Skip to main content
GamesRadar+ GamesRadar+
US EditionUS CA EditionCanada UK EditionUK AU EditionAustralia
Sign in
  • View Profile
  • Sign out
  • Games
    • Game Insights
      • Games News
      • Games Features
      • Games Reviews
      • Games Guides
      • Big in 2026
      • The Big Preview
      • On The Radar
      • Indie Spotlight
      • Future Games Show
      • Golden Joystick Awards
    • Genres
      • Action Games
      • RPGs
      • Action RPGs
      • Adventure Games
      • Third Person Shooters
      • FPS Games
    • Platforms
      • PS5
      • Xbox Series X
      • PC
      • Nintendo Switch
      • Nintendo Switch 2
      • Tabletop Gaming
    • Franchises
      • Grand Theft Auto
      • Pokemon
      • Assassin's Creed
      • Monster Hunter
      • Fortnite
      • Cyberpunk
      • Red Dead
      • The Elder Scrolls
      • The Sims
  • Entertainment
    • TV Shows
      • TV News
      • TV Reviews
      • Anime Shows
      • Sci-Fi Shows
      • Superhero Shows
      • Animated Shows
      • Marvel TV Shows
      • Star Wars TV Shows
      • DC TV Shows
    • Movies
      • Movie News
      • Movie Reviews
      • Big Screen Spotlight
      • Superhero Movies
      • Action Movies
      • Anime Movies
      • Sci-Fi Movies
      • Horror Movies
      • Marvel Movies
      • DC Movies
    • Streaming
      • Apple TV Plus
      • Disney Plus
      • Netflix
      • HBO
      • Amazon Prime Video
      • Hulu
    • Comics
      • Marvel Comics
      • DC Comics
    • Toys & Collectibles
    • Lego
    • Dungeons and Dragons
    • Merch
  • Hardware
    • Insights
      • Hardware News
      • Hardware Reviews
      • Hardware Features
    • Computing
      • Desktop PCs
      • Laptops
      • Handhelds
    • Peripherals
      • Headsets & Headphones
      • TVs & Monitors
      • Gaming Mice
      • Gaming Keyboards
      • Gaming Chairs
      • Speakers & Audio
    • Accessories & Tech
      • Gaming Controllers
      • Tech
      • SSDs & Hard Drives
      • VR
      • Accessories
      • Retro
  • Deals
    • Game Deals
    • Tech Deals
    • TV Deals
    • Buying Guides
  • Video
  • Newsletters
    • Quizzes
    • About Us
    • How to pitch to us
    • How we score
    • Newsarama
    • Retro Gamer
    • Total Film
  • home
  • Games
    • View Games
      • Games News
      • Games Features
      • Games Reviews
      • Games Guides
      • Big in 2026
      • The Big Preview
      • On The Radar
      • Indie Spotlight
      • Future Games Show
      • Golden Joystick Awards
      • Action Games
      • RPGs
      • Action RPGs
      • Adventure Games
      • Third Person Shooters
      • FPS Games
    • Platforms
      • View Platforms
      • PS5
      • Xbox Series X
      • PC
      • Nintendo Switch
      • Nintendo Switch 2
      • Tabletop Gaming
      • Grand Theft Auto
      • Pokemon
      • Assassin's Creed
      • Monster Hunter
      • Fortnite
      • Cyberpunk
      • Red Dead
      • The Elder Scrolls
      • The Sims
  • Entertainment
    • View Entertainment
    • TV Shows
      • View TV Shows
      • TV News
      • TV Reviews
      • Anime Shows
      • Sci-Fi Shows
      • Superhero Shows
      • Animated Shows
      • Marvel TV Shows
      • Star Wars TV Shows
      • DC TV Shows
    • Movies
      • View Movies
      • Movie News
      • Movie Reviews
      • Big Screen Spotlight
      • Superhero Movies
      • Action Movies
      • Anime Movies
      • Sci-Fi Movies
      • Horror Movies
      • Marvel Movies
      • DC Movies
    • Streaming
      • View Streaming
      • Apple TV Plus
