Pokemon Sun

 3DS
User Score
7.6

Generally favorable reviews- based on 1265 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 868 out of 1265
  2. Mixed: 186 out of 1265
  3. Negative: 211 out of 1265
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  1. smf-smf
    Nov 18, 2018
    10
    - best story in the series
    - z-moves were a good idea
    - Alola has many interesting quests and the trials were way more interesting than gyms, specially the idea of a totem boss with buffs and aides
  2. W-Lights
    Dec 2, 2018
    9
    The most ambitious pokemon game ever made: every risk they could take with the formula was taken yet: 1- almost all worked and paid off and 2- still feels like playing a pokemon game from start to finish. You have the best story with amazing themes (like the context of tradition and progress) a region that feels like a real world country with background that makes sense, characters withThe most ambitious pokemon game ever made: every risk they could take with the formula was taken yet: 1- almost all worked and paid off and 2- still feels like playing a pokemon game from start to finish. You have the best story with amazing themes (like the context of tradition and progress) a region that feels like a real world country with background that makes sense, characters with layers from both good and bad side, a new system instead of just more gyms just for the sake of it, a heartwarming conclusion, and smart ideas that honestly should be implemented 20 years ago.… Expand
  3. BrawlMetaKnight
    Nov 30, 2018
    10
    By far the best installment int the main series. It did change up a lot of the formula like the bike for ride pokemon, gyms and gym badges for trials and Z-Crystals, and probably a lot more that I forgot. The graphics got better and the soundtrack is the second best imo in the Pokemon series, next to the og Mystery Dungeon.
  4. westfam4190
    Apr 22, 2019
    10
    First Pokemon game I ever played. Amazing is all I have to say. I feel that Nintendo hit it out of the park with this one.
  5. Shulknoblade
    Sep 4, 2019
    10
    Best Pokémon game so far, this is for me the best entry Game Freak has made for the franchise in 20 years. It's amazing to see how FINALLY they innovated a bit and tried to change the formula, I know it doesn't change a lot, but change the necessary and it feels so fresh. Hope Sword and Shield do something similar and tries new things too.

    Pokémon Sun and Moon also has the BEST STORY in    Best Pokémon game so far, this is for me the best entry Game Freak has made for the franchise in 20 years. It's amazing to see how FINALLY they innovated a bit and tried to change the formula, I know it doesn't change a lot, but change the necessary and it feels so fresh. Hope Sword and Shield do something similar and tries new things too.

    Pokémon Sun and Moon also has the BEST STORY in a Pokémon game ever. Black and White had good ideas, sometimes poorly executed, but Sun and Moon worked so well, developed the characters and even made some plot twists. The relationship between characters, background stories and family bonds is the best we saw in a Pokémon game so far, the mixing of every single topic the franchise has touched was excellent!

    And we can't forget about the difficulty, USUM made it harder, but Sun & Moon has some challenges with Totem Pokémon and a great Pokémon League, and well, we have even the Battle Tree, as the biggest postgame challenge we had since Emerald. Pokémon designs were excellent in this generation too!

    As I said, this is for me the best Pokémon game to date!    … Expand
  6. Bernyz
    Sep 20, 2019
    9
    Es un cambio drástico en cuanto a los pokemons anteriores, pero es muy bueno
  7. FranciscoM
    Nov 23, 2018
    9
    A vibrant region, customization of your character, cool new Pokemon added and a near perfect game, apart from some minor issues with frame rates.
  8. Yorkishimitsu
    Oct 1, 2018
    10
    Incredible, good story, the kind I expected from other jrpgs but for pokemon was a first as previous games never got there. Gameplay dynamic and full of places to discover, quests to figure out and pokemon to find, anything that other pokemon games did, was done again as well or better here.
    Fully recomend playing it to the very end, it has some unforgettable bits
  9. Dsros96
    Oct 30, 2018
    10
    Best Pokémon game ever. Best graphics, innovation and a challenging story mode. The trials were a nice way to do something new but the gyms were better. The new Pokmeon designs are beautiful.
  10. zeffsrightleg
    Nov 17, 2018
    10
    Such a good story and so many new things added, it felt like a long time coming for this adorable game, specially loved the whole idea of ultra beasts
  11. greninjaX
    Nov 16, 2019
    10
    a great pokemon game with a great story, and not a single pokemon had to be cut.
  12. KrimsonKatt
    Dec 30, 2018
    8
    This is by far the best 3DS Pokemon game. Amazing graphics for 3DS standards, best story since the original Black and White, extremely solid gameplay with some decently challenging story battles, a modest amount of legendaries, (8 of them) and game changing quality of life changes in comparison to XY and ORAS, not to mention the 60 or so new Pokemon, the removal of obnoxious HMs, fasterThis is by far the best 3DS Pokemon game. Amazing graphics for 3DS standards, best story since the original Black and White, extremely solid gameplay with some decently challenging story battles, a modest amount of legendaries, (8 of them) and game changing quality of life changes in comparison to XY and ORAS, not to mention the 60 or so new Pokemon, the removal of obnoxious HMs, faster movement speed, streamlined breeding and EV training, infinite leveling exploit, super training to max IVs for rare items, (who's collection of can be easily cheesed) and simpler ways to get shines in comparison to XY and ORAS. The only bad things I can say is the very long and slow tutorial, there being no national pokedex, and the battle tree just being another reskin of the awful battle tower from Emerald.… Expand
  13. ShawnEXE
    May 3, 2019
    8
    Music: 4/5
    Game Play: 3.5/5
    Graphics: 4/5
    Story: 4/5
    Time-Value: 5/5
    Overall: 4.0/5
  14. new2dsxl
    Sep 6, 2019
    10
    Simply put, Sun and Moon are best Pokémon games that Game Freak has ever produced. Poké Pelago, the side quests, the absolutely stunning nature of the presentation, it's all a sheer joy from start to finish. Game Freak hasn't missed a beat and has managed to carefully balance the inclusion of new mechanics without totally ruining things for the most hardcore fans. It's got content comingSimply put, Sun and Moon are best Pokémon games that Game Freak has ever produced. Poké Pelago, the side quests, the absolutely stunning nature of the presentation, it's all a sheer joy from start to finish. Game Freak hasn't missed a beat and has managed to carefully balance the inclusion of new mechanics without totally ruining things for the most hardcore fans. It's got content coming out of its ears, a much more interesting story, and rewards exploration in a way no other title in the series has. Whether you're a Pokémon fan new or old, this is an absolutely essential purchase.… Expand
  15. JasonBB
    Nov 20, 2019
    10
    Some people hating on Sword and Shield is coming here to hate this game too. But let's remember and compare Sun and Moon to SWSH.

    Because Sun and Moon is far less hand holdy than Sword and Shield, because the story is the best Pokémon has made so far, because this game allowed you to turn off the exp share and enjoy a good difficulty, because this game had much more postgame, because    Some people hating on Sword and Shield is coming here to hate this game too. But let's remember and compare Sun and Moon to SWSH.

    Because Sun and Moon is far less hand holdy than Sword and Shield, because the story is the best Pokémon has made so far, because this game allowed you to turn off the exp share and enjoy a good difficulty, because this game had much more postgame, because this game had all the Pokémon...

    Well... Sun and Moon are one of the best game of this franchise, let's not forget that. This game is underrated just because is not old enough yet.    … Expand
  16. EdwardG
    Dec 3, 2018
    8
    Pokémon Sun shakes the classic Pokémon formula up with new quality of life improvements as well as through the overall theme of the game. Alola is a unique region in that it is split up over four main islands and that it takes inspiration from Hawaii. This is reflected in the great music, designs of the equally great new Pokémon, the likeable cast of characters and even the battlePokémon Sun shakes the classic Pokémon formula up with new quality of life improvements as well as through the overall theme of the game. Alola is a unique region in that it is split up over four main islands and that it takes inspiration from Hawaii. This is reflected in the great music, designs of the equally great new Pokémon, the likeable cast of characters and even the battle interface.

    Catching Pokémon is as fun as it's ever been, and catching them all is a fun challenge. As there are now over 700 Pokémon, there are countless cool and interesting designs. As for the postgame, you can catch and raise more Pokémon, trade and battle online, and there are also a few cool moments after the main story is over. However, after you're done with the story, which I enjoyed thanks to the characters as well as the decent plot, there isn't loads to keep you playing, especially if you tire of the grind of finding, catching and raising new Pokémon. In particular, finding, breeding and raising battle-ready Pokémon (including hidden abilities, natures, IVs and more) for the online side of the game can be a little overwhelming but it is completely optional and is there for people who want a deeper experience.

    On the whole, Pokémon Sun is another great entry into the series with enough new and exciting additions to set it apart from the rest of the games.    … Expand
  17. Akatito
    Nov 2, 2018
    8
    Este análisis lo hago con mucha ilusión ya que pokémon es una saga legendaria para todos aquellos niños que crecieron con ella en su día y que hoy por hoy siguen creciendo con estos juegos. Voy a decir que me ha parecido, de la manera mas especial posible...

    Hacía ya 10 años que no jugaba un pokémon, el último que jugué fue pokemon perla allá por el 2007-2008 y ahora este Pokemon sol    Este análisis lo hago con mucha ilusión ya que pokémon es una saga legendaria para todos aquellos niños que crecieron con ella en su día y que hoy por hoy siguen creciendo con estos juegos. Voy a decir que me ha parecido, de la manera mas especial posible...

    Hacía ya 10 años que no jugaba un pokémon, el último que jugué fue pokemon perla allá por el 2007-2008 y ahora este Pokemon sol que salió hace uno o dos añitos lo he jugado en 2018. Tenía mucha curiosidad por ver como había avanzado la saga ya que la había perdido muchísimo de vista. Antes de jugar pokemon sol sabía que en anteriores entregas ya estaban cambiando la perspectiva de la cámara, los gráficos, obviamente los mapas, pokemons y los legendarios. A si que pensé: Joder, voy a jugarme el ultimo pokemon de todos para ver la evolución que lleva esto a día de hoy.

    El inicio es como cualquier otro juego de pokémon, te sientes super bien recibido a esta nueva entrega ya que todo se maneja con la misma facilidad que siempre, te explican todo a la perfección para que tengas la edad que tengas no te pierdas nada de lo que debes aprender para jugar.

    Hay muchas cosas que se coservan en este pokémon y que son míticas de la saga, como elegir el pokémon entre los tres elementos principales, el compañero/rival que te acompañará durante todo el juego, los gimnasios (Aunque ahora no son gimnasios, son una especie de pruebas) y en vez de medallas son unos cristales, pero para el caso viene a ser lo mismo. Las mecánicas también son muy parecidas, incluso me atrevo a decir que las han mejorado.

    Sin duda de las cosas que mas me han gustado de Pokemon sol ha sido precisamente eso, esa cualidad de hacerte sentir como en casa, esa manera de decirte "Estas en el pokemon de tu infancia, pero con las novedades y mejoras de un pokemon actual" Es decir lo que viene a ser el "Mas y mejor" de toda la vida.

    Pero todo esto también tiene su lado malo. Como ya he dicho arriba... Pokemon te explica todo a la perfección, para que cualquier persona de cualquier edad pueda entender todo y jugarlo igual de cómodo y de bien que tú. ¿Que pasa? Que si tienes 20 años como es mi caso esto se hace un poco pesado, es decir... Para un chaval de entre 8-13 años puede ser muy bueno esto que estoy comentando, pero para la gente de 15-16 en adelante es un estorbo. Esto de que te expliquen todo al dedillo como si fueras tonto se hace muy cansino ¿Es necesario?

    La historia del juego es la misma, la típica de siempre, no esta mal... No es que sea una historia muy profunda ni que toque temas fuertes ni que te pretenda enseñar nada pero bueno, esta bien, sobretodo para los niños (Again).

