All Gens Most significant moves introduced each gen

[magic9mushroom]

Alakazam is not a staple, and is replaceable on almost every team (I mean, Alakazam doesn't change too much the metagame without its existence).

Yeah, it really does. An unparalysed Alakazam will tear through any physical 'mon that tries to attack it, while being almost impossible to break on the special side due to Recover backed by insane Special and Speed stats and a total lack of weaknesses.

Alakazam is what makes it necessary to play methodically in RBY rather than just going for an all-out offense, because anything trying to get past an unparalysed Zam is going to end up paralysed if not outright destroyed - and Zam isn't even badly inconvenienced by the damage, because it can just use Recover before your next 'mon gets to move.

Exeggutor is the only one that is a staple and need Psychic to be usefull. But I found out that when I play with it, 3 out of 5 battles I don't even use it. Still, Sleep Powder and Explosion are better moves than Psychic.

You can run Exeggutor without Sleep Powder or Explosion and it's still a ridiculously good 'mon because of its awesome stats and typing. But it will always need Psychic.

 

[Dre89]

Alakazam is a good pokemon, but it's not meta-defining. It's probably the most standard pokemon that isn't on the standard team. However it's not meta-defining because it can be dealt with by pokemon that you would otherwise run anyway.

I think you're overrating how much damage alakazam does in reality and how difficult it is to handle. If it's just going to sit there spamming psychics, it's just going to get paralysed and then stalled out by the 2-3 specials that every team runs. Factor in that nearly every pokemon it will hit has a method to recover the damage and spc falls off.

Physicals don't really have to worry about a paralysed alakazam until late-game because the specials can handle it until then. It's not like alakazam can switch into physicals, and depending on how late on it is in the battle, the physical may be happy to trade paralysis for the KO.

 

[magic9mushroom]

I think you're overrating how much damage alakazam does in reality

3HKOing Snorlax isn't exactly puny.

I say that Zam helps define the meta because, unlike Chansey, it forces opponents to use specially-bulky pokemon to stall it and hit it with status - but in turn, it doesn't have much recourse against those pokemon. Thus, it significantly slows down the game.

 

[Dre89]

Pokemon like chansey originally became popular to counter starmie, not alakazam. Even without alakazam people would be running special walls anyway because if they didn't lots of bulky specials like articuno and lapras would run wild.

It's biggest problem alakazam has is that it has 4MSS. If it reflects, then it doesn't have a reliable way to damage the specials that constantly switch in to stall it. If it runs seismic toss, then physicals can come in on a predicted toss when it's paralysed.

It's a standard pokemon, but it's not on the standard team. The standard team is probably exeggutor starmie chansey golem snorlax tauros. That is probably the most meta-defining team. After that is probably alakazam and rhydon if you count it as distinct from golem. Then after that you have jynx, gengar, lapras, zapdos, slowbro etc. so it's still a semi-tier beneath the most meta-defining pokemon.