Pokemon Shield

 Switch
User Score
4.7

Generally unfavorable reviews- based on 3465 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1,154 out of 3465
  2. Mixed: 587 out of 3465
  3. Negative: 1,724 out of 3465
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  1. pico901
    Nov 15, 2019
    0
    This game is simply not worth 60 not even half the price! GameFreak (Masuda) Lied to us for cutting 60% of the pokedex for ''better animations'' all we seen is some dynamax animations and RE USED battle animations! this is just a quick crashgrab! out of town the graphics are simply laughable unfinished and unpolished! The trees look worse then most ps2 games the rock textures wow! theThis game is simply not worth 60 not even half the price! GameFreak (Masuda) Lied to us for cutting 60% of the pokedex for ''better animations'' all we seen is some dynamax animations and RE USED battle animations! this is just a quick crashgrab! out of town the graphics are simply laughable unfinished and unpolished! The trees look worse then most ps2 games the rock textures wow! the rocktextures! there have been massive framerate issues in dynamax battles i saw a player fishing in a town area then when the battle came the background changed to the wild area! Inhouse battles get backgrounds simply not matching with the enviroment you just battle in a void. The gym missions are so easy to the point you can just walk to the other side without anything stopping you! You get so many potions revives and all that bullcrap u find it everywhere! the game is dumbed down so much with so many missing features. This game is unfinished and unpolished even pokemon lets go pika and evee are better polished and even looking better in alot of aspects. Gamefreak failed and i will never be buying anything pokemon related ever again! ''improved animations'' when my raboot pokemon used the move headbut and it kicked instead of actually headbutting this game is the fallout 76 of pokemon and the casual fanboys will never admit this shame on you! shame on gamefreak and shame on Nintendo for letting this come out! It's all about money these days and you can clearly see it TAKE THIS L gamefreak!… Expand
  2. NotAChansey
    Nov 15, 2019
    0
    An insult to life long pokemon fans. Stripped of all personality and mostly a re-packaged collection of old animations/ideas. Nothing new to gain, plenty of good old stuff removed for literally no reason other than to get the game out faster
  3. PuppyNomNomKing
    Nov 15, 2019
    8
    Pokemon Sword/Shield, while not the greatest game in the series, is still a pretty damn good game, the story, while short, is very well written, with interesting characters that sadly, don't get enough time to shine.

    The wild area is a welcome edition, and Dynamaxing, while gimmicky, is a nice replacement for Mega Evolutions. The whole Dexit controversy is blown WAY out of    Pokemon Sword/Shield, while not the greatest game in the series, is still a pretty damn good game, the story, while short, is very well written, with interesting characters that sadly, don't get enough time to shine.

    The wild area is a welcome edition, and Dynamaxing, while gimmicky, is a nice replacement for Mega Evolutions.

    The whole Dexit controversy is blown WAY out of proportion, there are till over 400 Pokemon to catch, the average player will only catch 20-30 of those.

    In all, the first main series pokemon game on console is great and i highly recommend it to ANY pokemon fan.    … Expand
  4. CrunchyShadow
    Nov 15, 2019
    0
    Do not buy this game. GameFreak misled and took advantage of the fanbase. This game, along with its counterpart Pokémon Sword, are little more than upscaled 3DS games. Models for many Pokémon are confirmed to be identical to those in Sun/Moon. The animations are garbage. The environments are barren. The fans deserve better.
  5. Saliva
    Nov 15, 2019
    10
    Amazing game. Just a I was expecting. Good job on developing such quality game. Best bucks ever gave
  6. Zasfe
    Nov 15, 2019
    1
    Tiene gráficos muy malos, muchos bugs, sin pokédex completa, fallos con el autoguardado, sin Megas, sin Movimientos Z, mucho curry que no se pidio, una historia muy mala y aburrida, no explican el lore de eternatus.
  7. Cool_Fella
    Nov 15, 2019
    4
    These games had great potential but for reasons unknown to me Game Freak has continued taking this series deeper into this downward spiral in quality, aiming to achieve nothing more than mediocrity and failing to even achieve that. The move to the switch making it all the more obvious where these games fall short.

    Keeping this in mind, do I think these games are inherently unenjoyable?    These games had great potential but for reasons unknown to me Game Freak has continued taking this series deeper into this downward spiral in quality, aiming to achieve nothing more than mediocrity and failing to even achieve that. The move to the switch making it all the more obvious where these games fall short.

    Keeping this in mind, do I think these games are inherently unenjoyable? No, I think someone, especially children could have fun with these titles, the classic Pokémon formula of catching, training and battling is still there, though encumbered by bad game design choices, subpar presentation and without much evolution from previous titles, I'd even argue they're a step backwards with the removal of many of the Pokémon that made this series and it is today and the removal of mechanics such as mega evolution.

    Taking a step back from the gameplay, the design of the Galar region and many other elements of the game show a lot of potential, playing through this game there were times when I honestly found myself getting pretty into and immersed in it, before being taken right back out of it by some jarring lack of quality, be it a pivotal moment in the story entirely lacking any music for no real reason, some embarrassingly bad animations or one of many other glaring issues in these games.

    The Galar region itself has some really nice elements and environmental design, of course, some parts of these environments look a little outdated such as the trees which I'm sure nobody who's been keeping up with Pokémon news online hasn't seen by now, but there were a couple of other instances where I noticed poor quality models and textures in the overworld and it took me out of my immersion a bit, though other than these issues the region has a pretty nice art direction, the main issue for me is the lack of NPCs in the region leading to even a lot of the smaller areas (which is a lot of the areas unfortunately) feeling very empty, not just out and about on routes but even in a lot of the game's towns and cities.

    Finally the story, without spoiling anything, I found the story to be pretty lackluster and sure, it IS a Pokémon game, they're not renowned for their stories, though there have been some good ones in the series' past. Throughout the game the story didn't seem too interesting, but it's not too in your face either which is an improvement from Sun and Moon, though it felt to me as though it was almost too uninvolved with so much character progression happening off screen it made it kind of hard to feel invested in the story and characters and made me care even less about the story when they tried to turn the cutscenes up to 11 late into the game, finding myself rather bored as I skimmed through a lot of mediocre dialogue from characters I hardly knew or cared about.

    My final thoughts; these games are probably the easiest the series has ever been with the exception of the Let's Go! games. If you're looking for a challenge it's not here. If you're looking to collect a whole bunch of Pokémon most of them are not here either. If you're looking for a simple, easy Pokémon game and don't care too much about substance then you might enjoy this game if you don't get bored of it too quickly, but ultimately with the amount of content cut and reused, with hardly anything added in return I don't think it's worth the money, you can find a lot of better games on the Switch for the same price or less.    … Expand
  8. DarumaTries
    Nov 15, 2019
    4
    I honestly wanted to enjoy these games, which is why I purchased them despite all the controversy. After having beaten it (in a single day no less), I find it a sadly mediocre experience. It's carried only by the already established mechanics of Pokemon, which I'd say were done better in past generations.

    In retrospective, I wish I hadn't made this purchase, and I'd advise others to    I honestly wanted to enjoy these games, which is why I purchased them despite all the controversy. After having beaten it (in a single day no less), I find it a sadly mediocre experience. It's carried only by the already established mechanics of Pokemon, which I'd say were done better in past generations.

    In retrospective, I wish I hadn't made this purchase, and I'd advise others to look at past titles for higher quality.    … Expand
  9. Lesh0
    Nov 15, 2019
    10
    Best pokemon Game to date. Who cares that some pokemon are cut out when u got 400(more than enough) who cares that 100 moves are cut out of the game when u dont really need taht many anyways. Graphics are amazing and story is decent. This is the right direction to transfer the Pokemon franchise to the new graphics. New dynamax system is fresh and fun. I own all pokemon games and I wasBest pokemon Game to date. Who cares that some pokemon are cut out when u got 400(more than enough) who cares that 100 moves are cut out of the game when u dont really need taht many anyways. Graphics are amazing and story is decent. This is the right direction to transfer the Pokemon franchise to the new graphics. New dynamax system is fresh and fun. I own all pokemon games and I was never a competitive pokemon player more on the casual side and I can asure you that the game is worth it !!… Expand
  10. Harveyr
    Nov 15, 2019
    0
    A Pokémon game without Pokémon, what's even the point? It's clear gamefreak needed at least another year on this to get the game in a play ready state. Unfortunately for us fans it's been released anyway with this game feeling more like a quick cash grab more than anything else
  11. Buttfart
    Nov 15, 2019
    0
    Lack of content and communication while the core games remains the franchise has become a former shell of what was accomplished during the DS Era.
  12. Parkai
    Nov 15, 2019
    2
    Game feels horrendously unfinished. The starter designs are some of the worst I’ve ever seen. The story of the game feels rushed and inconclusive, with strange plot holes that should have been noticed during development. The animations (barring a few signature moves) are horrific eyesores, with models spinning aimlessly and few dedicated animations. More than half of the Pokémon roster isGame feels horrendously unfinished. The starter designs are some of the worst I’ve ever seen. The story of the game feels rushed and inconclusive, with strange plot holes that should have been noticed during development. The animations (barring a few signature moves) are horrific eyesores, with models spinning aimlessly and few dedicated animations. More than half of the Pokémon roster is also unavailable to be transferred, which has been a series staple since the early 2000’s. However, the trainer customization and card system are very fun, and the QOL changes are excellent as well. I really wanted to enjoy this game, but it left me with an awful taste in my mouth.… Expand
  13. TheScor
    Nov 15, 2019
    10
    The game is fun. Don't let the angry detract from your own experience. There are flaws, like in every game, but that doesn't warrant the wave of hate this game is getting. You'll be told to vote with your wallet. Well also think with your own brain.
  14. GaryOakPR
    Nov 15, 2019
    4
    The games have cut so many well established features in comparison to previous games in the franchise. This includes not only the infamous Dexcut, but also the GTS and moves such as Hidden Power. As for the Dexcut, 490 species of Pokemon were cut, and only 81 new species were introduced.
    There are a couple of welcomed quality of life updates, but they still don't make up for the vast    The games have cut so many well established features in comparison to previous games in the franchise. This includes not only the infamous Dexcut, but also the GTS and moves such as Hidden Power. As for the Dexcut, 490 species of Pokemon were cut, and only 81 new species were introduced.
    There are a couple of welcomed quality of life updates, but they still don't make up for the vast amount of content cut.
    In conclusion, 60% off the score for cutting 60% of the Pokemon :^)    … Expand
  15. Shinku002
    Nov 15, 2019
    0
    pokemon escudo la peor basura de titulo de pokemon en la historia!,sin megaevoluciones!(lets go pilachu y eevee si tenían), sin movimientos z,reciclado de manera vaga,recortadisimo en pokemones ejem no esta squirtle,bulbasor solo chardmander por charizard :v,recortado en movimientos,los pokemons mas feos que eh visto nuevos!,la hitoria mas corta de todos los juegos de pokemon,el lets go depokemon escudo la peor basura de titulo de pokemon en la historia!,sin megaevoluciones!(lets go pilachu y eevee si tenían), sin movimientos z,reciclado de manera vaga,recortadisimo en pokemones ejem no esta squirtle,bulbasor solo chardmander por charizard :v,recortado en movimientos,los pokemons mas feos que eh visto nuevos!,la hitoria mas corta de todos los juegos de pokemon,el lets go de switch dura 25h, este 15 :v,el diamante y perla 41, esta lleno de bugs,los graficos son de lo peor para una switch!,un arbol y las montañas que ellos enseñaron presumiendo parecian de n64 por dios!, etc,ademas los de nintendo(si los de nintendo quien es el que manda en su querida consola?) presumian de la obra y oda de este pokemon!,en fin, por algo la nota… Expand
  16. Reiseken
    Nov 15, 2019
    8
    Estava dubtant de si posar un 7 o un 8 al pokemon escudo, però me animat amb el 8. Sé que encara no seria el moment de posar una nota a un joc que acaba de sortir, però els inicis d'aquesta aventura m'han semblat força correctesi podem dir que hi ha alguna sorpreseta que especialment a mi m'ha agradat. Un inici una mica diferent de l habitual que tot i que és en el fons el mateix de sempreEstava dubtant de si posar un 7 o un 8 al pokemon escudo, però me animat amb el 8. Sé que encara no seria el moment de posar una nota a un joc que acaba de sortir, però els inicis d'aquesta aventura m'han semblat força correctesi podem dir que hi ha alguna sorpreseta que especialment a mi m'ha agradat. Un inici una mica diferent de l habitual que tot i que és en el fons el mateix de sempre te la seva personalitat.