    La jugabilidad sigue siendo la misma aunque han añadido algunas cosas bastante molonas como los ataques especiales que son como un "Ataque final" al uso. También han mejorado las animaciones de algunos ataques, son realmente espectaculares para ser de pokémon. Pero de nuevo esperaba algún que otro cambio, si que es cierto que aquí no creo que el problema sea la edad del público de pokemon, aquí creo que simplemente les ha dado pereza cambiar el sistema de combate de toda la vida y han tirado con el, de nuevo

    Entonces es una mezcla de sentimientos que me mata por dentro queridos amigos... Por un lado me ha gustado mucho ya que tenía completamente olvidada a la saga, pero por otro lado es que hay tantas cosas que me flaquean que me duele incluso decirlas, pero es que las tenía que soltar.

    Pero por supuesto a pesar de estos pequeños detalles de quisquilloso mental, el juego es super disfrutable, y la verdad es que la idea de Alola es bastante buena, diría que una de las mejores de todos los juegos que llevan hasta la fecha, ese estilo "Tropical" estilo Hawai, la ropa que visten los aldeanos, los pokemons con formas especiales de Alola, el tema de las distintas islas, no sé. La verdad es que la idea en si esta bastante guay y para un juego de pokemon admito que es un enfoque bastante chulo, aunque como ya he dicho sigo opinando que esta mal aprovechada y podían haberle dado mucha mas caña.

    También me ha fastidiado bastante el hecho de ir jugando al juego y ir viendo los mismos pokemons que ya conocía... Y es como: WTF, llevo 10 años sin jugar a un pokemon y conozco al 70% de los pokemons que me están apareciendo, eso es mala señal, indica que han metido muy pero que muy poquitos en esta nueva entrega, a si que lo comprobé y efectivamente es de las entregas que menos pokemon nuevos han implementado, practicamente el 60-70% de los que hay en el juego son de otras entregas y eso es una mierda.

    Estoy seguro, pero muy que muy seguro, de que los chavales que jueguen a Pokemon sol hoy en día sentirán lo mismo que yo sentía cuando jugaba los pokemon de años anteriores, esa "Magía" y por eso le doy esta nota buena, porque objetivamente pokemon siempre será pokemon.    … Expand
  18. Gloglo23
    Jan 1, 2020
    10
    Metacritic should not allow people to review bombing games like this, last week this game had a 8.3 score and now it's just 7.7 because of Sword and Shield haters. STOP.
  19. VariaVbux
    Jan 2, 2020
    10
    Got the game upon release, very excited since I wasn't invested in Y or Omega Ruby. It truly did not disappoint, the Pokemon, the music, the story, I had a much better time than previous titles. While the game did lag out offline, it wasn't too much of an issue. Easily one of the best 3DS Pokemon titles.
  20. GenkiYokota
    Jan 27, 2022
    10
    One of the best generations by far, it has a spectacular story and an excellent competitive scene.
  21. Mutty99
    Feb 4, 2020
    10
    Wow, what an adventure! This game brought a lot of fresh hair into the Pokémon franchise; interesting story, memorable characters and awesome new features. Still enjoying it nowadays :)
  22. Jrson
    May 5, 2020
    8
    The character models have been improved from X&Y and ORAS. the new pokemons are great and the Alolan versions are a nice addition. There is a good amount of post game content in the form of catching all of the Ultra Beasts.
  23. ZeroBacon
    Oct 7, 2020
    9
    I think this is a very good Pokemon game. Not as great as some of the other ones, but it’s one of the best ones in years. The removal of gyms is fine, but it has some great music. I think this game’s worth a shot, even if its dead easy.
  24. Oreun
    Apr 15, 2021
    7
    Decent game that changes the Pokemon formula. Definetely recommended.

    Juego decente que cambia la formula de Pokemon. Recomendado.
  25. Pyronick
    Jul 5, 2021
    10
    Gran juego, buena historia, buenos personajes y una gran variedad de Pokémons a elegir, un título refrescante para la saga.
  26. Federx
    Jan 30, 2022
    9
    very underappreciated entry, pushing more into jrpg territory with proper story and characters was a good direction for the franchise.
  27. jakandjoe
    Apr 14, 2021
    8
    pretty good game i enjoyed it but i wish their was more gym leaders but still great game.
  28. LordJazbin
    Apr 19, 2021
    10
    The best Pokémon game in the franchise for now. Story is good (the best one for now, with even some little interesting plot twists for the first time), difficulty and level curve is great (and even kinda hard in some parts!), characters are charismatic and less flat than previous generations, music is outstanding (as always), Pokémon designs are great, there are kind of boss battles, realThe best Pokémon game in the franchise for now. Story is good (the best one for now, with even some little interesting plot twists for the first time), difficulty and level curve is great (and even kinda hard in some parts!), characters are charismatic and less flat than previous generations, music is outstanding (as always), Pokémon designs are great, there are kind of boss battles, real side-quest, is a bit innovative for the first time in forever...

    This has to be the best Pokémon game to date. It was definitely the step in the right direction, but then they came with Sword and Shield...    … Expand
  29. albegres
    Feb 9, 2022
    8
    75/100
    Very good Pokémon game. It's somehow overlooked these days because it hasn't Gyms, but it can make you feel like in a journey anyway.
    PS: Alola is a stunning region
  30. PikiAkaSelen
    May 20, 2022
    10
    One of the most original and brave entries in the Pokemon franchise, I see why some fans dont like it since its not a traditional pokemon game. Its game decisions are brave and work surprisingly well, its a unique twist from a pokemon mainline game almost being like a more developed spinoff. With all of that in mind I think its by far the best one from the 3DS era and also one of theOne of the most original and brave entries in the Pokemon franchise, I see why some fans dont like it since its not a traditional pokemon game. Its game decisions are brave and work surprisingly well, its a unique twist from a pokemon mainline game almost being like a more developed spinoff. With all of that in mind I think its by far the best one from the 3DS era and also one of the better pokemon games.… Expand
  31. Lolman2026
    Aug 19, 2022
    10
    This game has an amazing story, great character development, and one of the best worlds a Pokémon game has had in a while. Although the game may not seem as much at first, It gets Better and Better as you progress. The new battle animations and styles are so wonderful that sometimes I walk into battles just to see the animations. If you have a 3DS, you must try it out!
  32. ZeoN
    Feb 22, 2021
    10
    Uno de los mejores juegos de la franquicia Pokémon, una banda sonora tremendamente buena, una región original y muchas nuevas criaturas sumadas a una historia madura y completa. Muy recomendado
  33. Barnes1987
    Mar 6, 2017
    8
    Pokemon is back yet again with Sun and Moon. The look of the game has improved greatly and the same fun gameplay is still there, but some minor changes bring the score down a little for me. Still well worth a look.
  34. militarymetal
    Nov 30, 2016
    8
    Pokemon Sun/Moon is a different experience than any Pokemon game before it. While the game still carries the same linearity of traditional installments, the new environment not only inspires exploration, but also highly encourages it. It's a refreshing feeling for a Pokemon game, and even 30 hours into gameplay, not once did I ever feel discouraged from exploring the game at all. I alsoPokemon Sun/Moon is a different experience than any Pokemon game before it. While the game still carries the same linearity of traditional installments, the new environment not only inspires exploration, but also highly encourages it. It's a refreshing feeling for a Pokemon game, and even 30 hours into gameplay, not once did I ever feel discouraged from exploring the game at all. I also appreciated the new trial system over the traditional gym system, as they were all unique to their respective typing, and each challenge felt fun and engaging. The new elements, new mechanics, and the gorgeous environment create a truly spectacular experience.

    However, the game is not without it's fault. While Sun and Moon are definitely Game Freak's most ambitious installment to date, the overall story was a bit lacking. While elements of it were new and different, it was a pretty typical archetype for the Pokemon series. It's not bad by any means, but I felt as though that as far that goes that they did not bring anything new to the table.

    Overall, Sun and Moon are still a much needed breath of fresh air to the series, and it makes me hopeful as a fan to see what they do next in the world of Pokemon.    … Expand
  35. Hippoall2002
    Feb 20, 2017
    8
    A very good game. The new monsters are cute, But I think strategy is less reachable. Also, the new pokedex is easier to complete but some of my favourite pokemon are not still in he game ( Hippowdon ;_; ). The mount are really cool and usefull. The design of the interface is better and the new Z-moves are all awesome.
  36. peropify
    Dec 14, 2016
    8
    Pokemon Sun (and Moon) is everything you want in your latest Pokemon generation game. There have been overall good and interesting changes to the casual and professional player and has generally picked up most of the good things found in past games. However, it would be nice if they would invest in a game that focused more on story and there's just way too many Pokemon in the game now forPokemon Sun (and Moon) is everything you want in your latest Pokemon generation game. There have been overall good and interesting changes to the casual and professional player and has generally picked up most of the good things found in past games. However, it would be nice if they would invest in a game that focused more on story and there's just way too many Pokemon in the game now for it to be feasible to "catch them all", not to mention how plagued the game is with hackers. But this game was a step in the right direction.

    My suggestion is to break even more from convention with strong emphasis on story and difficulty. The reason the Pokemon franchise is so successful is because of it's roots in Pokemon Red and Blue. Gameplay was designed amazingly (either by genius or mistake), from the more difficult gym leader typings and pokemon available in the early game. As for story, I think it would be a great idea to go back to the past - a prequel if you will - that explains interesting pokemon mythology from the legendary dogs to the pokemon war.    … Expand
  37. Sausage22
    Nov 7, 2017
    8
    Pokemon Sun and Moon are huge improvment over older entries, but in the same time gets some new flaws that previous games didn't have. Also one of the best looking game on 3ds.
  38. SiemB
    Jan 22, 2018
    8
    It are great games. As aways, I enjoyed them much as a pokémon fan, but it are defenitely not the best pokémon games I have played.

    The alolan forms, the new pokémon and the story are awesome. On the other hand, the unskippable cutscenes can be very frustrating if you replay the games. Also, I don't like the trials as alternative to gyms and the tropical theme of the game doesn't really    It are great games. As aways, I enjoyed them much as a pokémon fan, but it are defenitely not the best pokémon games I have played.

    The alolan forms, the new pokémon and the story are awesome. On the other hand, the unskippable cutscenes can be very frustrating if you replay the games. Also, I don't like the trials as alternative to gyms and the tropical theme of the game doesn't really fit to pokémon in my opinion.

    There are many changes, some may find that positive while other might hate it. One thing is for sure: at least GameFreak tried to innovate the games and many people critized the lack of that in the past.    … Expand
  39. Neng-
    Dec 15, 2016
    8
    This game steps up pretty much every other Pokemon game made before, the plot is more engaging, battle animations look better, route designs are very well done and the kahuna system is innovative and gives a fresh atmosphere to the game.

    There are some annoying things they got rid of like the MO system and the box storage (you can now switch a party member for a Pokemon you just    This game steps up pretty much every other Pokemon game made before, the plot is more engaging, battle animations look better, route designs are very well done and the kahuna system is innovative and gives a fresh atmosphere to the game.

    There are some annoying things they got rid of like the MO system and the box storage (you can now switch a party member for a Pokemon you just caught), and that's a step in the right direction.

    Altough, things like the bad framerate (even on new3ds) in double battles is something that should be fixed as soon as possible, and the z moves doesn't really add anything to the game that really matters.

    That being said, the new alola forms are cool and the post-game is very entertaining, all in all is a game that keeps improving and that is always a good sign. Collapse    … Expand
  40. CorkAficionado
    Dec 8, 2016
    8
    I'm a longtime fan of the series so keep that in mind when considering my review. Also keep in mind that the game is intended for children, so I'm not going to be super critical.

