Also, if any of the screenshots seem inconsistent, it's probably because the screenshot was taken before changing something and then another was taken after (such as summary and battle UI textures right now).
Pokémon Sardonyx: Raised to Win is a fangame made in Pokemon Essentials v16.2, by a small team of friends based upon a play-by-post roleplay that lasted for a few years. The roleplay eventually ended in favor of continuing the story as a game and a Nuzlocke comic. We have recently picked up...
I do a bit of both. Blocks of grass in irregular shapes, often slightly out of the way so they don't have to trudge through five random encounters just to get to an item, with smaller, scattered patches here and there.
I say give players the option and let them experience the game how they like, personally.
I probably wouldn't use it myself aside from a serious levelgrinding session, but I do like having the option to do so and it seems like there's at least one plug-and-play script for Essentials out there...
We have the player go to the lab a city away and meet up with the other protag and the second rival. The nonstandard thing though, besides the starters themselves (Eevee, Mienfoo, Solosis), is that the Pokemon are technically wild, even if they're well-behaved. The player "catches" their starter...