    Gràficament el joc compleix sense ser capportent gràfic amb algu    … Expand
  17. Noraver
    Nov 15, 2019
    0
    What can I say that hasn’t already been said?
    Nintendo/The Pokémon Company need to give the rights to another company. Game Freak has grown lazy, complacent, and puts no effort or passion into these games anymore.
    It definitely is sad when a game 20 years old on N64 (Pokémon Stadium 2), or a game on the Wii (Pokémon Battle Revolution) have more character/personality in their Pokémon    What can I say that hasn’t already been said?
    Nintendo/The Pokémon Company need to give the rights to another company. Game Freak has grown lazy, complacent, and puts no effort or passion into these games anymore.
    It definitely is sad when a game 20 years old on N64 (Pokémon Stadium 2), or a game on the Wii (Pokémon Battle Revolution) have more character/personality in their Pokémon than the mainline games do.
    Not to mention, better animations.
    This is no longer the company/game line I used to know and love.
    The highest grossing franchise in the world, and they can't produce a decent game on the newest console hardware?
    Pathetic, absurd, and genuinely disappointing.

    #GameFreakLied    … Expand
  18. Kwafka
    Nov 15, 2019
    3
    An embarassingly terrible RPG built on lies and cut content. Go play dragon quest or something
  19. veteranplayer88
    Nov 15, 2019
    1
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I never think i would give a bad rating to a pokemon game. I'm really dissapointed... that's what happen when you make a lazy game only thinking about money, not listening the players, long time fans. This game is buggy, graphics are mediocre comprared to other switch games, pokemons models are from 3ds, except new ones. But they really lied to us. And the worst, they excluded alot of content. No mega evolutions, no zmoves, lots of excluded moves, more that 400 pokemon excluded. Thats so so bad. I would like to give a good rate, but this is just bad. This game could be good, some new things are cool, but isnt enough. I hope they dont do this again, or i will not buy any more.… Expand
  20. Zoomzeta
    Nov 15, 2019
    6
    While I don't believe there is anything wrong with the game, I do feel it is rather in several areas given how far RPGs have gone prior to Gamefreak making the jump to consoles. Overall, I have hope this merely the first step for something better.
  21. skido6
    Nov 15, 2019
    2
    Game is way too short and has very little "content" after the main story. Exemplifies all the areas recent games have received criticism such as diminished difficulty and child-like gamplay and story telling, only this time it was even more apparent given the slew of excuses and trades-offs Gamefreak made in the lead up to its release. If you don't want to waste another $80 I suggestGame is way too short and has very little "content" after the main story. Exemplifies all the areas recent games have received criticism such as diminished difficulty and child-like gamplay and story telling, only this time it was even more apparent given the slew of excuses and trades-offs Gamefreak made in the lead up to its release. If you don't want to waste another $80 I suggest cancelling your annual Pokemon subscription and waiting for the developers to get their act together.… Expand
  22. ellub
    Nov 15, 2019
    0
    Straight and clear, they cut dex, promised amazing animations, said the models were all redone and what did we get? a wild game with textures from Nintendo 64, the Wild Area is horrible, animations and models completely recycled from 3DS, junk post game, Pokémon designs seem to have come out of Cartoon Network, cut over 100 moves being some key to the competitive, tehy cut megaStraight and clear, they cut dex, promised amazing animations, said the models were all redone and what did we get? a wild game with textures from Nintendo 64, the Wild Area is horrible, animations and models completely recycled from 3DS, junk post game, Pokémon designs seem to have come out of Cartoon Network, cut over 100 moves being some key to the competitive, tehy cut mega evolution, they cut z-moves, junk movements, looks like characters are inside a microwave in cutscenes, junk story, and worse, the game costs $ 60, the same price as Zelda Breath of te Wild :)… Expand
  23. LotzOPixelz
    Nov 15, 2019
    0
    The one good thing I can see coming from these games is a wake up call to gamefreak. Pokemon as a franchise has been declining ever since x/y but I still didnt expect the absolute nozedive in ratings for this game. The lies we have been fed so that the pokemon company could make a quick buck are absurd. I hope in the future gamefreak realises that they can no longer **** out garbage onto aThe one good thing I can see coming from these games is a wake up call to gamefreak. Pokemon as a franchise has been declining ever since x/y but I still didnt expect the absolute nozedive in ratings for this game. The lies we have been fed so that the pokemon company could make a quick buck are absurd. I hope in the future gamefreak realises that they can no longer **** out garbage onto a cartridge and call it a "game for long time fans"… Expand
  24. Cuddly1337
    Nov 15, 2019
    2
    Pokemon Shield (and its sister Sword) is an incredibly unpolished game. It feels like GameFreak never tested these games for bugs. These bugs are not just small unnoticeable things like in GameBoy games. Music is missing from certain battles, NPCs (without Abra) can teleport (both in the overworld and when battling some NPCs), and you can suddenly stop time by being on a ladder. There evenPokemon Shield (and its sister Sword) is an incredibly unpolished game. It feels like GameFreak never tested these games for bugs. These bugs are not just small unnoticeable things like in GameBoy games. Music is missing from certain battles, NPCs (without Abra) can teleport (both in the overworld and when battling some NPCs), and you can suddenly stop time by being on a ladder. There even is yet another save corruption glitch in these games, and it isn’t like talking to 1 NPC and surfing on specific tiles either.
    Even looking past the glitches, the main story is insultingly easy, even for children. The only places children can explore are in the wild areas and they are filled with nothing of interest (besides more examples of a lack-o-polish). Your kids might also be scared of the Camp feature since their Pokemon can do weird and unintended things. I personally also didn’t like being limited on what I could catch based on Gym Badges as I (and your kids) could easily lose out on a Pokemon they wanted to catch, and you are overleveled anyways.
    I’ll give the game some points though. While many designs are pretty sub-par, most of the new Pokemon are very well designed. And is series tradition, the music is still very good, even if it is the weakest soundtrack so far.

    Unironically, just get Let’s Go Pikachu or Let’s Go Eevee if you want to get a Pokemon game for your kid. They have more polish and are much more appealing to children.    … Expand
  25. DobleC
    Nov 15, 2019
    0
    If we were facing a GameCube game, the game would probably have a 7 (due to Dexit and lack of content and animations). But we are faced with a game of the most successful franchise in history (ergo a franchise that generates a lot of money) and sincerely it is shameful the technical work it has. Anyway, if you're not very smart (as with the vast majority of Pokémon fans) you probably won'tIf we were facing a GameCube game, the game would probably have a 7 (due to Dexit and lack of content and animations). But we are faced with a game of the most successful franchise in history (ergo a franchise that generates a lot of money) and sincerely it is shameful the technical work it has. Anyway, if you're not very smart (as with the vast majority of Pokémon fans) you probably won't even notice. As good points, the music is great, the game (when it is not frozen or terrible laggin) looks nice too and you can also finish it in less than 10 hours if you rush, so you can go play any other game of Pokémon that is good (from DS and earlier).

    Lazyness :/    … Expand
  26. Joaomax
    Nov 15, 2019
    0
    Muito ruim
    O jogo cheio de bugs, graficos horríveis, parece que nem saiu do 3ds, preguiça foi essa GF?
    OLHA A NOTA QUE NÓS FÃS ESTAMOS COLOCANDO AQUI, 3.7, PFV NÉ
  27. FirstMx
    Nov 15, 2019
    1
    Un véritable scandale en 2019 que de proposer un jeu à peine fini comme celui-là. Les graphismes sont dignes de la Nintendo GameCube, le gameplay n’est pas plus amusant que sur game boy color il y a pourtant 20 ans de cela. C’est une grosse arnaque qui profitent de l’aura commercial extrêmement efficace de la licence Pokémon pour nous vendre un « jeux » qui est bâclé et même pas digne desUn véritable scandale en 2019 que de proposer un jeu à peine fini comme celui-là. Les graphismes sont dignes de la Nintendo GameCube, le gameplay n’est pas plus amusant que sur game boy color il y a pourtant 20 ans de cela. C’est une grosse arnaque qui profitent de l’aura commercial extrêmement efficace de la licence Pokémon pour nous vendre un « jeux » qui est bâclé et même pas digne des **** studios indépendant au budget pourtant réduit. Quand on s’appel GameFreak et que l’on a les moyens presque illimité qu’ils ont, c’est un véritable foutage de gueule.
    A fuir !    … Expand
  28. jack1077
    Nov 15, 2019
    0
    Utter trash. This game is so god awful and poorly developed that it is deleting ALL save files from some players switches. The developers have lied to the consumers regarding the models and animations as an excuse to get away with culling the full dex (so it can be charged later). The only silver lining is that this game is so terrible the Pokemon company might finally get rid of GamefreakUtter trash. This game is so god awful and poorly developed that it is deleting ALL save files from some players switches. The developers have lied to the consumers regarding the models and animations as an excuse to get away with culling the full dex (so it can be charged later). The only silver lining is that this game is so terrible the Pokemon company might finally get rid of Gamefreak from this series. #gamefreaklied… Expand
  29. allewel2
    Nov 15, 2019
    0
    Overpriced now ($35x2 used to get you all of the game and now $60x2 only gets you 55%).

