Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen may be your last chance to try this unique strategy

Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen they offered a different take on the original Kanto games when they came out, and they still felt fresh even after Gen 2 took players back to Kanto thanks to the addition of the Sevii Islands and the fact that the National Pokedex included Gen 3. These games can be all the more refreshing on the Nintendo Switch after 22 years since their GBA debut, whether for newcomers or veterans alike. I researched Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen with a new mindset on my Switch 2, which is to find the best strategies overall for each Pokemon, even the least used ones.

As always with Pokemon games, Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreenThe best and worst Pokemon aren't necessarily what you'd think of after playing a few games in the franchise. Gyarados has horrible moves that don't synergize with his Attack stat, Jynx is awesome throughout the game and even early on with her Ice Punch special damage at level 25 and the list goes on. I was going through the tutorial set for Arbok in Gen 3 right now because I'm trying to find a shiny Ekan and I wanted to plan ahead for when (or rather if) I'd get it, and one move caught my eye: Snatch.

Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen's Mt. Moon in the background, with angry Paras and Giovanni in the foreground

An explanation of the unwritten rules of Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen

Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen have plenty of secrets to discover and easy-to-miss facts, but fans can rely on the unspoken rules that apply to most runs.

The most underrated TM Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen is great against the gym leaders, the elite four

If you only played modern Pokemon games, you may never have heard of Snatch, and if you've never been into VGC much, you may have missed the move's existence as well. Snatch allows your Pokemon to steal your opponent's turn if you use it this turn. For example, Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreenSabrina can be a tough gym leader as she often uses status moves before attacking, but this also means you can steal them with Snatch to level up your Pokemon instead. In my case, Arbok could steal a calm mind to increase his Sp. Atk and Sp. Def and then deliver a stronger Bite since Dark is a special type in Gen 3.

To defeat Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen's Elite Four, you don't really need a fully optimized team. A lot of fans have shown that mid-range teams beat these trainers, or even challenged themselves that only Caterpie did it. That said, Snatch is by no means necessary and may slow down your experience a bit. However, this move was removed with the release of Gen 8 games and is unlikely to return due to difficult balancing and potential interactions with the Prankster that could be problematic. This leaves the Gen 3 Kanto Remake as the only titles on Switch and Switch 2 where this move is available.

Snatch was introduced in Generation 3 and is a move that always comes first, making your Pokemon ready to steal any status move used by the opponent. The move fails if a non-status move is used.
Z-Snatch saw some play in Gen 7, as it gave the user +2 to Speed regardless of whether the move was successful, so it could be used to steal an enemy's Tailwind, Dragon Dance, Swords Dance, and similar moves while boosting your Pokemon's Speed.
This move is no longer available in the series as of Gen 8.
Pokemon Let's Go Pikachu! and Eevee! moves didn't include Snatch, that means only Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen have it available on Switch.
Could have been interesting in Gen 9 VGC or the best Pokemon Champions teams at the start to counter some powerful strategies like Tera Ghost Tailwind to avoid Fake Out or Mega Charizard Y + Venusaur with Chlorophyll Sleep Powder.

Polygon quiz

Easy (15s) Medium (10s) Hard (5s)

TMs for Snatch can be found in Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen's Rocket Hideout in Celadon City.

Snatch is a double-edged sword in Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen

VGC aside, Snatch is a fun strategy to use against some powerful trainers Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreenespecially when the character's AI favors using status moves over attacking. Still, it has its limitations. For example, if Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen's Koga uses Toxic and you catch it, it will have no effect on Koga's Poison Pokemon.

Also, Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen's Koffing occasionally uses Self-Destruct, and using Snatch you can miss the action of your turn and then get hit by a powerful Self-Destruct. Koga isn't the only potentially problematic fight for Snatch, but it's worth noting if you want to use the strategy yourself.

Snatch should come back sometime Pokemon Ruby and Sapphire run on Switch since they leaked and it also makes sense since you can't complete the national Pokedex in FireRed and LeafGreen without them. But until then, this is the only way to use this move on Switch.