PokéSurvivor guide: best starter, gacha & tips
PokéSurvivor is a free fan-made Pokémon survivor game for the browser. This guide ranks every partner you can start with, explains the gacha and move evolution, and collects the habits that keep a run alive.
- Best starter: all 29 partners ranked
- Full PokéSurvivor tier list — partners and the strongest gacha Pokémon
- All 97 move evolutions and the card each one needs
- Gacha rates, pity and shinies
- Tips to survive longer · FAQ
PokéSurvivor is an unofficial fan game (Pokémon belongs to Nintendo, Creatures and GAME FREAK). It is free with no ads or purchases; the only official site is pokesurvivor.com. Fan games can be taken down without notice.
How to play PokéSurvivor
- Answer a short personality quiz (as in Pokémon Mystery Dungeon) and the game suggests a partner; you can turn it down and pick another.
- Move with WASD or the arrow keys (drag anywhere on a phone, in landscape). Your Pokémon attacks on its own with the active move; switch moves with 1–4 or Q/E.
- Collect experience to level up, then pick one of three cards: a new move, an upgrade to a move you have, or a stat boost.
- Wild Pokémon heal, shield, summon help, explode or fire telegraphed beams. Rare rifts open a fight with a legendary Pokémon in an arena of its type.
- Coins buy permanent upgrades for your partner; tickets you earn by playing pay for the gacha, which is how you collect more Pokémon.
Best starter in PokéSurvivor
You can start with any of the 27 regional starters or with Psyduck or Slowpoke. They all begin as basic forms with similar total stats, so the differences are small — but they are real. Ranked by the game's own numbers for damage, health and speed:
| # | Tier | Partner | Type | Region | First move | Damage × | HP | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | S | Scorbunny | Fire | Galar | Ember | 1.09 | 92 | 107 |
| 2 | S | Sobble | Water | Galar | Water Gun | 1.08 | 92 | 107 |
| 3 | S | Slowpoke | Water / Psychic | Kanto | Confusion | 1.06 | 110 | 84 |
| 4 | S | Mudkip | Water | Hoenn | Water Gun | 1.08 | 92 | 95 |
| 5 | S | Grookey | Grass | Galar | Vine Whip | 1.06 | 92 | 105 |
| 6 | S | Psyduck | Water | Kanto | Confusion | 1.06 | 92 | 101 |
| 7 | A | Treecko | Grass | Hoenn | Razor Leaf | 1.06 | 88 | 107 |
| 8 | A | Torchic | Fire | Hoenn | Ember | 1.08 | 90 | 97 |
| 9 | A | Turtwig | Grass | Sinnoh | Vine Whip | 1.07 | 95 | 91 |
| 10 | A | Tepig | Fire | Unova | Ember | 1.05 | 99 | 97 |
| 11 | A | Litten | Fire | Alola | Ember | 1.06 | 90 | 107 |
| 12 | A | Fuecoco | Fire | Paldea | Ember | 1.05 | 100 | 93 |
| 13 | A | Quaxly | Water | Paldea | Water Gun | 1.06 | 95 | 99 |
| 14 | A | Totodile | Water | Johto | Water Gun | 1.06 | 92 | 96 |
| 15 | A | Oshawott | Water | Unova | Water Gun | 1.05 | 95 | 97 |
| 16 | B | Popplio | Water | Alola | Bubble | 1.06 | 92 | 95 |
| 17 | B | Bulbasaur | Grass / Poison | Kanto | Vine Whip | 1.06 | 90 | 97 |
| 18 | B | Froakie | Water | Kalos | Water Gun | 1.04 | 88 | 108 |
| 19 | B | Piplup | Water | Sinnoh | Bubble | 1.04 | 94 | 95 |
| 20 | B | Chespin | Grass | Kalos | Vine Whip | 1.04 | 95 | 94 |
| 21 | B | Fennekin | Fire | Kalos | Ember | 1.04 | 88 | 103 |
| 22 | B | Sprigatito | Grass | Paldea | Razor Leaf | 1.04 | 88 | 105 |
| 23 | B | Charmander | Fire | Kanto | Ember | 1.03 | 88 | 105 |
