I’ve always been curious about the move ‘Detect.’ It’s called that because it supposedly “detects and avoids” attacks, right? That’s how it’s shown in the anime and even in the game descriptions until Sword and Shield. Its Japanese name is “All-Seeing,” which adds to the confusion. So why do the games say the Pokémon “protected itself” when it uses Detect and show a barrier like Protect does in Pokémon Sun and Moon? That doesn’t seem right, since Detect doesn’t create a barrier; it feels more like a predictive move. Also, how does Detect interact with moves like Swift or Shadow Punch that can’t miss? Shouldn’t those attacks just hit right through Detect?
6 Answers
I think it’s just easier for them to re-use animations. Instead of creating a whole new animation for Detect, they defaulted to showing that the attack didn’t connect. It’s all about time and budget, unfortunately.
Detect is basically a clone of Protect, just needed for certain Pokémon for thematic reasons. It’s more about predicting the opponent’s move rather than blocking damage outright.
The wording about ‘protecting itself’ is just how effects are framed in the game. They use standard texts for consistency, making it easier for players to understand. It’s all for clarity’s sake!
This might be overthinking the details. Lots of moves don’t align perfectly with their descriptions. It’s really just a flavor choice. They might prefer ‘avoid’ for some Pokémon and ‘block’ for others, even if they function the same way.
It all boils down to production resources. There’s a lot of reuse of animations, just like with how various status effects are shown in battle.
I don’t get how showing a hacked game clip supports that point. Who cares if Skitty uses a Z-Move?
Functionally, Detect acts just like Protect. It could be worded better to just say the Pokémon avoided the attack instead of saying it protected itself, though.
They should focus on making the animations better instead of cramming every Pokémon into every game. But hey, game development isn’t easy!