LT Weekly Poll #36 Do you prefer breakable TMs?

[Joshawott]

Hello Everynyan! Welcome to the thirty-sixth installment in the Lost Tower Forum's new weekly series of polls!

Centered around the Pokemon series of video games, these polls will be based on the various different aspects of the popular video game franchise. Every Monday, a Video Games staff member will post a new poll that'll remained stickied up on top of the forum. Suggestions for polls and questions can be sent to Joshawott or Zeb and they could possibly used for new polls (credit will be given, of course).

With that out of the way, here is the poll: Do you prefer breakable TMs? . Pokémon Black and White introduced the idea of TMs being unbreakable, just like HMs - changing a mechanic that had been around since Red and Green. Do you like this change, or do you wish we could return to the old days of one-use TMs?

Past Polls of the Week

1) Were the original 151 the best?
2) Most beneficial new generation?
3) Best Kanto Starter?
4) Should we go back to coloured cartridges?
5) First Pokémon game?
6) Best Johto Starter?
7) How old were you when you started playing?
8) Do you still play the older generations?
9) Best Hoenn Starter?
10) Slot Machines or Voltorb Flip?
11) Favourite Kanto Gym Design?
12) Favourite Sinnoh Starter?
13) Most beneficial third version?
14) First handheld console?
15) Do you want your Pokémon to follow you again?
16) Favourite Hoenn Gym Design?
17) Favourite Apricorn Ball?
18) Pokémon Contests - Yay or Nay?
19) Did you use the Wi-Fi Plaza?
20) Favourite Kanto Gym Leader?
21) Do you like remakes?
22) Favourite Stat Trainer?
23) Favourite Johto Gym Leader?
24) Would you like to see older games on the 3DS Virtual Console?
25) Will Platinum be the last third version?
26) Favourite Hoenn Gym Leader?
27) Whitney's Miltank - Was it a problem for you?
28) Do you play originals or remakes?
29) Favourite Sinnoh Gym Leader?
30) Did you use the TMs?
31) Favourite Sinnoh Gym Design?
32) Favourite Ranger game?
33) Favourite Mystery Dungeon Game?
34) Headbutt or Honey Trees?
35) Were you addicted to the Sinnoh Underground?

Thank you for voting!

-The Video Games Forum Staff

 

[jda95]

No. I would hardly ever use non-replenishable TMs because I always feared that I would be wasting them, so now that they have unlimited uses, it's really made giving Pokemon the right moves a lot easier.

 

[smalllady]

No, I do not. In my opinion, it doesn't make the game any less challenging. It's actually much more convenient. Just as technology in real life continues to evolve, the technology of the games should evolve, too. It's probably not mentioned anywhere, but I like to imagine that, in the in-game universe, they finally found a way to create TMs that could be used more than once.

 

[Ghetsis-Dennis]

No, it'll only have my Pokemon use poor movesets w/o the use of TMs.

 

[TheCapsFan]

Are you kidding? Unbroken TMs were the best thing added itemwise in B/W.

 

[randomuniq]

It's very convenient! I always feel regret when I use a TM for some reason.

 

[Saiga]

No, unbreakable TMs are just plain amazing. They don't dumb down the games' difficulty, they're just added convenience and there is a difference. I believe too many people confuse making things more convenient as dumbing the gameplay down.

 

[The Froakster]

Hell no! Unlimited Blizzard, Thunder and Fireblast rules!

 

[Infinity Mk-II]

Yeah, with now how "global" the pokémon games are, giving players such arbitrary restrictions simply doesn't work with the game's involvement anymore.

It also allows for B2W2 to have different TMs, as they can't be traded either. That will be interesting. (If they bother with it, of course.)

I'd still like to see the moveset system revamped, though. Particularly, the HM system became unnecesarialy inconvenient since Gen II, and finally completely obsolete.


It also encourages creativity and usage of rarer movesets, which is a perfectly fine trade for the theoretical "difficulty" (read: tediousity) breakable TMs supposed.
It also makes the TM itself more important. While you still buy many of them in BW, they are essentially rare skills now and perfect prizes to have hidden in the game.

 

[Meyneth]

No, no no, and no. When TMs were breakable, I would never or rarely use them, just because I was a hoarder like that.

 

[hexacore]

Yes. I can say,
NOOOOOOOOO!

Srsly, breakable TM is worse than infinite TM.

 

[Bouffalant Herdier]

No, no, no. When TMs were breakable, I was scared to waste even the worst ones, but now I experiment with movesets far more often, which makes the game more fun, and that's what we play video games for, right?

 

[John Understands]

HELLLLLLLLLLLL NO. Unbreakble TMs were the best thing added in Pokémon since Wifi battles and the GTS.

 

[Sumomo]

They're incredibly convenient, they actually give you some reward for beating gyms and aren't exactly cheap to buy from stores, glad they're now unbreakable.

 

[Almonds]

NOOO!!! The TMs being unbreakable had been the best thing they ever did. Heck, it was so hard when I had to hold on to a TM and end up never using it. But in BW, I could use TMs whenever I wanted, and it also helped me pick the best moves for each pokemon.

 

[Otika]

The whole breakable TM's thing was a bit of a burden (albeit a necessary one since the games didn't have nearly as much storage space as they do today) in Generation I. Previously, I used to hold onto TM's because I felt like I didn't want to use them immediately or I may find a better use for them. But in Generation I, it was that much more annoying when you stockpile so many TM's and HM's because you're scared to use them and then your PC becomes too full to carry any more and your bag becomes too full to carry anything else, so you end up wasting the TM's you don't picture yourself ever using just so you can use your bag and PC storage again!

Now that they're unbreakable, I don't have to feel forced to use them, and the game isn't any more or less difficult as a result. Also, now that we don't have the PC storage system I don't have to worry about them filling up my box or my bag, solely at the cost of the laws of physics no longer applying to the game. So in short, yes, unbreakable TM's is definitely a great innovation. I'll admit I was a tad skeptical when news broke that TM's would be unbreakable in Black/White (What?! A change in formula?! I'm going to narrow-mindedly write this off as GameFreak losing their minds and destroying what were once sacred traditions between generations!) but as I played, I began to find it more and more helpful. I mean, in general, I have a tendency to only use a TM once anyway, but the fact that I know I'll still have it later really relieves me of any pressure or apprehension I may have about using them.

 

[Blue Dragon]

I am so glad they made TM's unbreakable, as it was something I was hoping they would do for a long time. I did like the novelty of choosing wisely when to use the old "breakable" TM, but that novelty wore off after Gen 2 for me.

 

[Psalmist]

I love how TMs are unbreakable. I really hated how some of my favorite TM moves in past gens only were available once or twice, which meant that it couldn't be taught to more than one or two different pokemon, even if they could learn it. Iron tail is probably the one that annoys me the most. It was only obtainable once in Diamond, and I had like three Pokemon that could learn it. But I do wish that some of the TMs (like Iron Tail) would be brought back. I'd love to teach my Pikachu Iron Tail, especially since I'm a big Anime fan.

 

[DarkLordKitten]

No, I always conserved my TMs prior to B/W and hold on to them incase I neaded them for breeding

 

[X-Strike]

I am glad that it was changed, because I didn't want to use a TM, only to find out that I either didn't want to use it at that time, I accidentally sold it, etc. Plus, I can teach the TM to multiple pokémon, I don't have to feel pressured to pick just one.