Main picks of top 100 Pokémon UNITE players | April 12 meta update

Patch 1.4.1.10 ended the Duraludon dominated meta from the last few weeks. With Azumarill entering the game, how will that further change up the meta among the top 100 players? Let’s take a look.

S Tier:

• EMPTY

A Tier:

• Lucario – 12.5% (-3)
• Talonflame – 12.5% (-0.5)
• Hoopa – 12% (+4)

B Tier:

• Greedent – 7.5% (+1.5)
• Blastoise – 7.5% (+4)
• Wigglytuff – 5.5% (-3)

C Tier:

• Duraludon – 5% (-1)
• Ninetails – 4.5% (+1)
• Slowbro – 4% (+/-)
• Blissey – 4% (+/-)
• Azumarill – 4% (NEW)
• Decidueye – 3.5% (-2.5)
• Cinderace – 2.5% (-1.5)
• Mime – 2.5% (+/-)

D Tier:

• Venusaur – 2% (-1.5)
• Dragonite – 2% (+2)
• Machamp – 1.5% (-1)
• Greninja – 1.5% (-0.5)
• Garchomp – 1.5% (+1.5)
• Absol – 1% (-2.5)
• Eldegoss – 1% (+1)
• Crustle – 1% (+/-)
• Tsareena – 0.5% (+/-)
• Trevenant – 0.5% (-0.5)

Aegislash, Charizard, Cramorant, Gardevoir, Gengar, Mamoswine, Pikachu (-0.5), Snorlax, Sylveon and Zeraora (-1) all saw no noticeable play among the top 100 players.

Below are the top 10 Pokémon ranked by four-week moving average:

Azumarill splashes into the game

Azumarill is the newest all-rounder to be released for Pokémon UNITE. Its Huge Power ability, which causes it to critically hit whenever attacking a single target, was a potential game changer. However, Expectations do not always line up with reality. Azumarill lacks the lifesteal, bulk and approach options most All-Rounders have and has a smaller critical hit multiplier than any other Pokémon (150% instead of 200%). Due to these factors, Azumarill has entered the game with a more modest usage rate among top players.

Role balance at historic high

Attackers are at a low point in the meta, seeing only 19% usage rates compared to a historic average of 28.6%. Speedsters and Defenders who, on the other hand, have had lower averages, are seeing much higher usage rates than average. This had given us the most historically balanced meta of all time, with a standard deviation between roles of 3.0, compared to an average of 8.1.

The era of Pikachu and Venusaur as the primary attackers has faded, though no other attacker is really rising to the occasion. Ninetails is having a moment, but it isn’t amounting to a dominant performance. And with Talonflame reclaiming the role of jungler for the Speedsters, Attackers like Cinderace and Greninja are also struggling.

Methodology: This data is collected using both the rankings tab in Pokémon UNITE and the Pokémon UNITE API. A Pokémon is considered a “main” of a player if is it the most played Pokémon in their most recent 16 ranked matches. In the event of a tie or near tie the data will reflect that. If more than two Pokémon are tied, the 32 most recent matches will be considered instead.