Welcome to Cassette Beasts, the latest in a long line of so-called Pokemon-likes. The best games to rival the monster-catching genre bring something new to the table, and Cassette Beasts has innovations in spades. But one familiar aspect to anyone who's ever seen a Pikachu remains - building a team of powerful allies.
This list examines several early-game capture suggestions that will blossom into powerful beasts with time. We'll refrain from discussing late-game additions from special side quests, since - once again, in true Pokemon fashion - those 'legendary' sorts will almost assuredly shoehorn themselves into your roster.
5 Dandylion
We're not entirely positive this will hold true at launch - we'll amend this bit if not - but we've been able to get a special Glitter-type Dandylion through entering the code 'VALENTINE' into the mailbox at Harbourtown. Even if you can't do this, however, Dandylion can be found pretty early on, in forests and woods-y areas, making it a pretty easy grab.
What makes Dandylion work so well is that it's the quintessential Leaf-type. Never mind the unique mail-sent fellow in our image; they're ordinarily a different shade, a greener shade, and they can quickly highlight how invaluable Leaf tapes are. Once you witness the Leech debuff in action, you'll see how deadly the draining powers of a Dandylion can be. All the more so when it remasters into Blossomaw.
4 Velocirifle
If you're more of a Ranged Attack fan, Velocirifle is an outstanding Fire-type early-game friend. A mix of hard-hitting ranged attacks that often deliver the painful Burn debuff makes him reliably strong, if somewhat fragile. That fragility largely falls by the wayside, however, when it remasters into Artillerex, a ballistic badass with supreme firepower and a stocky enough build to truly take a hit.
3 Carniviper
If you're accustomed to monster-catching games with early snake-like arrivals who don't amount to much, toss your prior beliefs out the window. Carniviper rocks. It evolves into Masquerattle, and then either Jormungold or Mardiusa depending on an answer you provide upon remastering the tape (read: evolving).
This line of predictably Poison-type tapes boasts some of the highest speed stats in the game, which makes them excellent frontline attackers that will inflict the Poison debuff with ease to really put the squeeze on the competition. Couple that with their frequent access to the Multitarget buff, and you can cripple foes fast by the time Carniviper evolves into Masquerattle, never mind the ultimate forms still to come.
2 Kittelly
Unlike others on this list, Kittelly isn't actually recorded/captured; all you need to do is meet Meredith, as this is her 'Signature Tape' - her personal partner monster. This means it's that much easier to add Kittelly to your team, you'll just presumably need to have Meredith as your partner to cash in.
Kittelly itself is lightning-fast, and Lightning is one of the best types in Cassette Beasts. Once Kittelly remasters into Cat-5, you'll see why we love this one so much. Lightning's ability to hit with the Conducted debuff works on Air, Ice, Metal, and Water creatures. Conducted can be positively disastrous, as it not only causes the defender to be struck multiple times, it can even transfer over to their teammate, turning powerful single-hit spells into hellish chain reactions.
1 Squirey
Squirey is our favorite early-game tape to record. Not only is its innate Melee Attack stat impressive - you're getting a straightforward-as-they-come offensive buddy with Squirey - but better still, its remasters/evolutions rock for much of the game.
You can go with Manispear when remastering; the lumbering striker has even deadlier moves, and is an all-around tank that'll put plenty of Ranger Captains in their place. We recommend choosing the more honorable response when the game asks you a philosophical question during the remaster process; Palangolin, the more virtuous evolution, combines still-impressive attacks with the outstanding 'Fair Play' move that prevents stat changes for three rounds.
This deceptively simple sticker can utterly obliterate even Archangel strategies in certain fights, making Palangolin a top-tier tape for the entire game in our view.