Move (UNITE)

A move (Japanese: わざ move) is a skill that Pokémon can use in Unite Battles in Pokémon UNITE.

Pokémon are able to use several moves from the core series games, with certain differences in gameplay between those games and Pokémon UNITE. In addition, Unite Moves are powerful moves unique to Pokémon UNITE.

Moves have one or two of several different categories, which loosely describes their general function. After being used, a move cannot be used again until its cooldown has passed.

Related, but separate from moves are basic attacks. These attacks are weaker than moves, but do not have cooldowns.

Mechanics

Input

Each move has an icon, and on the Nintendo Switch version an associated button. Using a move is done by pressing and releasing the icon on a mobile version or the button on the Switch version. Since moves are usually initiated only upon releasing the input, there is an opportunity for the player to reconsider using a move before releasing the input. A move can be cancelled by a pressing a dedicated cancel button before releasing the move's button on the Switch version or by dragging one's finger over to the cancel icon before lifting their finger from the screen. This prevents the Pokémon from using the move. This is a valuable tool because using a move against no other Pokémon still causes the move to enter its cooldown.

While the input for a move is held, the range of the move is indicated to the user by a blue shape projected on the ground. By default, moves that designate a direction or target are aimed at the nearest opposing Pokémon or directly forward if there is no opponent. Moves that designate an area aim at the nearest opposing Pokémon as well, but in the absence of that select the area around the user. The direction, target, or area can be manually changed while holding the move's input. Moves that designate a target select their target from a circular sector of their range, and cannot be performed if there are no targets in that sector; the text "No Target" briefly appears if a move could not be used due to this restriction.

Some moves, like Slowpoke's Water Gun and Kubfu's Rock Smash, are charged while holding down their input. For these moves, a yellow bar appears over the user, and fills up over time. Moves can have different effects when they are charged in this manner, usually becoming stronger. (Usually, there is a breaking point at halfway through the bar where the move has gained the maximum benefit from being charged) However, when the yellow bar reaches its maximum, the move is not performed at all. Instead, the move enters cooldown for a certain amount of time. (Usually, it is one second.) These moves can still be cancelled normally, but this also incurs this cooldown.

Certain moves, such as Blastoise's Water Spout while using Rapid Spin and Gyarados's Aqua Tail, have an effect that lasts for an extended period of time, but only as long as the input is held down. The amount of time the effects of these moves can last is indicated by an orange bar that starts filled and diminishes the longer the input is held until it disappears, causing the move to end. Moves that work in this manner can be ended early either by releasing the input or by using the cancel input. These moves only enter cooldown once the move ends.

When a Pokémon is taking certain actions, such as a launch from a springboard, or when a Pokémon is affected by most kinds of hindrances, moves cannot be used. In these cases, the move's icon will be greyed out and a cancel symbol will appear over the icon.

If the "Camera Follows Moves" option is toggled on, the camera will shift in the direction a move is being aimed in, should its direction not be entirely on screen with the default camera position. It is off by default. Moves that designate areas always do this regardless of setting

Lock-On

The direction, area, or target a move aims at by default depends on the player's Control Settings. This is based on the Opponent Lock-On Priority setting.

Depending on the setting, the Pokémon that determines the default aim can be the opposing Pokémon with the least HP, the least percentage of remaining HP, or the closest opponent. Pokémon on the opposing team are prioritized over wild Pokémon. Opposing Pokémon hidden via Stealth or Tall grass do not influence move aim, nor do opponents who cannot be seen because the user is under the effects of Vision Obscured.

When the "Automatically Lock-On to Targets" setting is on (it is by default), a move will have its aim snap to and continuously follow a target within range. If the player aims the move manually, this will be disabled for the duration of using that move.

Move properties

Certain moves, such as Zoroark's Feint Attack operate differently in certain situations, essientially being a second move that shares the same name and cooldown as the original. In some cases, this is caused by using a singular move multiple times, as with Feint Attack. Sometimes, moves changing in this way is described as a boosted version of the move, as with Miraidon's Charge Beam and Electro Drift.