    GameFreak just needs to sell Pokémon and let someone else give it the attention it deserves.
  30. Treacle
    Nov 15, 2019
    3
    Rule number one of being a game developer should be that you never LIE to fans, but GameFreak doesn't believe in that rule.

    Unfortunately due to the laziest of the developers this games does not hold a candle to the previous versions of the game. Over half of the pokemon have been removed, the given reason being that there was not enough time to remodel every single character. Despite    Rule number one of being a game developer should be that you never LIE to fans, but GameFreak doesn't believe in that rule.

    Unfortunately due to the laziest of the developers this games does not hold a candle to the previous versions of the game. Over half of the pokemon have been removed, the given reason being that there was not enough time to remodel every single character. Despite this, the same models used in XY and all other recent games are used here, although retextured. Due to this massive culling of designs, you will no longer be able to transfer your teams from previous games to this one, unless you somehow predicted which designs would be 'approved' for continued use. They have given the possibility of holding your characters for you in the subscription service 'Pokemon Home', but with no guarantee of them showing up again in a game again. Even if they do it could be 10+ years down the line.

    The Pokemon designs themselves are as great as ever, about the only redeeming factor of the games. Some of my personal favourites are Appletun and Wooloo. Dynamax and Gigantamax are a cool new feature, but not really worth the removal of Megas and Z-Moves. As always, GameFreak favourite Charizard gets a Gigantamax form while all other starters (including the new ones) are ignored. Charizard is the only returning starter in the game, with only the other Kanto starters and Alolan starters even having the option of being transferred.

    Gameplay wise it is your standard pokemon game, fight trainers, get badges (while wearing an ugly football kit this time), defeat the villains. As usual with every game 3DS era and onward, there are no true dungeon like areas or puzzles (too hard for modern children apparently), and the postgame is basically non-existent. No Battle Frontier here or even legendary hunting here. Previous games had features like Contests, Secret Bases, the Underground. Despite being on a much more advanced console, all of these side quests and postgame content has been cut to make the games more 'streamlined'. According to the developers, this is due to having to compete with mobile games.

    Overall it is a pretty shallow version of what the game should be. It was promised as a game for long time fans, but if you have played anything older than XY, there isn't much here for you. If you want a great Pokemon experience, any of the original main series DS or GBA games are where you should look.    … Expand
  31. EpicGamer420
    Nov 15, 2019
    3
    We live in a society where gamefreak can get away with making a half baked game and changer 60 dollars. With only a fraction of old pokemon and not even 100 completely new pokemon.
  32. JeanRiver
    Nov 15, 2019
    0
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. GameFreak Lied.Disappointed about this shxt work.I won't buy and Pokemon Game util they apologize and do something really matters… Expand
  33. Mildor
    Nov 15, 2019
    2
    Despite the incomplete pokedex and graphical flaws, the overall experience feels empty, with a dull story, no post game and get small difficulty level. It's just sad to see how the fastest growing franchise in the world just didn't deliver.
  34. Calvinsoryu
    Nov 15, 2019
    2
    By far the worst and most dissapointing Pokemon game of all time.

    Remember how Game Freak announced these Games? They said: " This is not a normal Pokemon Game" and "This is something fans waited a long time for" Spoiler: Its not Game Freak cut out over the half of all Pokemon because: "They improved the character models and the animations" Too bad dataminers proved them wrong. The    By far the worst and most dissapointing Pokemon game of all time.

    Remember how Game Freak announced these Games? They said:
    " This is not a normal Pokemon Game" and "This is something fans waited a long time for" Spoiler: Its not

    Game Freak cut out over the half of all Pokemon because: "They improved the character models and the animations" Too bad dataminers proved them wrong. The character models and the animations are just copy pasted from the sun and moon games.

    Cuting over the half of all Pokemon is bad enough. But LYING about the real reason makes it even worse!

    So much about the Netaional dex.

    The game itself doesnt look good at all. It looks exactly like the 3DS games just in HD now. Theres no improvement at all.

    The big new feature of the game, the wild area is one big mess. The wheater and even the daytime changes if you switch between certain areas in the wild area itself. Pokemon spawn right infront of your face and the whole part of this game is just buggy and doesnt run on a
    constant framerate.

    There are also other issues like:

    - The story is only about 15 hours long
    -Theres no post game
    - The EXP Share is overpowerd
    - Your constant overleveld
    - You cant catch certain Pokemon if you dont own the right badge
    - Apart from the wild area, all routes are linear
    -The story is linear
    - The handholding is just as bad as it was in sun and moon

    But there are also some good things like:

    - The characters are good
    - Gym battles are back
    - Some towns have a really nice designs

    Overall is this are these the worst Pokemon games of all time. If you want to play a good Pokemon game play one of the DS or 3DS Pokemon games. These games have way more content, better and longer stories and are worth the money.    … Expand
  35. GFLied
    Nov 15, 2019
    0
    Even ignoring the terrible graphics, the cut content is unacceptable, especially considering the new gimmicks are pointless and forgettable. The game is way too easy. And the cutscenes are annoying.
  36. Smartins2000
    Nov 15, 2019
    3
    these are the same game and deserve the same review

    got the game as a present from a friend as he did not want to be playing it alone the gameplay is the same as ever, this is not bad but its everyting else that bogs the experience down like the cutscenes with your "rivals" or the drawn out fights that made me actually fall asleep at some points (granted i worked that day, but im a    these are the same game and deserve the same review

    got the game as a present from a friend as he did not want to be playing it alone
    the gameplay is the same as ever, this is not bad but its everyting else that bogs the experience down
    like the cutscenes with your "rivals" or the drawn out fights that made me actually fall asleep at some points (granted i worked that day, but im a programer so how tired can that be?), some music was B A D normally pokemon has decent to godlike music and to have some tracks this horrendous is unaceptaple
    the final nail in the coffin for this game is the inflated price tag, you wont feel like you got your moneys worth out of the game, this game is inferior to ultra sun and moon and even those games where unaceptable to some degree witch was excused because the 3ds was a underpowerful system, but now?
    TL;DR: buy soulsilver, still SS but much better    … Expand
  37. naashinashi
    Nov 15, 2019
    3
    Aside from the most polarizing controversial decision ever made in the Pokemon History in not allowing to transfer many pokemons you've caught by only permitting the ones seen in Galar region in, there are several other flaws on this game that just makes it really frustrating and not worthy only playing for people expecting a more robust pokemon adventure. The game feels at many timesAside from the most polarizing controversial decision ever made in the Pokemon History in not allowing to transfer many pokemons you've caught by only permitting the ones seen in Galar region in, there are several other flaws on this game that just makes it really frustrating and not worthy only playing for people expecting a more robust pokemon adventure. The game feels at many times incomplete, lacking in many areas as seen from many of the buildings and specially large landmarks such as a church not being able to enter, cities being just large corridors with its really usefulness being the pokemon center and the gym.

    The change into a very linear game and the large amount almost empty cities hurts the charm of it. Your rival interrupts you several times and the amount of cutscenes is comparable to Sun and Moon if not larger. You can skip movies, but cutscenes are not skippable(except the tutorial one). The linearity increases when you realize routes are just corridors and there are essentially NO dungeons in the game. There are caves but nothing with a more or equal complexity like Mt. Moon, Rock Tunnel, Silph Co. Mt. Coronet etc. There is not even a Victory Road in the game.

    Another point I want to touch is the Wild Area, which is the biggest main feature in the game. The Wild Area just as the trailers showed and I have experienced; is a large slob of terrain with open camera and its own weather system (that tends to change quite abruptly). You can meet several pokemons in there (many of them are very high level, which you cannot catch until you have a gym badge for its equivalent level). The problem with wild area is that it's rather barren, with not much to do besides catching some pokemon and doing max raid battles. While going around the wild area, at times it laggy just as if there were some frame drops( and even worse if you go online with your friends there) the pop up distance for pokemon is very short, so a lot of times pokemons and berry trees can pop at a point blank distance or extremely close from your location which is pretty jarring and it can have you unwillingly bump into them.

    There are many other aspects I've disliked on this game and very few I actually liked, in overall it's just your normal pokemon experience, a new region, new pokemon to find except there is much less to do and even more baby first game than let's go pikachu and eevee and other previous entries, also there is not much to do post game. I just wished that there was more investment and ambition put in this game, because as it is right now, it's not worth $60.    … Expand
  38. EhDiddyIceDaddy
    Nov 15, 2019
    9
    Great game.in the franchise. New mechanics great graphics. A real treat to the franchise.
  39. Trunkleton
    Nov 15, 2019
    10
    Best Pokemon game. Awesome graphics.
  40. Volkthas
    Nov 15, 2019
    2
    Bad animation, bad graphics, low of content (shortest game of the franquicy) and the well know Pokedex cut. Unacceptable for a 60usd switch game. An involution of this IP.
  41. FrankBoreas
    Nov 15, 2019
    1
    Un juego decepcionante. Los gráficos son malos, hay caídas en el framerate, objetos que aparecen a metros de ti. No es un juego optimizado. Se nota que se hizo al vapor. Incluso pasa a veces en las batallas, El modo historia es corto y carece de momentos interesantes como en otras versiones de la franquicia. Para mí ha sido una decepción total y aunque tal vez no es tan malo, le pongo 1 deUn juego decepcionante. Los gráficos son malos, hay caídas en el framerate, objetos que aparecen a metros de ti. No es un juego optimizado. Se nota que se hizo al vapor. Incluso pasa a veces en las batallas, El modo historia es corto y carece de momentos interesantes como en otras versiones de la franquicia. Para mí ha sido una decepción total y aunque tal vez no es tan malo, le pongo 1 de calificación esperando que los compradores no lo consigan para castigar al estudio. Un juego de Pokémon para la consola de nintendo, la que nos ha entregado maravillas como Breath of The Wild o Super Mario Odyssey merece más. Todos merecemos algo más. Es triste que tanta gente apoyé un producto tan inferior.… Expand
  42. Gwain
    Nov 15, 2019
    10
    The Game looks amazing
    Smooth Gameplay
    Cute Pokemon Style
    Over 350 different Pokemon