    I was really impressed with the my experience on the first island, I thought the pacing was pretty great after the introduction and I was really pleased by the sheer quantity of basic pokemon I caught within    I'm a longtime fan of the series so keep that in mind when considering my review. Also keep in mind that the game is intended for children, so I'm not going to be super critical.

    I was really impressed with the my experience on the first island, I thought the pacing was pretty great after the introduction and I was really pleased by the sheer quantity of basic pokemon I caught within the first four or five hours. Everything was relatively easy, but I thought that was fine since it was the first island.

    Once I arrived at the second island my enthusiasm diminished a bit because the amount of newly available pokemon per area was starting to diminish. That said I was still having a pretty great time, the ride system removing the requirement of HMs to travel was a great feature, and the rate of introduction was such that it allowed you a pretty good deal to explore without gating it behind gym badges like previous entries in the series.

    By the time I got to the third island though I was really struggling to keep interest. In a game where the premise is to "Catch them all." Running into the same rats and birds ~60% of the time is not exactly an enticing prospect. Heck, these are entirely different islands, maybe show a little bit more biodiversity? I understand having common pokemon but you could at least have made them common per island, rather than the same common pokemon between islands. Fortunately the story picks up at this point and compels you through the end of the game, which is alright on it's own.

    The Post-game is alright, but I don't enjoy it as much as I did with Gen 4 and Gen 5s different modes of battling. I don't have as much time to grind out ideal pokemon either, so that definitely factors into it. Still, I find it better than Gen 6.

    All in all I was genuinely pleased with the quality of Sun and Moon. There were a lot of very great cosmetic enhancements over previous entries, small things such as better backgrounds in combat and trainers using different types of pokeballs. This is easily the best looking pokemon game to date, but that is very much what it should be.

    All things considered it's a pretty solid entry. They made some poor choices in regard to pokemon distribution (in my opinion), and having a regional dex smaller than the previous generations is a bit sad as a person who enjoys catching as many per region as possible. But the various quality of life improvements and cosmetic enhancements were really a step in the right direction in my opinion.

    Conclusion:

    I wouldn't call it a masterpiece, but it's a good game. I enjoyed it significantly more than XY / ORAS and about on the same level as BW / B2W2. I was also pretty disappointed in the quantity of new pokemon, but the regional variants were an inclusion that I thought were great and would love to see more of in future games.

    I think most fans of the series will enjoy the game, I think most children will enjoy the game. I think the game could have offered more, but the game is still good if not great.    … Expand
  41. minorthreat97
    Dec 11, 2016
    8
    It's a good Pokemon and great way to Celebrate it's 20th Anniversary. However there a few things that could've been expanded upon or improved. Somethings that used to be in Gen 6 have been removed, which doesn't ruin the game in a big way but it does make you wish they stayed or were improved. There isn't too much new Pokemon but overall they're interesting pretty cool. The story isIt's a good Pokemon and great way to Celebrate it's 20th Anniversary. However there a few things that could've been expanded upon or improved. Somethings that used to be in Gen 6 have been removed, which doesn't ruin the game in a big way but it does make you wish they stayed or were improved. There isn't too much new Pokemon but overall they're interesting pretty cool. The story is predictable and cheesy but overall it's tolerable and pretty great. Somethings are a chore however, the cutscenes sometimes feel like they go longer than 1 minute and the tutorials take so long to finish ( I'm over exaggerating but it feels like forever.) Oh yea Rotomdex is pretty annoying, it's cool at first but it just never shuts up lol.

    Overall this a pretty good game, some things I wish could've been improved but I got my money's worth and I'm actually enjoying the game.    … Expand
  42. fbnaulin
    Nov 21, 2016
    8
    I play Pokémon since Red/Blue, but stop completing Pokédex and caring about sharing / competitive features after Gold / Silver. Then, I just play Pokémon as an RPG, main story, maybe some extras and that's all.

    Having this in mind, Pokémon Sun / Moon gave me a very nice and fresh impression. The story is peaceful, and everything feel like a slices of life touch in it. It's great to have    I play Pokémon since Red/Blue, but stop completing Pokédex and caring about sharing / competitive features after Gold / Silver. Then, I just play Pokémon as an RPG, main story, maybe some extras and that's all.

    Having this in mind, Pokémon Sun / Moon gave me a very nice and fresh impression. The story is peaceful, and everything feel like a slices of life touch in it. It's great to have a Pokémon game where you can advance without a HM slave or using a lot of repels to avoid countless useless encounters.    … Expand
  43. iMustang
    Mar 26, 2019
    8
    I have to say prior to playing this game, I pretty much expected the worst generation since Diamond and Pearl. Alolan Forms did not look good to me, I wasn't impressed by Z-Attacks, and overall I thought they were changing a formula that wasn't broken to begin with. Well... Those changes actually made for one of the most unique and best games. I ended up loving the trials and theirI have to say prior to playing this game, I pretty much expected the worst generation since Diamond and Pearl. Alolan Forms did not look good to me, I wasn't impressed by Z-Attacks, and overall I thought they were changing a formula that wasn't broken to begin with. Well... Those changes actually made for one of the most unique and best games. I ended up loving the trials and their captains, and the way all of their traditions worked so uniquely in this region. Some of the Alolan Forms were cute and made sense, and I ended up falling in love with Z-Moves. The story was also really enjoyable and had a lot of interesting characters you always wanted to know more about, especially Lillie. It was far from perfect, what with the awful call for help mechanic, some awkward evolutions, and the game taking a very lazy approach towards trials by the 4th island (which was a shame since they were the coolest part of the game in my opinion). But something doesn't have to be perfect to still be good.… Expand
  44. Aquvamaen
    Nov 1, 2019
    8
    As with the other pokemon titles for the 3DS, I think Pokemon Sun and Moon are very underrated games. It was a fresh and new consept, which was very fun for a Pokemon game, Trials istead of gyms, totem pokemon, sos chaining and great new pokemon designs and an overall good story. Like the other 3DS titles there is a lot of handholding, and you`re not as free to explore the region as inAs with the other pokemon titles for the 3DS, I think Pokemon Sun and Moon are very underrated games. It was a fresh and new consept, which was very fun for a Pokemon game, Trials istead of gyms, totem pokemon, sos chaining and great new pokemon designs and an overall good story. Like the other 3DS titles there is a lot of handholding, and you`re not as free to explore the region as in previous games but it`s still a very fun game. It`s what you`d expect from a pokemon game with a twist.… Expand
  45. zidfrit
    Apr 24, 2020
    8
    Un juego de pokemon que he vuelto a disfrutar de entrenar e ir armando mi equipo para enfrentar los nuevos retos que nos espera en esta nueva región, incluye un nuevo concepto que en lo personal no me agrado, prefiero la vieja escuela, y es la inclusión de misiones en lugar de lideres de GYM, al menos al final juegas una liga pokemon para quedar campeón (ahora entiendo por que Ash ahora siUn juego de pokemon que he vuelto a disfrutar de entrenar e ir armando mi equipo para enfrentar los nuevos retos que nos espera en esta nueva región, incluye un nuevo concepto que en lo personal no me agrado, prefiero la vieja escuela, y es la inclusión de misiones en lugar de lideres de GYM, al menos al final juegas una liga pokemon para quedar campeón (ahora entiendo por que Ash ahora si pudo ganarla)… Expand
  46. TyrannicalDonut
    Nov 19, 2016
    6
    The game is good, however the game seems to be more marketed towards beginner players than previous fans. The game takes a large departure from the previous games centered around collecting badges to the new "trials". The story is also now very linear. You will find npcs blocking you into an small area until you clear an objective. The game seems a lot more hand holdy than previous gamesThe game is good, however the game seems to be more marketed towards beginner players than previous fans. The game takes a large departure from the previous games centered around collecting badges to the new "trials". The story is also now very linear. You will find npcs blocking you into an small area until you clear an objective. The game seems a lot more hand holdy than previous games as the talking pokedex tells you exactly what to do. They also introduced calling for help. This mechanic occurs when you get a wild pokemon down to low health, they will auto call for help at the end of the turn (even if they attacked that turn). This makes it a huge chore now to catch wild pokemon as you may end up fighting a large chain forever if the pokemon is successful in calling in help over and over again. 3D has also been completely removed from the game. Previous games had 3D battle scenes, sun and moon are completely in 2D. Overall, I would say I enjoyed the game but it definitely was the worst of the 3DS titles so far.… Expand
  47. koolaidman486
    Aug 1, 2017
    6
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Sun and Moon (they're the same game with very minute differences in terms of story and gameplay) aren't bad. I just don't think it's great. First off, I personally hate the trials system over gyms. I'd rather do a puzzle, fight some trainers, and then fight a leader of a certain type. The trials feel incredibly same, frequently it's fighting 3 Pokemon, then fight a fully evolved Pokemon with a guaranteed partner and super beefed up stats. Thankfully this game is easier then the entire previous generation, as bosses frequently had excellent coverage for weaknesses and they were almost always designed to counter the most likely to be used strategy for fighting said bosses. The world looks nice, and the music is generally good. My next gripe comes with the entire first island. It's ridiculously hand-holdy. The game will never really fully let go of your hand and Sun and Moon are still some of the easier games to date. Z moves are fine, albeit I would've preferred a greater emphasis on mega evolution but that's just me. New and Alolan Pokemon are almost all good. There are a few did but that's to be expected. Overall, I'd recommend getting Sun or Moon if it's on sale, but I just can't do full price, I can't.… Expand
  48. TatsMcGee
    Sep 8, 2018
    8
    I would call this game, one of the most anticipated games of the year. At least for me, this was one game that I was very excited about. I was a huge fan of Pokemon X/Y and although ORAS (Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire) weren’t as enjoyable as X/Y, ORAS are still great games.

    In what Nintendo would probably describe as a P.R. disaster, a few weeks before the game came out, all the new    I would call this game, one of the most anticipated games of the year. At least for me, this was one game that I was very excited about. I was a huge fan of Pokemon X/Y and although ORAS (Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire) weren’t as enjoyable as X/Y, ORAS are still great games.

    In what Nintendo would probably describe as a P.R. disaster, a few weeks before the game came out, all the new Pokemon were revealed. But what started out as potential disaster ended up helping out Nintendo because this was the best selling Pokemon game ever made. Clearly people saw the Pokemon and had to get this game to have the New Pokemon on their team.

    It wasn’t just new Pokemon though, Game Freak (The developers of Pokemon) took old generation 1 Pokemon and put a fun spin on them all. Take Ninetales from the picture to the left here. Up until this point, Ninetales was a Fire type but in Pokemon franchise, he/she gets a new typing and a new look. Lets be realistic here, I think it looks a lot better. So if the new Pokemon didn’t bring enough hype to the game, the new Alolan Versions of old Pokemon certainly did.

    The game starts out a little bit different than most other Pokemon games. For example in the first Pokemon games, you get to pick your starter within the first 5 minutes of the game. This its take quite a bit longer and although I don’t know the exact time, it felt like it was a good half hour before you can even pick your first Pokemon.

    Picking the starter wasn’t too much of a hard decision for me. I had given it a lot of thought before hand. I came to the decision that I was going to pick Rowlet, a couple weeks before the game even came out. Some of you may be wondering why and the simple reason is because I really like the Owl design of Decidueye. I also took it a step further and looked into the three starters stats and move list. The fact that Decidueye could learn Brave Bird, Spirit Tackle, Leaf Blade, Sucker Punch and if I wanted to he could also learn False Swipe. This is the first time where I actually preferred the grass type over the other two. This is just my own personal opinion but I think Decidueye is the best grass starter in the history of the Pokemon franchise.

