Pokémon Your Favorite Pokémon Player Characters

[Halloqueen]

Here again with another Pokémon topic; this time I'd like to know which player characters are your favorites. I was wondering particularly in terms of character design, but if you like them for other reasons, feel free to share those too!

My favorites are Hilda and Serena. Dawn is in third because she's iconic. If I had to pick just one, it's Serena.

Up to the point of Generation 5, Hilda seemed like the coolest of the female designs for me, though the jaggy white tears on her shorts drag the design down a bit and I feel like they could've made it look better, otherwise she's great. As for Serena, I just think she has the best overall design and initial outfit of all the female protagonists.

Shoutout to Gloria, not so much for anything official but moreso because of the Scottish memes that went around the Internet in the time before Sword & Shield were released and people were speculating on where exactly in the UK the Galar region was set. Also another shoutout to Kris. I have a soft spot for Kris because she was the first girl option and because I like her design way better than her HeartGold/SoulSilver replacement Lyra; I was disappointed that she didn't return.

As for the boys, ever since female player characters were added in Crystal, I basically always pick the female option for my playthroughs; I'll occasionally do a male run in a game but it's rare. That said, my favorites are Hilbert and Calem. I'd say Calem narrowly edges out the win between the two.

TL;DR my favorite is Serena. Who is/are your favorites?

Spoiler: Picture with names for your convenience

 

[Snek]

I only play with male characters but there are a few female designs that I like.

Top 3:

1. Gold/Ethan
My favourite overall if I had to pick. I really like both the Gen2 and HGSS designs of this character. Its still the coolest design for a male character to date.

2. Nate
B2W2 was my game. Probably the most fun I had in a Pokemon game. Nate was like the first that distinctly didnt have a hat covering his hair. This was before hat removal was a thing so I liked him a lot.

3. Hilbert
Classic Pokemon trainer design. A nice throwback to Red but a modern take.

Other mentions:

Elio: I liked Elio's design. Tropical feel, laidback clothing options were nice too.

Dawn: I like Dawn's design more than Lucas' so its the only one that I like the female counterpart more than the males. However...

Rei: I like Rei's design in Legends more than Akari's. Its strange but I feel like the scarf and hat are better suited for the Galaxy Team uniform more.

 

[Flicky]

Ethan is definitely my favourite. He really nails the 'cool kid' look for the universe, no matter what version.

Red's FR/LG design is second. I'm not big on his original look, but I think the remake fits the silent hero type they eventually settled with.

Nate is third. I like being able to see his hair, since a lot of the hats are not my taste in this franchise.

Honorable mentions: Dawn, Rei and RS/E Brendan.

 

[nightglow]

Spoiler: Picture with names for your convenience

Female: Easily Kris simply because of the blue hair, unisex name, and an outfit that looks comfortable. It doesn't look skin tight like the others and not a skirt or short shorts. Just some shorts and a normal shirt and jacket.


Male: Nate or Ethan. I don't play as male characters so I honestly don't really care about them. Lol. But those seem like nice designs.

 

[Croconaw]

Where is Wes from Pokémon Colosseum? He's the definition of cool. I also like Ethan a lot, but Wes is always first.

 

[Envy]

Hilda is my favorite. I also really like Leaf and Selene (US/UM).

 

[Lancelot]

Easily Nate and Rosa, simply for the animated trailers. Or Lyra and Ethan BW2 are my favourite pokemon games hands down and Nate and Rosa have the nostalgia factor for me, but Lyra ad Ethan are my favourite overall designs. Particularly Lyra.

Others design-wise I'd say Dawn or Serena. I tend to like the female designs more which is annoying, but Ethan is my favourite male overall.

 

[VernalLapin]

Serena all the way; I absolutely adore her design! I’ve cosplayed her for the past… 6 years now?!

Gloria is second!

 

[Aerith]

Hilda is my favorite because she was the first imo to look older than the others. It was refreshing to not look completely like a child, and her brown hair + bright blue eyes look lovely together. Kris will always have a soft spot since that was the first time I was able to play as a female char, and I'm forever bitter they replaced her.

My favorite boy option is more for nostalgia than aesthetics. Ethan (specifically G/S/C version) just looked cool to me as a kid.

 

[_confused_piplup_]

I love gen 4, so I must say surely Lucas and Lucinda, including their outfits in Legends. I love May too!

 

[ShinyDungeoneer]

Female: Selene, Leaf or Rosa
Male: Calem, Ethan or Chase

I am very indecisive. I also hate playing favorites, so that's why there's 3 per gender.

 

[kilusion2011]

Hilda, Rosa, Selene, and Akari are my faves! I love Lyra's design too, very cute!

For Hilda and Rosa, it's because I grew up on Gen 5 and Black 2 was my first mainline Pokemkn game! I actually dressed up as Hilda for Halloween one year. They got a soft spot in my hearts.
for Selene.. gen 7 is my second favorite generation and I had a lot of memorable moments with the games! I also think both of Selene's designs are unique and stand out.
Legends Arceus is my favorite Pokemon game on the Switch and has gave me brain worms. I love all of the characters in the game, but I really adore Akari! I have my own interpretation of them, alongside my own thoughts of the game.. they earned a spot in my heart!

 

[Sheando]

I'm female, but I'm very androgynous/masculine-leaning in my presentation, so I don't prefer to play as most of the female characters since they don't match the way I present myself at all. Of the older games, I like HG/SS Ethan and Platinum Lucas the most.

Of the newer games, I like both Elio and Selene in their original Sun/Moon forms, and I actually love Florian and Julianna. For once the two main characters have stylistically similar choices--disappointing for many, I'm sure, but as a pretty genderless person it's refreshing!

 

[smoky]

i usually play as the girl character so i only really have strong opinions on them, not so much the boys.

i really love dawn’s design in both games (it sucks because i dont like the sinnoh games though). she’s probably my favorite, especially her platinum outfit. that pink coat is so so cute. i think may is really cool, especially in emerald but her oras design is really cute. and kris is also a really good one. i love her hair and how bright she is. she looks like one of the see through gameboy colors and i love it.

as for the boys, i think i’d choose nate. i started with gen 5 so he has a special place in my heart, and i like how they went for a more alternative, city kid looks that still feel adventurous.

 

[ribbitribbon]

akari is the dearest protag to me; i’ve gotten very attached to dawn because of her as well. rosa is next after her. rei is also pretty cool. i like most of the player characters though, minus maybe hilbert lol

 

[kiwikenobi]

My favorite player character is probably either Lyra, because HG/SS are awesome and I like her little-girl-Mario outfit, or Dawn, because Pearl was so important to me as a Pokémon player. I played Blue and Silver and then went through an unhappy time (high school ) when I didn't play Pokémon for several years, and then I got back into it in Gen IV, and it was like finally waking up from a bad dream. And I did go back and play Ruby and Sapphire much later, and I enjoy the Hoenn games to this day, but I just wasn't emotionally receptive to them when they were new.

And after the characters became so customizable, some of the characters I was able to create are ones I might like more, but I suppose those don't count if we're talking about the official representations of them before you change everything about them. ^o^;>