    I love it so. Best Pokémon game in my opinion.
  43. Isapp
    Nov 15, 2019
    4
    Pokémon Sword and Shield are easily the most disappointing installment of the franchise. The additions are not enough to overcome graphical issues, physics bugs and softlocks on the game. As good as Gigantamax and raids are not good enough to make up to the exclusion of half the monsters, the lack of mega evolutions, trainers disappearing, animations as artificial as on a 32 bit consolePokémon Sword and Shield are easily the most disappointing installment of the franchise. The additions are not enough to overcome graphical issues, physics bugs and softlocks on the game. As good as Gigantamax and raids are not good enough to make up to the exclusion of half the monsters, the lack of mega evolutions, trainers disappearing, animations as artificial as on a 32 bit console and constant freezes. Pokemon Sword and Shield are overpriced unfinished games and therefore I can't give it more than 4/10… Expand
  44. pokead
    Nov 15, 2019
    0
    Its ultra sun and moon 2 but with less content same animation and cut pokedex. A shame
  45. pokeanon
    Nov 15, 2019
    1
    With this entry the developers behind Pokémon go deeper in a trend they should have stopped years ago: story modes that are insultingly easy, insultingly short and filled with forced cutscenes and handholding. That reason alone is enough to guarantee a red rating: The games are simply not very fun; they are less of a game and more of a showcase of the new Pokémon and new characters thatWith this entry the developers behind Pokémon go deeper in a trend they should have stopped years ago: story modes that are insultingly easy, insultingly short and filled with forced cutscenes and handholding. That reason alone is enough to guarantee a red rating: The games are simply not very fun; they are less of a game and more of a showcase of the new Pokémon and new characters that will drive TPC's merchandise lineup for the rest of the generation. That is bad, but they reached new unexpected lows with the deletion of more than half the monsters and the mediocre artistic direction. Variety of monsters was the strong point of the series, a game about collecting and training your favorites. With this loss Pokémon drops its strong point and is mostly a list of bad or questionable elements. It does not help that it has pops-in everywhere, bad animations (some of them really glaring for a 2019 game, and even worse when they were the given excuse for the deletion of the monsters), a region with few routes (less than ever before, including corridors) and no dungeons at all. Good points are the intention of an open world adventure with Wild Area and the improved breeding mechanics. Those are the reasons why I did not give this a zero.… Expand
  46. HonestGear
    Nov 15, 2019
    2
    This is the first time that my disappointment was so great that I felt like a needed to write a review. Sword and Shield overall is bad. Like its new Dynamax mechanic, its all show and no substance.
    Let's start with the good points first since the bad ones greatly outnumber them.
    -The only good points I can think of is that the game makes it easier to change the EV and IV of your    This is the first time that my disappointment was so great that I felt like a needed to write a review. Sword and Shield overall is bad. Like its new Dynamax mechanic, its all show and no substance.
    Let's start with the good points first since the bad ones greatly outnumber them.
    -The only good points I can think of is that the game makes it easier to change the EV and IV of your pokemon. Previously invisible and tedious to control, there are now items that make it easier to make the perfect pokemon you want.
    -Greatest trainer customization so far, although that's to be expected.

    Unfortunately that's the only good thing about the games.Here's a list of its bad points
    -The game is graphically bad. It looks like a 3DS game only with a shiny coat of paint,or in this case filters and bloom, to distract you from that. Characters spin in place to turn, Pokemon float and hover endlessly, the animations are recycled from earlier games, the battle animations are lacking in all departments.
    -Characters and Pokemon suddenly pop into existence in front of you.
    -The infamous Pokemon cut debate. Pokemon were removed from the game with no intention of them being added back. They promised a higher quality models and animations for it but that is clearly not there. Models are reused exactly the same with just higher textures, the models are off-scale, a lot of characters animations are reused and battle animations dont line up properly, e.g kicking to headbutt, the model just moving up and down with no movement to attack, fire and water attacks just coming out from somewhere on the model and not lining up with their mouths or wherever the attack is supposed to come from.
    -The game is piss easy. Not that other pokemon games werent easy but they offered a challenge. It's so easy that there is no gratification from winning. It is also very short.
    -The pokemon designs are bad. Everyone has some designs they dont like but these ones just felt a whole lot of miss rather than hit. A lot of them are so overly humanoid and uninspired that they dont feel like pokemon. You cant just draw a human, replace it's head and feet and call it a pokemon. A lot of them also feel like they were made just for the purpose of a joke and a pun. In the end the majority of the new pokemon feel like they were created as a singular cartoon character for a show specifically made to be likeable instead of being designed as members of a species of animals.
    -The greatest problem is the immersion. Pokemon is a role playing game. Immersion is a great deal in these kind of games. Their goal is to make the player feel like they are part of their world. Sword and Shield problems, even some minor ones I didnt list, all come together to ruin it.
    --The new Open Area feels like a mismatch, Pokemon suddenly appear from underground even if it makes no sense for them to do that, they spin in place and their movement does not sync up with their walking animations, they hover instead of moving. Crazy weather patterns 10 steps next to each other dont make sense.
    --The overworld pauses in time when traversing the Z axis.
    --The jump to 3D wasnt kind to pokemon. The routes are so linear that they railroad you to place. From the 3D vantage point you can see whatever is up ahead removing any dungeon-like challenge. You are railroaded in place by knee-high ledges that act as barriers leaving you only to imagine what the rest of the world is like, out of the tiny path you are forced into.
    --The world is small and empty. In earlier games you could interact with a lot of stuff, books, people, tvs and more. They gave you tidbits on the story, the background or even just gossip. This made the world feel alive. Instead in this game, a lot of it is removed, which along with the small railroaded world make the world feel dead.
    --The battles feel off, as said before the pokemon are off scale and their attack animations dont line up properly. The bad animation are even shown in the new camp feature allowing you to see up close items suddenly appearing in your pokemon's hands and their movement not syncing up with their walking animation.
    --Bad textures.
    --No "dungeons".
    All of these could be insignificant on their own but combined they ruin the feeling of immersion. The world feels fake, hurriedly stitched together and bursting at the seems.

    In the end, Sword and Shield had great some great ideas but even those are not fleshed out properly. Instead of moving the games forward it even took steps back. The first home console release of Pokemon deserved better than this shoddily put together cashgrab.
    Buy something else and if you want your pokemon hit, play the old games because you are not missing anything of worth. Let's hope the developer goes back to the drawing board and stays there for quite a while.    … Expand
  47. Tomcat8
    Nov 15, 2019
    0
    A disaster, pokemon just died!
    Even let's go, which was a medium game, had undeniable qualities (nothing but the catching interaction was excellent, it's something that should have stayed on this game).
    The 800 Pokémon are not available supposedly because to redo the sprites for the switch is too long while we have the proof that they have reused the sprites of pokémon Ultra Sun and    A disaster, pokemon just died!
    Even let's go, which was a medium game, had undeniable qualities (nothing but the catching interaction was excellent, it's something that should have stayed on this game).
    The 800 Pokémon are not available supposedly because to redo the sprites for the switch is too long while we have the proof that they have reused the sprites of pokémon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon.
    Non-existent combat animations, knowing that stadium versions on N64 had animations
    Gigamax combat which is a useless feature, ugly graphics with violent aliasing and catastrophic FPS drops!
    Knowing that the console manages to turn The Witcher 3 correctly
    Besides, the open world is empty and uninteresting!
    Sell ​​50 balls a **** alike !
    A nice scam for a game that is a half porting 3DS games    … Expand
  48. Pokesh33t
    Nov 15, 2019
    0
    Don’t buy it, burn Pokémon, they only want our money, it’s a scam, let Pokémon brand finish, it’s all trash, stop Pokémon stop them
  49. noxxion
    Nov 15, 2019
    0
    With the huge backlash of around half of the national pokedex missing, we were promised improvements and a.morecpolished game. We got the exact opposite.

    Around 177 moves missing from the game, an incredible amount of animations reused from Sun and Moon (Hop is a carbon copy of Hau in every aspect) Not to mention the appalling animations in general. Pokemon doing a half-ass pivot on the    With the huge backlash of around half of the national pokedex missing, we were promised improvements and a.morecpolished game. We got the exact opposite.

    Around 177 moves missing from the game, an incredible amount of animations reused from Sun and Moon (Hop is a carbon copy of Hau in every aspect) Not to mention the appalling animations in general. Pokemon doing a half-ass pivot on the spot to turn. A crowd of characters applauding with sound playing BUT NO ANIMATION.

    The soundtrack is terrible and low quality outside of a track from Toby Fox, sometimes the audio even glitches out or just doesnt exist. (The legendary finale was devoid of music and the battle music cut out)

    Also there are only 8 gym leaders that are reused a few times through the story. There are no Elite Four, you fight the same trainers all over again intead. The postgame is nonexistent too. No amount of #ThankYouGamefreak can cover up this travesty. Stop letting them get away with this sheer laziness.    … Expand
  50. MasudaBugBoy
    Nov 15, 2019
    2
    Removed Pokemon, removed features, Dreamcast-quality graphics, laughable post game and inconsistent animation. Is this the best they could do on an HD console from 2017? It's barely more impressive than Sun/Moon.
  51. Palomero3000
    Nov 15, 2019
    0
    Este juego fue apresurado y solo se hizo en mente para sacar dinero de manera facil sabiendo que su fan base pagarian por cualquier cosa sin importar la calidad del producto.
  52. danbeaman123
    Nov 15, 2019
    10
    This is an excellent Pokemon game. Best in the series.
  53. Ringo00
    Nov 15, 2019
    3
    Reposting from my Pokémon Sword review, since they are the same game:

    Not worth your time. Aside from the National dex issues, this game is one more example of the "half a step forward, three steps back" that Gamefreak has had for quite a while now. The wild area, a selling point for the games, feels unfinished and buggy, far less polished graphically than the rest of the game, and with    Reposting from my Pokémon Sword review, since they are the same game:

    Not worth your time. Aside from the National dex issues, this game is one more example of the "half a step forward, three steps back" that Gamefreak has had for quite a while now. The wild area, a selling point for the games, feels unfinished and buggy, far less polished graphically than the rest of the game, and with big pop-in and lag issues. It is also extremely small, only really feeling as a couple of open routes rather than an "open world" experience. The rest of the routes are basically hallways that don't reward or encourage exploration whatsoever, a terrible thing when we are talking about a JRPG. It's sad to see Mario Kart having circuits more complex than this.

    The difficulty is abysmal, with no ability to turn off the global EXP. Share and way too much experience being given for doing anything. Unless you are constantly switching between 12-20 Pokémon, you will find yourself at least 4-5 levels over gym leaders. You might also have to avoid trainers and certain features, like Pokémon Camp, to try to make it a "fair" gameplay experience.
    Following that last point, this also includes another selling point of this games, the raid battles. You will find yourself able to one-shot a lot of the raid Pokémon, sometimes without even dynamaxing yourself.

    For the last big selling point, dynamax and gigantamax, you should also know that only a few Pokémon will be able to do so. The effect can not be passed down, so if you want a specific Pokémon to dyna/gigantamax you might spend hours to find it.

