Playing styles over the years...

[TheGr8]

I remember when I was 7 or 8 and I had pokemon blue to start. Just playing and playing and then it got me to get all of the other games as well red,yellow and so on. My play style has changed because I actually think about a strategy or even my team in general to build because I am older and I just think that way.

[Roko]

I tended to catch Pokémon I liked, then carry on with them.
I believe my FireRed team was:

Blastoise
Pidgeot
Dugtrio
Mr Mime
Arcanine
Electabuzz

But since then I've learned why stats and moves are important, and thus have started thinking strategically. The team in my signature is the PVP team I plan on using in PU, and I have a moveset thought out already for each of them. However, for the gym leaders, I will just use starters and Pokémon I catch early in the game.

[Ponge]

I tended to catch Pokémon I liked, then carry on with them.
But since then I've learned why stats and moves are important, and thus have started thinking strategically. The team in my signature is the PVP team I plan on using in PU, and I have a moveset thought out already for each of them.

You can still use your favourites if you plan a good moveset and strategy. I've remade my dream team's moveset because of that. So I might be able to use them in battle.

[Mr. Fox]

my fav pokes are too "weak" to make a team out of... they share too many double weakness, i like the team in my sig... works very well...

[Roko]

Agreed with Darkness. My favourite Pokémon just aren't the best for competetive gaming.
My ideal team of favourite Pokémon would probably be:

Raichu
Pidgeot
Typhlosion
Steelix
Dragonite

Dragonite's in my team, obviously... but the rest just aren't good enough for competative battling.
I suppose I could breed the perfect Def. Wall Steelix... but I'm lazy, and Skarmory will serve just as well, if not better.

[Ponge]

My favourites:
Lucario
Arcanine
Dragonite
Gengar
Metagross
staraptor
blastoise
charizard

the team I made out of it (with a kingdra, for making it more competitive):
Lucario
Arcanine
Dragonite
Gengar
Metagross
kingdra

I just like these pokémon alot!!! With the right moveset, they can work.
I agree that some of your favourites are jest not good enough, but I try to use them as much as possible, with the right pokémon to support them.
an example: you can give steelix this set (when your team has a trick room user) earthquake, curse, gyro bal, explosion. This is great late-game!!!

[Mr. Fox]

when i look at your team i only see that you have 3 pokemon weak to ground... that is how i think. I don't like having too many pokes that share a weakness, to easy to lose to some one who is pakning that type... that is how i see it. i use pokemon who work well together, like a hippowdon and the new mole pokemon...

[Ponge]

but when I switch metagross for togekiss (I like him, but he isn't in my top 10), I have only a 2 time weakness. Then I still got 4 favourites in my team.

[Mr. Fox]

true, but then you give me a reason to add a pokemon with either ice punch or ice shard...

[Ponge]

but I'm not the only one with that weakness. Your pokémon white team has that weakness too.

[Mr. Fox]

yes i know, but like you said with the right move set you can counter your weakness, the faster half of my team has moves that ko ice types, the other half can 2hko them with their bulk. my mole is the fastest pokemon i have at over 500 speed, he WILL hit first and he usually kills... but i get your point, my other team has a few overlapping weakness, but not as severe as this one...

[Juno]

New here... Moving on What I like to do is just make sure that I have to counter that specific Poke's weakness/s' so that way it is a bit less worrisome.

[Seth Lazareus]

     First game was blue version...idk how old I was but I was a little kid. I usually trained just 2 at first and built my team as I went, by the time I hit the 5th gym or so I had a team of 4, and by the elite 4 I had a team of 6 all within 7 lvls of each other I think. Only strategy I put into it was getting a semi diverse team, and making sure my team had good moves.

      I progressed in how I played decently up to 6th grade then I stopped playing, for too many reasons to bring to light in this post. Personally I didn't think I'd pick anything pokemon up cept for old times sake till recently, and the main reason I'm sticking around is that this game sounds like it's in a whole diff. league from the old games. When I play this game I know one thing for sure though, the pokemon I use will be my favs. I spent a lot of time thinking about what pokemon I want to use and so far because there are so many cool ones, I've only managed to single out two as my favorites. For me there would be no point in playing this game if I didn't. I'm not playing it to win, but to escape. Some people do drugs, I play pokemon  . Not like I get a high from it or anything lol, just one thing that takes me away from my thoughts for a while. Using my favorites is what will allow it to be an escape. Cuase if pokemon were real, I'd use my favs.  Besides if they were real if and you had your favs. you could dedicate that much more to em  so that you'd be able to win anyway. I prefer to play pretend while playing pretend, it gives it a tone of realism that makes the escape and the game that much better. 

[Gigalith]

Hello,

i started playing pokemon at pokemon yellow and even got poke mon green red blue silver gold ruby sapphire and some illegal pokemon black (bought in turkey).
at first i didnt understand a thing and started to make tactics with friends, that i went to giovanni then trade all my pokes and the masterball (did that like 100 times), then found out about massingo, i was about 8 then. did the massingo thing for days. raised a ghastly from 12 to 100 without rare candys (became a beast gengar). i played very aggresive never had 1 non combat move because then i would get another pokemon and raise it another way. but nowdays i know that non combat mover can really help u out at some times, i havent found out about EV and IV's till 4 months ago (16 now ). i got pokemon black and those pokemons are frauds lmao U need non combat moves to win. well thats me over the years (Y) pce