Pokémon Move Art of Mewtwo's Psystrike, Ho-Oh's Sacred Fire Is Jaw-Dropping
The attacks that Pokémon can pull off are a key component of the series presentation that drive home the feeling of using a powerful pocket monster in battles. A new series of Pokémon fanart depicts the signature moves of iconic Pokémon. The art is incredibly detailed and really captures the force and power of the move's power.
Pokémon moves have gotten flashier over the course of the series. The limited technology during Pokémon Red & Blue allowed for simplistic animations using pixel art, but even for the time, it was still very impressive. The sprite art used from generations three to five opened the gateway for more advanced animations that to this day, still hold up incredibly well, and can even stand toe to toe with Pokémon's 3D move animations post generation six. Many signature moves for certain Pokémon were created over the course of the series, and these signature moves often have some of the flashiest animations the series has to offer, whether they be 2D or 3D.
This incredible signature move art was drawn by Reddit user JhayAlejo. It depicts both regular and legendary Pokémon using their unique signature moves. While Steel Wing isn't necessarily Skarmory's signature move, it is often the first Pokémon that comes to mind to associate the move with. The legendary art especially stands out, with Mewtwo ominously charging up energy for a big psychic strike attack and Ho-Oh projecting beautiful sacred flames that create a rainbow and a portal to Ecruteak City. Even the way Kingler's crabhammer is covered in water and Hitmontop's triple kick depicts three rapid kicks perfectly depicts how these moves are imagined and then some.
Despite the flashy animations many Pokémon moves possess, one common criticism of Pokémon Sword & Shield pre-release was the lack of varied move animations. E3 2019 was a dark time for the series, between the reveal of the national dex cut and the demo reveal facing criticism due to the presentation of the game, in part due to the reveal of the national dex cut. Double Kick was especially scrutinized for how it just had Scorbunny jump twice and the Pokémon would get hit.
But in spite of the sometimes less than quality move animations, the Pokémon series has shown that it can produce incredible-looking animations that are flashy, cool, expressive, and suit the Pokémon to a T. Ironically, Cinderace's pyro ball is just one example of this. Even outside of the games, this art shows that even outside of the games, the magic of the Pokémon world and its creatures can be beautifully recreated and expanded by the passion of the fans for the series.
Source: JhayAlejo/Reddit