Pokémon UNITE has gone nearly a month and a half without a noticeable balance patch. That’s not to say there haven’t been developments in the meta, though, as both Aegislash and Hoopa have seen releases in that time period. Slowbro has taken Wigglytuff’s role as the primary defender, while the jungle remains as competitive as ever.
With the release of Hoopa, what changes are happening among the top 100 players?
S Tier:
- Lucario – 25.33% (+8.33)
A Tier:
- Hoopa – 10.83% (NEW)
B Tier:
- Cinderace – 9.25% (+1.88)
- Slowbro – 7.33% (+0.33)
- Venusaur – 7% (-4.83)
- Pikachu – 6.5% (+0.5)
C Tier:
- Talonflame – 5.17% (-2.33)
- Greedent – 4.08% (-0.92)
- Wigglytuff – 4% (-2)
- Eldegoss – 3% (-5.5)
- Snorlax – 3% (+2)
- Absol – 2.5% (+1.5)
D Tier:
- Dragonite – 2.33% (-1.77)
- Machamp – 2% (-0.5)
- Crustle – 2% (+1)
- Greninja – 1.58% (+0.58)
- Mime – 1% (-0.5)
- Garchomp – 1% (-1)
- Mamoswine – 1% (-0.5)
- Aegislash – 0.5% (+0.5)
- Sylveon – 0.33% (+0.33)
- Decidueye – 0.25% (+0.25)
Blastoise (-1.5), Blissey (-3.5), Charizard, Cramorant, Gardevoir (-2.83), Gengar, Ninetails, Trevanent, Tsareena and Zeraora all saw minimal play among the top 100 players.
Below are the monthly averages of the 10 most used Pokémon:
The slow rollout of Hoopa
Hoopa’s introduction to Pokémon UNITE was unique, being the first Pokémon to be released in standard before people could redeem the license several days later to use it in ranked. It is also the second Pokémon, along with Tsareena, to be released for free. During a normal release, people will play their untested, new Pokémon in ranked, much to the annoyance of many players. With this slower rollout, people were able to get acquainted with the Pokémon before playing it in ranked; something high-skill Pokémon like Hoopa definitely benefit from. Hoopa’s utility in the game has allowed it to compete directly with Eldegoss, leading to Eldegoss’s lowest play numbers since the release of the game.
Still a diverse meta
Despite Jan. 20 being the last major patch, Hoopa’s release led to the sixth largest variation in the meta of any released Pokémon. Of the Pokémon released without a patch, Hoopa is only behind Blastoise, Sylveon, and Dragonite. All three of those Pokémon received nerfs in patches after their release. If historical precedent has any setting in this case, that could mean Hoopa will received in a nerf as well in the next major balance patch.
