Gotta catch em all! When it comes to the gaming world, there are only very few series that have the type of divisive and contentious fanbase that Pokémon does. Something about these cute and lovable creatures has driven people mad since their inception, sparking numerous debates over who the best one is. And hey, we’re no different! Today we’re gonna be diving into the Top 10 Best Pokémon from Generation 3: Hoenn. First debuting in 2002’s Pokémon Ruby and Pokémon Sapphire versions, the tropical Hoenn region has become a favorite amongst fans, with one of the most memorable Dexes of new Pokémon to date. It’s important to note that these rankings will be based on designs, coolness, and memorability – not stats or competitive ranking.

Without further ado, here are Hoenn’s 10 most amazing Pokémon!

Number 10: Shedinja (#292)

While Shedinja may technically be the weakest Pokémon of all time with a measly 1 HP, that doesn’t stop it from being one of Hoenn’s greatest. Clocking in at Number 10, this Bug/Ghost-type is the only Pokémon to possess the Wonder Guard ability, which has the unique effect of allowing Shedinja to only take damage from super-effective moves. This means unless you’re throwing a Fire, Dark, Ghost, Rock, or Flying move its way, that 1 HP isn’t going anywhere. Just… you know, ignore the fact that Shedinja’s a 2-foot tall possessed cicada shell with a thirst for stealing human souls, and it’s a great companion to bring with you in the Hoenn region!

Number 9: Milotic (#350)

Coming in at number 9, this pure Water-type serpent Pokémon is one of the hardest to obtain ever, making it nearly as rare as the legendary sea monsters its design takes inspiration from! In the Hoenn region, there’s only one Route where you can find Milotic’s ugly pre-evolution, Feebas. On that one Route, there are only six fishing tiles of water where you can find Feebas, and those six tiles change location randomly every day; and if THAT isn’t enough, you have to put Feebas through a bunch of Pokémon Contests to raise its Beauty stat in order for it to evolve, it’s like a super elegant and convoluted version of Magikarp and Gyarados. Needlessly difficult means of obtaining or not, Milotic’s a fantastic Pokémon that we’ll spend hours fishing and performing contests for any day!

Number 8: Slaking (#289)

While stats may not matter for this list, it shouldn’t go without noting that our Number 8 has one of the highest Base Stat Totals (BSTs) in all of Pokémon, making it beefier than even most Legendaries. One of the strongest pure Normal-type Pokémon, Slaking brings extreme honor to the often disparaged reputation of sloths, tanking hits and delivering devastating blows when it’s not loafing around. Its pre-evolutions, Slakoth and Vigoroth, are also two of Hoenn’s most solidly designed Pokémon, and as a family, they come together to form a great addition to any team – as long as you don’t mind taking it slow.

Number 7: Ludicolo (#272)

Back when PokéMania was in full swing, hardcore fans had sky-high expectations for what the first dual Water and Grass-type Pokémon would be. Surely it had to be a legendary or some kind of powerful monster, right? A swamp beast, a cactus monster, even a seaweed Pokémon? Guess again. In Generation 3 fans were instead met with Ludicolo: a duck-billed, mariachi band dancing lilypad… pineapple… thing. Initially exclusive to the Sapphire version, this joyful and musical Pokémon was met with mixed reactions at the time, but as the years have gone on Ludicolo has cemented itself as a cult favorite Pokémon, and one of Hoenn’s finest. Plus, it was the ace Pokémon of Mirror B, the white-and-red afro’d, infinitely groovy villain of Pokémon: Colosseum and Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness, so maybe Ludicolo should be #1 instead…

Number 6: Aggron (#306)

Stomping into our 6th place spot is the fearsome Steel and Rock-type: Aggron, another unanimously beloved Hoenn ‘mon. Between its kaiju-inspired aesthetic, its powerful in-game performance, its tanky mega evolution, and its spot on the iconic Hoenn Champion Steven’s team, Aggron’s got everything going for it. With the life-saving Sturdy ability, not even a powerful blow from the 4x super-effective Ground or Fighting types can take down Aggron without vicious retaliation. Also, fun fact: Aggron can learn Surf… Makes sense.