    The rest of my team, ended up filling out as the game progressed through the story. A lot like my starter, I looked at the leaked Pokemon list and really made tentative plans of what my team was going to look like. That did play out the way I wanted it to and ended up only keeping half of my original team. Normally in Pokemon games, I build a team early on and play the game with that team. This was the first time in a Pokemon game that I just kept tinkering with my team, trying to find a good chemistry with all my Pokemon. Finally, I did settle on the team that is just below this post.

    Datrix/Salazzle/Mudsdale/Toucannon/Alolan Ninetales/Alolan Golem

    Getting back on track and talking about the game itself, I felt like the game took a long time to actually get going. There was a very long tutorial that ended up taking at least an hour and half (if not closer to 2 hours).

    I don’t want to spoil the story for anyone who hasn’t had a chance to pick to up the game yet. I’m not going into specific details about the story but I do want to talk about my opinion of the story. Personally, I did not like the story. With that being said, I know I am in the vast minority and most people think that this is the best Pokemon story created. Before I go into why I didn’t like the story, I do want to give out a shout out to Game Freak for focusing more on the Narrative rather than just the gameplay.

    The Game’s length is probably somewhere between 20 and 30 hours. I know it sounds like a wide margin but it all depends on if you take the time, explore and try to catch all the Pokemon as you can. Personally, it took me about 25 hours to play through the game and it just felt like a long time for me. A big reason for that are the very long and unskippable cutscenes. I feel like there are at least 5 hours of unskippable and not very interesting cutscenes. This really slowed the game down for me and made the game feel like it was poorly paced.    … Expand
  49. Sressiv
    Mar 5, 2018
    7
    A fresh new entry in the series, with lots of nice tweaks and tons of changes from previous entries. So much has changed, but in a good way. The islands are nice, and graphically everything is more advanced. Things have been made less tedious. I had fun building a party with the new generation of Pokémon, even though there were less than I expected, and they're all great! Pokémon hasA fresh new entry in the series, with lots of nice tweaks and tons of changes from previous entries. So much has changed, but in a good way. The islands are nice, and graphically everything is more advanced. Things have been made less tedious. I had fun building a party with the new generation of Pokémon, even though there were less than I expected, and they're all great! Pokémon has gotten a huge twist, it's an all new experience, but still Pokémon.… Expand
  50. SteelDragon
    Nov 19, 2016
    1
    Big disappointment to me. The framerate issues and the lack of difficulty make this game feel as if they were antagonizing the older Pokemon fans while they let the younger fans depend on long tutorials and boring cutscenes.
  51. SkullShards
    Nov 19, 2016
    1
    The entire first hour/hour and a half is a cut-scene driven tutorial. You are forced down linear paths and need to skip through relentless exposition in order to get to the meat of the game. I found myself thinking at about the 1 hour mark, "It would be more fun to just play Blue or Gold again...". And now I am forced to watch the Pokedex blink at me every 3 seconds.
  52. labarith
    Nov 18, 2016
    1
    Cons:
    (old?) 3ds load times are ridiculous.
    TOO MANY CUT SCENES. I've played the game for an hour, and most of that has been me taking 2-3 steps and entering a new cut scene. Pros: It looks good. End of the day, you're going to buy this if you like Pokemon. But this is the first main-series Pokemon game to be legitimately unfun. Not "boring" or "slow" or "repetitive," but just    Cons:
    (old?) 3ds load times are ridiculous.
    TOO MANY CUT SCENES. I've played the game for an hour, and most of that has been me taking 2-3 steps and entering a new cut scene.

    Pros:
    It looks good.

    End of the day, you're going to buy this if you like Pokemon. But this is the first main-series Pokemon game to be legitimately unfun. Not "boring" or "slow" or "repetitive," but just a waste of your time.

    There are rumors about a new, better SWITCH version - in which case, maybe it's time to just not give Nintendo you're money anymore. Because ruining a franchise, and making people buy newer hardware to make it run even remotely well is not okay.    … Expand
  53. FranklinDiancie
    Nov 19, 2016
    5
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Pokémon Sun and Moon are worth the price, just not quite as good as the hype. To be honest I was somewhat disappointed but I do think the game is worth the price. I've been playing since blue originally came out so I'd like to say I've been for quite a while. This game has a lot of hit and misses. I don't think this will be the game to revolutionize Pokémon completely but it does take some steps in the right direction which makes me excited for future instalments. This game did feel unfinished but I wonder if that's because of the rumored new game for the switch.

    The story is relatively boring until it does a 180 and escalates really quickly. It feels like it takes age for something worthwhile to happen. When it does it's over almost as soon as it starts. Most if not all the story revolves around the character Lillie. So much of the story revolves around her and "Nebby" that you almost the main character by proxy only. Lillie's constant inability to do anything for herself did sort of get on my nerves. Even when she "changed" it felt like the majority of that was her wearing different clothes and remind us how different she is now. However, she still refused to use Pokémon, become a trainer, etc. She still relies on you to do everything until the very end when she leaves to Kanto. Gladion could have been removed from the story and it would have been almost 100% the same. He only really felt like a vector to shoehorn in type: Null    … Expand
  54. Ibanez89
    Nov 20, 2016
    7
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Ok I'm going to start off by saying that is far from a bad game. Infact, its a very good game. But I cant help but express the few things that really frustrate me as a first impression with about 7 hours into the game.

    1. The handholding in this game is at its max. It feels like you cannot lose. I've always had an issue with that exp share since X and Y as you don't even need to use the pokemon to level them up. I dont feel you earn your levels and its not satisfying at all. On top of that, you dont even need items to heal pokemon from status conditions! all you need to do is use the medicine tool from the care menu and its infinite use. This makes paralyze heals, antidotes etc absolutely pointless.

    2. The framerate in this is probably the worst the series has produced. The camera function and double battles are actually laggy enough to make you lose interest. Even overall the FPS is quite average.

    3. The constant stopping and starting through the game. So much tutorials and pointless dialogue. Someone will stop talking to you after about 2 minutes, you then take 10 steps forward and someone else will stop you and talk for another 5 minutes. Its very frustrating and loses the games intended flow.

    Putting those aside though, this game looks great and it plays great. I love the 3d world, how you interact with things, the possibilities and just how much more efficient they made it. I dont know too much about the overall story because those cons I listed above made me lose interest quickly, but thats not saying I have lost hope because it has something special going on. Deep down, they have a very good direction but its just a shame that you cant experience it properly from the beginning.
    What I also really love is that they give you a variety of pokemon to catch from the very start. No more do you have a party full of birds and bug types.
    They have done a very welcoming change to the formula to a point where its not completely different, but enough to keep the franchise fresh and also keep alot of the old gameplay along with it.

    The best thing that I had noticed in the game is that when you catch a pokemon but your party is full, they have now given you the option to switch a pokemon out and put the one you caught straight in there. I wish I could go up to gamefreak and shake their hand.

    Do I recommend this game? definitely. Just be aware that the early game could bore you to tears but there will surely be things in the game that you will love about it. Another must own for the 3ds for sure. Even if you go back to it months later to give it another chance.    … Expand
  55. NewFaceofFun
    Nov 19, 2016
    4
    The only issue with Battle Royal is that the game’s performance takes a massive dip when four Pokémon are duking it out on-screen. These framerate drops happen more frequently than in previous games where two-on-two battles were the only serious offender, which is a shame, but thanks to the slow-paced, turn-based combat it never really becomes an issue, more an inconvenience.
  56. Haydinho
    Dec 2, 2016
    5
    Unfortunately to celebrate 20 years of the most populated RPG Gamefreak and Nintendo have released a game with too much hand holding, in game cut scenes and a preschooler difficulty level.

    It was disappointing to play through and let me wanting for something like Black and White / Black 2 and White 2.

    Don't let the sales numbers trick you, if your a veteran player this will disappoint.
  57. TheDonald
    Nov 18, 2016
    2
    I'll keep this review updated as I go but this is the most unplayable DAY 1 release I've ever witnessed and I've been buying Pokemon games on release day since red and blue back in the 90s. And despite being an oldie - I am definitely not the type to hate new changes. I loved ORAS and XY and B2W2 (XY had a small struggle because Nintendo completely bungled the Pokemon Bank release, but theI'll keep this review updated as I go but this is the most unplayable DAY 1 release I've ever witnessed and I've been buying Pokemon games on release day since red and blue back in the 90s. And despite being an oldie - I am definitely not the type to hate new changes. I loved ORAS and XY and B2W2 (XY had a small struggle because Nintendo completely bungled the Pokemon Bank release, but the game was still wonderful from day 1). The last time I was this infuriated by Pokemon was with the original Black and White when there was that annoying character following you around the whole game interrupting the flow of gameplay with inane button mashed scrolls of garbage small talk. However, this one is worse by far. It took 90 MINUTES of game play before I could even get to a Pokemon Center, save and discover that Pokemon Bank was unavailable (and sadly Pokemon bank is the least of my problems here). I had bred a level 1 Omanyte and Dunsparce in ORAS to try to make my first playthrough of Sun be more challenging (they tend to make each generation more and more idiot friendly - for example, taking away type-matching by giving players a cheat prompt now in Sun and Moon). Anyway, not being able to import my Pokemon was definitely a bummer and really inexcusable for Nintendo (they're like the lazy employee at a job) but still not the biggest problem. The biggest problem is that even after 90 minutes of absolutely horrible intro-scene/tutorial patchwork, finally being able to get to the Pokemon center -- the intro-montage STILL isn't over! It's like they have gone out of their way to design a game that should have been titled "BUTTON MASH MEANINGLESS SCROLLS OF GARBAGE: Pokemon themed edition". Anyway. I'm super disappointed. I don't know how anyone is supposed to get into this story line with all this crap pulling you out of the game mentally. It feels like a chore to play this so far and it shouldn't feel like that after two hours. I should actually be able to play the game at this point.… Expand
  58. Ordano
    Nov 21, 2016
    0
    As others have stated: worst game in the series.
    - Terrible frame rates
    - Terrible story line (Team Skull was done particularly poorly with writing out of place for the series) - Deviates from traditional game formula in a negative way - Constant Loading - Constant Cut Scenes - The Rotom-dex is annoying A step backwards for the series - unfortunate that it happened on the year of    As others have stated: worst game in the series.
    - Terrible frame rates
    - Terrible story line (Team Skull was done particularly poorly with writing out of place for the series)
    - Deviates from traditional game formula in a negative way
    - Constant Loading
    - Constant Cut Scenes
    - The Rotom-dex is annoying

    A step backwards for the series - unfortunate that it happened on the year of their 20th anniversary.    … Expand
  59. dexMax
    Nov 19, 2016
    1
    This has got to one of the most disappointing entries in the series. The trials are stupid and boring. All the new pokemon are to damn slow and there is no national dex. What was Ganefreak thinking? One of the worst thing of all is the story. Pokemon was never about the story and never should have be. One of the worst things about it are the long unskippable cutscene that bring progress toThis has got to one of the most disappointing entries in the series. The trials are stupid and boring. All the new pokemon are to damn slow and there is no national dex. What was Ganefreak thinking? One of the worst thing of all is the story. Pokemon was never about the story and never should have be. One of the worst things about it are the long unskippable cutscene that bring progress to a grinding halt never mind the actual story is garbage. I want to explore the region on my own pace not the crap the game forces on me. There no good postgame to make up for it. Also pokemon calling for help is very annoying.

