Pokemon Sword

 Switch
User Score
4.7

Generally unfavorable reviews- based on 5909 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1,997 out of 5909
  2. Mixed: 852 out of 5909
  3. Negative: 3,060 out of 5909
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  1. DarkDeoxys
    Nov 18, 2019
    0
    me da pena que el juega sea tan malo, he jugado todos los juegos de pokemon y este por lejos es el con que menos cariño y ganas hicieron
  2. JMT__
    Nov 18, 2019
    0
    Horrible and lazy game. I've been a diehard fan since the beginning. But this?....this is trash. The story is weak AS HELL and extremely boring. I wont harp on the animations and textures since everyone knows about that. The towns seem extremely unengaging and empty (I'm looking at you Spikemuth). Rose tower? Like...why? That draw distance is absolutely horrendous. I guess I'm trying toHorrible and lazy game. I've been a diehard fan since the beginning. But this?....this is trash. The story is weak AS HELL and extremely boring. I wont harp on the animations and textures since everyone knows about that. The towns seem extremely unengaging and empty (I'm looking at you Spikemuth). Rose tower? Like...why? That draw distance is absolutely horrendous. I guess I'm trying to say, if you have 60 bucks, do not invest in gamefreak. Support developers like monolith who actually care for their IP's. The golden days of gamefreak are numbered.… Expand
  3. Wehr_Wolff
    Nov 19, 2019
    4
    I played Pokemon since I was 7 on my DS and some of my first games was Pokemon Pearl. I played all mainline Pokemon games after those. I was really hyped when news came out for a new Pokemon game. I had kind of mixed feelings towards Lets Go Pikachu/Eevee on the Switch because of the limited Pokemon selection and removed abilites. But because it seemed really intenional to me I accepted itI played Pokemon since I was 7 on my DS and some of my first games was Pokemon Pearl. I played all mainline Pokemon games after those. I was really hyped when news came out for a new Pokemon game. I had kind of mixed feelings towards Lets Go Pikachu/Eevee on the Switch because of the limited Pokemon selection and removed abilites. But because it seemed really intenional to me I accepted it and because they probably needed time to figure out the new Hardware/Software they now work with when it comes to the Switch.

    I really liked seeing Pokemon in HD 3D, but because I also started doing a Nuzlock of Omegaruby I realized that the biggest change to battles was at best the backgrounds. The Pokemon and there attack animations seems similiar enough to not make much of a difference. At least from my perspective it might be in HD but the animations don't make the Pokemon more lively or unique.

    The one animation I need to give big credit to tough is when you pick your Starter. This one shows exactly what I hoped for and wish was more in the game. The Starters start doing there own thing when presented to you and interact with each other showing much of there personality. But in the end it felt more like a what could have been, a tease.

    I liked the detail the cities and rooms etc in buildings got. They really made your house more lively at the start. Sadly the Wild Area pretty much dissapointed me look wise, it felts more like a big plane with some trees and lakes thrown in than a proper big open area.

    When I first heared of Dynamaxing I disliked it, but after some thought I came to the conclusion that it is better than Megas in a way because every Pokemon can do it, so even weaker, less favored ones. Also it kind of brings Z-Moves with megas together. While Z-Moves were better than megas because every Pokemon could use them aswell. But also the Megas felt way more unique than most of the Dynamaxed Pokemon. And because you can only use this feature in a really limited way I didn't use it that much in my overall playthrough. So at the end a big wasted opportunity and way less enjoyable then Megas, espacially since my high hopes.

    You really start to see how many features are Online wise lacking without Pokemon Home that will only release in the start of next year, so quite a wait to enjoy all Online features and I guess that likely you need the paid Switch Online Subcription to use it to the fullest. So I also couldn't bring some of my older friends with me yet to this new region, but now not sure if I even will do so yet.

    At first you don't notice the cut national Dex because 400 Pokemon is still a lot, basically as much as when I started playing Pokemon in 2007. But you really start to notice when your fav Pokemons aren't in the game. You can't rely on some of your older friends to help you can't use your team of your top 6 fav pokemon because certain mons are missing.

    The gyms and gym leaders and challenges can be intresting but compared to Black/White and Black2/White2 the gyms and gym leaders seem to have way less purpose, influence in the story then back then. Overall it is mostly a miss in that regard compared to what kind of infrastucture/working place and saviors story wise or else the gyms and gym leaders in the older mentioned games provide.

    Some design choices still are an eye sore to me. I like the way the champ is portrayed character wise but his design is a total failure. I am always confused how you could mix so much together. Marnie on the other hand had a pretty nice combination going on that didn't feel out of place.

