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Do water Pokemon levitate on dry land?

L

Lights and Waves

Member
Do water Pokemon all have the inherent power to levitate when they're on dry land, minus a few like Magikarp?

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Why haven't the games ever addressed why water Pokemon just levitate during battles? I get that it's probably easier to animate them floating, but still.
 
I assume you mean fish-like water pokemon that would normally swim in their natural habitat. Yes? I guess?

Squirtle/etc have feetses.
 
It's a big contradiction. In the anime they are subject to gravity but in the games it depends on the game. Magikarp flaps around in newer games because it's iconic but he has floated around before.
 
Lights and Waves said:
Do water Pokemon all have the inherent power to levitate when they're on dry land, minus a few like Magikarp?

116.gif


Why haven't the games ever addressed why water Pokemon just levitate during battles? I get that it's probably easier to animate them floating, but still.
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The example you gave has wings....
 
Lights and Waves said:
Why haven't the games ever addressed why water Pokemon just levitate during battles? I get that it's probably easier to animate them floating, but still.
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Video games are filled with abstractions. This doesn't mean we take everything we see on the screen as literal.

No, water pokemon don't levitate.

Also, we can't take everything within the Pokedex descriptions as exact descriptions of gameplay interactions. So Magmar probably doesn't spit fire hotter than the sun (or something like that).

It would always be neat (and better?) if games could continually address cosmetic continuity issues like this. But at some point you have to use your imagination and work with the medium. It's the same for Books and Movies too. Every medium has their strengths. Many times, enjoying the work requires ignoring the quirks of the artifice/medium.
 
I would love it if Pokemon actually forced more logical boundaries around this and required you to create teams for different situations. They have so many Pokemon but most people decide on their "team" of 6 and grind those the whole game.

I would love it if there was a surfing/flying section of the game where you could only battle with Pokemon that can swim/fly during battle.

Bringing a Golem to my fight in the middle of the ocean made sense in the first couple of versions but their are so many water Pokemon at this point I would welcome this restriction for portions of the game.
 
I kind of figured the little "circle" thing they have below them during battles functions as a sort of support system. So it allows Pokemon that normally could only survive in water (ie, like fish Pokemon such as Seaking or Basculin) to "swim" in air.

I mean, they developed a system to transport living beings around in capsules so they can probably do anything.

Magikarps know it isn't real so they flop around looking for water.

Jakoo said:
I would love it if there was a surfing/flying section of the game where you could only battle with Pokemon that can swim/fly during battle.
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They did that a little bit with Flying battles which was really innovative I think.
Then they kind of poo pooed on it in ORAS where you could be flying around on Lati@s and run into flying Pokemon and be forced to fight with your massive ground dinosaur.
 
I know most Pokemon fans don't mind this at all, but I always have, and it's why I've never used fish pokemon. It's unexplained, and it looks stupid. So no thanks.
 
It would be super awkward and sad to watch all of them flop on their sides and gasp for air, like Magikarp does.
 
Being a little more serious, it's likely a hold-over from when pokemon battles took place on an abstract white screen with no background.

The medium evolved to the level of having actual battle arenas, and suddenly we've got floating water pokemon everywhere.
 
I remember the Pokemon Adventures manga showing that some Water Pokemon are being held by their trainer if there is not enough water nearby.
 
rhandino said:
I remember the Pokemon Adventures manga showing that some Water Pokemon are being held by their trainer if there is not enough water nearby.
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The mental imagery on this is pretty funny.

I'm just imagining Ash running around using a magikarp as a makeshift bludgeon.
 
Because it would suck to only be able to use Water and Flying types in the ocean, and not be able to use Water types anywhere else. There's your simple answer.

Jakoo said:
I would love it if Pokemon actually forced more logical boundaries around this and required you to create teams for different situations. They have so many Pokemon but most people decide on their "team" of 6 and grind those the whole game.
Click to expand...

I mean, the motto of the series IS "Gotta Catch Five Of Em, Grind Them Like Crazy, And Then Complain That The Game Is Too Easy!"
 
It's like that because it wouldn't be any fun of you couldn't use an entire type of Pokemon for the majority of the game.
 
Leafhopper said:
Wailord in the console Pokemon games is what terrified me the most.

This blimp man.

DLeG91u.jpg
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We all know the Pokédex is full of BS but Wailord's entry actually justifies it floating around. Its got so little weight for its enormous size that to make any else it'd have to float. Which...it does.
 
Don't some of those pokemon in the game have a special ability called "Levitate" that stop them from being affected by ground attacks?
 
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