    Gamefreak scrape the story and refine the other good features just never make this kind of disappointment againm    … Expand
  60. PokeCritic
    Nov 19, 2016
    6
    Personally, I have mixed emotions about the game. Yeah, I'm excited for the new changes, and yeah, SOME of the Pokémon look horrendous. There's a lot of new features so I'm holding my breath wondering why this game sucks. Hoping for the best. On a more positive note, I got the game for FREE!!!!
  61. gigus
    Nov 21, 2016
    2
    It is overall a very disappointing if you are a pokemon fan. There are some good things in the game but in the end the game leaves a very bad taste in my mouth. The main reason are the story cutscence
  62. Angrylittleman
    Dec 2, 2016
    1
    This game is great if you're five years old and have never played Pokemon before. For the rest of us it's a chore. Long cut scenes, forced tutorials, lack of freedom to explore, linear gameplay, too easy and just boring. I was skipping all chat as fast as I could without reading it. It's sad because I love this franchise to bits.
  63. SiCriCy
    Nov 20, 2016
    4
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. going to keep it breif:
    -looks flashier than previose games resulting in slowdown in combat on a brand new 3ds,
    -loads of new well made cut scenes leading to unwanted load screens (so many loading screens),
    -a now MANDATORY and UNSKIPPABLE tutorial INCLUDING UNSKIPPABLE trainer school ~1-2 hour -FML,
    -no more puzzles, hm's and hm slaves, now a summonable mount that imo looks dumb af (way to overprotected and overdone riding gear making it look dumb, clunky, and overly safe for a shelterd 8 yr old to enjoy),
    -pokemon games have always been pretty linear with a little bit of exploring, but this is PAINFULLY LINEAR: rather than hm's that allow you to rexplore old areas, you have a free skilled mount to summon that directly allows you to progress with the fact that rather than puzzles or skill blocks you giet railroaded by physical barreiers to be removed after trial complete, i find this forced railroading painful and dumb

    OVERALL:
    aesthetics: 10/10 pretty AF, look great in all aspects
    story: 5/10, typical pokemon game with nice cutscens, but UNSKIPPABLE cutsenes
    quality of life: 4/10 LOADING screens, FORCED TUTORIAL, SEVERE BLATANT RAILROADING (no way to do anything you want in your own order since you MUST PLAY STORY to unlock ANYTHING)

    I personally think this is a one step forward two steps back kind of game; it has better visuals and looks nicer, but hardware unable to keep up and noticable slow downs appear in combat and sometimes lag spikes occur, MEANWHILE this game punishes you for knowing how to play the game by not allowing you to skip the tutorial at all and forcing you to further do an unskippable trainer school BS; compared to X/Y and ORAS this game was painful to play and painfully targeting a younger audience rather than aiming at a younger audience and accomadating the loyal generations that follow.    … Expand
  64. Hamish95
    Nov 22, 2016
    3
    I've been playing the Pokemon series since it's inception and over the years I've loved they new strategies game freak has used to change the way each game feels and plays, until now. This game would be a great game if it was a first in a series, showing plenty of bugs and making it not so challenging. From playing though this game I've found over half of play time is cut scenes and that'sI've been playing the Pokemon series since it's inception and over the years I've loved they new strategies game freak has used to change the way each game feels and plays, until now. This game would be a great game if it was a first in a series, showing plenty of bugs and making it not so challenging. From playing though this game I've found over half of play time is cut scenes and that's not what I want out of a pokemon game, yes cut scenes are great and help the story but there's a point of to much ruins it. As well as series frame drops when it comes to totem and double battles which have never occur in past games for me. The introduction of mega evolutions in just the last new games in the series being ditched for Z-moves that aren't overly useful I feel was a jarring mistake as Mega evolutions were loved by so many as well as removing the challenge of trying to figure out the next part of the story line that many have come to love of the pokemon series is what makes it so enticing, it's meant to be a challenge and overall I have found this game more cut scenes than gameplay, unchallenging with everything being handed to you, laggy and minimal strategy needed to be successful. The change of the gyms to trail however is something new and enjoyable even though they are fairly easy passed.… Expand
  65. Firepistol95
    Nov 3, 2017
    7
    Performance review: Its a good game so far, imo. but from wht ive been hearing from ppl tht the load times are long and Double battles hav framerate drops. If I remember right, I read somewhere a couple of days ago tht the game is best played on a New 3DS. And I hav one, so far I have rarely seen a single framerate drop and the load times are about 3 seconds long, sometimes less. It looksPerformance review: Its a good game so far, imo. but from wht ive been hearing from ppl tht the load times are long and Double battles hav framerate drops. If I remember right, I read somewhere a couple of days ago tht the game is best played on a New 3DS. And I hav one, so far I have rarely seen a single framerate drop and the load times are about 3 seconds long, sometimes less. It looks like we're hitting the point where games are being demanding enough to where u will actually need a New model to hav the best exp with them. So it looks like the old models are slowly, but surely, phasing out. If Nintendo is planning to keep the 3DS life span going any longer. Im glad I dont use an old model anymore.… Expand
  66. Rickles
    Nov 28, 2016
    4
    Pokémon is giving way too much credit to Red, Blue and Yellow for its own sake. This fanservice comes in the form of Road 1 birds and rodents from every generation combined and spread accross Alola's 4 islands. The player is spammed with those useless, tired encounters throughout the game, ruining the experience.

    Zubat, Graveler, Dugtrio, Raticate, they're all back, and we're not happy    Pokémon is giving way too much credit to Red, Blue and Yellow for its own sake. This fanservice comes in the form of Road 1 birds and rodents from every generation combined and spread accross Alola's 4 islands. The player is spammed with those useless, tired encounters throughout the game, ruining the experience.

    Zubat, Graveler, Dugtrio, Raticate, they're all back, and we're not happy about it. To add insult to injury, they come in new flavors (new typings) that are considerably worse than their original counterparts and leave them vulnerable to an addition of other types, on top of former weaknesses.

    Pokémon in this game aren't well distributed. New creatures are hidden behind unfavorable 10% odds, daytime requirements, pin-pointed spawn locations or the new, frustrating S.O.S battle mechanic.

    Any Pokémon in a pinch will invariably call for help right before you can throw a Pokeball at them. This means getting stuck in never ending loops of respawns. This is annoying to say the least, seeing that most Pokémon will only call for copies of themselves.

    Some Pokémon call for otherwise unobtainable Pokémon, meaning that chaining is now a compulsory mechanic. And in a way, False Swipe becomes a requisite too. A shame, in a game that supposedly frees you of compulsory moves. This mechanic entails that you look for tips online to know exactly where to go and what Pokémon to chain to obtain a hidden monster.

    HMs finally disappear only to see the game become even more restrictive in its linearity and hand-holding.
    The story is bland and badly implemented. Dialog is immature and blithe even by Saturday morning cartoon standards.

    Technically, the game puts Game Freak to shame. It's simply inconceivable that such a game should lag so much. Both graphics and basic statistical calculus seems taxing on the 3DS. There is no stereoscopic 3D, and even the mapping of direction on the Circle Pad is imprecise and fidgety, making navigating menus a chore.

    Triple and rotation battles are a thing of the past, and inversion battles too (which saw the types affinity table overturned in a neat twist, and demanded that movesets be rethought entirely). The game's code couldn't take it, obviously, but here's thinking the 3DS itself actually could have, with some talent to back it up, which Game Freak has always notoriously lacked. The presence of the trainer's model, for instance, was an unnecessary addition, if it meant cutting off half of the game's modes.

    I couldn't really play Battle Royale, only because the main quests only opposes level 50 Pokémon to the player's lineup, meaning this is truly a post-game solo feature sitting in the middle of the campaign. Of course, up to 4 players may join in a joust, but putting it in the campaign at a time when no player may enjoy it is simply dumb.
    There are countless vexations in this game that make it a terrible iteration. Some will legitimately drive you up the wall, some are more subject to personal preference, such as the garish art direction and cacophonous score. But this is only my sentiment.    … Expand
  67. Bluewaternebula
    Nov 22, 2016
    6
    The game is fun but it is also a little too hands on. I can't explore a new area without being bombarded by conversational text. By far, the biggest downside is the lack of super training. It was ditched for the more time consuming traditional way of EV training.
  68. proxfrd
    Jun 22, 2017
    0
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Worst main series pokemon game. Gamefreak focused solely on story and left the gameplay easy as heck. There are actual cutscenes that can't be skipped so you have to just grit it out and press A on the boxes as they come. The stories to these games have always been bad to mediocre. Focusing on the story didn't help that. After winning the championship, your game isn't autosaved and you're faced with the most horrendous, 30 min - 1 hour long cutscene depending on if you actually read the text. That is followed by the unskippable, 10 - 20 minute long credits. Also framerate issues throughout during battles.
    It doesn't seem like much, and I do appreciate the attempt at something new, but this endless garbage story is a huge leap in the wrong direction.
    Z-moves are cool. The new pokemon are cool, the gameplay is mostly the same.
    Solutions: Just put in a skip tutorial option and a skip cutscene option.
    Also fix the framerate issues, pokemon doesn't need to be that graphic intensive.
    P.S. You can't name your rival. Fix it    … Expand
  69. rubblecoder
    Jul 3, 2020
    0
    I swear this game was written by someone that wanted to annoy and frustrate as many gamers as possible. After beating the game it literally won't let you save for like a hour... wtf?
  70. Kartillian
    Dec 7, 2016
    4
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I've played every main series game in the franchise and I find this one to be by far the weakest.

    The problems are present from the outset, the game literally takes approximately 2hrs (playing at a casual pace and exploring a lot) before you're released from the cutscene purgatory, the cutscenes themselves wouldn't inherently be a bad thing except that they're borderline unnecessary most of the time, a lot of them are simply the characters doing simple gestures with little to no text. On top of that a serious number of them are a cutscene, followed by you walking several steps forward to yet another cutscene, the problem is exemplified in its agony by the fact that your character literally never changes their expression, at the apex of the main story arc when you find out the culmination of information, it pans over to your character to see you just stood there smiling while everyone around you is shocked and horrified.

    The second major problem is the animation, while a great deal of effort has been put into beautifying the world (and to its benefit), many of the characters you're forced to interact with have the same stagnant animation time after time, I can only see Hau waving at me so many times before it becomes a symptom of poor design.

    The storyline while impactful is incredibly short and sudden, this is both one of my biggest pros and cons of the entire game, I can do nothing but praise the level of care that has been taken to help forge a bond between the player and the fellow characters in the game, to which end you do genuinely feel for them in a way that no other game has so far in the series. However unlike other games in the series, the story isn't so intricately woven into the fabric of the game and simply comes seemingly randomly and in 3 bulk points that feel unnatural and forced, giving you little time to appreciate the world and its troubles.

    Another large problem is the severe lack of variety of Pokemon in the game, the developers specifically stated that they wanted to use Hawaii as the basis for the game due to the abundance and variety of wildlife and wanted to mimic that in the game, the series is now home to over 800 monsters and yet you'll see the same ones over and over, after your 20th Pelipper and 40th Yungoos, you really start to wonder what's happened to all the other Pokemon.

    The Island Challenges however are a huge praising point in the game, you still effectively get 'gym battles' with one of the Kahunas or Trial Leaders as well as some additional mini-game type enjoyment, the Elite 4 has also had a great small overhaul with you being able to battle the Elite 4 in any order, the trainers using some more powerful moves as well as them having access to some more interesting techniques, although the AI does seem to need a little improvement in these areas.

    The removal of HMs is a great change that many of us have wanted for years and the implementation of the new Ride-Abilities, while a little clunky in places, is a great alternative that they've found, however the 'gating' off of areas now is exceptionally obvious whereas before it could be obscured by you needing to get a specific HM, now there are literally gates with someone telling you to come back when you've got a Z-Crystal, its rather jarring and immersion-breaking to simply have someone tell you to buzz off and get a crystal that only a few characters have access too, so what do the rest of the citizens do if they want to get to the next town?

