Pokemon Super Mystery Dungeon

 3DS
User Score
8.2

Generally favorable reviews- based on 339 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 262 out of 339
  2. Mixed: 40 out of 339
  3. Negative: 37 out of 339
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  1. Garde_Mystik
    Jun 3, 2023
    0
    Pokémon Mystery Dungeon games have awful gameplay in general but to my surprise, this one fails to have a remotely good plot. It's one of the most appalling I have ever seen in my life and the beginning never felt more unwelcoming for a video game. Sure, Pokémon is primarily targeted towards kids, but holy dang does this game SHOVE that in your face like people past the age of 12 arePokémon Mystery Dungeon games have awful gameplay in general but to my surprise, this one fails to have a remotely good plot. It's one of the most appalling I have ever seen in my life and the beginning never felt more unwelcoming for a video game. Sure, Pokémon is primarily targeted towards kids, but holy dang does this game SHOVE that in your face like people past the age of 12 are unwelcomed. I wish this was it but the entire lategame is filled with extreme-levels of plot-induced stupidity all to promote a cheap copypasta of the final boss of Gates to Infinity. I really don't like when a bunch of legendaries and mythicals are shoved into a story only for all of them to be mishandled and their lore ignored for the sake of the plot. If they were just randomly there and uninvolved, sure, but if for example, Arceus turns into stone, something is terribly wrong. Ignoring canon lore and feats given to characters for the sake of the plot is disrespectful to the characters and something I would immediately write off as a bad plot by itself. It shows they did not care to handle their characters properly. With the gameplay being garbage and the plot being abysmal, this is the only game so far I have bought and still regret ever buying. I would have refunded it if it were possible but I bought the digital version. I'm quite adamant on giving this game a 0.… Expand
  2. Davibay
    Jan 24, 2023
    10
    This is by far the best game i have ever played in my entire life. Well written characters you get attached to easily, the story is full of plot twists, the animations are good for PMD standards, the soundtracks are.... one of the best things i have ever witnessed in my life: it's heartbreaking, overwhelming, astonishing, it is that kind of music that can reach you in the depths of yourThis is by far the best game i have ever played in my entire life. Well written characters you get attached to easily, the story is full of plot twists, the animations are good for PMD standards, the soundtracks are.... one of the best things i have ever witnessed in my life: it's heartbreaking, overwhelming, astonishing, it is that kind of music that can reach you in the depths of your heart. This isn't even a game for kids, i always have recommended this game to people that were at least 14 years old cause it may not seem like it but all the plot is deeper than you think. This is also the game i've restarted most times to relive all the story of the game.… Expand
  3. AlexMakesToast
    Nov 20, 2022
    4
    Super Mystery Dungeon = 4/10
    ..............................................
  4. 8mew
    Jul 8, 2022
    9
    Jamais déçu des donjons mystères, bon jeu. Le nouveau système de recrutement est certes plus simple mais c’est d’autant plus jouissif au final ! Un peu de renouveau. À quand un sur Nintendo Switch?
  5. Dewom
    Apr 9, 2022
    5
    Para mi este juego perdió totalmente el norte de lo que (en mi opinión), hacía que los anteriores se sintieran tan bien. Todo el tema de que constantemente te traten como a un (literalmente) bebé/crío, me parece tira por la borda la epicidad de los anteriores. En los primeros mystery dungeon tenias tu propia base y salías en aventuras con tu compañero a por todas, o tenías tu zona dePara mi este juego perdió totalmente el norte de lo que (en mi opinión), hacía que los anteriores se sintieran tan bien. Todo el tema de que constantemente te traten como a un (literalmente) bebé/crío, me parece tira por la borda la epicidad de los anteriores. En los primeros mystery dungeon tenias tu propia base y salías en aventuras con tu compañero a por todas, o tenías tu zona de operaciones totalmente ambientada como el gremio...seguias siendo un pokemon "pequeño" pero se te trataba igual que al resto, solo que tenias menos experiencia de combate y aventuras.

    En este simplemente vas a clase y parece que tengas 7 años durante todo el juego, no me enganchó en absoluto la narrativa ni los personajes. Los gráficos no son el buen pixelart anterior o la versión pulida de DX, es un 3D bastante pocho en mi opinión, no creo que le quede nada bién.

    Es sistema de reclutado me parece innecesariamente extraño y aburrido en parte...incluso mucho más dificil de explicar en lo que sería contexto del mismo mundo en si.

