As charming and unique as it has been iconic and genre-defining, the Pokemon franchise has been beloved by fans around the world for decades now. Initially appearing largely to children, many of the franchise's original fans have stuck by it as it's gone from strength to strength in the form of new shows, movies, games, and trading cards.
Perhaps not all players appreciate the Pokemon games, in particular, for the level of strategy that players can implement into their playstyle. While it's entirely possible and viable for players to focus on leveling up one of their Pokemon and steamrolling every opponent with it, there are plenty of underrated moves that players can utilise as part of a more strategic approach to the game. This is a list of some that many people don't realize, when they're kids, are quite useful.
10 Safeguard
Some of the most challenging Trainers to deal with are those whose Pokemon can inflict status conditions on the player's own Pokemon. Fortunately, moves like Safeguard, while not particularly exciting at first blush, can actually prevent status conditions from being inflicted on the player's team for five turns.
This is the perfect move to have in any arsenal for players battling trainers who specialize in Poison, Ghost, or other types of Pokemon that heavily use moves like Toxic, Confuse Ray, or other moves that inflict status conditions on the player's Pokemon.
9 Mist
Is there anything more frustrating than battling a Trainer whose Pokemon continually decrease the stats of the player's Pokemon? Mist is the perfect move to deal with this; lasting for five turns, Mist prevents the stats of the player's Pokemon from being lowered by moves used by the opponent's team.
This means that players can switch their Pokemon in and out and the move will still apply to them for up to five turns. However, Mist does not prevent the player's Pokemon from lowering their own stats, even while still in effect.
8 Leech Seed
A great way to level the playing field if battling an especially powerful or high-level Pokemon, Leech Seed plants a seed on the Pokemon it is used on, which then slowly drains its HP for every turn that it's in effect. It's especially effective when paired with a powerful Grass-type Pokemon.
Leech Seed will also remain in effect unless the opposing player switches out the Pokemon it was used on, so it's a great way to sap a Pokemon's HP over the course of a battle. So, using it on Legendary Pokemon or a Pokemon that the player is trying to catch isn't such a great idea.
7 Attract
Attract has become fairly notorious among fans of the Pokemon games thanks to the boss of Goldenrod Gym, Whitney, who uses a female level 20 Miltank that knows attract.
Essentially, Attract results in the Pokemon it is used on falling in love with the player's Pokemon, so long as that Pokemon is the opposite gender to the Pokemon that uses it. The resulting infatuation that this move causes will often prevent the Pokemon from using any of its moves as it is immobilized by love, in an effect similar to Confusion. Female Pokemon are generally less common than male Pokemon, so using Attract on male Pokemon with a female Pokemon can be a fantastic way to stall out other Trainers.
6 Future Sight
Plenty of Pokemon players tend to write off Future Sight due to it not having any immediate effects. However, Future Sight is a fantastic move for Psychic-type Pokemon with high Special Attack (or non-Psychic Pokemon that can learn Psychic-type moves), especially in Generation VI, as the move's base damage has been increased to 120.
Future Sight takes two turns to actually deal damage once it's been used, but it's worth the wait; in addition to the attack's base damage, it also calculates damage landed based on the Special Attack of the Pokemon using it and the Special Defense of the Pokemon it lands on. This is a great move for Psychic Pokemon to level the playing field with.
5 Nuzzle
With 100% accuracy and a guarantee to inflict Paralysis when it lands, Nuzzle is arguably one of the most underrated Electric-type moves out there. While its base damage is fairly low at 20, there aren't many attacking moves that always inflict status conditions in the way that Nuzzle does.
Nuzzle is especially effective when used by the strongest Electric-type Pokemon, especially since many have great base Speed stats to boot. Note that Paralysis also lowers the base Speed of the Pokemon inflicted by the status condition, so players can use Nuzzle to inflict both Paralysis and damage, and then follow up with more powerful attacks later when moving faster.
4 Skill Swap
Ever used a Pokemon with a near-totally useless Ability? While plenty of Pokemon Abilities have great value and can even turn the tides of a battle, some add next to no value to the battle and are usually a detriment more than anything else.
This is where Skill Swap comes in. Skill Swap swaps the Ability of the Pokemon using it with the Pokemon it lands on. So, a powerful Pokemon with a poor Ability can use Skill Swap to gain its opponent's Ability, making it not only a far bigger threat, but also neutralizing its opponent in the process.
3 Fury Cutter
Fury Cutter is a move often disregarded by Pokemon players due to the attack's low base damage. However, it's arguably very underrated for the same reason.
If used consecutively, the damage dealt by the move increases each turn and reaches a maximum power of an overwhelming 160. Additionally, if used by a Pokemon with the Sharpness Ability, the damage dealt by the move increases by a further 50%. This makes Fury Cutter one of the most effective Bug-type moves for sweeping teams in just about the entire franchise and should definitely not be overlooked, especially when used by Bug-types suited to competitive battling.
2 Rollout
Another underrated sweeping move when used by the right Pokemon, Rollout may not seem very appealing to Players at first glance due to its relatively low base damage of 30, as well as its 90% accuracy rating.
However, for each turn that Rollout is used and successfully lands, its damage doubles. This makes it an incredibly powerful move for Rock-type Pokemon with decent base Attack. Also, the move of the power is doubled further if the Pokemon using it had already used Defense Curl in the battle. Overall, Rollout is a very underrated move that more players should consider using.
1 Amnesia
Ideal for Pokemon with good Attack stats but lacking in Defense, the Psychic-type move Amnesia raises the Pokemon using its Special Defense stat. In fact, it's regarded by many as one of the best Psychic-type moves ever.
This might not sound very impressive, but Psychic-type Pokemon are often sort of glass cannons, with great Attack stats but lackluster Defense. Using Amnesia multiple times can help turn the Pokemon using it into a defensive tank, which, when paired with a high Special Attack base stat, makes for a fantastic strategy for sweeping an opposing team, especially if the opponent's Pokemon rely predominantly on Special Attacking moves as well.