    The world while seemingly expansive is actually exceptionally linear with not much filling it, the world itself is physically large but the actual content to explore within that world is depressing light. The whole game may as well be played on rails between the straight forward routes and the constant steering cutscenes, this RPG world doesn't feel very RPG when you're told exactly where to go and what to do without much time to go off and explore for yourself, and lets be honest, the Pokemon games have always had a linearity to them but it's very poorly hidden and disguised in this game.

    The post-game is appalling, after you complete the main story arc, there's borderline nothing for you to do except collect the Zygarde cells and clean up a bit of UB-mess, thats it. The game dangles Kanto a few inches a way from your face, before cruelly snatching it back from you, it really does feel like this game has been set up for some DLC, which i'm fine with but putting icing on feces doesn't make it taste nice. The removal and non-replacement of the DexNav or counterpart is probably one of the worst mistakes that could also be made in this franchise, not just the game.

    The difficulty curve is also a fickle thing, the early game is borderline boringly easy, mash A, win battle. However the curve ramps up fiercely toward the end and actually provides a decent challenge in the late game, which is one of it's saving graces.

    Overall, a disappointing game is an excellent series.    … Expand
  71. Macka7
    Nov 21, 2016
    0
    As per usual when it comes to GameFreak, this is 2 steps forward and 60 steps back.

    So much for the 'fresh changes to the formula'. The trials generally suck and the Kahuna's are essentially gym leaders anyway. The game feels almost on rails with all of the handholding and cutscenes every five minutes. The supporting cast are generally irritating. The game was even easier than XY for    As per usual when it comes to GameFreak, this is 2 steps forward and 60 steps back.

    So much for the 'fresh changes to the formula'. The trials generally suck and the Kahuna's are essentially gym leaders anyway. The game feels almost on rails with all of the handholding and cutscenes every five minutes. The supporting cast are generally irritating. The game was even easier than XY for me, repeatedly OHKOing Totem bosses and Kahuna's with their three Pokemon are a joke.

    The game is a bit of a mess. Frame rate can't hold up very well in the new otherwise fun Battle Royale mode. The game constantly needs to load and 'cut away' whenever you interact with anything. There are loading zones everywhere. There are bugs with the way abilities and such work.

    I could keep going.    … Expand
  72. Blackbox20
    Dec 19, 2016
    0
    This game feels more like some weird spinoff to the anime series than a mainstream Pokemon game. There's so many pointless cutscenes and dumb tutorials....it doesn't feel like a Pokemon game. 5 Hours in and I just can't play it anymore. Super boring compared to the other games.Asd Come to this
  73. renegade96
    Feb 9, 2017
    0
    This game sucks. The rival is a total pushover, the story is stupid. The Aloa forms are stupid, instead of gyms you have challenges which are as easy as waking up. This game is a waste of money. The beginning is slow and boring as all hell. Gladion's sister does nothing but **** and whine the entire game. The villain is so **** vanilla it's unreal. These " beasts" are really, reallyThis game sucks. The rival is a total pushover, the story is stupid. The Aloa forms are stupid, instead of gyms you have challenges which are as easy as waking up. This game is a waste of money. The beginning is slow and boring as all hell. Gladion's sister does nothing but **** and whine the entire game. The villain is so **** vanilla it's unreal. These " beasts" are really, really stupid. What is this? Pokemon fanfiction the game? I did not enjoy one thing about this game. Not one thing. I really hated the Rotomdex. That thing was **** annoying. The only good thing about this game is that you can sell it at a pawn shop and use that money to by a game that is actually good… Expand
  74. AuldWolf
    Feb 3, 2017
    0
    It's just too linear! It's the Final Fantasy XIII of Pokémon games, it really is. For me, that's a huge disappointment. I feel that the strength of Japanese games development lies in the Metroidvania feel. It's where they excel. A world where you can revisit older parts of it and sometimes discover new things; You've unlocked a new ability, so perhaps now it's time to go back and checkIt's just too linear! It's the Final Fantasy XIII of Pokémon games, it really is. For me, that's a huge disappointment. I feel that the strength of Japanese games development lies in the Metroidvania feel. It's where they excel. A world where you can revisit older parts of it and sometimes discover new things; You've unlocked a new ability, so perhaps now it's time to go back and check that area you couldn't pass to see if there's anything new there. You may get a new bit of story (maybe even pertaining to a specific character), you may get a new item, but it'll be worth going to nose around the places you've been and it would give you a new appreciation for those places.

    Sun & Moon is a neverending road onward. It continually plows forward with only minor interruptions in a very direct road. It's exactly like Final Fantasy XIII. I've been trying to enjoy it, but i simply can't. I know a lot of extraverted people speak about the "hassle" of HM slaves because it's too much to manage, it was too much freedom for them, too many options! And whilst I can see that to a degree, I also enjoyed the freedom of choosing which Pokémon served my travel needs. It was a freedom I liked. From numerous perspectives, customisation matters to me, and it's a bit confusing that this type of customisation no longer matters to Nintendo since they've been pushing trainer customisation so hard.

    At the end of the day, Sun & Moon just feel cloyingly locked in and bereft of options and choices. I am a robot, I follow this line on the ground, I battle the interruptions, I obey. Might be fun for people who just don't want to think, but that's no fun for me.    … Expand
  75. Amfibios
    Oct 23, 2017
    3
    i've been playing pokemon since the original red and blue and this is the first time a pokemon game has bored me out of my mind.

    it's basically like watching an interactive movie where u just watch for 5 minutes while they're shoving the game's story down your throat, then back to the world, only to go the next objective pointed on the map where another 3 minute cutscene will pop up    i've been playing pokemon since the original red and blue and this is the first time a pokemon game has bored me out of my mind.

    it's basically like watching an interactive movie where u just watch for 5 minutes while they're shoving the game's story down your throat, then back to the world, only to go the next objective pointed on the map where another 3 minute cutscene will pop up only to be followed by a stupidly easy fight of non interesting npcs and then go back to the world where every way is blocked off, except the one THEY want u to take.

    0 interest in the story, 0 exploration, annoying npcs spamming the same animations over and over, everytime u meet them (somehow they keep popping up every 10 steps u take).

    npcs just seem to be so nice giving away charizards and lapras for free so that u'll use them to travel the world, monster encounters somehow is like 90% gen 1 pokemon. mega evolutions are basically non existent and noone's even talking about them as now everyone's focusing on the brand new z powers. no national pokedex.

    i wanted to love it, i TRIED to like it. it started holding my hand since the 1st minute and i was telling myself it'll get better, but it didn't. it kept my interest for a little while until it fell flat on its face and i couldn't find myself playing it anymore.

    they did try making some "innovations" but it wasn't even enough to be considered a whole new gen, just rehashed **** everywhere. if u like pokemon for the exploration and the quest for unveiling the mysteries of the world/pokemon, u'll find none of that here, steer clear.    … Expand
  76. evani
    Nov 8, 2017
    5
    Worst main series pokemon game i have ever played.
    Cut scene, dialog, follow the npc it just never lets you play the game, the first 30 minutes is horrible just full of Dialog and cut scenes let me play the game!
  77. EmirKhorasani
    Aug 18, 2017
    0
    This game was the culmination of taking all of the worst parts of pokemon and putting them front and center. 60% of the game is spent mashing the A button through the pointless slow grueling mucked up narrative. The other 40% spends a lot of time in loading screens and animations. It's actually 13.4 seconds from losing control to gaining it again in wild battles. The pokemon themselvesThis game was the culmination of taking all of the worst parts of pokemon and putting them front and center. 60% of the game is spent mashing the A button through the pointless slow grueling mucked up narrative. The other 40% spends a lot of time in loading screens and animations. It's actually 13.4 seconds from losing control to gaining it again in wild battles. The pokemon themselves used to be the compelling feature which pushed exploration, and dialogue used to be optional. That's what made pokemon greak. This is a horrible, horrible game.… Expand
  78. CaueV
    Feb 20, 2018
    0
    This game deserves an award for disappointment. First of all why does the tutorial last almost an hour? It’s not rocket science. All previous games gave you a 10 minute tutorial at max. People are not that stupid. And well, I guess most reviewers buy a Pokémon game to watch the anime, because that’s all this game is. You spend 90% of the game on cutscenes/ loading screens. And the story isThis game deserves an award for disappointment. First of all why does the tutorial last almost an hour? It’s not rocket science. All previous games gave you a 10 minute tutorial at max. People are not that stupid. And well, I guess most reviewers buy a Pokémon game to watch the anime, because that’s all this game is. You spend 90% of the game on cutscenes/ loading screens. And the story is as childish as you would expect. Every dialogue is basically about the power of friendship or something like this.
    But the stupidest design choice is putting a extremely low appearance rate on most of the new Pokémon. So you bought a new Pokémon game and want to play with new Pokémon? You better do research on which ones you want and have bulbapedia open while playing so you can grind an specific tall grass for 20 minutes until the Pokémon you want shows up. Otherwise you would most likely finish the game asking yourself where is half of the new creatures.
    And what a stupid idea is z-moves. Omg please remove this from the next game. 1 hit KO moves with long animations. Wow, they add so much to the gameplay. Mega evolutions did such a good job bringing back Pokémon that were useless before it, and then they got carried away and invented this garbage.
    It’s surprising how they got everything right on X/Y and managed to throw all that away, go to the opposite direction and make such an atrocity. Takes skill for that.

    X/Y still the best games in the series    … Expand
  79. OhTheDerp
    Dec 2, 2016
    7
    Way too many unnecessary cut-scenes, long loading-times on an ordinary 3DS and awful framerate keeps this from being an 8 (maybe a 9). Great visuals, fantastic new Pokemon, great new region. The old gyms may be gone, but the Trials are basically the very same thing as gyms anyway,
  80. muzzirenti90
    Dec 1, 2016
    7
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I have just completed the main story and caught the UB's and so far for me the game has been a good and interesting change in the franchise. I bought this game as I have always bought the pokemon games since gen 1 and this game kind of has changed the rules a bit and for good or worse everyone's opinion is different.

    First off it seems that the story has been the main focus of this game instead of the battling and if your favorite part of the pokemon games was taking on the gyms and earning badges, I would say that this game is probably not for you. They have introduced a new pokemon spawn system where different parts of grass in the same route can spawn different pokemon, the gyms have been replaced with trials which sometimes are a very short mini game followed by a battle, new pokedex system and a big overhaul to the look of the game. Personally compared to the older games this game has taken it to the next level with the look of this game but the downfall of this is I have noticed frame rate drops on a regular basis especially in battles. But for me even though I enjoyed the stroy of the game there were too many cut scenes and some of them did not have much relevance to what was going on and just felt like a waste of time.

    But for me overall if you are a pokemon fan you should give this game a shot if you are willing to try something new, but if you want the same old pokemon you will be disappointed.

    Pros:
    The new graphics are great
    The story is a good length
    The game feels longer
    The map on the pokedex screen is a nice edition
    New editions like poke pelago, Festival Plaza,
    Customization of your character,
    SOS battle system adds a nice new touch to battling (but can be frustrating sometimes)
    New HM system
    Very new player friendly (can be a con for some people as it can be very easy at times)
    New ways of encountering pokemon (hiding in trees, in berries, chasing Wimpod)

    Cons:
    Too many cutscenes, especially pointless ones (in the first hour there is only about (15 mins gameplay)
    New fishing system (you can only fish in certain spots)
    Team skull, at first it was funny but to me just felt ridiculous after the first couple encounters
    framerate drops
    Lack of a rival, I miss having a proper rival that was challenging
    Way too much hand holding from the game, it felt like the game wouldnt let you go off track
    If you enjoy grinding levels the game will be come way too easy, it seems to be a normal feature with pokemon games since black and white.
    Cant skip the Z-move animation (they feel way too long)    … Expand
  81. umegames
    Dec 11, 2016
    6
    As a player since Red and Blue, this new entry is the worst of the series.

