10 Toughest Battles In Pokémon History
Online battling might be the big test, but Pokémon's in-game feuds have been just as tricky.
If you're an avid watcher of the various Pokémon anime series', you've probably always had a certain unsureness about the actual prowess of other battling trainers. With protagonist Ash's abilities as a trainer shifting from masterful to infantile within the space of a couple of episodes, it's hard to get a real gauge on what the Gym Leaders and Elite Trainers are actually like.
Fortunately, of course, we don't just have to rely on Ash's antics to get our Pokémon fix. With six generations of main series games out there, we've had plenty of our own encounters with the supposed best of the best. And with twenty years of battling experience, it's easy to remember which foes were the toughest.
Online battling is obviously the most gruelling of challenges these days, but there's always been just as much fun to be hand in the single player journey. With some devilish gym leaders and imperious champions, the Pokémon series has put its fans in some really sticky situations over time.
So, it's time to meet the characters and Pokémon responsible. Here we have ten of the toughest battles in Pokémon history.