    After the main story the postgame content is pretty lackluster compared to older games.

    Summery: The game if viewed as a standalone game would probably be a 6-8 because it can give you an enjoyable time, has some intresting features and ideas and looks goodish. But if you compare it to other Switch games and older Pokemon games the looks are underperforming. The story and difficulty aswell as postgame content were handled way better in older games. Dynamxing might be a nice idea of a feature but the implementation is badly execute and it should be used more often, to make it worth loosing megas and Z-moves for it. With half of all Pokemon missing and Online features being really limited until the release of Pokemon Home it is an incompelte expirience. Biggest downside considering all those negatives is that arguably that the game doesn't feature as much content and featues as older games and doesn't deliver what was promised while costing 50% more than the 3DS games. So considering all that the game would be on a 2-4. I give it a 4 because people who never might have played Pokemon or many other Switch games might still enjoy the expirience and because at times I had fun with the game. But overall a big dissapointment and it feels more like a lazy cash grab that needed to be delivered half-done before christmas.    … Expand
  4. fuji97
    Nov 19, 2019
    0
    I want to participate in this Review bombing because #GameFreakLied
    Clearly this game doesn't deserve 0, but this is the only way to let Game Freak knows that we are angry.
  5. tAugustine1992
    Nov 19, 2019
    3
    The only two good things about this game are the Wild Area and the music. New Pokemon just seem very uninspired. Just look at the Pokemon Eiscue. It's literally just a penguin with a block of ice on its head. Even it docked mode the game had issues dropping frames while doing specific activities. Crossing a bridge using the bicycle boost caused the character to flicker uncontrollably untilThe only two good things about this game are the Wild Area and the music. New Pokemon just seem very uninspired. Just look at the Pokemon Eiscue. It's literally just a penguin with a block of ice on its head. Even it docked mode the game had issues dropping frames while doing specific activities. Crossing a bridge using the bicycle boost caused the character to flicker uncontrollably until the boost was done. There is a huge lack of post game activities. There is the quest to catch the legendary which takes a hour at most, the wild area, and a battle tower. The Wild Area is the best thing about the game but if you connect to the internet it becomes a big, buggy mess, with constant frame drops, freezing, and stuttering. Obviously you have to be connected online to raid with friends. If you don't have friends then you are out of luck seeing as trying to join random raids often ends with a failure to join screen. Nobody ever joins your raids and that just turns into sitting there hoping you get lucky.

    For the first main line Pokemon game on a home console I am highly highly disappointed in this dumpster fire of a game. I didn't even mention the National Dex crisis. I HATE that they removed 490 some Pokemon from the game and made them completely unobtainable, but I wen't into the game with an open mind and was left wishing I never picked it up.    … Expand
  6. bookman
    Nov 19, 2019
    2
    I've been a long time player of pokemon, and this game is a total disappointment. I've seen so many unpolished and lazy things with this game like glitchy overworld animations, lazybattle animations, the entire world around you freezing as you climb ladders... My biggest problem with this game is the extreme handholding and linearity even by pokemon standards which was already a low barI've been a long time player of pokemon, and this game is a total disappointment. I've seen so many unpolished and lazy things with this game like glitchy overworld animations, lazybattle animations, the entire world around you freezing as you climb ladders... My biggest problem with this game is the extreme handholding and linearity even by pokemon standards which was already a low bar given the recent titles. The wild area is devoid of anything to actually explore, just the new "raid" feature which brings me to my next gripe. The new Dyanamax gimmick is a terrible replacement that cut mega evolution and z moves. Instead of interesting changes to the pokemon like type changes, unique ability changes, and unique stat distributions from the base form, Dynamax inflates your pokemon like a balloon and gives straight buffs while turning all your varied moves into straight generic dynamax moves, removing all variety of the gimmick. Speaking of pokemon sizes, none of the pokemon are properly scaled either, so you end up with weird looking results like tiny tiny waillords and Tyranitars. Do not get me started on the awful dialogue and plot of the game not to mention the WORST enemy team in all of pokemon. Losing a massive amount of previous pokemon available in the game is the crowning achievement of failure for this gen. Every game I've played I always have a Magneton on my team because it was my favorite pokemon. This is the first game I cannot do that. Many other fan favorites are cut too, so your mileage may vary.

    The only improvement in this game is overworld pokemon. That's it. It's too bad it's not in a good game because that's a great feature people have wanted for years, myself included.