    Pros: Rid of HM moves New pokemon are cool A little bit (just barely) more challenging than Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire easier to train and level up for competitive play involving IV's and EV's Cons: Way to linear No side / extra missions like pokemon contests, safari zone etc too many cut scenes    As a player since Red and Blue, this new entry is the worst of the series.

    Pros:
    Rid of HM moves
    New pokemon are cool
    A little bit (just barely) more challenging than Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire
    easier to train and level up for competitive play involving IV's and EV's

    Cons:
    Way to linear
    No side / extra missions like pokemon contests, safari zone etc
    too many cut scenes
    feels to much like a loooong episode of the cartoon, pointless dialogue and pokemon "chirping"
    worst soundtrack in the series
    worst story in the series
    fishing is over simplified (only 1 kind of Rod so magikarp appear often)
    however, can only fish in dedicated places
    hardly any double battles in game, no triple battles    … Expand
  82. Spitbot
    Oct 22, 2017
    7
    It's a Pokemon game.

    I could end the review right there, because chances are, you already know what you're getting into, but assuming you've never played one of these massive critter-collecting RPG adventures, this is a good place to start. There are over 800 Pokemon, it's a blast to play, and there's post-game stuff to keep you occupied after the 20 - 30 hour story, but if you've    It's a Pokemon game.

    I could end the review right there, because chances are, you already know what you're getting into, but assuming you've never played one of these massive critter-collecting RPG adventures, this is a good place to start. There are over 800 Pokemon, it's a blast to play, and there's post-game stuff to keep you occupied after the 20 - 30 hour story, but if you've played Pokemon before? You might be happy to know that they've mixed this one up a bit - The gym system has been overhauled, your old favorite Pokemon are back with new forms, there are new, ultra-powerful moves that can only be used once a battle, and yet...

    It feels like it's different for the sake of being different.

    The replacement for the gym system works, and it works well - I enjoyed it, don't get me wrong - but there was nothing wrong with gyms in the first place. The Z-Moves are nice, but they don't feel as rewarding or cool as Mega Evolution (and the animations get kinda tedious, too). They tried to write a good story, which I applaud them for, but it really isn't anything special. I know nobody cares about the plot in these games, but it gets in the way - This game has the worst tutorial since Black and White. At it's core, this is still Pokemon. All of these games have problems, and while I have a few gripes with this one, it's more or less what you've been playing since 1996.

    So, brand new to the series? Jump right in, the water's warm. Seasoned veteran? It won't surprise you, but I'm sure you'll have some fun. Looking for something brand new? You'll probably be let down.    … Expand
  83. Braduk
    Sep 13, 2017
    4
    Pokemon Sun/Moon are by far the worst in the mainline series.
    Pros:
    --Bottle Cap system to allow pseudo-IV maxing --The ability to send Pokemon from your party to the PC when catching other Pokemon --Simple and effective egg hatching route (in the sense that this time it's just a square) --Shiny Charm now only requires the regional dex to be completed --Battle Tree --The Mini    Pokemon Sun/Moon are by far the worst in the mainline series.
    Pros:
    --Bottle Cap system to allow pseudo-IV maxing
    --The ability to send Pokemon from your party to the PC when catching other Pokemon
    --Simple and effective egg hatching route (in the sense that this time it's just a square)
    --Shiny Charm now only requires the regional dex to be completed
    --Battle Tree
    --The Mini islands where you plant berries, EV train, etc are a cool idea

    Cons:
    --Excessive amount of cutscenes, to the point where nearly every route has at least one cutscene (and the intro itself takes 12 minutes for a speedrunner to complete, far far longer for the average player)
    --Excessive levels of handholding, I'm aware the series is for kids but the past games didn't have this much handholding
    --Super easy, even for a Pokemon game. Not once did I have to repeat a battle and I finished the Elite Four first try with a slightly underleveled party.
    --Extreme linearity, even for a Pokemon game, with tons of very obvious and shoehorned route and entrance blocks nearly every screen
    --The majority of the new Pokemon designs are not very memorable nor are they very coherently designed, though this is a more subjective con I know I am not the only one who thinks this, and don't even get me started on Ultra Beasts
    --No Super Training, despite both past games having them and it being a very well-received mechanic
    --Mega Forms are more or less shoehorned into a place and it's clear they never really planned to have them back
    --Z Moves are broken and ruin battles, and are required in every battle just like Mega Forms used to be
    --The region is very bland, small, and not very varied between islands, it's clear Gamefreak had no idea what to do without the grid system
    --Certain Pokemon have a 1% appearance rate in areas and that is just stupid
    --Postgame is near non-existent, which makes the small and crappy region feel all the worse
    --Nearly all the new Pokemon have tank-based stats, making party building unnecessarily difficult unless you want a full high defense, low speed team
    --The Trials are a poor replacement for Gyms, if anything both could have been done, there's not even 8 Trials
    --The minigame theme park is not well-developed and does not reach its full potential

    Gamefreak attempted to shake up the series with Sun/Moon. But change is not always good. Bad change is possible. And most of the changes in Sun/Moon are bad for the series. After how bad these games were I am outright skipping Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon and may not ever buy a Pokemon game again unless the 2018 game stirs away from the type of game these ones are, and this is coming from the person who has bought and completed generations 1-6 of Pokemon before these ones.    … Expand
  84. Dalium
    Nov 7, 2017
    4
    This game is way too on rails and the postgame is aweful aside from Looker. The festival plaza is a confusing and unneeded replacement for the PSS. A bit harder then ORAS and expecially XY (thank god), plus the story is great. Way too much dialog though, and nobody asked for or wants Z-Moves. It also takes way too long to get your starter Pokemon.
  85. shoeless_sean
    Sep 3, 2020
    2
    WAY to many custcenes to start this game. Pokemon is supposed to be about getting thrust into this beautiful interesting world and being left to your own devices to explore as much as you want. The first 3 hours has over an hour of cutscenes and some of them end only for the player to walk 2 steps (i actually have counted several times) and enter another cutscene. The cutscenes have twoWAY to many custcenes to start this game. Pokemon is supposed to be about getting thrust into this beautiful interesting world and being left to your own devices to explore as much as you want. The first 3 hours has over an hour of cutscenes and some of them end only for the player to walk 2 steps (i actually have counted several times) and enter another cutscene. The cutscenes have two ranges aswell: 1 boring, unnecessary story that is not needed or desired, AND 2 unskipable tutorials that didnt need to be explained to 6 year old me but apparently need to be explained in depth now. I get this game is built for children but when red and blue came out i was a little kid and I had lots of friends who played these games as well as myself and we got along just fine.

    Gameplay and battling is actually worse since X&Y because they added in wild pokemon can now call for help meaning if you do not attack first or one shot the wild encounter pokemon you may have to fight several more, because they can call more than just one per battle. Also for some reason most of what the player will random encounter is gen 1 and gen 2 pokemon, and not even the alolan form ones. I saw at least 50 zubats, and 25 spearow in one two hour session at one point. I buy a new game that they could put in over 800 pokemon and 3 out of 5 encounters are from the first 50 of the Kanto Dex? are you kidding?

    Gamefreak apparently forgot what makes pokemon games fun, cuz this game is bad, especially by their standards.    … Expand
  86. supercereal
    Jan 6, 2017
    3
    Its pokemon, and the pokemon aspects are good, but they should sack whoever wrote that dull dull story and lynch whoever forgot to allow you to skip cutscenes. This, the dumbass Rotom Dex and and the "call for help" thing wild pokemon do, have made the whole thing much worse than it needed to be and Pika-peed all over the good stuff.
  87. MrComrade
    Mar 4, 2017
    6
    It's a nice game. The setting, most of the characters, the and music are very nice. I like the new pokemon, even if their stats are a bit wonky. The main reason for the 6 is one of the characters really drags the game down for me. I couldn't stand her interrupting the story constantly. She ruined any desire I would've had to go back and revisit Alola.
  88. Firepork08
    Mar 26, 2017
    7
    I am a massive Pokémon fan and overall I really enjoyed this entry to the series but I think I just expected more from it the new pokemon added are very hit or miss and a lot feel unfinished as if they need an evolution or pre evolution (Komala, Drampa and Turtanator) non stick out to me as amazing although some are defiantly great like decidueye, bewear and mimikyu but the biggest problemI am a massive Pokémon fan and overall I really enjoyed this entry to the series but I think I just expected more from it the new pokemon added are very hit or miss and a lot feel unfinished as if they need an evolution or pre evolution (Komala, Drampa and Turtanator) non stick out to me as amazing although some are defiantly great like decidueye, bewear and mimikyu but the biggest problem with Sun and Moon is how much the story is shoved in your face you enter a new area and your instantly took away from your experience to see a cutsceen now the story is great but you have to sit through literally 35 hours on my first run of the game to the point where it picks up. The soundtrack is very meh to me some tracks are ok but compared to X+Y and ORAS soundtracks sun and moon's soundtrack was lacklustre but of course music depends on your taste. I was very sceptical about the new trails thinking that they wouldn't be a challenge and I would miss gyms but they were the opposite really I loved trails and thought they were much harder then gym leaders and were a very welcome edition to the pokemon series. Some new features were also very great such as the poke pelago making training so much easier but some were terrible such as the festival plaza which was way too confusing.… Expand
  89. mrmettse
    Mar 31, 2017
    6
    I've been playing all pokemon DS games and i don't really care for this one.
    Find the ''camera angle'' weird and miss a lot of the old ways to do things. Don't really like the trial parts.
    Guess it takes some getting used to.
  90. ORevisor
    Jul 8, 2017
    3
    O jogo me decepcionou em diversos aspectos:
    - história fraca como de costume e para piorar esta versão é repleta de diálogos e escolhas que não interferem na história;
    - gráfico sem muita inovação ou melhoria fora e dentro das batalhas; - músicas éé... algumas são bem chatinhas outras são até empolgantes; - o desequilíbrio entre os tipos de pokémons persiste, não foi alterado em nada    O jogo me decepcionou em diversos aspectos:
    - história fraca como de costume e para piorar esta versão é repleta de diálogos e escolhas que não interferem na história;
    - gráfico sem muita inovação ou melhoria fora e dentro das batalhas;
    - músicas éé... algumas são bem chatinhas outras são até empolgantes;
    - o desequilíbrio entre os tipos de pokémons persiste, não foi alterado em nada neste ponto, o tipo grama continua terrível em campeonatos;
    - a lista de novos pokemons é beem pequena e possui muitos lendários;
    - hyper potion restaura 100 de hp;
    - muitos pokémons especiais de evento são obtidos através dos filmes ou lojas físicas, odeio com toda força o Ash e o desenho mais ainda, ou seja, NUNCA iria assistir um lixo para obter um pokemon exclusivo;
    - treinar o effort inicialmente é impossível (não existe macho brace), e mais para frente entediante;
    - acabaram com as lutas horde e com os ginásios;
    - e o pior de tudo o pós game é terrível MUITO terrível, quase nada para se fazer...
    - fim das lutas triplas;
    Pontos Positivos:
    + fim dos HM;
    + o pokemon não ganha lv no daycare;    … Expand
  91. randomphoenix03
    Jun 29, 2017
    7
    As a lifelong fan of Pokémon, I would be lying if I said I didn't enjoy this game. However, there just was some things I didn't like about it. First of all, personally, it just felt different. The feel was just completely different compared to when I played any other Pokémon game. I'm counting off for this because I feel like it's because the game was changed in such a way that it felt soAs a lifelong fan of Pokémon, I would be lying if I said I didn't enjoy this game. However, there just was some things I didn't like about it. First of all, personally, it just felt different. The feel was just completely different compared to when I played any other Pokémon game. I'm counting off for this because I feel like it's because the game was changed in such a way that it felt so different for me.