      • Disney Plus
      • Netflix
      • HBO
      • Amazon Prime Video
      • Hulu
    • Comics
      • View Comics
      • Marvel Comics
      • DC Comics
    • Toys & Collectibles
    • Lego
    • Dungeons and Dragons
    • Merch
  • Hardware
    • View Hardware
      • Hardware News
      • Hardware Reviews
      • Hardware Features
      • Desktop PCs
      • Laptops
      • Handhelds
    • Peripherals
      • View Peripherals
      • Headsets & Headphones
      • TVs & Monitors
      • Gaming Mice
      • Gaming Keyboards
      • Gaming Chairs
      • Speakers & Audio
      • Gaming Controllers
      • Tech
      • SSDs & Hard Drives
      • VR
      • Accessories
      • Retro
  • Deals
    • View Deals
    • Game Deals
    • Tech Deals
    • TV Deals
    • Buying Guides
  • Video
  • Newsletters
    • Quizzes
    • About Us
    • How to pitch to us
    • How we score
    • Newsarama
    • Retro Gamer
    • Total Film
Trending
  • Pokemon Winds and Waves
  • New Games for 2026
  • GamesRadar+ Replay
  • Mario Day deals
Don't miss these
Pokemon Red and Blue key art
Pokemon Pokemon boss has a very straightforward plan for future releases: "keep making fun games"
Key art for Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen showing Venasaur against a swirling green background, cropped for a header image
Pokemon Pokemon FireRed/LeafGreen speedrunner finishes the re-releases in under 3 hours, discovers Legendary events are included
A screenshot from the Pokemon Pokopia trailer shows Ditto transformed into a human.
Pokemon 13 things I wish I knew before starting Pokemon Pokopia
A screenshot of Raikou as seen in the Pokemon anime.
Pokemon Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen Switch re-releases patch a bug that could make certain legendaries disappear permanently
Pokemon Gold and Silver
Pokemon The best Pokemon games, ranked from worst to best
Screenshot from LumenTale: Memories of Trey, showing a top-down image of a boy running across concrete pavement with the beach in the background.
RPGs Dismissing Pokemon comparisons would make us "hypocrites," creature-collecting RPG devs say after $186,000 Kickstarter
Pokemon Red and Blue key art
Pokemon OG Pokemon devs struggled to fit their iconic RPG onto a Game Boy cartridge: "It was a fight against capacity"
Pokemon
Anime Shows How to watch Pokemon in order: a complete guide to the TV show and movies
Pokemon TCG Pocket
Pokemon Best PTCGP decks tier list (March 2026)
Ash holding his fist up with Pikachu on his shoulders during Pokemon the Movie: I Choose You.
Pokemon The best Pokemon movies of all time, ranked from worst to very best
Pokemon TCG Pocket best decks
Pokemon All Pokemon TCG Pocket Secret Missions (Updated for Paldean Wonders)
Screenshot from Wonderful Neoran Valley, showing a blue-haired creature in a plain black room.
RPGs Pokemon and Balatro-inspired roguelike doubled its Kickstarter goal in 20 minutes and is now 570% funded
Pokemon Pokopia screenshot showing Charmander, Bulbasaur, and Squirtle all gathered around a Ditto in human form between two green trees
Pokemon After 30 years, Pokemon Pokopia finally answers an important question for "the hardcore lore freaks"
Official art of Pikachu from Pokemon Yellow in front of a blurred background
Pokemon Coming back to Pokemon Yellow 30 years later is like coming home – and playing it in 2026 is even better than when I was a kid
Final Fantasy 9
Final Fantasy Putting FromSoftware challenge sickos to shame, one fan smashes Final Fantasy 9's skip rope challenge blindfolded
  1. Games
  2. Adventure Games
  3. Pokemon

