Thread: Do Pokemon Truly Enjoy Battling?

I'm going to compare Pokemon to my dog, in a sense.

My dog is a Border Collie, and are considered a very instinctive and loyal breed. They are mostly used to herd cattle and sheep, but when domesticated have been known to attach other "jobs" to themselves. Mine happens to love playing fetch with the ball. He and I could throw the ball back and forth for hours and he will keep coming back. We literally have to yell at him to get him to stop. Even when he broke his hip, he still tried to play ball even though it physically hurt him. Why would my dog do something that was physically causing him pain?
The answer lies within his animal instinct. He is a breed that was meant to please his master no matter what. How can he please his master when he is a simple house pet? He plays. He gets gratification from playing. He gets exercise when he plays. My family adores him when he plays. He does it because to him, that is his purpose in life. His drive to live is ball.
The same probably goes for Pokemon. Pokemon battle because it is their existence. Their job is to use the powers that come naturally to them. They like using trainers because it allows them to grow in ways that wouldn't be possible otherwise. Pokemon battle because it's in their DNA to battle from Arceus, Mew, to Bidoof. They all want to be stronger, and they use trainers as a means to complete this goal.

I guess it depends on the Pokémon.

Some love battling and some hate it.

I think they'd enjoy battling just as humans would enjoy sports. Some more than others, some more injury-prone than others.

Most Pokémon, if not all, are competitive. After all, I believe it's been stated that they do fight of their own free will in the wild. Even the ones that refuse to do so out of captivity seem to want to impress or help their trainer once they are brought onto a team. As for the pain, it's likely a case of "the end justifies the means". And since they will only disobey their trainer if the trainer is not skilled enough, my guess is that they'll think they can run the battle better but get in trouble because of it.

I'd think some would. Like others have said before, I'd say it depends on their personality and how competitive they are.

I do think that sometimes Pokemon want to battle and probably enjoy it. Pokemon it seems are pretty intelligent and probably have a competitive streak like humans. They probably want to show off their skills and win. They have their natural abilities and attacks so they are pretty much ready to battle if need be, if they don't want to they could disobey their trainer as seen in the anime or games sometimes.

Heck yeah I do! I love Battling!

Ahem, "Pokémon", not you.

Did anyone else automatically think Team Plasma? lol, well, Pokémon generally like battling because it's like playing to them, but it depends on their personalities, I guess.

I think it would depend on how strong that Pokemon is. If a Pokemon were to keep winning battles and gaining experience they would eventually grow to like it.

On the flipside, a younger and less experienced Pokemon wouldn't be so keen. I think it's all part of their growth. I have always pictured a recently hatched Pokemon to be a bit nervous during their first few battles but would eventually get used to it in as they grow in level and confidence.

Ok, now that I know what this thread is about now, I think it kinda depends on the Pokemon's personality. At least that's what I think.

I think Pokemon have a built in Stockholm Syndrome mechanism. Pokemon always try to please their master, even if that master isn't kind to them, or particularly skilful. If Pokemon get raised by evil people, they even turn 'evil' themselves. They don't run away. They adjust. That's a defence mechanism. In order to survive they need to adjust to the most dominant species on earth, humans. It's natural selection. The Pokemon that survive and live the longest lives are in care of human trainers. Loyalty gets rewarded.

But then why don't they obey a trainer without enough badges? Because they're still loyal to the trainer they've been traded from. That's when you need to earn their respect. A transition is always hard.

So they battle to please their master, and because they feel satisfaction from seeing the master happy because of his badges and wins, they end up liking it. That doesn't mean it's fake though. It's natural, but not fake. I bet they would even get seriously stressed when they lose the rhythm of working.

Originally Posted by TwistedSpoon

I think Pokemon have a built in Stockholm Syndrome mechanism. Pokemon always try to please their master, even if that master isn't kind to them, or particularly skilful. If Pokemon get raised by evil people, they even turn 'evil' themselves. They don't run away. They adjust. That's a defence mechanism. In order to survive they need to adjust to the most dominant species on earth, humans. It's natural selection. The Pokemon that survive and live the longest lives are in care of human trainers. Loyalty gets rewarded.

But then why don't they obey a trainer without enough badges? Because they're still loyal to the trainer they've been traded from. That's when you need to earn their respect. A transition is always hard.

So they battle to please their master, and because they feel satisfaction from seeing the master happy because of his badges and wins, they end up liking it. That doesn't mean it's fake though. It's natural, but not fake. I bet they would even get seriously stressed when they lose the rhythm of working.

Hmm, really interesting theory you have there. For the most part I agree with you on this one.

Getting hit by 100,000 volts by sounds unimaginably painful well so does squeezing out a baby out of the most sensitive orifice in your body. Well the body produces natural pain killers for giving birth perhaps the same could be said for pokemon battles they still feel pain but a lot less than getting hit by a fire blast sounds like

Yes, since pokemon need to battle to get stronger, and it helps make bonds between the pokemon and the trainer.