Main picks of top 100 Pokémon UNITE players | Aug. 4 meta update

The Pokémon UNITE anniversary brought a major balance patch, a new emblem system and an increasing amount of new Pokémon into the game. Buzzwole’s effect on the game isn’t known yet but the meta continues to roil and shift under the pressure of all of the new changes.

A Tier:

• Lucario – 14.5% (+8)
• Cramorant – 11.5% (+6)
• Tsareena – 10.5% (+0.5)

B Tier:

• Dragonite – 8% (+/-)
• Blissey – 7.5% (-1.5)
• Hoopa – 7% (+3)

C Tier:

• Greninja – 5% (+3)
• Glaceon – 4% (-7)
• Machamp – 4% (-2)
• Pikachu – 3.5% (+2.5)
• Snorlax – 2.5% (+2.5)
• Garchomp – 2.5% (+1.5)

D Tier:

• Delphox – 2% (+2)
• Zeraora – 2% (-6)
• Slowbro – 2% (+1.5)
• Mamoswine – 2% (+1)
• Azumarill – 2% (+/-)
• Gardevoir – 2% (+1)
• Charizard – 1.5% (+1.5)
• Gengar – 1.5% (-1.5)
• Greedent – 1% (-2.5)
• Wigglytuff – 1% (+/-)
• Aegislash – 1% (+1)
• Absol – 0.5% (+0.5)
• Sylveon – 0.5% (-3.5)
• Trevenant – 0.5% (+0.5)

Cinderace (-5.5), Blastoise (-1), Talonflame, Decidueye (-1), Venusaur, Espeon (-2), Ninetales, Duraludon (-1.5), Mr. Mime (-1), Crustle and Eldegoss saw no noticeable play among top players.

Below is the monthly moving average for the top 10 Pokemon:

Nature is healing

Last week the meta was in a pretty wild place: Hoopa was seeing its lowest usage rate at 4% while newcomer Glaceon had the highest usage rate of only 11%. Over half of top players were playing with new options thanks to the latest balance patch and the new emblem system. Overall the meta was in the most open position it had been in since the release of the game.

This update doesn’t bring us a snapback to the rigidity of the previous meta, but players are starting to pile back onto to consistent meta staples. Lucario and Tsareena, while not at their peak performances, are climbing back up in usage. Blissey and Hoopa are a little lower in usage than Lucario and Tsareena were but are still very present in the meta. Glaceon and Zeraora, who place very highly in the previous update, have seen their new meta presence already crumble.

New meta mon

Cooldown reduction seems to be favoring two Pokémon pretty well right now: Cramorant and Dragonite. As a special attacker with a devastating unite move, Cramorant benefits from the cooldown reduction emblems and hold items. Hurricane and Surf’s crowd control become increasingly devastating when they can be cast an extra time or two each in combat, racking up extra damage and clutch disruptions in major team fights.

Dragonite’s Dragon Dance is also a clear winner of the emblem system. With cooldown reduction the stacks from the move are easier to maintain, allowing Dragonite to more reliably fire off devastating Hyper Beams. Fortunately, Dagonite doesn’t benefit from all of the special attack bonuses associated with cooldown reduction mechanics like Cramorant does, which is helping keep the yellow Barney in check.

Methodology: This data is collected using both the rankings tab in Pokémon UNITE and the Pokémon UNITE API. A Pokémon is considered a player’s “main” if it is 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. When more than two Pokémon are tied, the 32 most recent matches will be considered instead.