Pokemon streamer beats the hardest challenge the RPG offers after 4,000 attempts over 15 months, all thanks to the Flareon that could

News
By Issy van der Velde published 18 December 2024

The under-appreciated Eeveelution finally gets its time in the spotlight

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

A Flareon in a top hat from the Pokemon anime
(Image credit: The Pokemon Company)
  • Facebook
  • X
  • Pinterest
  • Flipboard
  • Email
Share this article
Join the conversation
Follow us
Add us as a preferred source on Google
Get the GamesRadar+ Newsletter

Weekly digests, tales from the communities you love, and more


By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

You are now subscribed

Your newsletter sign-up was successful


Want to add more newsletters?

GamesRadar+

Every Friday

GamesRadar+

Your weekly update on everything you could ever want to know about the games you already love, games we know you're going to love in the near future, and tales from the communities that surround them.

GTA 6 O'clock

Every Thursday

GTA 6 O'clock

Our special GTA 6 newsletter, with breaking news, insider info, and rumor analysis from the award-winning GTA 6 O'clock experts.

Knowledge

Every Friday

Knowledge

From the creators of Edge: A weekly videogame industry newsletter with analysis from expert writers, guidance from professionals, and insight into what's on the horizon.

The Setup

Every Thursday

The Setup

Hardware nerds unite, sign up to our free tech newsletter for a weekly digest of the hottest new tech, the latest gadgets on the test bench, and much more.

Switch 2 Spotlight

Every Wednesday

Switch 2 Spotlight

Sign up to our new Switch 2 newsletter, where we bring you the latest talking points on Nintendo's new console each week, bring you up to date on the news, and recommend what games to play.

The Watchlist

Every Saturday

The Watchlist

Subscribe for a weekly digest of the movie and TV news that matters, direct to your inbox. From first-look trailers, interviews, reviews and explainers, we've got you covered.

SFX

Once a month

SFX

Get sneak previews, exclusive competitions and details of special events each month!


An account already exists for this email address, please log in.
Subscribe to our newsletter

Pokemon Nuzlockes became incredibly popular in the last few years, but there's an even harder challenge out there, one so difficult it took streamer PointCrow 15 months and almost 4,000 attempts to complete it.

The Kaizo Ironmon challenge is the most difficult test of Pokemon skill out there at the moment. You can read the full list of rules here, but the most important ones you should know about are as follows: Pokemon, movesets, and items are all randomized; you can only use one 'mon; enemy levels are increased by 50%; you can't use Pokemon with a base stat total (BST) of 600 or more, and you can't kill wild Pokemon, so no extra XP. The randomizers also switch all the stats of each Pokemon – its Attack stat may become its Speed, or its HP could turn into Defense.

So, you can see why this is such a tough challenge to beat. It takes a lot of luck, as you need a Pokemon with a BST as close to 600 as possible, but it also needs its highest stat to be in either Attack or Special Attack, as well as decent Speed. It also takes an absurd amount of determination, as runs regularly last thousands of attempts. Fortunately, PointCrow was able to commit.

You may like
  • A screenshot of Poketopia in Pokemon Battle Revolution. Pokemon player spends 5+ years completing one of the weirdest Shiny hunts in history
  • Key art for Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen showing Venasaur against a swirling green background, cropped for a header image Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen have been on Switch for over a week, but many players are still stuck in Oak's Lab
  • Pokemon The Pokemon Day return of FireRed and LeafGreen has me reminiscing over the series' most lucrative XP farm

He won his FireRed/LeafGreen run using a Flareon that had Tri Attack, Brick Break, Aerial Ace, and Bulk Up, the perfect moveset for the Eeveelution as it could raise its Attack with Bulk Up, making all its moves more effective. Aerial Ace also means any ghost types or pesky Shedninja with Wonder Guard could be taken care of.

In the clip of his victory, as he makes the final move, an Aerial Ace against champion Gary's Dugtrio, he shouts "3,978 resets and a dream! Let's go!" It's a triumphant moment, one that not many others can brag about.

SmallAnt completed a Kaizo Ironmon last year and called it "Pokemon's hardest challenge." It took him a comparatively low 1,786 attempts, and he won with a Skarmory. Having a Pokemon with any type immunities is incredibly helpful in an Ironmon. He later completed Pokemon Sun with a custom ruleset his chat came up with, which included playing in German (a language he doesn't speak) and having to do 10 actual push ups every time one of his 'mons fainted.

If you want to get back into these classic adventures, check out our ranking of the best Pokemon games.

Sign up to the GamesRadar+ Newsletter

Weekly digests, tales from the communities you love, and more

By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.
CATEGORIES
Nintendo Switch Platforms Nintendo
Issy van der Velde
Issy van der Velde
Social Links Navigation
Contributor

I'm Issy, a freelancer who you'll now occasionally see over here covering news on GamesRadar. I've always had a passion for playing games, but I learned how to write about them while doing my Film and TV degrees at the University of Warwick and contributing to the student paper, The Boar. After university I worked at TheGamer before heading up the news section at Dot Esports. Now you'll find me freelancing for Rolling Stone, NME, Inverse, and many more places. I love all things horror, narrative-driven, and indie, and I mainly play on my PS5. I'm currently clearing my backlog and loving Dishonored 2.

