5 strongest Pokemon Unite licenses in current meta (January 2023)

Pokemon Unite and its player base haven't quite finished the first month of 2023, but enough has changed to shake up the competitive meta. Some of the top options have lost their momentum, and new arrivals have also skyrocketed up the rankings.

While the ultimate rankings on which Unite Licenses are truly superior will rage on among the Pokemon Unite community, there are certainly some consensus top picks most players will agree on. These picks tend to perform incredibly well at their defined roles or have tremendous flexibility to meet many team compositions and deal with different situations.

Whatever the case, if Pokemon Unite trainers can practice and gain experience with these licenses, they should perform exceptionally well in the current meta.

Note: This article is based on the views of the author.

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Cinderace and 4 other excellent Pokemon Unite licenses in the current meta

1) Gengar

Gengar has returned to prominence after significant nerfs (Image via The Pokemon Company)

After quite a while on a nerf-induced vacation, Gengar has returned to the fore as not only one of the best Speedsters in Pokemon Unite but also one of its most effective junglers. Its Sludge/Hex Build may not have the power it once did, but this has been compensated for by the increasing effectiveness of its Shadow Ball/Dream Eater build. With the proper emblems in place and held items prioritizing its unique attack stats, Gengar can still clear jungles and take down targets effectively and often.

Gengar does take some time to snowball, as it's pretty vulnerable before it fully evolves. However, once it reaches its final evolution, this pokemon can nuke plenty of opponents that unwittingly overextend in the lane.

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2) Greninja

Greninja can become a superhero in Unite Battles even without its fashionable holowear (Image via The Pokemon Company)

Greninja was recently revealed to be the second-most played creature in Pokemon Unite for 2022, and this isn't by accident. Sure, it's a cool Pokemon, but it also becomes a vicious hyper-carry when well-built and played. Patch 1.7.1.9 gave it a fixed number of Water Shurikens but increased their damage, and Double Team saw its total damage increase as well.

Greninja may be an Attacker as far as roles go, but its speed and stealth capabilities give it ganking and clearing powers on par with many Speedsters. It admittedly takes a while to learn due to the nature of its moves, but Greninja can take over a battle in Pokemon Unite thanks to its vicious combination of damage and speed.

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3) Urshifu

Urshifu can alternate between damage and sustain in Pokemon Unite battles (Image via The Pokemon Company)

It may be a relatively recent arrival to Pokemon Unite, but Urshifu is no pushover as far as All-Rounders go. Its ability to swap between its Single Strike and Rapid Strike styles gives it the ability to both target opponents and deal great damage before swapping to gear for lane sustain. Urshifu also benefits from Unseen Fist, allowing it to pierce an opponent's shields, making it effective even against Defenders inside and outside of team fights.

Urshifu's flexibility also allows it to be built for Single/Rapid Strike supremacy specifically, allowing it to fill a specific role in a team composition even better than if it was built with balance in mind.

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4) Sableye

Sableye has risen player rankings as one of the game's top Supports (Image via Pokemon Unite/YouTube)

Another recent arrival that has skyrocketed in use and popularity, Sableye has secured one of the top Support spots now that Hoopa has left something of a vacuum in its place. Thanks to Shadow Sneak, Sableye can utilize its exceptional stealth skills before popping in and stunning or disabling opponents, which can make all the difference in team fights or during tricky ganks where the Speedster/Attacker needs a little help.

Though Sableye can't heal or shield its allies like many Supports, it can flip the flow of battle upside-down with its toolkit predicated on immobilizing opponents. Its Unite Move Chaos Glower also tends to force opponents into returning to base, which is excellent for pushing lanes and taking care of scoring zones.

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5) Cinderace

Cinderace's effectiveness lies in its accessibility (Image via WadaGames/YouTube)

While some trainers may place Cinderace lower or higher depending on their personal opinion, it can still be used as a practical carry in Pokemon Unite for various reasons. When built well to optimize its special attack damage, Cinderace is very easy to play compared to many Attackers and still deals massive amounts of damage quickly, giving a well-played Cinderace the ability to one-shot opponents without enough health or defense to handle attacks like Blaze Kick and Flame Charge.

Recent Pokemon Unite patches did reduce Cinderace's overall damage, but this can easily be fixed with the right-held items and emblems. Meanwhile, the reduction of damage to Blaze Kick and Flame Charge was met with increased mobility, making Cinderace an even more effective ganker and pursuer when low-health targets attempt to fall back.