Parents need not fear this as the GTS does not allow for any real interaction between players. You either seek a Pokemon or you offer one.
The GTS is located in Jubilife City. Inside the building there is a big globe. If you look at the globe you will see little markers that indicate where in the world your Pokemon came from. The most recent trade will have a blue marker and by pusing the "X" button while your cursor is on top of a marker you can find out the name of that place.
The GTS is a great idea but, they fell short in a few areas.
- GTS Problems
- You have to have seen a Pokemon to trade for it - The problem with this should be obvious. Because many Pokemon do not show themselves in this game you can never get them via a GTS trade. Starter Pokemon from other games fall into this category as do "event" Pokemon.
- You can not search by what others are looking for - I brought some Eevees forward from my Emerald game via the Pal Park and I have hatched a number of Eevee eggs. I would like to trade these Eevee away for Pokemon I want but I have no way of finding out if anyone wants an Eevee without looking at every trade or just offering them up for trade. There may be somebody out there who has the Pokemon I want and would accept an Eevee in return but I'll never know from just using the GTS.
- Hacked Pokemon - Unless the Pokemon has an illegal move set or is under level there is nothing in place to stop people from trading "hacked" or "cheat" Pokemon via GTS.
- Untradable trade offers - There is nothing in place to stop me from asking for a level 9 or under Gengar in a trade. This is an impossible trade as you can not get a Gengar level 9 or under without cheating! Some people are using this to exploit a loophole in GTS to duplicate Pokemon and items.
The biggest problem, to me, has to do with having to have seen a Pokemon to ask for it via GTS. I thought I would be able to use GTS to acquire those rare Pokemon that I have not seen but I can't!
A minor problem I have with GTS is that it will show me results where people want Pokemon I have neither caught or even seen. If I'm looking for a Pichu and someone wants a Pidgey in return I'll agree that it is a fair trade but, If I don't have a Pidgey (or have never even seen one) why does GTS show me this trade? With a limited number of trades able to be displayed on the screen why clutter it up with trades I can't perform?
The only other minor problem has to do with people who expect me to trade them a level 100 Dialga for a level 5 Starly. Are you insane? Do you lack any concept of rarity and value? The only person who will make that trade with you is someone who is going to send you a "hacked" Pokemon!
To combat some of the minor problems on GTS that are caused by other players, not Nintendo, I offer the following tips.
- GTS Tips
- Select your location - Before you do any trading be sure to look at the globe in the GTS and enter your geographic location. I have passed up many trades in GTS that, though fair, lacked a trainer location. I don't just want Pokemon I also want dots on my globe!
- Offer a fair trade - By offering a fair trade I mean that you should trade your Pokemon for another Pokemon of roughly equivalent value. If you are looking for a starter Pokemon you will likely get it very easily no matter what you offer. Well, as long as you don't specify a high level starter that is.
- Don't specify gender or level - If you just want a Pokemon to fill out your dex, and it need not be male or female, then leave off the gender and level selection options. By leaving those two as "any" you increase the chances of your trade going through by a great degree. I can't count how many times someone asked for a female starter when I had five male starters of the same type.
- Sweeten the deal - If you are looking for a better Pokemon than you are offering you should sweeten the deal by having your Pokemon hold a valuable item. Evolution items work best for this.
Pro Tip
Certain Pokemon are more valuable than others in the Pokemon community. If you go to a Pokemon fan forum you'll see that many favorite Pokemon are shared by a lot of people. I recommend trading something from the evolution lines of, Raltz, Eevee, Gibble, Dratini, Bagon, and Shinx. Any Pokemon that Ash or a main anime character uses will be in demand. A female Pokemon is always more valuable than a male Pokemon because it can learn new moves through breeding with other Pokemon.
I hope these tips have helped you become a better GTS trader.
PS: I will be opening a Pokemon Farm at some point in the future. I'm still in the proccess of migrating Pokemon over to my Pearl game. Once I complete the migration I will be offering to do Wi-Fi trading for any "breedable" Pokemon you may need. Stay tuned!