    No creo que esté suspendido pero es bastante aburrido y la historia deja bastante que desear, increíble que tenga más nota que exploradores del tiempo/cielo.    … Expand
  6. Toasttt
    Mar 26, 2022
    6
    meh .
  7. IkOzael
    Aug 23, 2021
    5
    Like the previous games, this one has it's charm in a few places. Half the reason I play games of the series is because of the story, so that's what I'll mostly talk about. Sorry if this is a bit of a messy critique.

    The story was OK, but it ain't nothin' special (like most Pokemon stories, game or not). You're a human with boring plot-induced amnesia... again, you meet partner a bit    Like the previous games, this one has it's charm in a few places. Half the reason I play games of the series is because of the story, so that's what I'll mostly talk about. Sorry if this is a bit of a messy critique.

    The story was OK, but it ain't nothin' special (like most Pokemon stories, game or not). You're a human with boring plot-induced amnesia... again, you meet partner a bit later, make a team to go on adventure with your memory, beat the current villain of the week... That's one way of puttin' it, but I'll go into detail. I'll refer to the player character as Silas and the partner as Sparkles for reasons. I won't put this behind a spoiler 'cause there ain't anything worth not spoiling.

    The tone was too childish. The "story" was more focused on goofy **** and tryin' to get a giggle outta kids than tellin' a decent story. Everything is just empty filler until the Bittercold 2 gets brought up. Crucial parts of the story don't really get explained like the protagonist's amnesia with it apparently bein' done to him twice.

    Dark Matter sounded neat in concept, but it was more or less already done in Gates to Infinity with the Bittercold (though it's still a breath of fresh air from the obvious "villain" Pokémon each game had prior to GtI). It having sentience doesn't do a thing for it when it has a few minions and seeks to destroy the world like the Bittercold in Gates to Infinity. Anyway, in the end, Sparkles disappears instead of you which is just for subversion and the epilogue which brings her back is all over the place. I could respect the idea of Sparkles disappearing, but it you know that's just a set up for more filler. Pointless filler at that when you KNOW she'll be back in a bit, but hey we need an epilogue chapter. Silas is just kinda left out as a main part of the plot too.

    I wanna talk about humans for a bit... Stop with the human-turned-Pokémon protagonists. That **** has run dry already. Try something else. How about pure Pokémon protagonists for example? The humans were never anything special in any of the games anyway although that could've been the case in Super Mystery Dungeon if they cared to write it like that. Literally any Pokémon could do what these random humans do. There's a looot of story potential with Pokémon Mystery Dungeon, but I'm speakin' from more of a comic series standpoint.

    The way I kinda wanted to write SMD for a future comic was Silas havin' abilities that would be integral to the overall plot. These abilities would stem from origins as a reincarnation of the human who fought Dark Matter long ago. That's among other potential changes like Sparkles dreaming of helping others by becoming an Expedition Society member, her also not being related to Mew, and whether or not Dark Matter is the main antagonist. Considering the dialog near the end of the game with Celebi explaining the Harmony Scarves, I think reincarnation would've been an interesting concept, but, like I said, I'm speakin' from more of a comic adaptation standpoint instead of a gameplay one on that. Honestly, SMD's story is on par with Sword & Shield's story which is on the money when compared to that dustbin anime. In short, Super Mystery Dungeon needs one hell of a rewrite.

    The gameplay is a little worse in some areas. Instead of havin' four party members, it's now three which I don't know why it was changed, but it was unnecessary. The game is also very stingy with exp. an' with how strong the enemies are, especially the bosses, it feels arbitrary. Arceus forbid you run into a Monster House. You could also beat the game and barely hit level 30. If you're mindlessly trying to brute force your way through dungeons, then you'll most likely get obliterated, so managing items is crucial.

