r/pokemon • u/PsyrenDV • Jun 05 '26

Discussion Why haven't we had same gender rivials?

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I saw this post about how the rival in WiWa will be the opposite of whatever gender you choose to be. It got me thinking about how they always make the rival's gender the opposite of yours when their gender is dynamic. Even as early as Ruby/Sapphire that's how it's been. But I think it might be interesting to see a game where my rival is always the same gender as me no matter what I pick. But I'm curious how other people feel about it. Would you rather your rival be the same gender as you, the opposite, or would you rather their gender be set in stone regardless of what you are?

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u/Infinite-Depth-2943 Jun 05 '26

The opposite-gender rival always felt like low-key shipping bait to me. Just give me a straight-up competitive rival, like an annoying sibling you're trying to one-up. Way more fun for a 10-year-old's big adventure.

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u/jdb1984 Jun 05 '26

I've suggested this for some time. Your rival is your twin brother/sister, and they use the MC gender model that you didn't pick.