Thoughts on Kaizo rules

Kaizo rules aren't perfect, but they don't need to be, since there are no leaderboards. Most people are able to understand the spirit of the challenge and play accordingly (e.g., don't grind for Memento kills on wilds, give yourself an equivalent punishment when you accidentally break the rules to your benefit).

Like all luck-based games, Kaizo isn't for everyone. Many people don't like losing hundreds of runs to factors outside of your control. However, many people like Kaizo because it feels like a legitimate challenge with a great degree of freedom, unlike the vast majority of Pokemon challenges/hacks. And the numbers speak for themselves -- many streamers have seen their viewership and engagement numbers double or triple after playing Kaizo.

One rule change I would suggest is to ban all luck-based items (in Mt. Moon and the undergrounds). Grinding for these items is time-consuming and boring for runners and viewers, and having extra items sometimes reduces the amount of strategic planning required to beat the game. Managing items is an important part of the run and one of the best features in Kaizo.

If this change were made, I would suggest also allowing runners to reset before Rival 1 if the combined BST of their Pokemon and their rival's is 600 or less. This would make the game a little easier to compensate for the added difficulty of having fewer items. Dying to random encounters because your baby Pokemon is Level 6 and has less than 10 Speed is not fun and involves very little strategy. It's also the most frustrating part of the game by far.