Read more
A screenshot of Poketopia in Pokemon Battle Revolution.
Pokemon player spends 5+ years completing one of the weirdest Shiny hunts in history
 
 
Key art for Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen showing Venasaur against a swirling green background, cropped for a header image
Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen have been on Switch for over a week, but many players are still stuck in Oak's Lab
 
 
Pokemon
The Pokemon Day return of FireRed and LeafGreen has me reminiscing over the series' most lucrative XP farm
 
 
A screenshot of Swampert in the Pokemon anime series.
Pokemon Emerald speedrunning has been changed forever after the discovery of a very specific lonely Mudkip
 
 
Moltres flies onto the screen in the Pokemon anime
Proving the universe has favorites, Pokemon Blue player accidentally catches a shiny legendary they couldn't even see
 
 
Pokemon Red and Blue key art
OG Pokemon devs struggled to fit their iconic RPG onto a Game Boy cartridge: "It was a fight against capacity"
 
 
Latest in Pokemon
Key art for Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen showing Venasaur against a swirling green background, cropped for a header image
Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen have been on Switch for over a week, but many players are still stuck in Oak's Lab
 
 
A ditto takes a selfie when visiting the Pokopia developer island
How to visit the Pokopia developer island
 
 
Pickmon
Pokemon and Palworld clones are officially out of hand, as fans react to "lawsuitmaxxing" new game Pickmon
 
 
A ditto who looks like a human smiles for a selfie in front of the Pokopia area map.
How many areas there are in Pokemon Pokopia?
 
 
A scenic shot of duckweed growing under a waterfall in Pokemon Pokopia
How to make and move duckweed in Pokemon Pokopia
 
 
Pokopia
Pokopia builds are already blowing minds, proving fans are as creative as Animal Crossing and Minecraft players
 
 
Latest in News
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 Gustave winces
"The first track spoils the whole game": Clair Obscur Expedition 33 dev confirms it was filling your ears with spoilers
 
 
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 lead Gustave faces a gommage
Clair Obscur Expedition 33 took inspiration from a surprising anime - Soul Eater creator's Fire Force
 
 
A close-up of Grace talking with someone through glass in Resident Evil Requiem
Resident Evil Requiem leads let actors re-do "technically" perfect scenes if it made them happy, says Grace actor
 
 
Kratos approaches Aphrodite's bedchamber in God of War 3
"The God of War sex mini-games were designed by women," which is why Aphrodite's bed looks "like a labia"
 
 
Alan Ritchson in Reacher season 3
Reacher star Alan Ritchson says season 4 is coming this year: "It's by far the best season we've had yet"
 
 
Spider-Noir aiming his webshooter
Spider-Noir is the "same character, different version": "It's not a continuation of Into The Spider-Verse"
 
 
LATEST ARTICLES
  1. Mario riding Yoshi through space with Luigi and Peach flying along beside him
    1
    The Super Mario Galaxy Movie reveals Donald Glover as the voice of Yoshi and more new casting in a star-spanning trailer that sends the entire Mushroom Kingdom to another planet
  2. 2
    Reacher star Alan Ritchson says season 4 is coming this year: "It's by far the best season we've had yet"
  3. 3
    Clair Obscur Expedition 33 took inspiration from a surprising anime - Soul Eater creator's Fire Force: "Because it was a JRPG, we tried to find a mix"
  4. 4
    "The God of War sex mini-games were designed by women," former Sony Santa Monica writer says, which is why Aphrodite's bed looks "like a labia"
  5. 5
    Resident Evil Requiem leads let actors re-do "technically" perfect scenes if it made them happy, says Grace actor: "'If you didn't feel it, we need to do it again'"

GamesRadar+ is part of Future US Inc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site.

Add as a preferred source on Google Add as a preferred source on Google
  • Terms and conditions
  • Contact Future's experts
  • Privacy policy
  • Cookies policy
  • Accessibility statement
  • Careers
  • About us
  • Advertise with us
  • Review guidelines
  • Write for us
  • Accessibility Statement

© Future US, Inc. Full 7th Floor, 130 West 42nd Street, New York, NY 10036.

Please login or signup to comment

Please wait...