I have room for both Digimon and Pokémon in my heart. They are two of the greatest franchises in gaming and brought me untold joys throughout my childhood. Still, I often think about what would happen if I was forced to choose between the two. Nerf gun to my head, I have to pick between Pikachu and the gang or Agumon and the squad.
There are a ton of similarities between the two series, other than the obvious ending of “mon.” Both have you collect monsters that then become your partners, training them until they evolve into megaliths who can topple mountains with a flick of the wrist. Still, Highlander was right and there can only be one.
I’ve tallied up the main differences between Pokémon and Digimon to figure out which monsters are the best. Disclaimer: this is my own opinion, don’t sharpen your pitchforks if you disagree.
Digimon Tamers was my favorite group, sorry Tai
Why Digimon Is The Best:
- They are digital monsters, so there’s no need to avoid the subject of death. Digimon don’t faint, they turn back into code. If a Machamp throws a Pikachu 300 feet in the air and it lands on its neck, there’s no way in hell it’s just going to faint.
- Being a Digidestined is so much better than being a Pokémon trainer. I don’t want to have to go around in the world catching Rattatas until my guys are useful, I want to be handed a dinosaur with firebreath that will be my BFF forever.
- Keeping your partner in a Pokeball is just cruel, at least Digimon get to have some breathing room. Scrunching down a plant monster made of code into a Digivice seems a lot more humane than squishing a 20-foot rock snake into a sphere that fits in the palm of your hand.
- There might have been a long break between Digimon games, but Bandai Namco have been making up for lost time. I wanted to play Cyber Sleuth so badly, I couldn’t even wait for its English port. I played through the whole game in Japanese and even though I barely understood the plot, I loved every second of it. Digimon World: Next Order was pretty rad too.
- Digimon ’s first season theme song is better, sorry nerds.
Hoopa is a terrifying Pokemon that could totally beat Garudamon in a fight.
Pokémon Is The Best
- Pokémon look like stuff you’d actually want to hang around with. Marill and the gang are adorable, and Palmon and Tentomon look like they belong in a kiddie version of John Carpenter’s The Thing.
- Pokémon games never stopped coming. Digimon took a decade-long break that made me completely forget about the franchise. I grew older alongside the Pokémon games, which got more sophisticated as time went on. Digimon World 2 starts to show its age when you try to play it alongside Pokémon Black and White.
- The world of Pokémon is so much more interesting than the digital world. There are gods, epic battles between leviathans, discussions about animal cruelty and real life issues.
- Digimon poop, that’s kind of gross.
- Pokémon came first, even if it was just by 18 months.
- My girlfriend thinks the Pokémon theme song is better.
There’s no way to pick between the two. Still, I’ve lived without Digimon in my life for a solid decade, so I have to go with Pokémon. Do you agree or want to send me angry Twitter messages? Tell us in the comments.