    The only thing Super Mystery Dungeon did was add all Pokémon in the game and that's what most people will praise it for. At this point, I'm not that interested in Pokémon Mystery Dungeon anymore beyond Super Mystery Dungeon inspiring me to make a fan comic series of it and a follow-up series to it one day which I already have a lot of ideas for.    … Expand
  8. Mattia9336
    Jul 13, 2021
    8
    While not as good as Explorers of Sky, Super Mistery Dungeon is a solid entry in the series. While the first part of the game is pretty boring, the story really picks up afterwards and the ending has a plot twist I definitely wasn't expecting! However I'm not a fan of the new "recruiting" system, as it makes the game a bit too easy in my opinion: while I was at level 15, I already hadWhile not as good as Explorers of Sky, Super Mistery Dungeon is a solid entry in the series. While the first part of the game is pretty boring, the story really picks up afterwards and the ending has a plot twist I definitely wasn't expecting! However I'm not a fan of the new "recruiting" system, as it makes the game a bit too easy in my opinion: while I was at level 15, I already had level 40 Charizard and Alakazam as partners.
    In the end Pokemon Super Mystery Dungeon is a solid game in an underrated series.    … Expand
  9. Albino-Chimchar
    Jun 7, 2021
    10
    no joke this game is genuenlly amazing like for real i love the story, the partner, the music, everything
  10. GamingUltimatum
    Jun 5, 2021
    10
    Pokemon Super Mystery Dungeon (PSMD) is a true Pokemon Mystery Dungeon (PMD) sequel - a far cry from what Gates to Infinity tried to be. We get to keep the wonderfully beautiful graphics and natural control scheme that Gates To Infinity (GTI) introduced but we get back the expansiveness that previous PMD games boasted. The NPCs have such wonderful personality too! I will probably updatePokemon Super Mystery Dungeon (PSMD) is a true Pokemon Mystery Dungeon (PMD) sequel - a far cry from what Gates to Infinity tried to be. We get to keep the wonderfully beautiful graphics and natural control scheme that Gates To Infinity (GTI) introduced but we get back the expansiveness that previous PMD games boasted. The NPCs have such wonderful personality too! I will probably update this with more detail once I can drag myself away from the game long enough to do so, but y'know what - the game is worth it. Absolutely recommended. Go pick it up and play it now if you liked any other PMD games. I just want to say that the music is phenomenal, while I would say that the other games had slightly better music some of the stuff in here, especially for the first few dungeons is great. Not only that but once you hear a song for the first time you then unlock it in the jukebox on the main menu which you can listen to songs for as long as you want without having to unlock it like you had to do in sky.… Expand
  11. srx
    May 2, 2021
    8
    Solid entry to the series! Gameplay has been dramatically brushed up upon from GTI and feels optimized for a mystery dungeon game. Story starts off wayyyy toooo slowwww but I really liked where it went and the characters were very cool (espurr is the best). Great soundtrack as usual with games in this series. 8/10, points off for slow story start and also not too memorable of a story.
  12. MrGoombs
    Aug 21, 2020
    10
    WHY IS THE SCORE SO LOW?!?! this game is amazing why is the score so low it’s not as goof as explorers of sky though
  13. AV_Lazy
    May 6, 2020
    9
    In my opinion PSMD is one of the best 3ds games out there. It is really fun with loads of content and a pretty good story. The soundtrack has plenty of amazing songs that I listen to frequently (most notably fire island volcano). The emera mechanic is also really entertaining to use and abuse.
  14. Trey82
    Mar 2, 2020
    2
    A game that doesnt reward 'normal' rpg work that you put in.
    In previous pokemon mystery dungeon games, it was about strategy.
    You grind. You save the right items for the right time. You spend a little more time grinding now, so you dont get wiped, later. PSMD dropped that idea and now spams you to death with items. As where before an item was to be used at the right moment, now ..    A game that doesnt reward 'normal' rpg work that you put in.
    In previous pokemon mystery dungeon games, it was about strategy.
    You grind. You save the right items for the right time. You spend a little more time grinding now,
    so you dont get wiped, later.

    PSMD dropped that idea and now spams you to death with items. As where before an item was to be used at the right moment, now .. ugh, this game sucks. While exploring one floor, you can pick up a dozen staves, a few foods, a lot of berries and cure3-seeds.
    And to get through this game, you are expected to basically use those items IMMEDIATELY.
    It isnt about your level, or who you brought with you, the strategy you chose... its about items.
    Which would be fine if it wasnt so obnoxious to ALWAYS be using something from the item menu.
    It doesnt feel like anything is orderly, youre just picking up random items and using them ASAP.

    Before you click that downvote button, answer me this: Does the game require anything other than filling your inventory with revive seeds and spamming the enemy to death?
    No, not really.
    That doesnt make the game easy, it makes it unbalanced and awful. Play any previous games to have better strategy. (as far as a pokemon game has, at least. So .. like usual, the bar is pretty low.)    … Expand
  15. pahono6888
    Nov 16, 2019
    10
    A master piece only for real Pokemon fans. Casuals abstain from bothering. You won't get it.
  16. thankyougamefre
    Nov 13, 2019
    9
    this game is unique, polished and have better storyline than the mainline game. a game that i truly love, it's actually about and around pokemon and character development or i should say having a soul to it. I do feel like it lack luster is it's not around people with pokemon, beside all of that the game is fantastic.
  17. Pokemon_Trainer
    Jun 10, 2019
    5
    I am a massive Pokemon fan and I have been for over a decade, but I've got to say, the Mystery Dungeon games aren't a patch on the usual Pokemon game formats. Whilst Pokemon Super Mystery Dungeon soon becomes a little tiresome and leaves you wondering "where is this actually going? what am I meant to be doing?", at least it is interesting playing from the perspective of a Pokemon!
  18. EdwardG
    May 10, 2019
    8
    Pokemon Super Mystery Dungeon is a fun RPG, with a great story bolstered by an enjoyable core gameplay loop. Although it starts off a little slow, the story picks up the pace and is full of surprises, emotional moments, and a diverse cast of NPCs that make the journey to the fantastic climax memorable.