    Do not buy this game. There are much better games on the Switch right now to spend your money on. Play a romhack if you want to play a good modern pokemon game in 2019.    … Expand
  7. loading479
    Nov 19, 2019
    0
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. It's just a very shallow game that is fun the first 3 hours but then gets repetitive with going to each gym. It gets boring the more you progress and feels rushed and incomplete. This was my first Pokemon game and it was a letdown… Expand
  8. SK1Y101
    Nov 19, 2019
    0
    Wonderful, impeccable, outstanding, trailblazing.
    These were the promises Game Freak made to us about this game, and yet what did we receive?
    An empty shell of a game, clearly rushed and barelypolished, without a shred of any of the former games shining features, Including, but not limited to: Shiny starters Mega-evolutions having access to every move, ever item, every Pokémon, every    Wonderful, impeccable, outstanding, trailblazing.
    These were the promises Game Freak made to us about this game, and yet what did we receive?
    An empty shell of a game, clearly rushed and barelypolished, without a shred of any of the former games shining features, Including, but not limited to:
    Shiny starters
    Mega-evolutions
    having access to every move, ever item, every Pokémon, every gym.
    The elite four existing.
    Victory road existing.
    Decent graphics,
    actually getting to play the game rather than being railroaded....
    The list of features missing in SwSh goes on.

    A glorified Pokémon go, with less effort than should be physically possible to inject into a franchise this large.
    If you want to play Pokémon, pickup Gen 4, Gen 7, hey, maybe even Gen 1 if you want; Don't expect to find anything desirable in sword and shield.    … Expand
  9. RogerBV
    Nov 19, 2019
    1
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Facilidad extrema, historia poco creativa y nada envolvente, personajes cliché, interrupciones del gameplay por secuencias de historia cada 5 minutos, un villano plano sin gracia. Sigo sin entender porque Rose quiere sumir a Galar de nuevo en la negra noche. El postgame es el peor chiste que se les ha ocurrido. A todo eso agréguenle las animaciones recicladas de juegos anteriores, y que la Wild area se siente desierta. Definitivamente es el peor juego de Pokemon.... hasta ahora… Expand
  10. Leobriistow
    Nov 19, 2019
    4
    I played through this game like every other in the series. As a hardcore and longtime fan I am disappointed by the lack of charm in this game. Game Freak, factually, lied. There were some aspects I enjoyed about this game however, which stops me from giving it a 0.
  11. Darito
    Nov 19, 2019
    0
    A lazy attempt to take money from nostalgia, its sad to see how much potential was discarded
  12. TurricanFan64
    Nov 19, 2019
    0
    A carbon copy of Pokémon Shield, and as such also a pile of ass. I had more fun playing Metroid Prime: Federation Force, and I was led to believe that game was like Turrican 2. -10/10, exact same **** for the exact same price.
  13. Cippy93
    Nov 19, 2019
    0
    The same same game by 10 years. The graphics is like the ps2... And the framerate dropsdown!!!!
  14. OverlyEpux
    Nov 19, 2019
    0
    Garbage. Absolute Garbage. Gamefreak lied to us during development, cut out mons from the dex, and wrote a game that *will* brick your switch due to insecure NAND access. This game was a lazy cash grab and it's very sad to see from a company who has consistently delivered great games. This is unacceptable and I warn you all DO NOT buy this game.
  15. Mimicat
    Nov 19, 2019
    4
    Not the best, not the worst.

    Pros: landscape, towns, music and new pokemon designs, storyline and wild area concepts and the gym challenge. Cons: lack of an immersive storyline, inconsequential grunts, lack of depth to the main 'villain's' motivation, abundant cut-scenes, hand-holding (albeit slightly improved from S+M), rail-roading, linear routes and lack of dungeons, lack of side    Not the best, not the worst.

    Pros: landscape, towns, music and new pokemon designs, storyline and wild area concepts and the gym challenge.
    Cons: lack of an immersive storyline, inconsequential grunts, lack of depth to the main 'villain's' motivation, abundant cut-scenes, hand-holding (albeit slightly improved from S+M), rail-roading, linear routes and lack of dungeons, lack of side quests or npc challenges, quick and dull post game.

    I feel like the game is represented well by the cities within it, they appear busy and full of life, and yet empty at the same time.

    While personally Dexit for me is not an issue - anyone with half a brain could see was going to become a problem for years - if feels like it could have been handled better. Maybe having 200 (give or take) new native pokemon and regionals and exclude all older pokemon to save arguements?
    But why not just widen those time targets Game Freak? I'd rather have a quality game than a new gen within 3 years of the last.... Oh that's right, because it's a guarenteed money maker...