    Be warned: there is no post-game either. A small 1h chapter and Battle Tower 3.0 is all you will have left. Since the legendaries are all shiny locked, there are no legendaries from other regions, no GTS and the wild area is tremendously shallow, this game does not come close to having the shelf life that previous entries had. Even XY, one of the worst post-games the series had, is marginally better than this.

    As a final warning, the touch screen is not compatible with this game. This means that you will not be able to pet your Pokémon like you could in the 3DS entries. Pokémon Camp "replaces" this feature, but you can barely interact with your Pokémon, who will wander aimlessly.

    In conclusion, every single previous Pokémon entry, including the Let's Go games, has more to offer than this game. I would severely recommend replaying or revisiting older Pokémon games you might not have played if you want you nostalgia fix.    … Expand
  54. Plisken
    Nov 15, 2019
    0
    From now on Game Freak do it like Blizzard.
    Its a shame, they lie to us customers and use their power to appease.

    Why international companies like Volkswagen think its ok to treat her customers like this?

    Did they realy think in 2 months everything will be all right again? Our trust in them is sustained damaged for a long time.

    THAT'S THE REAL PROBLEM!
  55. bigmacdaddyHBZ
    Nov 15, 2019
    10
    More pokemon so I already knew I was gonna love it however the whole cutting of the PokeDeX sucks.
  56. pkmn1_5genfreak
    Nov 15, 2019
    0
    Corporate greed should not be rewarded. You need to recall this game and let the developers make what they wanted to make, Game Freak. You stand to lose a very sizable core of your fanbase, many of us have started as children from 1-4 gen. We hate to see the series we cherish so much be treated as some showpony. Fix it.
  57. Fumetic
    Nov 15, 2019
    3
    As these are largely the same games, I have pasted my Sword review here. I will say however that I do prefer the exclusives in Sword however, which was why I picked it for my playthrough.

    Honestly, the game is not all negatives. While this review is low, we'll get to why in a moment, this isn't just part of some bomb. Pros: The game isn't completely unplayable, there's some good in    As these are largely the same games, I have pasted my Sword review here. I will say however that I do prefer the exclusives in Sword however, which was why I picked it for my playthrough.

    Honestly, the game is not all negatives.
    While this review is low, we'll get to why in a moment, this isn't just part of some bomb.
    Pros: The game isn't completely unplayable, there's some good in there.
    -The game has great Pokemon designs. Creativity abounds, with everything from a group of little Kirby-like soldiers that fight as one to an alien-like witch with tentacles.
    -There's some good QoL features added, such as nature changing items and increased vitamin limit, plus reduced level grinding if you do the (rather easy) raids.
    -A few neat compromises, such as the inclusion of both overworld and random encounters.
    Cons: While the list goes on much more than this, I'm sure the other reviews have quite a thorough explanation, so I'll keep it brief, at 5 points or less.
    -The dex cut. Regardless of what you think of it, this is removing what was known as a series staple.
    -Bugs. As of this writing, there's apparently a dangerous autosave bug that could result in data loss.
    -Low content. I'm not talking about the length of the story here, but rather the fact that the game uses the Wild Area to patch up how little content the rest of the game has, even compared to some of the 3DS games.
    -Finally, the game doesn't really have much in the way of engaging fights and just isn't as immersive overall. While there is one uniquely interesting fight that I will not spoil here, it falls more to just watching CPUs fight for you.

    Overall, the game just isn't terribly good. It's not worthy of a 1 or 2 for sure, as there are some good points, but for now, it will have to stay at 3. The length isn't much of an issue as some may say it is, because it's not too much shorter than average, but the Wild Area feels disappointingly flat and bland, and there's not enough content to make up for the removed content or even ignoring that, it's just not something I'd recommend getting for full price, especially as someone who's not supremely rich and has to pick and choose carefully when buying expensive Switch games like this. There's not enough bang for your buck with these games. Do yourself a favor and shop around for another game before choosing this one, and if you HAVE to get this because it's Pokemon, I'd at least say postpone the purchase until they iron out that save bug or it becomes available for a little cheaper.
    Cheers, and happy hunting (for a different game that is).    … Expand
  58. Metagrass
    Nov 15, 2019
    2
    I have also done a review for Pokemon Sword, but as both versions are more or less the same game, I've copied it here.

    This game... is not great. It's not even good. You can't imagine how much that bothers me as a 12 year Pokemon fan to say this, but I have to be honest, I regret buying these games. There is a myriad of issues with this game that give it a feeling of being rushed.    I have also done a review for Pokemon Sword, but as both versions are more or less the same game, I've copied it here.

    This game... is not great. It's not even good. You can't imagine how much that bothers me as a 12 year Pokemon fan to say this, but I have to be honest, I regret buying these games.

    There is a myriad of issues with this game that give it a feeling of being rushed. Firstly the game suffers from many graphical issues. Pokemon, trainers and objects will just pop into and out of the overworld for seemingly no reason, many battle arenas lack backgrounds and trainers will disappear and reappear from them, completely breaking my immersion. Another issue is the game is extremely short. I am already at the 5th gym and I bought it yesterday, I hope that somehow the last 3 gyms take triple the time of the first 5, but from what my friend tells me, this isn't the case. Also my friend tells me that the post game is just the battle tree from sun and moon but with no bosses. The story is extrememly basic too, it is just a carbon copy of the story from one of the other games in the series (of which I'm not going to mention as I don't want to spoil anything). If you thought they were taking a step in the right derection with Sun and Moon's story, then Sword and Shield takes two steps back. As you might expect, the game is really easy, but I don't mean as easy as some of the other games in the series, Sword and Shield is probably the easiest Pokemon game to date. Easy games aren't in themselves a bad thing, but in a strategy game like Sword and Shield, you need at least a basic level of difficulty to make it interesting. Alas, due to the forced (always active) exp share on your whole team, my entire team was so overleveled for each gym. I would just end up dyanamaxing and sweeping the entire trainer's team for each of them with no problem. I really wish you could just turn the exp share off, the game would benefit so much from this. Speaking of the gyms, the challenges for each gym are completely ridiculous. Most of them are boring and had very little effect on the gym battle itself, for example there is one where the gym leader asks you bizzare questions like what you had for breakfast, not impressed with the gyms at all. The game in general is riddled with bizzare decisions like extra volume controls being locked behind an item for some reason and not being able to pet your Pokemon anymore. I would not reccomend picking this game up.

    Now lets address the donphan in the room, the dex cut. Around 60% of the Pokemon were removed from this game along with a handful of moves for the reason of "improving the animations an models". The dex cut wouldn't be much of an issue for your average player, but the animations and models weren't improved at all. The models are just ported from Sun and Moon, scaled up for the Switch and there are less new animations in this game than Sun and Moon due to the lack of Z-Moves. So in short the dex was cut down for absolutely no reason. The smaller dex also limits people's options in online matches and competative, but I haven't played online yet and don't know anything about it so it wouldn't be fair for me to judge it.

    Now that I've finally gotten through the bad things I should list the good. Some of the designs of the new Pokemon are amazing. In typical James Turner (the man who designed many of the Pokemon in this game) style, they're very hit or miss. But the ones that hit, hit hard. The final evolutions of the starters in particular ooze personality, I love them all. The wild area is a great concept, though it's fairly poorly executed it is still fun to explore. The addition of overworld encounters from the Lets Go games is a great idea and makes the world feel way more alive. Sadly though, the good is outweighed by the bad in this game.

    In conclusion, I would not reccomend these games. They are definately the worst in the series and do not justify the Switch price tag. Avoid these at all costs, there are many, far better games on the switch this year, get one of those instead.    … Expand
  59. Nintendero97
    Nov 15, 2019
    0
    Como videojuego es divertido, pero como producto es también mediocre, tú no puedes hacer un videojuego tan poco trabajado en una saga que vende millones de unidades, no pido un videojuego con gráficos realistas, pero si un videojuego con unos gráficos a la altura estilo Zelda, y de las animaciones mejor no hablemos, son las mismas animaciones que en 3ds pero cuando digo eso es LAS MISMAS,Como videojuego es divertido, pero como producto es también mediocre, tú no puedes hacer un videojuego tan poco trabajado en una saga que vende millones de unidades, no pido un videojuego con gráficos realistas, pero si un videojuego con unos gráficos a la altura estilo Zelda, y de las animaciones mejor no hablemos, son las mismas animaciones que en 3ds pero cuando digo eso es LAS MISMAS, y en combate tu personaje en ocasiones desaparece y resta total inmersión, señores de Game freak que no estamos en la época de PS2!!, Que la switch puede con mucho más!… Expand
  60. NationalDex
    Nov 15, 2019
    0
    Same as Sword, Reused Animations, lying about new models, bad textures, cut Pokemon, Masuda should've been laid off awhile ago and there is a game breaking bug that deletes everything on your micro sd. Wasn't tested, absolutely avoid
  61. JDRH
    Nov 15, 2019
    10
    Nice and beautiful game, I just love it, nice music, pretty soothing graphics
  62. MikoloPulo
    Nov 15, 2019
    0
    This game is rushed and unfinished. No matter how many times they try and say otherwise, this game was rush out of the door, since Pokemon game releases are tied to merchandise and such (I mean, Pokemon is the highest grossing franchise for a reason). But because of this, we get a subpar entry, which lots of cut content, awful graphics, and a lot of decisions that will make you go: "What the ****
  63. Zyrraki
    Nov 15, 2019
    10
    Pokemon sword and shield is an excellent Pokemon game. If you're a fan you'll enjoy and love it just as much as the older ones.
  64. MP_Design
    Nov 15, 2019
    10
    I seriously like this game!