    The bulk of the gameplay involves dungeon crawling, as you'd expect. Traversing the    Pokemon Super Mystery Dungeon is a fun RPG, with a great story bolstered by an enjoyable core gameplay loop. Although it starts off a little slow, the story picks up the pace and is full of surprises, emotional moments, and a diverse cast of NPCs that make the journey to the fantastic climax memorable.

    The bulk of the gameplay involves dungeon crawling, as you'd expect. Traversing the many dungeons as you play as a Pokemon is a rewarding and satisfying hook, thanks in part to the often challenging difficulty, and the opportunity to recruit more Pokemon to your team by solving their problems. The cute graphics and pleasant soundtrack also add to its appeal.

    After completing the main story, there is quite a lot to do in the postgame, including a little more story content, but it mostly just involves recruiting more Pokemon and finding useful items. Although it certainly is a fun game, the dungeon crawling can get a little repetitive by this point, especially after the story has run its course and you're left with less motivation to continue. The lack of mission diversity in the postgame may be to blame. However, for fans of the series, this shouldn't be too much of an issue, and there's reason to keep playing long after the story concludes.

    Pokemon Super Mystery Dungeon is easy to recommend, with a story deeper than you might expect, and challenging gameplay that follows a fun formula.    … Expand
  19. ShawnEXE
    May 3, 2019
    9
    Music: 4.5/5
    Game Play: 4.5/5
    Graphics: 4/5
    Story: 4/5
    Time-Value: 5/5
    Overall: 4.5/5
  20. GebusNunes
    Apr 4, 2019
    4
    This game to me isn't the best Pokémon game and far from it. As soon as I started playing this game I got lost. This game has some ups, like the way you pick your Pokémon and how the graphics are done but to me there are more cons than pros.
  21. Umbra7
    Mar 16, 2019
    4
    This review is brought to you by someone who grew up with the first Pokémon Mystery Dungeon on GBA/NDS, so take everything I have to say about this game with a grain of salt.

    You'll notice that I wasn't willing to give it a score higher than 4. Now why is that? First, let me list the positives: 1) looks pretty decent 2) text speed is no longer **** 3) narrative seems aight 4)    This review is brought to you by someone who grew up with the first Pokémon Mystery Dungeon on GBA/NDS, so take everything I have to say about this game with a grain of salt.

    You'll notice that I wasn't willing to give it a score higher than 4. Now why is that? First, let me list the positives:

    1) looks pretty decent
    2) text speed is no longer ****
    3) narrative seems aight
    4) sidequests have a little bit more character now, I guess?

    You'll also notice that these merits do not include any actual gameplay elements.
    That's because this game is absolutely terribly balanced. To the point, even, where I have to ask myself if it was playtested at all; sometimes, it's way easy (when you can just bring **** Salamence to slay everything for you, for example), other times, it's unreasonably unforgiving – I lost any interest I may have had in this game when multi-hitting attacks became abundant, completely recking my team even when I had taken counter-measures. I hear that this doesn't happen to everyone, which is only logical as not everyone's going to encounter the same enemies due to RNG being a huge factor, but for those of us who did have to deal with it, it's just disheartening. You'd think that after ofter 8 years after the first games' release, people would have understood that multi-hitting attacks are bull**** – just look at lv 19 skitty go all ORA ORA ORA ORA on **** rayquaza, ****'s insane.

    And what the **** is up with PSMD completely abandoning the previous games' mission system? I used to love the crap out of it, and now it's gone in favor of these sidequests that'll get you unique party members – I don't disagree with the latter being a part of the game, I just prefer the previous system. The random missions system added a metric ****tonne of replayability to the original games, and even allowed for some interaction between players through the ability to share mission codes, OR through code generators.

