About

Greninja is a dual Water/Dark-type Pokémon introduced in Pokémon X and Y. The final evolution of the Water starter Pokémon Froakie, it garnered popularity due to its endearing design and has made numerous appearances in merchandise and related media, such as the live-action Detective Pikachu movie, and being a playable character in the fighting game series Super Smash Bros. In 2020, in a collaboration with Google, The Pokémon Company announced Greninja as Pokémon of the Year in commemoration of Pokémon Day after launching a poll through Google's search engine.

Origin

Greninja was one of 72 new Pokémon to debut in the sixth generation of games, Pokémon X and Y. A dual Water/Dark-type Pokémon, it is the final evolution of the Water-type starter Froakie and the evolved form of Frogadier, which it evolves from upon reaching level 36 in the main games (gameplay shown below, left). In addition, Greninja also has an alternate form, Ash-Greninja, that can be unlocked through the unique ability Battle Bond. This unique form, described as the result of a Bond Phenomenon, made its debut in the Pokémon anime series in 2015, before officially debuting in the core games through the Special Demo Version of Pokémon Sun and Moon. (trailer shown below, right)

Reception

Greninja has since been featured in numerous Pokémon-related media, including merchandise and an appearance in the live-action 2019 movie Pokémon: Detective Pikachu. It also was unveiled as a playable fighter in the fighting game series Super Smash Bros. starting in 2014, making its debut in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS / Wii U (colloquially referred to as Smash 4 or Sm4sh) and being featured again in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.

Pokémon Of The Year

In 2020, The Pokémon Company, in collaboration with Google, announced Greninja as Pokémon of the Year in commemoration of Pokémon Day after a 2 week long polling period, winning by over 38,000 votes after the second-place holder Lucario. (video shown below)

Fan Art

Related Memes

Mewtwo Vs. Greninja

Mewtwo vs. Greninja was a popular debate topic among fans of Nintendo's most recent Super Smash Bros. crossover fighting game, similar to Ridley is Too Big. After a trailer for the game was released revealed Greninja, and not Mewtwo would be included in the game, some fans became upset with the character choice, but the debate was later put to rest when both characters were ultimately included.

On April 8th, 2014, Nintendo released their newest trailer for the new Smash Bros, unveiling the Pokemon characters Charizard and Greninja.

Viewers were quick to share their reactions about the reveal, with many videos relating to Greninja's reveal appearing on YouTube the same day the trailer was released. Also on April 8th, YouTuber cobanermani456 uploaded the trailer with his real time reactions recorded over it. He expresses excitement when he believes the shadowed character will be Mewtwo, and disappointment, but not anger, when it's revealed to be Greninja. The video quickly became one of the most popular reaction videos, gaining over 260,000 views within two months.

Better Nerf Greninja

Better Nerf Greninja is an expression used by the Super Smash Bros community as a response to the nerfing of the Pokemon "Greninja" in the video game Super Smash Bros. 4 for the Wii U and Nintendo 3DS.

In versions 1.0.0 to 1.0.4, Greninja was a character that many gamers found to be balanced. However, people who mainly used Greninja began to notice that Greninja's attacks got weaker in the patches after 1.0.4. "Better Nerf Greninja" became popular mostly from EWNetwork, also known as Etika, and Smashboards, upon noticing the drastic changes. The most notable move that was nerfed was Shadow Sneak, in which a player could no longer be able to dash and Shadow Sneak at the same time, allowing for what is called a "mindgame," where the player confuses the opponent so that they can attack them without retaliation.

Search Interest

External References