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Have You Ever Played a Pokemon Game on Set Mode?

Barrow Roll said:
I'm currently doing a Nuzlocke run in FireRed and Y (EXP SHARE off) and I'm playing with Shift since Set makes leveling weaker Pokemon a bit of a chore. Has anyone done Nuzlocke with Set?
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Did that for Yellow, and that was by far my best Nuzlocke experience, since it really makes every decision you make count.
 
Yeah, been doing this for X, White 2, and Omega Ruby also with EXP Share off. Makes battles more tense and strategic.

Most definitely gonna use it when I play Moon with some tweaks from the Nuzlocke rules.
 
Unless the opponent switches to one of the original 151 pokemon, I have no idea who I'll be dealing with anyway :P
 
Don't believe Switch was even an option in Stadium, and that (along with 2) was my favorite Pokemon game; so once I came back to the portable games I wanted to use the same system and started using Set. Can't even imagine using Switch now, it feels like cheating. First thing I change when starting any game.
 
Wow, when was this option introduced? I always look at a game's options and have never noticed this one.

Last Pokemon game I played was White.
 
dragonlife said:
Wow, when was this option introduced? I always look at a game's options and have never noticed this one.

Last Pokemon game I played was White.
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Since the very first games of Pokemon Red/Green. The Stadium games had this mode set by default, which made for exciting, difficult battles.
 
Always, Every single time, since Red Version back in 1998.

Can you imagine being asked if you want to switch on every single Trainer Pokemon, every single time, for almost 2 decades of Pokemon?
I couldn't, so I shut that shit down early.

It's not like Pokemon games are overflowing with difficulty without adding UI frustration to the mix, anyway.

This thread should really be "Do you familiarize yourself with the options/settings menus when playing a game?
 
Didn't know about Set mode until my first Nuzlocke playthrough in BW, but after that it's the only way I've ever played the game.
 
Never tried it. That doesn't sound like it would make it more difficult, only more inconvenient since you'd just be able to switch on your first turn. My favorite part about being asked to switch is switching to a lower level Pokemon if I'm trying to keep my entire party the same level. Playing without the ability to switch Pokemon at all sounds like it would be more difficult, though still not really difficult (but at least maybe a challenge at some parts if I'm underleveled).
 
Since day one, huh? Damn. Can't believe I never noticed, since I change my borders in every game. Early gens I can understand since I was a kid, though.

I'm shocked.
 
If or when I play a new mainline Pokemon game I'll play this way. It's similar to The Last of Us and its listening mode - I understand and agree with why it's in the game and by default on, but I think it's a much better experience with it off (just like Switch Mode).
 
I tried it for the first time when replaying Y recently and was suprised how different and at times even a bit challenging the battles felt. I really think it should be the default, because Shift now basically feels like cheating: "Your opponent is going to send out a Fire Pokemon. Do you want to conveniently switch in a Water Pokemon beforehand to perfectly counter it?" With Set mode you actually have to think about when to switch in which Pokemon, because it will take damage, which in turn makes potions and other items more important in battles. It's crazy how this seemingly small setting, which most people probably don't even know exists, makes the battles so much more interesting.

If you thought that X/Y was way too easy, I strongly recommend playing with Set mode on and turning off EXP. Share. The same will probably be true for Sun and Moon.
 
I only remember playing Red/Blue, and I only remember it working that way (you would have to waste a turn to send out a new Pokemon) so I guess my answer is yes? Was "Set Mode" the default option in that game?
 
I played with the Set option since red and blue. The other option seems like cheating to me. I recently played a nuzlocke challenge on my red version on my 3ds and it was awesome...the feeling after beating the champ. A really funny Challenge.
 
I always play on Set mode. I sometimes use Switch in XY, ORAS and RGBY because they lack a proper Exp. Share item, but only while grinding. Normally I'm set on Set. :p
 
I was aware of the option, but I never really made use of it. It'd make all the trainers and especially the Elite 4 much more difficult to deal with. ...so basically like an optional higher difficulty mode?

Maybe I'll actually do it for my retry of X&Y then!
No Exp Share, mid-evolutions only, Set Mode!
 
This is the only way I play. Keeping the game on switch makes it too tedious to battle, you get a question prompt every time you beat an NPC's pokémon. I don't really like to battle in the games as I'm not really a fan of turn based so i try to keep it as short as possible.
 
Yeah, I've started doing that some time after Black 2 came out. I use it pretty much every time I play Pokéms nowadays.
 
So far I haven't done that, but that's mainly because I forget this option exists and only see it when I am in the postgame (and then soon after stop playing).
 
I played Switch for R/B/G/S since I didn't know any better, but when I picked the series back up with Platinum it's been Set ever since.
 
I only first tried it playing VC Pokémon Yellow, but I was surprised how much more challenging it makes the game. If you can get a free switch each time you take down an opponent, it means you can focus solely on offence and don't need a variety of moves on any one pokémon, which kind of trivialises the game.

It also meant Pikachu was utterly useless due to paper thin defenses and poor coverage being a more severe weakness in set mode.
 
I have played pretty every single Gen of Pokemon and I have somehow never realized this was a thing. Def using this for SM.
 
Yes, I've played on Set since Gen 1. My older cousin initially tricked 7 year old me into doing so lol, but its something which looking back I'm happy about because it prepared me for competitive battling.

Funnily enough the first time I saw someone playing on Shift/Switch mode I thought it was a bug and that their game was broke, because thanks to my cousin I had only ever played on Set, so seeing the game tell them what Pokemon the AI was going to bring out next and then giving them a free move to switch and counter that change made no damn sense to me and reeked of absolute bullshit.

I really don't understand how so many people play on Switch (other than not knowing Set exists), especially those people who go well out of their way to get difficulty romhacks and then when you watch them play on Youtube you discover that they're still playing on Switch mode and you're like "Bruv, what is even the point?".
 
For the longest time I never used set but now I always do it and on my second Nuzlocke run I might switch it back to default. Set for Nuzlockes are a bit to stressful for me.
 
I always knew of it but never used it, as another poster pointed out the whole being able to plan your switches ahead is good for levelling a well balanced team.
That said with the changes to the EXP share as of last gen I think I might give set mode a shot assuming Gen 7 keeps the item working the same way.
 
I generally don't use set since I find it just encourages overusing a single pokemon and makes leveling weaker pokemon an absolute chore since the best way to get xp is to beat trainer pokemon, who give substantially more xp than wild ones. I don't like grinding, and with set I can't really level up weaker pokemon without putting them in harms way and potentially having them faint.

I also find that it just leaves me making trips to pokemon centers more frequently which is tedious, and generally switching isn't that necessary to win a given battle anyways. If I want a really guns be challenging battle, that's what online and battle facilities are for
 
I can't imagine doing this in rom hacks. Shit is hard enough and without the edge to switch pokemon I probably would still be stuck on Elesa or Clay right now.

Set also seems like it would make it a little more tedious to level up pokemon, because what I usually do is after a pokemon gets a level up after knock out switch to my next pokemon that needs to level up. With set the pokemon I just leveled up would steal half the points with the one I'd switch in.
 
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