    In short, the vast majority of what made me fall in love with the first entries of this series is largely gone. It's still very much a Mystery Dungeon game alright, but it's no longer for me.    … Expand
  22. Auto
    Dec 12, 2018
    9
    in resume : not nearly as good as the explorers games. its still a cool experience though
  23. ZeoN
    Sep 10, 2018
    9
    Juego bastante bueno y recomendado. Inicia lento pero poco a poco se va poniendo interesante hasta llegar al punto de una muy buena historia. Dificultad alta de mitad del juego para adelante, mazmorras bien estructuradas y variadas en temática. Banda sonora buenísima. Roza el nivel de calidad de Pokémon Mundo Misterioso Exploradores del Tiempo y Oscuridad.
  24. Spad
    Aug 24, 2018
    10
    This game has some really amazing music! The story can get a little dark at certain points as well!
  25. JmanTheHitman
    Aug 8, 2018
    10
    Story is slow at the beginning, but after that the game is great. Definitely the hardest mystery dungeon game and has the best partner Pokemon in all the series. don't let some reviews prevent you from playing this game your going to either love it or hate it ( that goes for this series as well)
  26. RobertTheGreat
    Apr 26, 2018
    6
    Gates To Infinty Failed Me. I Played It And I Enjoyed It, But I Was Hard For Me To Get Through Poliwrath River, And I Need More Time To Get Through It. When I Started To Play The Game I Chose To Be Riolu And My Partner, Mudkip. This Game Was Good But I Need To Do Better At Going Through The Game.
  27. HenryDrago
    Apr 22, 2018
    6
    Interesting the way of recruiting allies, the dungeons are cool, but very repetitive, difficulty unbalanced, in some moments is very easy another very difficult, the story is not so well developed or captivating, shallow characters.
  28. 1_skydarktime
    Jan 16, 2018
    10
    While my favorite is Explorer of Sky, Super recovered the series with good story and dungeons, bigger amount of pokemon than its predecessor Gates, and unlike Gates, it doesn't feel rushed or incomplete but a full and fun Mystery Dungeon game, which it is.
  29. joehi1
    Dec 12, 2017
    6
    Pokemon Super Mystery Dungeon does deserve some points for managing to make an acceptable entry into the Pokemon Mystery Dungeon franchise after Gates to Infinity, however acceptable is the only way to describe it. Sadly Super Mystery Dungeon lacks a well-written story that could possibly have the worse story of this series of spin-offs. While the gameplay stays the same and the visualsPokemon Super Mystery Dungeon does deserve some points for managing to make an acceptable entry into the Pokemon Mystery Dungeon franchise after Gates to Infinity, however acceptable is the only way to describe it. Sadly Super Mystery Dungeon lacks a well-written story that could possibly have the worse story of this series of spin-offs. While the gameplay stays the same and the visuals are looking good, the Mystery Dungeon formula really needed more of an overhaul, and the new implementation of recruiting Pokemon to your rescue team is lackluster at best. You go out on a specific mission to rescue these Pokemon or help them, then these Pokemon that are way above your level join you, and the games difficulty curves so that you essentially have to rely on these high-level partners if you want to get through the game without a lot of grinding. Super Mystery Dungeon failed to revitalize the franchise like Time and Darkness on the DS did, and because of that the Pokemon Mystery Dungeon spin-off series may lie dormant forever, and no S.O.S mail will be available

    Cons
    No fundamental changes except awful implementation of recruiting system
    Worse Story of the Mystery Dungeon franchise
    Main characters feel useless    … Expand
  30. Dragonfly44
    Nov 27, 2017
    8
    While nowhere near as captivating as normal Pokémon games, Super Mystery Dungeon is a fun and lighthearted game on it’s own. It has a nice story and brings back some love for classic dungeon games.
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Awards & Rankings

28
#28 Best 3DS Game of 2015
3
#3 Most Discussed 3DS Game of 2015
1
#1 Most Shared 3DS Game of 2015

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
69

Mixed or average reviews - based on 44 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 18 out of 44
  2. Mixed: 24 out of 44
  3. Negative: 2 out of 44
  1. CD-Action
    Jun 29, 2016
    75
    A very decent Mystery Dungeon game and the best Pokemon Mystery Dungeon. [06/2016, p.66]
  2. NZGamer
    Mar 21, 2016
    75
    Great in sprints, but tedium might put off players looking for deeper experiences.
    Read full review
  3. games(TM)
    Mar 16, 2016
    60
    Fans of the Mystery Dungeon series will know what to expect from this latest offering: its new additions aren’t radical enough to ruin what makes it fun or, crucially, fix what makes it monotonous.
    Read full review
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