| 24 | B | Cyndaquil | Fire | Johto | Ember | 1.03 | 88 | 105 |
| 25 | C | Chimchar | Fire | Sinnoh | Ember | 1.02 | 90 | 104 |
| 26 | C | Rowlet | Grass / Flying | Alola | Razor Leaf | 1.00 | 101 | 96 |
| 27 | C | Squirtle | Water | Kanto | Water Gun | 0.97 | 90 | 96 |
| 28 | C | Chikorita | Grass | Johto | Vine Whip | 0.97 | 90 | 97 |
| 29 | C | Snivy | Grass | Unova | Razor Leaf | 0.95 | 90 | 104 |
Move evolution in one paragraph
Your Pokémon never evolves mid-run; its moves do. Get a move to max level and pick its matching stat card at least once in the same run, and a golden card appears: Ember with Power becomes Fire Blast, Bubble with Sprint becomes Surf, Tackle with Vigor becomes Take Down. 97 moves evolve. See every move evolution and its card →
Gacha rates, pity and shinies
| Rarity | Chance per pull | Pokémon in the game |
|---|---|---|
| ★ | 45% | 233 |
| ★★ | 30% | 171 |
| ★★★ | 17% | 248 |
| ★★★★ | 6.5% | 211 |
| ★★★★★ | 1.5% | 103 |
- There is one banner per region (Kanto to Paldea), each with its own pity counter.
- A ×10 pull always contains at least one 4★ or better.
- After 70 pulls on a banner without a 5★, the next one is a guaranteed 5★.
- 1 in 100 gacha pulls is shiny (wild shinies are 1 in 4,096).
- Duplicates turn into coins: 15, 30, 60, 120 or 300 for 1★ to 5★, and triple that for a duplicate shiny.
- Tickets drop from wild Pokémon (1 in 400), locked chests, bosses and rift legendaries. They cannot be bought.
Tips to survive longer
- Keep moving in wide circles so the horde follows you in a line instead of closing in.
- Switch to the move that is super effective against what is in front of you; weather changes the numbers too (rain boosts Water and weakens Fire).
- Step out of circles and lines filling up on the ground — they are attacks about to land.
- Kill healers and shield casters first.
- Plan an evolution early: once you know which move you will max, take its stat card at least once.
- Spend coins on one favourite partner rather than spreading them thin.
PokéSurvivor FAQ
What is PokéSurvivor?
A free, non-profit fan game in the style of Vampire Survivors and Survivor.io that you play in the browser at pokesurvivor.com. You pick a partner Pokémon, your moves fire on their own, and you dodge hordes of wild Pokémon. It has 966 Pokémon from all 9 regions.
What is the best starter in PokéSurvivor?
By in-game stats, Scorbunny, Sobble, Slowpoke are the strongest partners to start with. Their damage multipliers are the highest of the 29 partners. See the full ranking below.
Does my Pokémon evolve in PokéSurvivor?
No. Your partner stays the same Pokémon during a run; its moves are what evolve. Evolved Pokémon such as Charizard are separate Pokémon you get from the gacha.
How does move evolution work?
A move evolves when it reaches max level and you have picked its matching stat card at least once in that run (for example Ember + Power becomes Fire Blast). A golden card then appears. 97 moves can evolve; buff moves cannot.
What are the gacha rates?
1★ 45%, 2★ 30%, 3★ 17%, 4★ 6.5% and 5★ 1.5% per pull. A ×10 pull always includes at least one 4★ or better, and after 70 pulls without a 5★ on a banner the next pull is a guaranteed 5★. 1 in 100 pulls is shiny.
Is PokéSurvivor official?
No. It is a fan project not affiliated with Nintendo, GAME FREAK or The Pokémon Company. Fan games like this can be taken down at any time.