Welcome to the Pokémon Mainline Game Guide! This guide is designed to help players navigate the mainline Pokémon games by explaining key mechanics, battle strategies, and quality of life improvements introduced across generations. Whether you’re a new player or returning to the series, this guide provides the information you need to make your playthrough smoother and more enjoyable.
Here’s the current Pokémon type matchup chart (Gen VI onward):
Tip: Super-effective moves deal double damage, not very effective moves do half, and some types have no effect.
In the first three generations of Pokémon, whether a move was physical or special was determined entirely by its type. Every move of a certain type was locked into one category, regardless of how it looked or behaved.
This created odd situations where some moves did not match their flavor. For example, Fire Punch was always special because it was a Fire-type move, while Bite was always special because it was Dark-type, even though both look physical.
| Physical Types | Special Types |
|---|---|
| Normal | Fire |
| Fighting | Water |
| Flying | Grass |
| Ground | Electric |
| Rock | Psychic |
| Bug | Ice |
| Ghost | Dragon |
| Poison | Dark |
| Steel |
Because of this system, some Pokémon were held back by their typing. For example, Flareon had high Attack but could not take advantage of Fire-type moves, since all Fire moves were special.
Starting in Generation 4 (Pokémon Diamond and Pearl), the system changed completely. Each move was individually classified as either Physical or Special, regardless of its type.
This change dramatically improved balance, allowing Pokémon to use moves that matched their strengths. It made team-building more diverse and gave many Pokémon new viability in battle.