Certain moves, such as Venusaur's Petal Dance and Eldegoss's Cotton Spore, have effects that last for a certain amount of time after using the move but are not tied to the move's effect duration. For these moves, an orange bar is displayed above the user. The bar represents how long the move's effect will last, either filling up or starting full and diminishing as the move's effect is active and disappearing after reaching its maximum or minimum which is when the move concludes. Notably, cooldowns start counting down when the move is activated, and not when the effect ends. This means that, if the cooldown for this kind of move is reduced to a small enough timer or otherwise skipped, the move can be used again while its effect is still running. This refreshes the effect of the move. (This can only happen when turning off move cooldowns in the Practice Area or through use of Panic Parade's Aeos Shooter boosts. This is largely non-applicable to normal gameplay.)

Some moves allow for using a different move or basic attack during their duration. In some cases, like Zeraora's Spark or Zoroark's Night Slash and Shadow Claw/Cut, this can modify the effect of the first move. In other cases, like Garchomp's Dragon Rush and Dragon Claw, this combines the effects of both moves into a single maneuver.

Some moves, such as Dragapult's Dragon Dance, modify the properties of the user's basic attack. Some moves change what a basic attack does, such as how Clefable uses a different basic attack while under the effect of its Gravity. Other moves, such as Azumarill's Play Rough and Aqua Tail, change their user's basic attacks in lieu of attacking when the move is used.

Cooldown and uses

After being used, each move goes through a cooldown period. During this cooldown period, the move is unable to be used. Some Pokemon have effects that can reduce the time a move spends in cooldown or skip a cooldown period entirely. Cooldowns are measured in seconds.

For moves that can be charged, cancelling them or charging them for too long incurs a one second cooldown for that move.

Some moves can have multiple uses stored up at once. Activating these moves only spends one of their uses, and the uses for those moves regenerate over time. These moves only fully enter cooldown when all uses have been spent. This is distinct from moves that can be used multiple times, as stored uses are not required to be spent within an effect duration.

Some moves have an effect duration period they go through before entering cooldown. This effect duration is used by other effects relating to that move. The majority of effect durations are tied to a move's continuous effect, and in those cases using the move during its effect duration concludes the move early. In multiple other cases, a move can be used more than one time before it enters cooldown. The effect duration indicates the amount of time available to make use of these additional uses before the move enters cooldown. If this happens, the remaining uses are essentially lost. In the case of moves being usable more than twice in this way, the effect duration resets between uses of the move. Once all available uses have been used, the move will simply enter the cooldown period.

In some cases, inputting a move for a second time during its effect duration initiates a second step of the move. Two examples of this are Mew being allowed to pick up a Light Screen that it has placed and Meowscarada swapping places with the copy of itself during Double Team.

Note that if a Pokémon initiates a move but does not complete the move (likely because it was afflicted with a hindrance of some kind during the animation, the move will still enter cooldown. Some moves cause their user to become unstoppable for their duration, which renders them immune to hindrances and therefore this mechanic.

Move variations

While moves in UNITE are based on moves from the core series and generally adhere to the concept of the move, a move can have different effects depending on which Pokémon knows the move. For instance, all variations on Surf involve the user attacking with a wave of water. However, Slowbro's, Blastoise's, Greninja's, and Mew's Surf have the user ride the wave of water forward while Cramorant's Surf sends a wave out at opponents that returns at the end of its range. Even among move uses that are similar, different Pokémon have different effects for their moves. Slowbro's Surf is a Hindrance move that throws opposing Pokémon and is followed by two waves washing over the same area as the first, while Blastoise's Surf is a Dash move that shoves and stuns opposing Pokémon and allows Blastoise to hop off of the wave as the attack ends.

