemon World Championships).
Note: This article reflects the writer's personal views.
8 of Ash's Pokemon that were meta-defining in the video games
8) Melmetal
Mythical Pokemon wildly vary regarding how good they are in the games. They're not allowed on VGC, so how strong they are can only really come from singles formats based on Smogon's rankings. Melmetal has been OU in the one generation it's been featured in thus far, which is an excellent tier placement.
Considering many of Ash's Pokemon are either not fully evolved or are terrible at competition, it should go without saying that Melmetal is one of his strongest choices.
7) Naganadel
Ultra Beasts vary in competitive viability, but Naganadel is one of the stronger in video games. Ash caught a Poipole that eventually evolved into this awesome Pokemon, although he ended up releasing it by the of the Sun and Moon anime.
Naganadel had some brief appearances in VGC, although its dominance primarily comes from single battles. It was banned from OU in its debut and subsequent generation, leaving it to be in Ubers (where it's unfortunately not too good due to its steep competition).
6) Gengar
Fans might remember that Ash befriended a Haunter in the first season but never caught it. That Haunter was pretty cool, and its evolution, Gengar was quite influential in the video games at the time (being OU for several generations).
Luckily for fans of Gengar, Ash would eventually catch one in the Journeys anime. It's sadly not the OG Haunter that fans knew and loved, but it was still strong with some good showings in the anime.
As far as its relevance in the games goes, it was OU for the first sixth generations, and its Mega Evolution was Ubers due to how broken of an ability Shadow Tag is (not to mention the beefed-up stats).
5) Greninja
One of Ash's most notoriously powerful Pokemon in the anime also established itself as a legitimate competitive threat in video games. It did well in VGC (double battles), although its niche was primarily in single matches. Thanks to Protean giving it STAB on every attack, good offensive stats, and a varied moveset, Greninja was eventually put in the same tier as other behemoths like Groudon and Mewtwo in its debut generation.
Powercreep ended up knocking it down to OU in the following generation, which is funny considering Ash-Greninja made its debut by then. It's a form based on an anime character's special Greninja, which is kind of weird. Nonetheless, it had another great run before being a victim of Dexit, where it was one of many mons absent from Sword and Shield.
Sadly, Ash also released his Greninja in the anime.
4) Incineroar
Incineroar is the only Pokemon on this list that never set the singles metagame on fire. It was ultimately a mid-to-low-tier Pokemon in that format, but it more than made up for it in VGC. Here is a short synopsis of its dominance there, based on Limitless VGC data:
- 37 wins at regional
- 297 appearances in the top eight for regionals
- Seven wins at IC/Worlds
- 55 appearances in the top eight for IC/Worlds
- Total over $318,750
It is an insane mon for doubles battles thanks to Intimidate, its moveset, and typing. Incineroar is a prime example of a mon that is mediocre in one format but bonkers in another.
Ash's Incineroar did help him win the Alolan League in the anime, so that's pretty cool.
3) Tauros
Ash caught a whopping 30 Tauros back in the early days of the anime. It had some decent performances in the TV show, but non-hardcore gamers might be surprised to know that it was one of the best Pokemon in Generation I (Red, Blue, and Yellow).
Not only was Tauros in that generation's highest regular tier (OU), but it was also a must-pick for every severe team. A Tauros versus Tauros matchup often decided games, a feat Ash's other mons seldom had in the games.
Unfortunately for Tauros, his run at the top only lasted a single generation, with his viability waning throughout the subsequent generations. Nerfs to how critical hits were calculated, along with Hyper Beam no longer skipping a recharge turn upon KOs, brutally neutered him.
2) Snorlax
Snorlax is similar to Tauros in that deciding not to use him in Generation II's OU is tantamount to throwing the game and giving the opponent an easy victory. Unlike Tautos, Snorlax was arguably better than Ho-Oh and others of that generation. Snorlax was more competitively viable throughout multiple generations, whereas Tauros only had one generation of pure dominance.
It's nowhere near as strong as it was in the current generation (Generation VIII by the time this article was written). Hence, it's not ranked number one in this case as it has fallen off since its glory days. Nonetheless, it's impressive that Ash had one of the most broken Pokemon of all time on his team.
1) Dracovish
Braindead Pokemon can also be stupidly broken. Cue Dracovish, whose combination of Strong Jaw plus Fishious Rend made it too overpowered for OU in its debut generation, leading it to Ubers, where most of the strongest legendaries are.
It's never fallen off like Snorlax and Tauros have (it's only been one generation thus far, after all). Hence, it's more relevant to modern gamers who would remember its pure destructive power. Its placement could change in future generations, but it's powerful as of right now.
Dracovish was also Ash's first fossil Pokemon and has helped him on what's currently his most impressive run in the anime thus far.