    Another thing was the change in the gym leader system. It's both a pro and con for me, because Nintendo was trying to change up the formula, which was good, but it just wasn't the same as gym leaders, which is not as good.

    Finally, the biggest con for me is the amount of handholding the game puts you through. Out of what I believe is four islands if I remember correctly, two of them are mostly tutorial. It feels like it's designed for three-year-olds. It just ruins the fun of it when you're put in to what feels like a multiple hour-long cutscene.    … Expand
  92. Revmx
    Jul 18, 2017
    5
    Pokémon Sun and Moon are mediocre as Pokémon games, are mediocre as RPGs, and are mediocre as games.

    With the series conventions, many people rate this game with the expectations they have from the past games, rather than rating them entirely as a game. People ignore the fact that the stat system has mostly stayed the same since 1996, showing its age in obtrusive modifiers like IVs.    Pokémon Sun and Moon are mediocre as Pokémon games, are mediocre as RPGs, and are mediocre as games.

    With the series conventions, many people rate this game with the expectations they have from the past games, rather than rating them entirely as a game. People ignore the fact that the stat system has mostly stayed the same since 1996, showing its age in obtrusive modifiers like IVs. People ignore that the 4 move turned based combat has not evolved one bit, meaning each and every iteration so far has really only added more gimmicks and RNG. People ignore that the story is much the same as a bad children's cartoon.

    So what does Sun and Moon do to break from the conventions of the previous games and improve at its core? Nothing.

    What does it have over X and Y? That's what most people's hype was rooted in. Really, the only true difference is that Sun and Moon are more wacky. For every functional improvement in Sun and Moon, they seemingly removed two that came from X and Y. They introduced 'bottlecaps' as a half measure to fix IVs (instead of just removing them), but removed Super Training (a genuinely positive feature which was there to effect the somewhat hidden EVs). They also removed the PSS, the best online integration in a Pokémon game ever, in favour of the dreadful 'Festival Plaza' which makes you run around like a fool and go through loads of UI to do the most basic things. The game foregoes the 8 gym model of past games, which I thought would be a positive step, but replaced it with these 'Trials' which resemble MMO quests but manage to be less interesting and fun.

    Game Freak has proved they have no interest in improving the fundamental game design of the series, but instead want to focus on flashy, promotional gimmicks which will sell the game. This is evident in the 'Z-moves', which are just more powerful moves with ridiculously long animations.

    Forgetting the series conventions, let's think of Sun and Moon as any other RPG and judge it as such. As a game, there is no better word that comes to mind than 'lazy'. It is extremely linear, the story is piss-poor, and worst of all, it doesn't even run on its system. Even in normal gameplay, it can chug. You especially do not want to go on a multiplayer double battle.

    Sun and Moon are easily the worst games in the franchise, and are barely worth looking at as RPGs themselves. I give it a 5/10.    … Expand
  93. Kyle67
    Aug 10, 2017
    2
    This is a horrible game. It wasted my time literally from hitting entering my character's name. Some other reviewer said that cancerous unskippable cut-scenes make it so you can pay attention to the story, and i agree. It makes it so I can REEEALLY notice all of the cookie-cutter characters, cliche moments, cheesy writing, and childish archetypes used.
    I hate this game so much that when    This is a horrible game. It wasted my time literally from hitting entering my character's name. Some other reviewer said that cancerous unskippable cut-scenes make it so you can pay attention to the story, and i agree. It makes it so I can REEEALLY notice all of the cookie-cutter characters, cliche moments, cheesy writing, and childish archetypes used.
    I hate this game so much that when the SD card that contained the game became defunct, I didn't even care. The only reason this game doesn't get a '0' is because it added about 7 or 8 Pokemon that were okay. And, no.
    I don't mean f***ing Bruxish.    … Expand
  94. Nessuno-Kun
    Oct 31, 2017
    1
    First off, this game is horrible. You either already know or were warned.
    If you are a fan, this will disappoint you.
    They decided to ruin the wonderful Pokémon franchise with some poor, boring, easy and extremely childish games. The only possible pro is that you might like a couple Alolan forms (though watch out from Persian and Exeggutor). Here is the reasons why you should never be    First off, this game is horrible. You either already know or were warned.
    If you are a fan, this will disappoint you.
    They decided to ruin the wonderful Pokémon franchise with some poor, boring, easy and extremely childish games. The only possible pro is that you might like a couple Alolan forms (though watch out from Persian and Exeggutor).

    Here is the reasons why you should never be tempted to waste your money there:

    1) Extremely easy, even more than XY.
    2) Very slow, unless you run it on a New3DS line.
    3) The online features are three steps back from the sixth generation's PSS.
    4) Annoying cutscenes and long, unneeded dialogues.
    5) Lack of freedom throughout the gameplay.
    6) Z-Moves make it even easier and similar to Yo-Kai Watch.
    7) The characters, including your rival, are childish and annoying as evil.
    8) Ultra Creatures designs, as well as some Pokémon, are literally TERRIBLE.
    9) Lack of National Pokédex which is cool to collectors.
    10) No tough challenges after the supereasy Alolan League (Battle Tree is easy).
    11) Rotom-Dex adds even more ease and prevents you to ever be curious about how to proceed.
    12) They forgot to add decent clothes if you are a straight male.
    13) Lack of puzzles and secrets like in the previous games (there are no gyms as well).
    14) The Gold Bottle caps might be cool on the card, but then it's frustrating to level up until level 100 and to acquire those items which raise up the IVs.
    15) With cheaters and cheats being everywhere and shiny odds being raised down, legendaries and shinies have much less value than in any other pre-3DS games.
    16) The Alolan map is a total disaster, extremely confusing design.
    17) Too many items that are not needed because the game is already easy, even for your 5-years-old children.
    18) The enemies of the story are not as cruel as in the past, they are childish and politically correct as well, while in the previous games they were actually wicked.
    19) The game is overall not fun, unless this is your first Pokémon game and this is the main reason why you should not buy your money, even because the previous chapters are even cheaper.
    20) They are nothing more than what has been leaked on Nintendo's YouTube channel, so basically this is everything they had to offer. Sales were good because of that marketing.
    21) Unlike the other games, these games are ONLY FOR KIDS. If you are a quite smart adult, you are going to get bored and disappointed about this series's present and future.
    22) Sound and story could even be ok, but gameplay is the core of every videogame.

    There are plenty more, but if you have these games on your hands, you are probably aware that this is the first step of the sunrise of the Pokémon decline.
    The Sun/Moon anime show may help you realizing that, they are very similar to these games.

    Verdict: Save your money for anything else and if you are a parent, let your kid play Red, Blue, Crystal, Emerald, Platinum or even Black and White. He's going to grow better and happier.    … Expand
  95. Kick454
    Apr 20, 2018
    5
    Honestly, even though it changed some of the generic, overused stuff Pokemon had, it wasn't really that good of a game in my opinion.

    Pros: + Story: ...Better than USUM's messup, but NOWHERE near the best story in any game. + Lack of a National Dex: As said in my Ultra Sun review, THANK GOODNESS IT'S GONE! + Post-Game: Despite being COMPLETELY unoriginal (XY post-game had the    Honestly, even though it changed some of the generic, overused stuff Pokemon had, it wasn't really that good of a game in my opinion.

    Pros:
    + Story: ...Better than USUM's messup, but NOWHERE near the best story in any game.
    + Lack of a National Dex: As said in my Ultra Sun review, THANK GOODNESS IT'S GONE!
    + Post-Game: Despite being COMPLETELY unoriginal (XY post-game had the detective stuff first), it was still good.

    Mix:
    = Gameplay: Meh... same as EVERY OTHER MAIN SERIES POKEMON GAME.
    = Soundtrack: It's ok, I guess.

    Cons:
    - Trials: Boring, barely require any effort.
    - Graphics: I know Nintendo isn't about graphics, but for even 2016, they sucked.

    Overall, Pokemon Sun/Moon warrant a 5.5/10 from me. Not the best Pokemon games, but not the worst.    … Expand
  96. PappyBakesCakes
    Apr 5, 2020
    7
    Too much dialogue and exposition. Alolan forms are a great innovation for the series.
  97. KegMinami
    Dec 31, 2019
    6
    Pokemon Sun and Moon are... Decent. If you can get through the horrendously slow first few hours of the game.
    The best part of the games were, unquestionably, the totem battles. They added an exciting element to the game, and were actually fairly challenging if you're not prepared. The Island Challenge itself is an interesting alternative to the Gym Challenges, as well. The removal of HMs    Pokemon Sun and Moon are... Decent. If you can get through the horrendously slow first few hours of the game.
    The best part of the games were, unquestionably, the totem battles. They added an exciting element to the game, and were actually fairly challenging if you're not prepared. The Island Challenge itself is an interesting alternative to the Gym Challenges, as well. The removal of HMs in favor of Pokeride was also a plus, and helped make the world feel a lot more alive and interesting. Additionally, introducing regional variants of old Pokemon was one of the best decisions the series could have made.
    So what's the problem? For one, as mentioned, the first few hours are infuriatingly slow. And the rest of the game is littered with sections where characters will just stop you to talk for no reason. Not to mention there's not a lot to do once you've finished the main game. You can catch the Ultra Beasts, challenge the Battle Tree, or go online and that's about it. Additionally, the removal of Triple and Rotation battle styles was a big loss for me, personally. I may have been the only one, but I actually really enjoyed those styles.
    Overall, it's not a bad game, but a flawed one. Stick with US/UM, it's the more complete version.    … Expand
  98. cool_dork
    Feb 3, 2019
    4
    This was the only Pokemon game that I did not finish. It was incredibly boring. It lacked any sort of a story, even for Pokemon. The Pokemon in this game also felt uninspired. Also, Z moves felt slightly pointless due to the fact that there are already mega evolutions. I did like the Alolan versions of old Pokemon, but besides that this game was by far the worst Pokemon.
  99. NazgulzLegacy
    May 20, 2020
    6
    A few irritating moments like not being told which direction to go or details on how things work, had to keep looking things up to make progress.
  100. NicoMarza
    Jul 6, 2019
    7
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. gioco ambizioso, ma a volte frettoloso. Gameplay soddisfacente e belle innovazioni rispetto ai precedenti. Storia un po deludente e post-game banale. Gioco comunque carino da provare...sicuro ce di meglio.… Expand
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Awards & Rankings

3
#3 Best 3DS Game of 2016
1
#1 Most Discussed 3DS Game of 2016
1
#1 Most Shared 3DS Game of 2016

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
87

Generally favorable reviews - based on 87 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 85 out of 87
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 87
  3. Negative: 0 out of 87
  1. Vooks
    Apr 8, 2017
    100
    Pokémon Sun and Moon make terrific changes the twenty-year-old formula, allowing new fans and returning ones back into the series with a wonderful lively and colourful world. It's just a little too easy for us who have been here from the start - but it's easy to forgot that when you're having such a blast.
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  2. Easy Allies
    Mar 19, 2017
    90
    If you’re a newcomer to the series, this is an excellent opportunity to learn the fundamentals in a laid-back setting. If you’re a pro, you’ll relish the new options in place for making your Pokémon all they can be. Sun & Moon is a Pokémon vacation we’d gladly take again.
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  3. Vgames
    Mar 8, 2017
    90
    These games exceeded my expectations by a mile. Pokemon Sun and Moon are games that every Pokemon fan and every 3DS owner needs to own. Nintendo and Gamefreak did an awesome job creating a great story and the changes they made for the format make the game feel fresh and exciting more so than ever before. The game has its minor issues like the end game and some performance issues on Old 3DS models but the soundtrack, the story and the new features more than make up for it, to make an unforgettable experience.
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