Learning moves

Each playable Pokémon can know a maximum of three moves at any given time; one of these moves is their Unite Move, while the other two are standard moves. At level 1, a Pokémon learns one of two moves, deferring learning the second move until they reach a level of 2 or 3. After reaching a specific, higher level (ranging from 4 to 7), the Pokémon learns its choice of one of two moves to replace one of the moves it learned at level 1 or 3. The other move of that choice cannot be learned for the rest of the battle. The new moves can only replace the move that they are associated with. For instance, at Level 4, Pikachu learns either Electro Ball or Thunder, but those moves can only replace its Thunder Shock. Generally, the new moves are improved versions of the move they are replacing. However, in some cases, such as with Eldegoss, the moves that replace a move can have unrelated effects. Sometime during the range of Level 6 through 9, the same process occurs again, but for the move that was not replaced in the Level 4 to 7 range. To continue the example, Pikachu learns either Volt Tackle or Thunderbolt, but only to replace the other move it knew at Level 3, Electroweb. At even higher levels, the moves that a Pokémon knows are upgraded into a + version which is better than the base move in some manner. + moves may deal more damage, increase the potency of the buffs they provide, reduce the time the move spends in cooldown, or provide other effects.

When a Pokémon is learning a move, a menu will appear allowing for a choice to be made. If a choice is not provided within a certain time frame, the game will automatically pick a move. For the Level 1/2/3 moves, the decision on which move to learn first is determined by the species of the Pokémon. For the moves learned at higher levels, the decision is also determined by the species but can be overridden by the player by choosing a particular move to be "Auto-set" from the menu for that Pokémon. Despite not involving a choice, an input must be made or a timer waited through in order for a Pokémon to upgrade a move or learn their Unite Move.

Special cases

Move Reset icon

For the Pokémon Scyther and Kubfu, learning specific moves is tied to their evolution. Kubfu evolves into Single Strike Style Urshifu by learning Wicked Blow over its Rock Smash or Rapid Strike Style Urshifu by learning Surging Strikes over Rock Smash. Each Urshifu form learns a singular different move to replace Headbutt, preventing the player from making a choice at that junction. Scyther evolves into Scizor if it learns Bullet Punch and forgets Fury Cutter, but will not evolve at all if it learns Dual Wingbeat instead. For these Pokémon, their evolution is delayed until the decision regarding the move learned is made.

Mew in Pokémon UNITE is an exception to the process of learning moves. Instead of the above process, Mew has the choice of learning one move out of three options at Level 1 and a second choice of one move out of three different options at Level 3. At Level 5, Mew gains a unique icon, Move Reset, which allows it to forget all of the non-Unite Moves it knows. At this point, Mew can re-select the moves it wishes to learn, and is allowed to make different decisions each time it uses Move Reset.

Another unique case is Blaziken, who is given only one option to replace its two starting moves, those being Blaze Kick and Overheat respectively replacing Ember and Aerial Ace. In return, Blaziken's Unite Move has a unique property in that it allows it to completely switch both of its moves with its other set of moves at will, with the original move set being referred to as the Kick Style and its other move set, Fire Punch and Focus Blast, being referred to as the Punch Style. Swapping between the Punch and Kick Styles also changes the properties of Blaziken's basic attacks and Unite Move.

Gyarados presents yet another exception. It learns both of its moves to replace its first two moves, Splash and Flail, immediately after evolving from Magikarp instead of at specific levels. This evolution can also occur at any level from 1 to 6, due to Magikarp's ability to evolve if it fills its effort gauge. (Magikarp normally evolves at level 7.)

Wild Pokémon

Some Wild Pokémon are able to use moves in ways similar to player-controlled Pokémon. When a wild Pokémon prepares to use a move, its range can be seen by all players as a red shape projected on the ground. In some cases, the exact time until the move is performed is represented by that red shape filling up in a lighter shade of red, with a filled projection immediately preceding the move's use. In other cases, a yellow bar appears just above the Pokémon, and when that is full the move is performed. In other cases, there is no indication other than the animation of the move. Wild Pokémon do not change the trajectory of their moves based on the movement of their target.

Unite Move

Pikachu using the Unite Move Thunderstorm

A Unite Move is powerful move that is unique to Pokémon UNITE. Unite Moves can only be learned and used in Unite Battles ^[1]. Each Pokémon has a single Unite Move, which is learned at either Level 8 or 9 depending on the species. These moves do not have cooldowns like normal moves, with the exception of Dragapult and Blaziken's. Instead, in order to use them, the player must have a full Unite Move gauge. The Unite Move gauge slowly fills up on its own, and defeating Pokemon and scoring goals also contribute to filling the gauge. Once a Unite Move is used, the Unite Move gauge is emptied. The gauge can be filled before the Pokémon learns its Unite Move. Some Unite Moves are based upon other moves in the core series, but have distinct names.