    Even if it is not the best Pokemon game, it is still enjoyable.
  65. Basednredpilled
    Nov 15, 2019
    2
    Bad graphics. Bad animations. Even bad music. Extremely short. No postgame content. No national dex. Bad story. Bad characters. Permanent exp share. Do i have to continue? I gave it a 2 instead of 0 just because some of the new pokemon have good designs. Nobody should buy this game.
  66. MrJohns
    Nov 15, 2019
    0
    Another rushed, disappointing mess for longtime fans of the series. Its a short, buggy and way to easy Game. They cutted and removed a lot (Dexit, Mega Evolutions, Z-Moves). Graphics are bad, and there are several Technical Issues. And then they Reused a lot and added boring Gimmicks like Dynamaxing. Don't support this kind of Greedy Garbage!
  67. FGDireito
    Nov 15, 2019
    3
    I was going to give this game a solid 5, it's not a bad game but neither it's a great game, this is just fine, but the more I think about it the more disappointed I get.
    This is a 60€ game it as to be compared with its Switch peers of the same price and not like it's a random indie game, this game rightly deserves the tough love that it's getting, just because it's Pokémon doesn't make it    I was going to give this game a solid 5, it's not a bad game but neither it's a great game, this is just fine, but the more I think about it the more disappointed I get.
    This is a 60€ game it as to be compared with its Switch peers of the same price and not like it's a random indie game, this game rightly deserves the tough love that it's getting, just because it's Pokémon doesn't make it automatic free from criticism.
    The technical issues in this game are just unacceptable for 2019, pop-ins everywhere in a very small 10m radius makes the world feel empty and bland. Animations look so stiff and outdated, why does the world freezes around me while I fish or climb ladders? Why are some background battles just white voids when even the Let’sGo games had that right? The textures quality is all over the place too, the worst ones are in par with Nintendo64 and the best ones are 3DS quality, but please don’t forget that this is a Switch game.
    The camping is quite cute actually but shallow, pokéjobs are ok but forgetful just like the whole dynamax thing is just a gimmick, the wild area looks like the main selling point this time but it’s just meh, a nice idea but really poorly executed and with almost no exploration after the first full run, the world is pretty much a straight line, there is no kind of exploration, do you remember places like Mt. Mortar, Seafoam Islands or Whirl Islands? There is nothing like that here, the most dungeon-like exploration you will get is something like Viridian Forest and it never gets more difficult than that.
    The game difficult is non- existent like the post-game, also why is the exp.share mandatory? Give us more options, don’t take them away...
    I don't even care about the lack of National Dex drama, but I do understand why people are upset about it, also the National Dex was cut with the excuse on delivering better animations and a more carefully crafted game but the overall game polish is worse than ever, plus lots of other cut content, the quality of the game is 100% more important than not having all the Pokemon for sure. I would rather have a high quality game with 100 Pokemon than a stinker with 1000 Pokemon. When will we get battle animations like Pokémon Battle Revolution? Aren’t battles the main selling point anyway? We shouldn't be here comparing animations from OG Pokémon Stadium (1998) with Sword/Shield, yet here we are, how is this acceptable!? This is Pokémon they have deep pockets they can make it, hire or outsource more people if you need.
    I am not going to talk about the new pokémon designs since that is a subjective opinion, but I quite like Dragapult.
    For me pokémon peaked with HG/SS and the highest point of its ambition was BW/BW2, Pokémon Sword/Shield feels and looks like a rushed game, it needed that extra year and more ambition to become something special...    … Expand
  68. Suckitxd159
    Nov 15, 2019
    1
    Nada nuevo en este juego lleno de monotonía, tiene una larga campaña innecesaria (casi 50 horas) y el diseño de los nuevos pokemon se ven muy mal.
  69. NintendoGuy64
    Nov 15, 2019
    0
    As a lifelong fan of Pokemon games, I was ecstatic when a new mainline Pokemon game was announced for the Switch, a home console! Pokemon Gen 7 was alright, but a little too slow and easy for my tastes. But for Gen 8 all I was expecting was a nice polished HD Pokemon game, I didn't need an open world or anything as it is Gamefreak's first home console Pokemon title, after all. But no, thatAs a lifelong fan of Pokemon games, I was ecstatic when a new mainline Pokemon game was announced for the Switch, a home console! Pokemon Gen 7 was alright, but a little too slow and easy for my tastes. But for Gen 8 all I was expecting was a nice polished HD Pokemon game, I didn't need an open world or anything as it is Gamefreak's first home console Pokemon title, after all. But no, that isn't what we got. We got an unfinished game, with over half of the national Pokedex not in the game, choppy, reused animations, reused models when they said they were brand new, even easier difficulty, a significantly shorter campaign as well as next to no post-game, not to mention many other features removed. All I have to say is, why? Pokemon is the highest most profitable franchise of all time, and Nintendo has been hitting it out of the park lately with great game after great game, like Zelda, Mario etc. So why can't Gamefreak improve Pokemon too? It's only gotten worse with time. I hope Nintendo can step in next time and help/replace Gamefreak, as the way these games are, I have no hope for the future of the franchise… Expand
  70. Mkikuchi
    Nov 15, 2019
    1
    Yet another rushed, disappointing mess for longtime fans of the series. Considering the emphasis that was placed on the graphics and animation quality before the S/S' release, you'd expect them to at least run at a consistent framerate or not blatantly copy/paste animations from prior games; but neither of these came to fruition. Not worth losing half of the games' cast for.

    Objectively,    Yet another rushed, disappointing mess for longtime fans of the series. Considering the emphasis that was placed on the graphics and animation quality before the S/S' release, you'd expect them to at least run at a consistent framerate or not blatantly copy/paste animations from prior games; but neither of these came to fruition. Not worth losing half of the games' cast for.

    Objectively, as long as the gameplay's good, graphical quality is a non-issue. Unfortunately, as with the 3DS era, Sword and Shield are dumbed down for the mobile phone generation. You're never made to go more than a few battles without healing, and if you can stomach that you can look forward to endless handholding and WOW CHARIZARD REMEMBER THIS KANTO POKEMON?

    If you have any semblance of critical thinking skills, don't buy these games.    … Expand
  71. Noctis_Strife
    Nov 15, 2019
    0
    The First Pokemon I wont buy. First, what negative: - Over 400 Pokemon were cut, so much less variation in battles against other players - several technical issues like spawning and despawning NPCs, Trees and Pokemon right in front of your eyes all the time, framerate issues in the wild area, the whole game world is freezing when u climb ladders .. etc. - the highly praised new feature theThe First Pokemon I wont buy. First, what negative: - Over 400 Pokemon were cut, so much less variation in battles against other players - several technical issues like spawning and despawning NPCs, Trees and Pokemon right in front of your eyes all the time, framerate issues in the wild area, the whole game world is freezing when u climb ladders .. etc. - the highly praised new feature the wild area is empty af, much smaller than trailers suggest and a graphical and technical mess - the post game is extremly blunt and not much to do - the "story" of this game is the worst and thinnest in the franchise - the game is easy af, Game Freak really doesn't care about long time fans - Exp share among the whole team should be optional - some of the music tracks are really annoying and not enjoyable - the pokemon franchise is stagnating, you really see no revolution at all, on the other site there is Zelda and Mario who tried sth new and the games were amazing
    Whats postive: some cool pokemon designs, that's all
    Can't recommend this mess of a game, Go and buy the 3DS Pokemon games, whenn you haven't played theam already, much more content much more everything    … Expand
  72. Jaxks
    Nov 15, 2019
    4
    But used, fun 5hour game but some how more lazy than past titles. Not clear That not all of the pokemon are in the game but not even a hint a moves being deleted.

    If they didn't allow you to transfer any pokemon over I would be more than happy but having just a select few seems wrong. After the 'story' there's No post game unlike in the ds games. All in all the character designs are good    But used, fun 5hour game but some how more lazy than past titles. Not clear That not all of the pokemon are in the game but not even a hint a moves being deleted.

    If they didn't allow you to transfer any pokemon over I would be more than happy but having just a select few seems wrong. After the 'story' there's No post game unlike in the ds games. All in all the character designs are good the style looks nice in some areas but it does not make up for the ugly new pokemon that where made to replace old ones and the lack of things to do in the game.    … Expand
  73. TutelarSword
    Nov 15, 2019
    2
    Pokemon has always been one of my favorite games, however, the design choices made by Gamefreak are rampant with this entry of the series. There are almost no routes in the game, and those that exist are linear. There is a town that is made up of a single road with the only door usable being to the Pokemon Center. There are no dungeons or caves of the sort, instead, the Wild Area tries toPokemon has always been one of my favorite games, however, the design choices made by Gamefreak are rampant with this entry of the series. There are almost no routes in the game, and those that exist are linear. There is a town that is made up of a single road with the only door usable being to the Pokemon Center. There are no dungeons or caves of the sort, instead, the Wild Area tries to fill this role, but with many issues. It has poor graphics with Pokemon being birthed from the void to populate the area, as well as trees spawning from nothing. The area is empty and feels poorly thought out compared to other Switch games like Breath of the Wild. The removal of 60% of old Pokemon and 20% of old moves, as well as megas and Z-moves is also a disgusting practice which gives an ill boding for the future of the games. Gamefreak needs to seriously reconsider their design choices and patch in the many missing features (Pokemon, moves, GTS, etc.), as well as fix the many bugs such as those breaking SD cards, freezing the game, and causing unbearable amounts of lag.

    Many reviews you see that are positive simply boil down to "The games killed my wife and kids, but at least I can catch a Pikachu again. 9.5/10" which is utterly disgusting and reeks of poor journalism or faux reviews to prop up the game for the less informed.    … Expand
  74. Skizor
    Nov 15, 2019
    5
    I have already cleared everything including postgame. This is going to be a spoiler free review, i will only focus on the positive and negative aspects and what needs to be improved.

    Positives: *Some areas in this game look absolutely gorgeous, like the towns Ballonlea and Circhester. *Most of the new Pokemon look pretty good. *IVs and EVs, and by extension Competitive battling,    I have already cleared everything including postgame. This is going to be a spoiler free review, i will only focus on the positive and negative aspects and what needs to be improved.

    Positives:

    *Some areas in this game look absolutely gorgeous, like the towns Ballonlea and Circhester.
    *Most of the new Pokemon look pretty good.
    *IVs and EVs, and by extension Competitive battling, are more accessible than ever.
    *You can change your Pokemon's Nature with Mints.
    *Pokemon Camp, with new features, such as said Currydex.
    *New "Open-World" Wild Area for encountering higher level Pokemon.
    *Most in-depth trainer customization to date.
    *Move Tutor/Remover/Name Raters are now in every Pokemon Center.
    *You can access PC almost anywhere.

    Negatives:

    *Hundreds of Pokemon were cut from the game, such as previous Starters, Legendary Pokemon, and many others.
    *100+ Moves were cut, the most notable being Return/Frustration, Pursuit, and Hidden Power. Signature moves of certain Pokemon were also cut, even though the Pokemon themselves are in the game, like Vespiquen's Heal Order and Woobat's Heart Stamp.
    *There are multiple examples of the game feeling rushed or unfinished, like how the "Corviknight Taxi" Fast-Travel system doesn't have an animation and is just a screen fade, every NPC walking on rails, time stopping when you climb a ladder, and the entire Wild Area feeling empty, with low-resolution textures, pop-ins, and broken shadows.
    *Any battles that are not major battles, such as Wild Battles and most Trainer Battles, have the same generic backgrounds. When you are outside, the battle always takes place on a dirt road with grass, trees, and mountains in the background, and when inside a building, the battle uses a generic white void for a background.
    *Post-Game Content is confirmed to be very short, less than 2 hours to complete, similar to X&Y. It's basically just "catch Box Legendary, go to Battle Tower."
    *Most Pokemon Moves, and the Pokemon themselves, have had no noticeable improvements made to their models or animations. Everything that isn't brand new is recycled, and even some of the brand new stuff, like Hop, uses recycled animation, from Hau.
    *Riding a Bike forces you to wear an ugly biking outfit instead of your custom clothes.
    *Most of the "Story" takes place off screen, and only really makes an appearance near the end of the game. The "Story" itself is also lackluster, in that it's incredibly short and forgettable.
    *The EXP Share is mandatory, and cannot be turned off. This makes the game very easy.
    *Strange changes that don't make much sense logically, like how the sound control settings are locked behind a Key Item you get from a random NPC in Motostoke City.

