Summary
OnePokemonstreamer has just completed one of the most maddeningly difficult fan-driven challenges in the entire franchise, and it took him nearly 4,000 attempts to do it. The Kaizo Ironmon Challenge is considered by many players to be the most difficult task in thePokemonfandom, and it’s a feather in the cap that Twitch streamer PointCrow had been chasing for more than a full year.
Pokemongames first hit the western world in 1998, and though its target audience was originally children, many of those children have grown into adults that are seeking more of a challenge than the games can usually provide.Pokemonnuzlockeshave grown into a popular trend in recent years, with players adding in a bunch of self-imposed rules that do things like prevent excessive grinding for levels, forcing players to release any Pokemon that gets knocked out in combat, and having to start the game over from scratch after a single battle lost.
TheKaizo Ironmon Challengefollows several of the same self-imposed rules as a nuzlocke, plus about 30 more, requiring a player to battle through an entire game with only a single Pokemon at a time, randomized moves sets, no leveling up through knocking out wild Pokemon, and a lot of other rules to make the games harder. Though incredibly daunting, PointCrow recently pulled off this momentous feat during a livestream on Twitch after a whopping 3,978 resets spread out over 15 months. Playing a randomized ROM ofPokemon FireRed/LeafGreen, he screamed in elation as an Aerial Ace took downtop-tierPokemonChampion Blue’s level 92 Dugrtrio is a single hit.
Pokemon Streamer Completes Nearly Impossible Challenge
PointCrow pulled off this challenge despite his Twitch channel’s self-description of “Aggressively mediocre at all the games I play.” The ace Pokemon that helped him pull off this challenge was animpressive Flareonequipped with Tri Attack, Brick Break, Aerial Ace, and Bulk Up. Armed with three damage-dealing moves, the player made heavy use of Bulk Up to raise his Flareon’s Attack and Defense stats, though he admitted in retrospect that there were plenty of times his Flareon should have gone down. Speaking December 18 in a live follow-up stream, in which he recapped his game-winning run, he debated with himself over whether Flareon should be banned from any of his future challenges, ultimately deciding to keep it in rotation, because it would be amusing to beat the Kaizo Ironmon Challenge twice in a row with the same Pokemon.
Although he’s already pulled off possibly the hardest challenge inPokemon, the streamer doesn’t seem ready to putextreme-challengePokemonrunsbehind him. While live on a post-challenge stream reviewing the details of his game-winning run, PointCrow stated that he’s still got plenty left in store for his fans.
Pokemon FireRed
WHERE TO PLAY
Set off on a grand adventure to fulfill your dreams of becoming a Pokémon master! Explore the Kanto region and discover wild Pokémon around every corner. Build your Pokémon collection, train them, and battle your way to success – earn your badges as you develop winning strategies to use against experienced Gym Leaders in every town. Explore every inch to uncover amazing secrets that will help you in your quest to be the best trainer ever!* Trade, battle, and chat wirelessly! All new wireless adapter comes packed in every game, so trainers can trade, battle, and chat between their FireRed & LeafGreen versions with no cables!* Catch loads of Pokémon in the never-before-seen islands area!* Expand your collection when you trade with a friend. Link up with Pokémon Ruby & Sapphire, or Colosseum to catch ‘em all!