Unite Moves do not necessarily inflict damage. Some of them provide their user a major buff or apply certain effects to the ground.

Using a Unite Move gives the user a special effect for a brief period of time. This effect varies by Unite Move, but always includes a movement speed increase. It is indicated by a user glowing blue.

The Pokémon Urshifu and Blaziken can learn two Unite Moves. The Unite Move Urshifu learns depends on its form, and the Unite Move Blaziken knows at a given time depends on if it is currently in Punch Style or Kick Style.

List of Unite Moves

Pokemon	Unite Move
Venusaur	Verdant Anger
Charizard	Seismic Slam
Blastoise	Hydro Typhoon
Pikachu	Thunderstorm
Clefable	Wonder Wish
Alolan Ninetales	Snow Globe
Wigglytuff	Starlight Recital
Machamp	Barrage Blow
Slowbro	Slowbeam
Dodrio	Triple Trample
Gengar	Phantom Ambush
Mr. Mime	Showtime!
Scyther	Green Illusion Dive
Scizor	Red Illusion Dive
Gyarados	Dragon Current
Lapras	Lapras Express
Snorlax	Power Nap
Dragonite	Draco Impact
Mewtwo (X)	Infinite Psyburn
Mewtwo (Y)	Infinite Psyburn
Mew	Mystical Mirage
Azumarill	Belly Bash
Espeon	Psychic Solare
Umbreon	Moonlight Prance
Blissey	Bliss Assistance
Tyranitar	Tryrannical Rampage
Blaziken	Spinning Flame Fist
Blaziken	Spinning Flame Kick
Gardevoir	Fairy Singularity
Sableye	Chaos Glower
Absol	Midnight Slash
Metagross	Compute and Crush
Garchomp	Livid Outrage
Lucario	Aura Cannon
Leafeon	Emerald Two-Step
Glaceon	Glacial Stage
Mamoswine	Mammoth Mash
Crustle	Rubble Rouser
Zoroark	Nightfall Daze
Chandelure	Ignite Midnight
Delphox	Fanciful Fireworks
Greninja	Waterburst Shuriken
Talonflame	Flame Sweep
Aegislash	Coup de Grace
Sylveon	Fairy Frolic
Goodra	Right as Rain
Trevenant	Phantom Forest
Hoopa	Rings Unbound
Decidueye	Nock Nock
Tsareena	Queen Ascendant
Comfey	Flowery Fields Forever
Mimikyu	Play with Me...
Buzzwole	Ultra Swole Slam
Zeraora	Plasma Gale
Cinderace	Blazing Bicycle Kick
Inteleon	Azure Spy Vision
Greedent	Berry Belly Flop
Eldegoss	Cotton Cloud Crash
Cramorant	Gatling Gulp Missile
Duraludon	Revolving Ruin
Dragapult	Dreep and Destroy
Zacian	Sovereign Sword
Urshifu (Single Strike Style)	Ebon Fist
Urshifu (Rapid Strike Style)	Flowing Fists
Meowscarada	Floral Flourish
Miraidon	Bright Future Meteor Storm

Panic Parade

In Panic Parade, some moves have different effects compared to what they do in other game modes. This can apply to both the players' Pokémon and the wild Pokémon.

Basic attack

This section is incomplete.
Please feel free to edit this section to add missing information and complete it.
Reason: Add a short summary about basic attacks here while keeping the full details on the basic attack page

Main article: Basic attack

Each Pokémon has a basic attack separate from its moves. Basic attacks can be used freely and do not have cooldowns, but are not as strong as moves.

References

↑ Pokémon UNITE press release

This article is part of Project Sidegames, a Bulbapedia project that aims to write comprehensive articles on the Pokémon Sidegames.

[1] Pokémon UNITE press release

[1]