Number 5: Exploud (#295)

Exploud serves as more proof that pure Normal-type Pokémon are not a force to be taken lightly. An angry, living amp, this monstrous purple and yellow Pokémon attacks with extreme soundwaves. Fueling fan demand for a Sound type for over 20 years now, the Exploud line sees the timid and pink Whismur evolve into the rambunctious Loudred, who of course matures into this eardrum-rupturing beast of a Number 5 entry. Exploud’s signature move is Boomburst, and if you get caught in its path then you can kiss your chances of winning goodbye. Even though there’s still no Sound type, Exploud’s title as one of Hoenn’s Top 5 is just as loud and clear as the trumpets that fill Ruby and Sapphire’s soundtrack. Rock on, Exploud; here’s to hoping you finally receive a regional variant in Scarlet and Violet!

Number 4: Cacturne (#332)

Earlier, when discussing Ludicolo, we mentioned the possibility of a cactus Pokémon. Well, Hoenn did bring one of those, but its Grass was accompanied by Dark-type, not Water, and that Pokémon was the beastly Cacturne. Covered in sharp spines and donning the appearance of a scarecrow, it’s pretty hard to find a single Pokémon fan who doesn’t like Cacturne. Even Hoenn’s biggest haters tend to admit that this desert-dwelling slasher plant is a force to be reckoned with in the Pokémon universe. Despite its commonly agreed-upon popularity, Cacturne has been oddly neglected by GameFreak since its debut, rarely showing up in any regional Pokédexes and never receiving any new moves or forms. Much like Exploud, here’s to hoping that Generation 9 holds a new variant (or maybe even an evolution?) for this beloved cactus.

Number 3: Rayquaza (#384)

I’m impressed I was able to go through this whole article without gushing over Pokémon Emerald, but I was merely saving it all for this entry. Appearing as the cover Legendary of the aforementioned Emerald, Rayquaza is a green-yellow-red Chinese myth-inspired serpentine dragon that dwells high in the sky, only coming down when there is an imbalance in the world. This fearsome Dragon/Flying-type Pokémon has quite the reputation in the Pokémon world: it’s been worshiped by an ancient dragon clan, it has a famous cutscene where it flies down over Sootopolis City to break up the battle between Ruby and Sapphire’s Groudon and Kyogre, it’s the only Pokémon to Mega Evolve without a Mega Stone, and it’s been known to fly through space – no one wonder everyone loves it! In the Pokémon anime, only one other Pokémon has been able to go toe-to-toe with Rayquaza…

Number 2: Deoxys (#386)

And that one Pokémon who can give Rayquaza a run for its money is Deoxys. Known as the DNA Pokémon, the pure Psychic-type Deoxys is not only one of Hoenn’s coolest Pokémon, but one of the coolest across all Generations. With a slick teal and orange color scheme, different forms based on the different stats, and the origin of having been a virus from outer space that mutated into a living Pokémon, Deoxys is an absolute force of nature. Residing on the triangle-shaped Birth Island (or deep space in Omega Ruby, Alpha Sapphire, and the anime), Deoxys remains to this day one of the most challenging Legendary battles, accompanied by one of the most jamming battle themes in gaming history. While Rayquaza may beat Deoxys in their epic space battles, Deoxys has the higher spot on this list, making the D-Man a winner on our list and in our hearts.

Number 1: Blaziken (#257)

Honestly, they should’ve stopped designing new Pokémon after they created Blaziken. I don’t know how they ever expected that they could top that design, but spoiler alert from 20 years in the future: they still haven’t. Blaziken is everything done right – for a starter Pokémon, for a Pokémon in general, for a character design, it’s all perfection. Pokémon’s different artists and developers have said in several interviews that the design goal of Pokémon is to create tough, cute creatures that you’d want to befriend. With the adorable and defenseless Torchic as Blaziken’s cute baby form, it grows up into one of the toughest looking Pokémon out there, delivering world-class martial arts moves at soul-scorching temperatures. Blaziken’s wickedly awesome Fire/Fighting-type proved so popular that GameFreak replicated it with the next two Firestarters, and subverted it with the next two after that. Coupled with the fact that it’s a total powerhouse in the Pokkén Tournament and has some of the most smoothly animated attacks in the anime, it’s no surprise that so many people recognize Blaziken as the clear best Pokémon in the Hoenn region.

And that about does it for our list of Hoenn’s 10 greatest Pokémon. How would you have ranked the list? Are there any Pokémon you’re shocked we did or didn’t include? Let us know in the comments down below. Stay Gritty, Gamers!

Guest Post By: Hunter Armentrout