'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,/9j/4AAQSkZJRgABAQAAAQABAAD/2wCEAAMDAwMDAwQEBAQFBQUFBQcHBgYHBwsICQgJCAsRCwwLCwwLEQ8SDw4PEg8bFRMTFRsfGhkaHyYiIiYwLTA+PlQBAwMDAwMDBAQEBAUFBQUFBwcGBgcHCwgJCAkICxELDAsLDAsRDxIPDg8SDxsVExMVGx8aGRofJiIiJjAtMD4+VP/AABEIAAUACgMBIgACEQEDEQH/xABeAAEBAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAABhAAAgIDAQADAAAAAAAAAAAAAQIDBAAFEgYHETEBAQAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAIRAAICAQUAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAEDAgQAERMhQVH/2gAMAwEAAhEDEQA/AJiP1O41uy09TuKYS1omLPEqku5HRYJyGAB+lB/MkNp8/wDvquzuwR2wqRWZUVVSIABWIAA4xjCLVgtcC2XEh3gFGmFqOwvUx8z/2Q=='%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
The Ultra League, one of the three ranked game modes trainers can play in Pokemon GO, sees its fair share of traffic. It neither gets the attention that the Great League does nor is it considered as highly as the Master League. However, many players see it as a good middle ground.
Home to many Legendary Pokemon, the Ultra League can be a bit overwhelming for even experienced players. Thankfully, the community has constructed a tier list featuring different creatures and what makes them good options for players to consider when building their teams.
Knowing which creatures in the tier perform the best and why they do can help players get a solid grasp on the details they should consider when constructing their teams.
Note: This article is subjective and reflects the opinions of the writer
Analyzing Pokemon GO's Ultra League tier list for January 2023
S-Tier
Every Pocket Monster in Pokemon GO's Ultra League S-Tier has some kind of defensive utility. The three most obvious contenders are Defense Deoxys, Registeel, and Altered Giratina. The most unique among them is Registeel. Since it has access to Lock-On, its main form of DPS comes from spamming charged attacks.
Shadow and Standard Abomasnow are the most surprising Pokemon to make it all the way to S-Tier. Since the creature is notoriously bad in the main series, many would expect its placement in Pokemon GO to reflect that fact. However, given its Grass and Ice-type moves, it has perfect coverage against the many Water and Dragon-type monsters in the metagame.
Jellicent and Galarian Stunfisk are returning top contenders from the Great League. They have been boosted to S-Tier thanks to better matchups in the Ultra League.
A-Tier
The A-Tier for Pokemon GO's Ultra League looks very similar to that of the Great League. However, it is populated by a lot more Water-type Pocket Monsters.
With Abomasnow being much more of a potent threat in the Ultra League, Water-type creatures are much less threatening. A prime example is Swampert. Due to Abomasnow's advantage over the majority of the metagame, Swampert is kept in check.
Swampert shares its spot with Walrein, Gyarados, and Poliwrath, to name a few. Jellicent's strength lies in its secondary Ghost typing and bulk, which most Water-type creatures in the A-Tier cannot compete with.
Aside from that element, a majority of the creatures in the A-Tier are hard-countered by those in the S-Tier. It is easy to see why those in the S-Tier could make their way into the top ring as they counter most of the viable cast.
B-Tier
The B-Tier and those below feature creatures that really have no place in the higher tiers of play in Pokemon GO's Ultra League. However, they may see a chance to shine every now and then in lower placements.
The most surprising of the bunch is Venusaur. Given how bulky it is, many players would assume that the Pocket Monster would dominate the abundant Water-type opponents in the tier. Since most of them possess the secondary Ice typing, they can simply outlast Venusaur and spam it with super-effective Ice-type attacks. The same can be said for Dragalge, Flygon, and Lurantis.
As for the Ice-types in the tier, Regice and Clyster suffer from the same problem of having defense but no defensive typings.
Walrein and Lapras outperform Cloyster in how their stats are distributed. Where Cloyster fails is in its stamina. Having low stamina but high defense does little for a creature that is guaranteed to take damage. This is how Pokemon GO's battle system functions. For every creature in Ultra League B-Tier or lower, there is an A-Tier pick that does it better.
