Adventures in the GTS
I went over to a friend's house last night. They had wireless internet, and subsequently access to Nintendo's Wi-Fi service (which they used).
I have never used this service before, and I was really enthusiastic about doing so, particularly since Pokemon Diamond had several interesting features.
One of these was the global trade station, or GTS for short. It enables players to trade Pokemon all over the world through Wi-Fi. You can either search for a Pokemon (within the parameters of species, gender, and level) or put one up yourself with what Pokemon you want in return. Since I couldn't get on Wi-Fi at home, putting one up was out of the question. So I searched for Pokemon, in case there were any that I didn't have and could trade for.
Well, this is a nice function, I hear you say. Well, yes, I agree with that, but in my mind the GTS is like the League of Nations; that is, much of it only really works in theory.
A problem with the search function is that you cannot look for Pokemon you haven't seen yourself. This meant that I couldn't go and get several species that I haven't obtained yet (mainly due to version exclusivity).
However, this problem paled in comparison with another. As I said, you can put up a Pokemon for trade along with what you want in return. The problem here is that most of the offers are FUCKING INSANE.
Not that this was a new problem, oh no. It has been around since the GTS was launched. I thought it would have lessened over time. I was wrong. Really, really, wrong.
Example: Someone put up a level 1 Ekans (a not-too-hard to get Pokemon), requesting a level 100 Palkia (which is a one-of-its-kind Pokemon) in return. Do they seriously expect that someone will actually go through with this trade? The Ekans wasn't even shiny or anything. It's like expecting someone to pay gold ingots for a few twigs you found on the ground a few metres away.
There were also offers that were downright impossible. Aside from Pokemon you can't even get outside of a cheating device nowadays, one person wanted a level 9 and under Lairon. Lairon evolves from Aron at level 32. You can't legally GET a level 9 or under Lairon, so what business were they having in asking for an obviously hacked Pokemon?
From this experience, I came to see that what people said about the GTS being full of unrealistic offers is true.
I think there should be limits on what you can request from a trade, such as restrictions on what you could ask for depending on the Pokemon you put up (e.g. putting up a legendary Pokemon only allows you to ask for legendary Pokemon in return). Also, an inability to ask for a Pokemon under the level you can legally obtain it at should be implemented. I think it would go a way in curbing these incredibly stupid offers.
There is, though, a very slight ray of light in all this. I searched for Omanyte (one that I already have in the Pokedex), and found an actually reasonable offer from a person from the Ile de France in, well, France. She was offering a level 20 Omanyte, nicknamed Amonita, and wanted a Tropius of any level and gender in return. Despite already having Omanyte, I responded to the trade, trading my level 31 Tropius (which had no nickname since I migrated it from Ruby and forgot to name it then) for it. I figure that Amonita's original owner might as well be rewarded for not being monumentally stupid and wanting a level 100 Celebi for her Omanyte. Also, I just wanted to have the novelty value of a foreign Pokemon.
So now I have a French Omanyte.
I have never used this service before, and I was really enthusiastic about doing so, particularly since Pokemon Diamond had several interesting features.
One of these was the global trade station, or GTS for short. It enables players to trade Pokemon all over the world through Wi-Fi. You can either search for a Pokemon (within the parameters of species, gender, and level) or put one up yourself with what Pokemon you want in return. Since I couldn't get on Wi-Fi at home, putting one up was out of the question. So I searched for Pokemon, in case there were any that I didn't have and could trade for.
Well, this is a nice function, I hear you say. Well, yes, I agree with that, but in my mind the GTS is like the League of Nations; that is, much of it only really works in theory.
A problem with the search function is that you cannot look for Pokemon you haven't seen yourself. This meant that I couldn't go and get several species that I haven't obtained yet (mainly due to version exclusivity).
However, this problem paled in comparison with another. As I said, you can put up a Pokemon for trade along with what you want in return. The problem here is that most of the offers are FUCKING INSANE.
Not that this was a new problem, oh no. It has been around since the GTS was launched. I thought it would have lessened over time. I was wrong. Really, really, wrong.
Example: Someone put up a level 1 Ekans (a not-too-hard to get Pokemon), requesting a level 100 Palkia (which is a one-of-its-kind Pokemon) in return. Do they seriously expect that someone will actually go through with this trade? The Ekans wasn't even shiny or anything. It's like expecting someone to pay gold ingots for a few twigs you found on the ground a few metres away.
There were also offers that were downright impossible. Aside from Pokemon you can't even get outside of a cheating device nowadays, one person wanted a level 9 and under Lairon. Lairon evolves from Aron at level 32. You can't legally GET a level 9 or under Lairon, so what business were they having in asking for an obviously hacked Pokemon?
From this experience, I came to see that what people said about the GTS being full of unrealistic offers is true.
I think there should be limits on what you can request from a trade, such as restrictions on what you could ask for depending on the Pokemon you put up (e.g. putting up a legendary Pokemon only allows you to ask for legendary Pokemon in return). Also, an inability to ask for a Pokemon under the level you can legally obtain it at should be implemented. I think it would go a way in curbing these incredibly stupid offers.
There is, though, a very slight ray of light in all this. I searched for Omanyte (one that I already have in the Pokedex), and found an actually reasonable offer from a person from the Ile de France in, well, France. She was offering a level 20 Omanyte, nicknamed Amonita, and wanted a Tropius of any level and gender in return. Despite already having Omanyte, I responded to the trade, trading my level 31 Tropius (which had no nickname since I migrated it from Ruby and forgot to name it then) for it. I figure that Amonita's original owner might as well be rewarded for not being monumentally stupid and wanting a level 100 Celebi for her Omanyte. Also, I just wanted to have the novelty value of a foreign Pokemon.
So now I have a French Omanyte.