Hey there, Pokémon GO enthusiasts and fanatics! TridentXan and I are back at it in Episode 2 of Interviewing The Best Of The Best, where we sit down with some of your favorite content creators and gain insight into their lives and their experiences with Pokémon GO!
In this episode, we are joined with Grant and Alex, the gaming couple! They stream every day on Twitch, and have accumulated over 15,000 followers to date! They both share the love of Pokémon GO and do their best to help other Trainers that are going through their own Pokémon GO journey.
Fun Fact: They actually live in my town! I had a bit of a fangirl moment when I learned that two of my favorite content creators lived 15 minutes away from me. So, without further ado, let us begin!
Getting to Know Alex and Grant.
PogoWatson: Hey! Thank you for giving us the wonderful opportunity to have a discussion with you both. How are you feeling today? Tell us a bit about yourselves.
GrantNAlex: Hey! We are doing good; this is our first time doing an interview so both excited and nervous. So yeah, we are a content-creating couple. This has been our full-time job for 2 years now. We mainly do Pokémon GO and other Pokémon content like pack openings and some main series Pokémon games. We also do some IRL streams every once in a while. Outside of streaming the main thing we do for fun is go to concerts, we love live music!
PogoWatson: What motivates you to play Pokémon GO every day?
GrantNAlex: So partially because it’s how we make a living now but that is definitely not the only reason. We played the game a ton before we even started streaming it. We just love the franchise and when it comes to Pokémon GO we feel like there is always something to do or work on and most importantly we haven’t gotten bored of it even after years and years of playing; we still really enjoy the core game.
PogoWatson: When did you both start playing the game?
GrantNAlex: We both started playing the game back in the first week of release in 2016. The funny thing is we didn’t even know each other when the game came out. We met each other at the end of 2017 and at that point we were both on a break from the game. We both started playing again when they brought the friend system into the game in 2018 and never stopped playing again after that.
PogoWatson: Could you give us some insight into your daily routine? Do you both primarily focus on playing the game or making content?
GrantNAlex: Right now we have been starting the day by trying to get to the gym and get food before the stream, and then doing any prep we might need to for the stream that day. Then we stream for about 5 hours on a typical day. After the stream we take the night to do anything else we need to do, usually sending out cards to viewers, trying to find highlights from VODs, responding to messages, and things like that. After we are done with that stuff we just unwind and relax a bit before bed. That’s a typical day but if the game has a lot of great stuff going on–we might get on much earlier and our whole day will just be streaming. Recently we have been trying to also work on some YouTube content any time we take a day off stream.
TridentXan: What are the biggest challenges that you both have faced during your time as content creators?
GrantNAlex: Well one challenge any content creator faces is focusing too much on the numbers. It’s so hard not to get down on yourself when views and stuff like that are down. Another challenge for us at times is the game being slow or not having much going on at times. The problem is when the game is boring it can be hard to make good content for it. With all that being said we love what we do and are super lucky to have an incredibly supportive community. That’s always how we get past any challenges.
TridentXan: What is your favorite Pokémon and favorite shiny?
Grant: Favorite Pokémon is Eevee, favorite Shiny is Shellder (it is such a good orange)
Alex: Favorite Pokémon is Skwovet, favorite shiny is Vaporeon (the shiny favorite changes sometimes lol)
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TridentXan: Tell us something that most people don’t know about you!
GrantNAlex: That’s a tough one because we talk so much for so many hours on stream it feels like people know a lot about us. I feel like not a ton of people know that we actually met on a live streaming app called live.me and then met in person for the first time at a concert.
Their Pokémon GO Collections
PogoWatson: What is the most prized Pokémon in your collection and how did you acquire it?
Grant: Shundo Mewtwo; I actually got it live on stream and hit my head on the top of my car when I realized it was a Shundo. There is a clip of it happening here
Alex: Shundo Gyarados; as of right now it is my only Shundo and it is one that both me and Grant have. It was crazy we found a wild Gyarados and both clicked on it and were shocked that it was shiny for both of us… Then when we realized it was a Shundo and we just couldn’t believe it.
Shundo Gyarados (Left) and Shundo Mewtwo(Right)
PogoWatson: What stat/medal in your account are you most proud of and why?
GrantNAlex: We started out on Twitch with mostly hosting raids so raids are probably one of our proudest medals. But our favorite medals are probably our in-person event medals. Our favorite thing is going to in-person events and seeing friends and meeting people for the first time who we have talked to through streams for a while.
TridentXan: Which aspect of the game do you prefer and why: PvE or PvP?
GrantNAlex: 100% perfer PvE. We don’t have the budget for more phones and when we play PvP too much it makes us want to throw our phones across the room lol. Half joking but the lag issues and some of the other things with PvP typically make it an unenjoyable experience for us.
TridentXan: What are your goals for 2023? Do you plan on going to any GOFest events or future unannounced Safari Zones?
GrantNAlex: The most significant goal this year is making new YouTube content and trying to grow on that platform while streaming just as much. Yes, we will 100% be at NYC GO Fest! It’s a short drive for us so we will be in the park on Saturday and in the city every other day. We will also be going to TwitchCon in Vegas this year. We try to go to as many in-person events as we can!
PogoWatson: I’ll be there at NYC GO Fest too!
TridentXan: Same here. Also, do you both play any other games aside from Pokémon GO?
GrantNAlex: Yes! We don’t have time for a ton of other games but right now Grant plays Apex and Alex enjoys playing casual phone games like Doodle Jump or Subway Surfers and stuff like that.
Contemplating About The Future, and Final Thoughts
PogoWatson: What are your honest thoughts on the recent remote raid pass nerfs?
GrantNAlex: It’s awful in our opinion. We host raids often and have helped a ton of people get their first shiny or first hundo of a certain Pokémon. So we see firsthand how it negatively affects people in our community and it sucks. There are a lot of people who can’t play the game like we do for a wide variety of reasons and the fact that those people now can’t participate as much and on top of that have to pay more if they want to participate at all, it really stinks.
TridentXan: What quality-of-life features would you both like to see implemented into the game?
GrantNAlex: Obviously first and foremost would love to see remote raids return to a better place. We would also love it if Niantic communicated more with the community. It has always felt like there is no communication or back-and-forth with the community on Niantic’s part and that is sad. Outside of that Lucky Friend trades should not count as a special trade. Also Support a Creator Codes would be amazing for content creators like us.
TridentXan: Do you have some final advice for other Trainers?
GrantNAlex: Just play how you enjoy the game so many people play for so many reasons whether it be collection, hundos, shinies, PvP, PvE, XP, or whatever else; there’s so much to do in the game. Also, don’t be afraid to ask questions or ask for help whether it be in someone’s Twitch stream or on Twitter or wherever. The best part of this game is the people, there are a lot of great people who play this game and are often more than happy to help a fellow player out.
PogoWatson: Out Of Context: Alex, are you jealous of Grant’s Hundo Gimmighouls? 🤣
GrantNAlex: Haha yes I was but I finally did get one after many trades.
Give Grant and Alex a Follow on Their Platforms!
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/GrantNAlex
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/grantnalex/?hl=en
- Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/grantnalex
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@grantnalex4729
Join their Exclusive Discord!
That’s all for now, Trainers! Trident and I want to thank Grant and Alex for taking the time for this interview. We had a fantastic time learning more about you both, and we hope that we can meet you in person someday.
What about you, trainers? Did you enjoy today’s episode? If so, let us know in the comments section below who you would like to see in the next segment of the “Best of the Best”.
Until next time, Trainers! BYEE, and take care!
