Journey to catch them all — Episode (11)
Thanks for tuning back in.
This episode is a nudge back toward the series’ main topic: completing the Pokémon Home Pokédex. To recap, Pokémon Home contains 1,445 total entries. Our goal? To catch them all.
It’s not always about where you start
Normally, each game starts the same way: you pick a starter and begin forming a team around it. The main objective is to become the champion of the Pokémon League, which involves getting all the required badges — think of it like qualifying for the World Cup finals if you’re a soccer fan. After that, the League itself is basically a knockout tournament.
To collect these gym badges, you have to defeat eight gym leaders. Each gym represents one of the various Pokémon types out there — Grass, Water, Fire, Poison, Flying..etc.
Now, the types are basically a fancier version of rock-paper-scissors. For example, Water puts off Fire, Fire burns Grass, and Grass — for some reason — is effective against Water. This means that your starter will sometimes be at a type disadvantage that’s why you must assemble a team.
The Land
The game naturally encourages exploration as you assemble your team — whether it’s venturing to beach cities in search of Water-type Pokémon, hiking through dense forests where Grass and Poison types hide, or descending into underground cities home to Ground Pokémon. This journey not only introduces you to the diverse regions of the map, but also gently hints at something greater: the presence of legendary Pokémon.
The game offers subtle clues, quietly suggesting that there’s more to this land than just the path to becoming Champion. Each region carries its own folklore and unique character, creating a deeper story into the world around you — one that goes beyond badges and battles.
Some games may even share same locations. Legends: Arceus takes place hundreds of years before Brilliant Diamond, but both games end up bringing you to the same place — the Sinnoh Temple.
Catching them
After becoming Champion, the game basically lets you loose. You’re free to do what you want and if you paid close attention, you know that you damn want the game’s legendaries
That’s the interesting thing about legendaries — they’re totally optional and 100% skippable. In some cases, you might not even notice them at all unless you’re playing like that curious, explorative trainer.
An example of this is Articuno (picture above) in Generation I — it’s hidden away in a cave the game doesn’t even tell you to visit. If you’re not the kind of player who explores every corner, you might miss it entirely. That’s exactly what happened to me when I played FireRed as a kid — I completely missed it. Then years later, replaying it with my wife, we stumbled into that cave by pure coincidence… and there it was!
Some games, like Scarlet and Violet, ask you to go back — back to places you thought you were done with. It’s like one final trip to a spot you never expected to see again. But this time, there’s a purpose. You’re not doing it for the story, or for a badge — you’re doing it for your Pokémon. And that makes the return feel personal.
An interesting take — and honestly, probably the best-told story in the whole series — was in Scarlet and Violet’s DLC (The Teal Mask and The Indigo Disk). The story unfolds across both parts, and it’s all about Kieran. You watch him slowly shift — he doesn’t just admire you, he wants to be you. He wants to catch the legendary himself, and you can feel his frustration build as he keeps asking: why does the land always choose you?
And then it happens — he uses the Master Ball. Not just to catch the legendary, but to simply block you from getting it. a MasterBall is a guaranteed catch-Right.. RIGHT!? i found myself actually gasping at that moment. For the first time, you don’t get the legendary.
Then the game says, well now there are even Pokémon that are uncatchable with a Master Ball — and basically says fuck you, Kieran.
Not all cases are as dramatic though. One of the more disappointing ones is Mewtwo in Let’s Go. The game basically tells you to go there and finish the job — which honestly feels a bit heartbreaking for all us Gen 1 fans. But to be fair, the fight itself? Absolutely amazing.
Anyways, you get the idea now. Legendaries are amazing and basically the centerpiece for their respective games.
Back to the Pokédex
So here’s the thing — I’ve only played the games on the Switch (and fire-red way back) . I missed everything from Generation 2 to Generation 8. But what’s cool is how the newer games try to bring it all together. You’ve got some old legendaries in Let’s Go, a bunch more packed into the Scarlet and Violet DLC, and others scattered across Legends: Arceus and BDSP. But still some will remain unobtainable on the switch, that’s where i need Pokemon Go.. Sounds like a plan
If you remember, last time we had around 151 Pokémon left to catch. Well… I’ve been hard at work — and I’ve now caught a third of that!
I will leave you with some epic screenshots.
I am happy that i actually got back to Legends Arceus, the post game content (Giratina/Arecus arc) is worth the full price of the game in my opinion
Catching the genies was one of the most annoying things that i had to do in my life as i expected.. but very rewarding!
A big shoutout to my wife — if you remember from earlier episodes, she gifted me that shiny Bisharp. Thanks to his amazing False Swipe — a move that guarantees the opposing Pokémon is left with at least 1 HP — I was able to catch them all without the fear of knocking them out (and then waiting forever for a respawn). Absolute MVP.
Pokemon GO also helped me get Victini which is unobtainable on the switch!
We are getting closer to finishing the Dex, Excited for what’s next.
Happy eid everyone!