    Summary:

    IMO this is the most disappointing Pokémon game i played, since i had high expectations about this game being on a console like Switch.
    They really need to add all Pokémon back in the game since there is nothing here to justify the cut of so many Pokémon.
    GameFreak need to hire more devs so they can polish and finish this games better.    … Expand
  75. Nizaqil
    Nov 15, 2019
    10
    All negative perspectives just faded away once you start playing and enjoying wonderful gaming experience and the bound this game makes. I never caught even above 60+ Pokemon in any game so why should I care. It's beautiful and entertaining. "A very new but fascinating experience".
  76. zuenke
    Nov 15, 2019
    2
    Everything has been said already. just a huge disappointment to bad people condone this sort of behavior and tell people that what a great game ( which is completely possible) that they are haters...
  77. SquirtleSquad
    Nov 15, 2019
    0
    This game made my daughter cry. Many of her favs are gone. I have noticed that the game is also rather ugly and glitchy. Do not buy.
  78. Sephsekla
    Nov 15, 2019
    2
    Disappointing.

    So many Pokemon (the main point of the games) completely cut for the first time ever. Some interesting concepts that could have been great but clearly weren't given the dev time to flourish. An unfinished game that could have been the best one.
  79. Gamermangamer
    Nov 15, 2019
    1
    Was promised a game for "long time fans of the series" now my living dex will probably have to be locked in Pokemon jail (home) and half my competitive mons won't be usable until I pay for another game at the same price as smash ultimate or breath of the wild. My disappointment is immeasurable, and less than half my day is ruined, because the game is like 10 hours long, and if I wanted 10Was promised a game for "long time fans of the series" now my living dex will probably have to be locked in Pokemon jail (home) and half my competitive mons won't be usable until I pay for another game at the same price as smash ultimate or breath of the wild. My disappointment is immeasurable, and less than half my day is ruined, because the game is like 10 hours long, and if I wanted 10 hours of entertainment I would've bought the LoTR extended trilogy for half the price… Expand
  80. Drakhis
    Nov 15, 2019
    2
    Even as a fan, this game has a lot of problems.
    - It's not possible to turn off the multi-exp
    - the game can be beautiful but sometimes it's just ugly - there is a bug that currently wipes out all your switch's data if you're using the digital version - 435 pokemons out of all pokemons - The game ends too fast - Too many moves were removed - No megas - A nearly empty post-game -    Even as a fan, this game has a lot of problems.
    - It's not possible to turn off the multi-exp
    - the game can be beautiful but sometimes it's just ugly
    - there is a bug that currently wipes out all your switch's data if you're using the digital version
    - 435 pokemons out of all pokemons
    - The game ends too fast
    - Too many moves were removed
    - No megas
    - A nearly empty post-game
    - Some cutscenes are hilarious since they're so bad
    - Many models and animations are reused
    So many problems and I'm not even saying everything.
    Just don't buy this game, seriously.
    Wait for the third version if there is one.    … Expand
  81. PAKBOY
    Nov 15, 2019
    4
    10 routes
    Virtually no difficulty
    2 endgame battle tower game modes beatable in 1 hour Roughly 12 hour story No dungeons Below average graphics, world barely interacts with objects/pokemon(especially wild area) Of course the pokedex purge Some new pokemon designs leave alot to be desired, some designs are genuinely good we must not forget, but too many humanoid pokemon(every starter    10 routes
    Virtually no difficulty
    2 endgame battle tower game modes beatable in 1 hour
    Roughly 12 hour story
    No dungeons
    Below average graphics, world barely interacts with objects/pokemon(especially wild area)
    Of course the pokedex purge
    Some new pokemon designs leave alot to be desired, some designs are genuinely good we must not forget, but too many humanoid pokemon(every starter evolves into a humanoid) and too simple designs(Eiscue)
    and most importantly, the No Man's Sky level of damage control from GameFreak instead of listening to it's customer base who have been fans long enough to know what they generally want in Pokemon games, they only need to look at their masterpieces HG/SS to know which direction to follow(good endgame, pokemon following you) and to top it off I just WISH gamefreak would include difficulty options in their games, unlockable after the first clear, why do they not do it? We grew up, the games are no longer a challenge so why not add more difficult new game+?

    Big Disappointment, see you in gen 9 or Sinnoh remakes, because the "complete" SwSh will most likely be the same garbage.    … Expand
  82. Griknor
    Nov 15, 2019
    0
    this game and its counter part are a mess. reused assets from the 3ds titles, reused animations, over 55% of pokemon are missing regarless of the fact that every game on much less powerful hardware and smaller game size had all the missing pokemon and the missing moves. gigamax is nothing more then a shiny gimmick that loses its charm well before you start playing or using it. the gamesthis game and its counter part are a mess. reused assets from the 3ds titles, reused animations, over 55% of pokemon are missing regarless of the fact that every game on much less powerful hardware and smaller game size had all the missing pokemon and the missing moves. gigamax is nothing more then a shiny gimmick that loses its charm well before you start playing or using it. the games constantly bug out and have framerate, unstable graphics, unstable models and resolution issues, and when its not bugging out its just ugly with poor quality textures. everything in game feels floaty, like you arent grounded and could fly off any second. the new designs are for the most part ugly or too digimon looking to be a pokemon(this has been a major problem since xy, though black and white has its fair share of issue designs), this heavily clashes with older designs and causes quite the confusion for people who know of pokemon but dont keep up with the series. the game is far to easy and lacks any nuance, this is in part due to the direction they keep forcing the games to go, this should be an rpg not a instant gratification simulator. this is a poor quality game on the levels of fallout76, avoid purchasing at all cost.… Expand
  83. Aleph_0
    Nov 15, 2019
    2
    The quality of this game REALLY does not justify the cuts that have been made. Graphics are severely dated with some awful resolutions and clipping. The world is so linear it feels like a hallway with a cutscene every few steps. The endgame is nonexistent. The battle animations are taken straight from the old games. And honestly, the new Pokémon designs are some of the worst I’ve everThe quality of this game REALLY does not justify the cuts that have been made. Graphics are severely dated with some awful resolutions and clipping. The world is so linear it feels like a hallway with a cutscene every few steps. The endgame is nonexistent. The battle animations are taken straight from the old games. And honestly, the new Pokémon designs are some of the worst I’ve ever seen. Most of them look like a couple overlapping shapes with a painted on face. GameFreak really phoned it in on this one. Time to give Pokémon to someone else.… Expand
  84. Shyim97
    Nov 15, 2019
    0
    Incomplete game, Bad animations, deletes save games and looks more bad as Lets go Pikachu quite Can not recommend.
  85. LuckyAbsol
    Nov 15, 2019
    5
    Your average pokemon game that'll probably be fun for the casual fan. The story is below par compared to past pokemon games, suffering from clear pacing issues towards the end. The graphics were only slightly better while some of the animations are also lacking. Clear pop ins and low resolutions textures litter the game while severals bugs are also present. For example, the battleYour average pokemon game that'll probably be fun for the casual fan. The story is below par compared to past pokemon games, suffering from clear pacing issues towards the end. The graphics were only slightly better while some of the animations are also lacking. Clear pop ins and low resolutions textures litter the game while severals bugs are also present. For example, the battle backgrounds not always matching up with battle. The quality of life changes were very welcomed but the EXP Share was still too strong and could not be turned off. On a more personal level, I believe Shield has the better exclusives.

    I must also add that the soundtrack was very forgettable this time around which is strange for a pokemon game, the postgame is also extremely short with it only being about 1-2 hours long. The battle tower makes a return but it's been stripped down to it's bare bones.    … Expand
  86. Ok_Then
    Nov 15, 2019
    4
    This game feels like a port from the 3DS, not a new game built for the system

    While many fans will enjoy these games, for me, it feels like the same game as the last 7 Generations with a Graphical upgrade that is Impressive compared to the past 3DS games but quite bad compared to other Switch games
  87. PurpleMoth
    Nov 15, 2019
    1
    The absolute lowest point in the entire franchise, there is almost no new relevant additions to the game while they removed dozens of features that made the past games fantastic, the graphics are so mediocre you can compare it to a Gamecube game and the gameplay doesn't make up for it, neither the story or postgame, it's embarrasing how Gane Freak managed to make a game so mediocre it getsThe absolute lowest point in the entire franchise, there is almost no new relevant additions to the game while they removed dozens of features that made the past games fantastic, the graphics are so mediocre you can compare it to a Gamecube game and the gameplay doesn't make up for it, neither the story or postgame, it's embarrasing how Gane Freak managed to make a game so mediocre it gets outshined by most of the past entries in the series.… Expand
  88. thvbh
    Nov 15, 2019
    2
    After "it all comes together" and "ultra changes", generation 8 adds more lies to GameFreak's pile of shame. They promise a lot, and they again fail to deliver in almost every single aspect. This time, however, the technical shortcomings, lack of polish, and shortage of ambition is covered up by a veil of scam-level dishonesty from the developers themselves and a blanket of praise fromAfter "it all comes together" and "ultra changes", generation 8 adds more lies to GameFreak's pile of shame. They promise a lot, and they again fail to deliver in almost every single aspect. This time, however, the technical shortcomings, lack of polish, and shortage of ambition is covered up by a veil of scam-level dishonesty from the developers themselves and a blanket of praise from "unbiased" game critics, whose reviews sound more like advertisements than genuine reviews.

    The decision to cut over half the existing Pokémon from the game under the pretense of filling the game with content and quality animations wouldn't be so bad if the results could be seen in the game. However, the games are just as hollow as their predecessors, if not even more. Complete lack of difficulty, constant hand-holding, horrible plot, insufferable cutscenes and barely anything to do post-game is something that seems we will have to get used to, as it's apparently the new standard from now on, and any future games will probably be evaluated with regards to the bar set this laughably low.

    Pokémon is finally dead. As an avid fan since red and blue, I say it with a heavy heart. What started six years ago, with the release of Pokémon X and Y, finally came to fruition - a game so hollow and dumbed down, that even the awful past two generations look full of content compared to it. What was once a flawed, but ultimately fun franchise with a mediocre, but really passionate team of developers behind it, finally succumbed to the disease of brand-loyalty blinded fanbase that can see no wrong in the games as long as they have the Pokemon logo stamped on. This tremendous fall in quality is entirely their fault and no one else's - this is the best time for GameFreak to implement egregious monetization schemes in their next games, as not only will they evade any criticism from game critics, but will be largely praised for it by a large group of fans, which is truly asinine.

