Getting back into Poke'Mon

Not long after posting the article about falling out with Poke'Mon, I decided to pick up Platinum and give it another shot. I got into it again, but wasn't going nuts like I do in other stat-building games like Disgaea.

Last weekend, I went to Metrocon, the largest anime convention in Florida. There was a panel about Poke'Mon training that I decided to attend to see if I could learn anything.

And now I'm too afraid to play because I think I'll be fanatical...

One thing I never knew much about was "natures" and "effort values." I was vaguely aware of what they did but I never researched it too much. I get insane about stat building in Disgaea, but I ignored most of the stuff in Poke'Mon, and I'm not sure why. It just didn't interest me.

There were three guys running the Poke'Mon panel at Metrocon, and all of them were pretty serious about it. A big talking point ended up being natures and effort values. So I finally had a chance to learn about how they work and what exactly it means for your Poke'Mon's stats. I listened pretty intently but I ultimately decided that that was more than I cared to do. Since Poke'Mon natures are random, I didn't want to keep catching a certain Poke'Mon until I received the nature I wanted, and EV training sounded like too much of a pain to keep up with. I decided I didn't want to be like the guys running the panel, obsessing over every little detail for something as silly as "Poke'Mon."

Basically, a Poke'Mon's nature determines their stat growth. Certain natures boost a specific stat by 10% while decreasing another stat by 10%. Certain natures can greatly boost a Poke'Mon's power if they match up with the right stats. An effort value point is an invisible number gained by fighting Poke'Mon that boosts a specific stat of your own Poke'Mon. This can be used to boost stats beyond the stats gained by leveling alone, and can be applied to build some seriously powerful Poke'Mon.

When I got home, though, I decided to look up the different natures and see what they do. I had two Poke'Mon whose stats were not favorable and I wanted to see if their natures were to blame. This was the first step to madness.

I realized that several of my Poke'Mon had unfavorable natures. At first I shrugged and decided to ignore it, but an itch had begun... I contemplated going back and recapturing those Poke'Mon, and keep trying until I received the nature that I wanted. I tried telling myself that was silly, but now I know... I know that my Poke'Mon had natures that are hurting them. And it bugs the crap out of me.

So now I am torn. Do I continue playing with my party as is or do I recapture the Poke'Mon I have and make sure I have natures that I want? Everytime I try to continue on I have this nagging in the back of my head telling me that I'm wasting my Poke'Mon potential and need to capture Poke'Mon with desired natures so that they can see their full potential. But if I decide to go ahead and do that, I just can't help but feel silly about it.

But wait! I read something about EV points that suggests the best time to EV train is after beating the Elite Four. I've been using these Poke'Mon a lot, and I have no idea where their EV points have gone! My opportunity to boost a specific stat could already be ruined....! I'll have to get specific berries to decrease their EV points and then....
So, I'm pretty much avoiding Poke'Mon right now...