Resistance vs. No Effect

Something that has been key to Pokémon since it first existed is type matchups. Some types are particularly strong against another, while others are particularly weak. Some types also cannot affect others... at least in some games, while in others they do affect those types, whether very weakly or similarly weakly. This point-and-counterpoint matter with two different circumstances becomes something neat to discuss as well as something to be possibly resolved in different games in the future.

It helps to start the discussion with the circumstance that came first, which would be the "no effect" point. This has been the case for the main series games ever since their inception, with the example relationships being that Electric cannot affect Ground and Dragon cannot affect Fairy. In some ways, the relationships above make sense according to realistic behaviors, being that electricity is neutralized by the ground and dragons become incapable against fairies. And yet, there are only a few of these "no effect" relationships, in a way making them an oddity among all other relationships that do cause damage.

Meanwhile, in other games, the "no effect" relationships, as mentioned above, do have some effect. The effect may be a "resistance" effect in that the damage that is caused is even less than a "not effective" damage; this is the actual system chosen to be implemented in Pokémon Go. It may also be just weak, on par with "not effective" damage; this system is implemented in Pokémon Shuffle. No matter which approach and system is implemented, any type is affirmed as being able to affect another, even if the effect is only weak or even very weak. The perceived oddity as above then would not exist in this case.

Given the two circumstances above, the situation might be potentially controversial. Main series purists - who are likely to exist - will probably scoff at (discovering) other Pokémon games not implementing the exact type relationships as the main series, including the "no effect" relationships. Meanwhile, modern fans who are raised on other games, for example Pokémon Go, might not realize that these "no effect" relationships exist when they then go play the main series games, thereby causing headaches for them and other Trainers; there has been the instance of a Max Raid Battle where this exact situation happens, and this seems somewhat regrettable.

The status quo as above may be kept, with all the consequences, though this may hardly be a resolution. A resolution that would please main series purists would be to force "no effect" relationships everywhere, but this could also additionally assert their superiority or elitism, or even both. A "compromise" could be to have "resistance" implemented in the main series games, but to a limited extent; the "resistance" of Pokémon Go is half of a "not effective" attack, and in the main series, this could be one-third or one-fourth. Type matchup relationships have been changed before, so there is the precedence, even if some could and would decry a change like this.

Type matchups have always been and will continue to be important for Pokémon and its games. There will always be types that are good against some types and not so good against others. But then there is the "no effect" relationship, which evidently is not universal and may be in the form of "resistance" instead. A resolution of what happens by this relationship considering all games may or may not be desired, but if it does get resolved, it may and should be for the greater cause of all Pokémon Trainers.

One year ago: Off We Go... to Galar!

Two years ago: A Sewaddle Keychain

Three years ago: In and Out of Poké Balls