    What's left is to hope that a team of talented developers will see the growing disenchantment with the series and decide to step in, fill the void and dethrone the corrupted king of the monster catching genre.    … Expand
  89. Coaltergeist
    Nov 15, 2019
    3
    While there are many issues with Pokemon sword and shield, I don't think they warrant giving the game a 1 out of 10. The missing pokemon, the cut moves, the lack of postgame content, the general laziness, and the developer's arrogant attitude are all working together to make sure this game fails, which is disappointing. I am a huge fan of previous pokemon games, and I don't want to see theWhile there are many issues with Pokemon sword and shield, I don't think they warrant giving the game a 1 out of 10. The missing pokemon, the cut moves, the lack of postgame content, the general laziness, and the developer's arrogant attitude are all working together to make sure this game fails, which is disappointing. I am a huge fan of previous pokemon games, and I don't want to see the series fail. I cannot overlook the sloppiness present in this game, however. In the end, it isn't the worst game ever made, but it doesn't come close to being good.… Expand
  90. Pariah_0
    Nov 15, 2019
    3
    As JUST a Pokémon game, the rating would be higher, maybe a 5 or 6. But as a video game compared to others of a similar genre this is a hard 3. On top of the drastic content cuts made from previous (already declining) mainline Pokémon games, this game in particular has severe graphical, hardware, and gameplay issues that are just irredeemable for a triple A franchise. The new mechanic isAs JUST a Pokémon game, the rating would be higher, maybe a 5 or 6. But as a video game compared to others of a similar genre this is a hard 3. On top of the drastic content cuts made from previous (already declining) mainline Pokémon games, this game in particular has severe graphical, hardware, and gameplay issues that are just irredeemable for a triple A franchise. The new mechanic is not creative at all and dumbs down the combat instead of following the tradition of adding an extra element. The new designs are lazy and uninspired. I was sincerely expecting more from this franchise. Can not recommend.… Expand
  91. Ray-Zide
    Nov 15, 2019
    0
    Honestly not that good of a game
    Just X/Y with less features and lags quite a bit and has less pokemon than a DS game from 10 years ago
  92. Magenta1991
    Nov 15, 2019
    3
    5 horas con el juego y ya estoy por encima del nivel de todos los entrenadores del juego. La introducción tarda más de media hora por si sola y no haces más que caminar del punto a al punto b, mínimo tuviera musgo bonito para mirar como en Death Stranding pero no. Los gráficos parecen tomados del proyecto de Unity de algún fan con demasiado tiempo libre y no de una de una compañía5 horas con el juego y ya estoy por encima del nivel de todos los entrenadores del juego. La introducción tarda más de media hora por si sola y no haces más que caminar del punto a al punto b, mínimo tuviera musgo bonito para mirar como en Death Stranding pero no. Los gráficos parecen tomados del proyecto de Unity de algún fan con demasiado tiempo libre y no de una de una compañía multimillonaria con la franquicia de mayor renombre en el mundo de los videojuegos. Una vez que termina la introducción los personajes no dejan de interrumpir tu camino para llevarte de la mano y hablarte de lo genial que es ser un niño y atrapar Pokémon. Hop es Hau 1.0001 y no han tenido pena siquiera de reutilizar sus animaciones de la forma más descarada. Porcierto que los personajes se muevan por casillas y tengan que girarse para caminar a la Resident Evil 1 en pleno 2019 en una consola tan poderosa como la PS3 es para echarse a reír y llorar al mismo tiempo

    Las rutas son cortas, los escenarios poco inspirados, las ciudades son pasillos adornados con uno o dos personajes y todas las casas iguales, el área salvaje es una zona safari glorificada y vacía. El curry solo son pokepoffins con otro nombre (de todas las cosas que la gente pedía de vuelta han traído la única que a nadie le importa). Se nota el nulo interés hacia su trabajo y su deseo por querer ganar dinero estafando niños. Me da pena por los Pokémon que debutan en esta región pues no se merecen quedar atrapados en este juego paupérrimo (porque seguramente más de la mitad no vuelve para la próxima entrega). Tengo más diversión jugando Pokémon Go en mi casa girando el disco de la pokeparada que hay encima mío cada 5 minutos que lo que ganó jugando esta kusoge de juego. Planeaba regalarle el juego a mi sobrino está navidad para iniciarlo en el juego pero mejor será que le dé cualquier otra cosa. Nadie merece que este sea su introducción a la saga. La historia por cierto es peor que la de Sun/Moon y X/Y combinados. No entiendo por qué han sacado la GTS    … Expand
  93. GarchompGang
    Nov 15, 2019
    0
    Incomplete game, Bad animations and quite buggy for a mainline switch game. can not recommend.
  94. Skyblue93
    Nov 15, 2019
    1
    Let me just get this outta way first, I’m a massive Pokémon fan. I’ve never been more disappointed. Gamefreak not only betrayed fans but outright lied to consumers. The games still have the same problems plaguing the franchise ever since gen 6.

    The story is bad, the writing is bad, the characters are bad, the pacing is bad. The main villains and evil team keep progressingly getting more    Let me just get this outta way first, I’m a massive Pokémon fan. I’ve never been more disappointed. Gamefreak not only betrayed fans but outright lied to consumers. The games still have the same problems plaguing the franchise ever since gen 6.

    The story is bad, the writing is bad, the characters are bad, the pacing is bad. The main villains and evil team keep progressingly getting more embarrassing each generations. The game keeps getting easier easier easier literally brain dead play through.

    On top of charging more for these games, they cut content. I don’t even need to write it down. I’m sure anyone who bothered to read the reviews of these games know what I’m talking about.

    To all the people who keep supporting Gamefreak...why? Why? WHY?    … Expand
  95. Enrikegeek
    Nov 15, 2019
    10
    The best Pokémon Game ever, i am fan of this saga since 1998 , i am 31 years old now and i love Pokémon shield is amazing with amazing graphics, sound and gameplay...
  96. Rumin
    Nov 15, 2019
    0
    An incomplete game, like her sister. Gamefreak could've taken the time to really optimize their game, include all the moves and pokemons, as well as the features of the older installments, but they couldn't wait long enough for their next paycheck.
    I hope they learn a lesson from this, because I surely did.
    And I sure do hope this game franchise dies with diginity, because otherwise this    An incomplete game, like her sister. Gamefreak could've taken the time to really optimize their game, include all the moves and pokemons, as well as the features of the older installments, but they couldn't wait long enough for their next paycheck.
    I hope they learn a lesson from this, because I surely did.
    And I sure do hope this game franchise dies with diginity, because otherwise this incompetent studio is going to run it to the ground.    … Expand
  97. dasada
    Nov 15, 2019
    4
    Its the higher note i can give for an incomplete game. Feels like a joke, what happened with the catch em all. The rest isnt enough to balance the negative feeling.But maybe mediocre is the new normal.
  98. SiberyanZ
    Nov 15, 2019
    3
    Same as the Sword review, the amount of reused content, technical issues and blatant incompetence that this game shows are by far the objective demonstration that this is the worst game in the series thus far.
    Having been a long time fan of the series i can't help but feel incredibly disapponited with its direction and decisions, from the removal of fan favourite pokémons (more then half    Same as the Sword review, the amount of reused content, technical issues and blatant incompetence that this game shows are by far the objective demonstration that this is the worst game in the series thus far.
    Having been a long time fan of the series i can't help but feel incredibly disapponited with its direction and decisions, from the removal of fan favourite pokémons (more then half of them) or the removal of important moves for the competitive side of the game, like Hidden Power or Return, to the introduction of mechanics that are unoriginal and uninspired like Dynamax and Gigamax, this game feel like a cheap copy and paste of Sun and Moon ported to the Switch with even less content and rushed to meet the holiday season time frame.    … Expand
  99. Politoad
    Nov 15, 2019
    0
    I love pokemon but the fact this game just deleted 100+ hours of splatoon save data is why this game deserves to burn. Dont buy it if you've played any other switch game. Your breath of the wild save probably also going to be deleted
  100. Deal_Sealer
    Nov 15, 2019
    0
    What an absolute dumpster fire.
    It is devoid of effort, as can be seen in the visual department. Textures are painful to look at and the models are horrendously basic as they look like they're mass produced without attention to detail and are constantly clipping with the environment. Speaking of environment, the places you can traverse are just depressing. The wild area advertised as a    What an absolute dumpster fire.
    It is devoid of effort, as can be seen in the visual department. Textures are painful to look at and the models are horrendously basic as they look like they're mass produced without attention to detail and are constantly clipping with the environment. Speaking of environment, the places you can traverse are just depressing. The wild area advertised as a step in a new direction is a complete joke. It's certainly smaller than Oot's Hyrule field, yet just as empty and uninteresting. Cities and Dungeons on the other hand are just poorly designed hallways that lead you to the next area.
    Gameplay is not well thought out. The new gimmick is underwhelming at the very least. They build it up high and it ends with an anticlimactic ohko, since this game still possesses baby-proof difficulty despite the playerbase being mostly adults and the advertising claiming it's for long time fans. Contrary to being an open world, this game is still a linear experience with NPC's still interrupting you with cutscenes.
    The amount of content in this game isn't bare-bones, no rather it is insufficient and has regressed compared to previous entries in the franchise. Surely you've heard by now about cut pokemon, cut moves and other trashed content. What makes this worse is the fact that the game reuses assets from previous games.
    This trash heap is the result of complacency, and a lack of effort and dedication. If it had been developed with care and the consumer's satisfaction in mind, it would have been a polished title with a lot of content complementing the new features. Sadly, this is not the case.    … Expand
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Awards & Rankings

76
#76 Best Switch Game of 2019
3
#3 Most Discussed Switch Game of 2019

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
80

Generally favorable reviews - based on 89 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 69 out of 89
  2. Mixed: 20 out of 89
  3. Negative: 0 out of 89
  1. Nintendo Force Magazine
    Apr 30, 2020
    90
    Sword & Shield have a lot to love for old and new fans, and they're pure quality from top to bottom. [Issue #44 – January/February 2020, p. 72]
  2. GameCritics
    Feb 6, 2020
    75
    I enjoyed my time with Pokemon Sword and Shield, but I ended feeling conflicted. I appreciate many of the changes and felt that it generally respected my time, but I almost felt like a passive participant. The more complex gym challenges had a meatier role, but the narrative shouldn’t have been shoved to the side. Overall, I would recommend it to players who want to have a Pokemon experience, but this one won’t stick with me the way the older ones have.
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  3. Game World Navigator Magazine
    Jan 14, 2020
    78
    Pokemon Sword/Shield is uncharacteristically user-friendly: now there’s no need to backtrack half across the world to heal your entire team of pokemon or to get to a particular city, for example. [Issue#242, p.66]
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