These are the best Pokémon for MOBA beginners in Pokémon Unite

Pokémon Unite has finally opened its doors and players from all over the world are now grinding the new and very addicting MOBA game. 

Since everything in Pokémon Unite is still very new, there’s a ton to be discovered when it comes to abilities, items, tactics, and the general meta. But starting players can find comfort in a few accessible Pokémon they can use to start the grind. Though none of those currently available in the game are overly elaborate, there are luckily a few that are very good to start out with. These Pokémon are generally easy to understand and don’t take a lot of mechanical skill to pull off combos and carry games. 

To help the newer players, here are some of the best beginner Pokémon for the game so far. 

Pikachu is a simple, fun damage dealer

The first Pokémon to potentially start a Pokémon Unite journey is an all-time classic. In Pokémon Unite, Pikachu is a ranged carry that can be picked up by anyone without trouble. Pikachu is made to be one of the Pokémon that players get their chance to try out early on, which only seems logical as the franchise mascot. 

Pikachu is categorized as a novice-level Pokémon, which means that it is among the most simple to pick up. In the game, Pikachu is built for range and high-damage abilities that are all very simple to hit. On offense, Pikachu looks to dish out the consistent damage needed while staying out of trouble. The hardest thing about Pikachu is the fact that it’s very squishy and can quickly be taken down if enemies get too close. 

Right from the get-go, Pikachu has solid damage from Thunder Shock which can be upgraded into Thunder and Thunderbolt. With these abilities, Pikachu has a lot of burst damage with very little cooldown to speak of. Pikachu is also able to stun enemies, making it fairly easy to lock down targets. 

Pikachu’s Unite move, Thunderstorm, is also a strong one. This ability is the key for Pikachu in big team fights, as Thunderstorm will hit several targets. Just like the other moves, Thunderstorm is easy to hit and will provide guaranteed AOE damage if several opponents are close. 

Be a true tank with Snorlax in Pokémon Unite

For players who like to hog the screen and tank up damage, Snorlax will likely be the best Pokémon to start off with. Just like in the mainline games, Snorlax is a tank in Pokémon Unite and has a lot of valuable crowd control. With that said, Snorlax can also dish out a lot of damage if given the chance, so make sure to never underestimate the big sleeping Pokémon. 

To play Snorlax successfully, it’s all about enabling the carries on the team while trying to soak up as much damage as possible. In a team-fight scenario, it will also be Snorlax who can set up the fight, potentially land the perfect wombo combo, and help to clear out goals for his teammates.

As the crowd-control machine that Snorlax is, it’s important to understand some of the most impactful abilities and make proper use of them. Since Snorlax isn’t the Pokémon that does the most damage through auto-attacks, managing cooldowns and hitting abilities is crucial. 

The first big crowd control option comes at level 6, where Snorlax can learn Heavy Slam. This is a big body slam that will displace opponents. It’s also possible to go a more aggressive path with Flail, but the safest route will usually always be Heavy Slam to secure an engagement tool that can be combined with Block later down the road. The Unite move for Snorlax is also fairly easy to use as Snorlax falls asleep to restore health, which gives Snorlax an amazing defensive tool to avoid taking critical deaths. 

Breath fire upon your opponents and carry with Charizard

If Pikachu or Snorlax aren’t the ideal choices, then there’s luckily another classic Pokémon that will be very simple to pick up. That’s Charizard, who classifies as a novice Pokémon thanks to his solid stats in every area. Charizard is mainly good on offense and not so much as a support. It also has great endurance and mobility and will be a solid Pokémon for scoring points effectively. 

Like any other evolution line, Charizard will start out as Charmander and evolve into Charmeleon at level 4. Reaching level 9 will see it evolve into Charizard, where it really starts to be fun. With some levels, Charizard will be able to dish out a lot of damage with auto-attacks and power it up with moves like Fire Blast and Flamethrower.

When playing offensively, the best option is to opt into Flamethrower, which will deal a lot of ranged damage. For defensive play, Flare Blitz will be a great option thanks to its AoE damage over time. This is especially effective when defending goals. For the Unite move, Charizard has Seismic Slam which is a sure hit and allows players to have a bit of safety. 

Other Pokémon that are great to start out with are in general the ones that can be played in several roles. One of the rather easy Pokémon to pick up that wasn’t on this list is Venusaur, who is also a ranged attacker with the potential to deal a lot of damage. With Venusaur, players can build for sustainability or damage. 

As Pokémon Unite continues to be developed, there will be new Pokémon coming out and some of them might be as beginner-friendly as Pikachu, Snorlax, and Charizard. After practicing the game for a bit, there will be plenty of other harder options in the game to dive into.