Earlier this month, the Pokemon Company International announced the rules for the next Video Game Championship Series format, bringing the controversial mega evolution and a much wider selection of Pokémon back into tournament play.

With updated mega evolutions, Z-moves and a slew of competitive staples returning to the fold, 2018 will give players more room to innovate while also adding some stability to last season's chaotic metagame.

Out of hundreds of potential choices, competitive Pokémon players can only bring six Alolan monsters into a battleground. Three months in, despite the uncertainty of the overall metagame, some picks are turning up more often than others.