How the Pokemon Showdown bot reaches your Chrome
You start by picking the format, Gen 9 OU or VGC, so the bot and its team are made for the ladder you actually play.
The page then reads your browser and builds the ShowdownAce extension for it, and you see the build come together on screen.
A quick check opens Add to Chrome and the team pack, and the steps run in any of eleven languages.
Back on Pokemon Showdown, ShowdownAce runs a live damage calc every turn to choose the move, and queues your next ladder game when a battle ends.
A bot from GitHub, or one ready in Chrome
Most search results for a showdown bot are code projects. They work, once you set them up yourself.
| What you need | Bot from GitHub | ShowdownAce |
|---|---|---|
| Setup | Get the code, install Node, edit the config | Add to Chrome after one quick check |
| Move choice | Depends on the project: a fixed algorithm, reinforcement learning or a language model | A live damage calc on every turn |
| Team | You build or paste your own | A Gen 9 OU or VGC pack from the top usage stats |
| Ladder games | Up to the project | Queues the next one for you |
What the calc cannot see
A damage calc knows the numbers on the board, not your opponent's plan: a set you did not expect, a surprise switch or a critical hit can still swing a game.
Questions before you add it
Do I need to write any code?
No. ShowdownAce comes as a Chrome extension, so there's no repository to clone and no config file to edit.
Which formats does it cover?
Gen 9 OU and VGC. You choose one before the build, and the team pack comes from that format's top usage stats.
Where does it play?
On Pokemon Showdown, in your Chrome browser, on the ladder of the format you picked.
Can I follow the steps in my own language?
Yes. The steps come in eleven languages.