Pokémon GO Retro Cup – Great League Edition: Best Pokémon

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The game Pokémon GO is bringing back memories with its rose-colored glasses and encouraging players to join a tournament that harks back to the old days – the Retro Cup makes its return in its Great League version.

Retro Cup will run from September 2 to 9, 2025, alongside the Great League for one week.

In this GO Battle League tournament, a unique set of rules applies where participating Pokemon can have a maximum of 1,500 Combat Points (CP). This specific format is designed to resemble an earlier era in the Pokemon world, so Dark-, Steel-, and Fairy-type Pokemon are not allowed. The competition only accepts categories from the initial Pokemon games.

Demonstrate to your competition that bigger isn’t always better, by featuring the most effective Pokémon for the Pokémon GO Retro Cup – Great League Edition, as backed up by data and simulations from PvPoke.com.

Pokémon GO Retro Cup – GL Edition: Best Leads

In a battle, these Pokemon immediately put pressure on the opponent at the start, keeping them under constant attack. They’re resilient and can endure intense fights for quite some time. These Pokemon make excellent opening choices as they allow you to secure an early victory or establish a powerful counter strategy.

  1. Primeape (Karate Chop, Rage Fist, Close Combat)
  2. Kingdra [S] (Dragon Breath, Swift, Outrage)
  3. Shadow Charizard (Dragon Breath, Blast Burn, Air Cutter)
  4. Shadow Gyarados (Dragon Breath, Aqua Tail, Crunch)
  5. Shadow Giratina (Altered Forme) (Dragon Breath, Dragon Claw, Ancient Power)
  6. Dragonair [S] (Dragon Breath, Aqua Tail, Dragon Pulse)
  7. Oranguru (Confusion, Brutal Swing, Trailblaze)
  8. Shadow Primeape (Karate Chop, Rage Fist, Close Combat)
  9. Regidrago (Dragon Breath, Dragon Energy, Hyper Beam)
  10. Araquanid (Bug Bite, Water Pulse, Bubble Beam)

Pokémon marked with [S] perform similarly in their regular and Shadow forms.

Pokémon GO Retro Cup – GL Edition: Best Safe Switches

If the first Pokémon you’ve chosen isn’t working well for you, it might be wise to swap it out for another one. That’s when this type of Pokémon can be helpful. They are either powerful starting options or excel at countering common leads. Either way, making a switch allows you to save your original starter for later in the fight and potentially force your opponent to adjust their strategy as well.

  1. Kingdra [S] (Dragon Breath, Swift, Outrage)
  2. Crustle (Fury Cutter, X-Scissor, Rock Wrecker)
  3. Shadow Charizard (Dragon Breath, Blast Burn, Air Cutter)
  4. Shadow Dragonair (Dragon Breath, Aqua Tail, Dragon Pulse)
  5. Shadow Girafarig (Confusion, Psychic Fangs, Trailblaze)
  6. Shadow Giratina (Altered Forme) (Dragon Breath, Dragon Claw, Ancient Power)
  7. Shadow Crustle (Fury Cutter, X-Scissor, Rock Wrecker)
  8. Charizard (Dragon Breath, Blast Burn, Air Cutter)
  9. Shadow Gyarados (Dragon Breath, Aqua Tail, Crunch)
  10. Primeape (Karate Chop, Rage Fist, Close Combat)

Pokémon GO Retro Cup – GL Edition: Best Closers

These Pokemon prove extremely beneficial when both sides have exhausted their shields – they boast remarkable resilience or conclude battles swiftly by unleashing potent charge attacks that cannot be dodged unless a shield is available.

  1. Kommo-o (Dragon Tail, Clanging Scales, Upper Hand)
  2. Regidrago (Dragon Breath, Dragon Energy, Hyper Beam)
  3. Shadow Electivire (Thunder Shock, Ice Punch, Wild Charge)
  4. Shadow Dragonite (Dragon Breath, Thunder Punch, Superpower)
  5. Crustle (Fury Cutter, X-Scissor, Rock Wrecker)
  6. Shadow Giratina (Altered Forme) (Dragon Breath, Dragon Claw, Ancient Power)
  7. Shadow Toucannon (Peck, Drill Peck, Rock Blast)
  8. Shadow Toxicroak (Poison Sting, Dynamic Punch, Shadow Ball)
  9. Altaria (Dragon Breath, Sky Attack, Dragon Pulse)
  10. Arctibax (Dragon Breath, Avalanche, Dragon Claw)

Pokémon GO Retro Cup – GL Edition: Best Attackers

In battles, Pokemon are most effective against trainers who still have protection shields left, as you no longer possess any yourself. They make up for this situation by having essential resistance and potent fast attacks. Consequently, Shadow forms are rarely utilized in this role because they take more damage than their standard counterparts, making them a potentially hazardous card to play.

  1. Araquanid (Bug Bite, Water Pulse, Bubble Beam)
  2. Altaria (Dragon Breath, Sky Attack, Dragon Pulse)
  3. Oranguru (Confusion, Brutal Swing, Trailblaze)
  4. Dusclops [XL] (Hex, Ice Punch, Shadow Punch)
  5. Galarian Corsola [XL] (Astonish, Night Shade, Power Gem)
  6. Lickitung [XL] (Lick, Body Slam, Power Whip)
  7. Cresselia (Confusion, Grass Knot, Moonblast)
  8. Cradily (Acid, Rock Tomb, Grass Knot)
  9. Furret (Sucker Punch, Swift, Trailblaze)
  10. Jellicent (Hex, Surf, Shadow Ball)

Pokémon marked with [XL] require to be upgraded with Candy XL to reach optimal performance.

In the current Retro Cup competition, while veteran contenders such as Primeape and Araquanid continue to perform well, it’s evident that change is in the wind – with dragons dominating the top positions. Moreover, there’s a noticeable increase in Shadow Pokemon on the scene, adding an element of chance to team formation for players, as access to these variants isn’t as widespread compared to regular Pokemon.

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2025-09-03 15:53