    All in all, it's a 'nice' game, but incomplete.    … Expand
  16. pokemonfan566
    Nov 19, 2019
    0
    This is a great Pokemon game. They have made plenty of positive changes to the formula and the structure and I'm having a blast playing it, especially as a lifelong Pokemon fan.

    The game isn't too short: yes you can run through it if you want, but why would you? Catch the new guys, make some curries and explore the wild. The game not having the full national pokedex isn't a problem:    This is a great Pokemon game. They have made plenty of positive changes to the formula and the structure and I'm having a blast playing it, especially as a lifelong Pokemon fan.

    The game isn't too short: yes you can run through it if you want, but why would you? Catch the new guys, make some curries and explore the wild.

    The game not having the full national pokedex isn't a problem: I have only just completed the first badge and am struggling to figure out who I want in my team. There are so many cool looking Pokemon to explore and use. I think I have about 60 in my dex already (which is more than most of these 11 hour playthroughs you read about have by the end).

    The graphics aren't bad, the world looks great: I don't even know where these criticisms are coming from, mine looks great in handheld mode (which let's be honest, is how it should be played).

    The game isn't linear: yes there is a linear nature to it, but the wild areas give you the ability to explore and do what you want - raid battle, catch pokemon, look for hidden items, set up camp, etc.

    Overall, I think maybe the competitive Pokemon community is upset by this game, but most typical lovers of Pokemon and the Pokemon games will find Sword and Shield to be the best games since the Gold/Silver/Ruby/Sapphire remakes.

    Highly recommend you buy.    … Expand
  17. Evamer
    Nov 19, 2019
    0
    This game is everything But what Game-Freak promised.Instead of a game for the veteran fans we got a game for 6 year old kids. Honorable mention on how horrendous most Pokemon designs are,it feels like they went out of their way to make them extra sloppy and unnatural(especially their colour pallets are just a joke).
  18. NickTheGolden
    Nov 20, 2019
    1
    Rusted cheap cash grab. No effort was put into the game and no respect was given to fans. Absolute disgrace of a product. Main story barebones, world is mostly ugly, no post game whatsoever and last but not least, no national dex. Gamefreak played the fan base for fools and majority fell for it.
  19. Fidelator
    Nov 20, 2019
    0
    Terrible graphics, laughable battle animations, missing half the pokémon, there is no voice acting, the wild area does not have anything to do, Dynamax is ridiculous and not nearly as good as Megas, the difficulty of the games is non existent whatsoever, there is no challenge or sense of accomplishment. The story on the game is utterly recycled and terribly bad. They took away usefulTerrible graphics, laughable battle animations, missing half the pokémon, there is no voice acting, the wild area does not have anything to do, Dynamax is ridiculous and not nearly as good as Megas, the difficulty of the games is non existent whatsoever, there is no challenge or sense of accomplishment. The story on the game is utterly recycled and terribly bad. They took away useful mechanics, specially the world trade center. 0/10, would not buy again, go spend your money on Witcher 3, BoTW or dragon quest so you can see the definition of a well made game.… Expand
  20. Mamacrowhelps
    Nov 20, 2019
    0
    Sun and Moon ported to the switch, it's at HD resolution but that doesn't mean the graphics are better. Runs terribly and somehow manages to have less content while being marked up 50% in price. Game was boring
    and too easy to play, and can be finished way to quickly and will make you regret spending 60$. Cherry on the top of all of this, is Gamefreak lied to the fans cutting out over    Sun and Moon ported to the switch, it's at HD resolution but that doesn't mean the graphics are better. Runs terribly and somehow manages to have less content while being marked up 50% in price. Game was boring
    and too easy to play, and can be finished way to quickly and will make you regret spending 60$. Cherry on the top of all of this, is Gamefreak lied to the fans cutting out over half the Pokemon stating that they remade the models and animations from scratch when almost every reused move and Pokemon had just been ported from Sun/Moon. Don't take my word for it though, go look at all the giant heaps of evidence that data miners
    have uncovered.

    It's a hard pass.    … Expand
  21. Kamal97
    Nov 20, 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    … Expand
  22. eandrade
    Nov 20, 2019
    0
    No national Pokedex, graphics worth of bad ps2 era. Horrible story, linear gameplay with bad writing. It's unbelievable that gamefreak can't release a good game for an IP that is so profitable, start learning with games such as Legend of Zelda
  23. Cmuffins
    Nov 20, 2019
    0
    Awful. And you know why. No substance or value in this title, from a company that doesn’t care one bit about the player base. Sad EA made a better game this year.
  24. jntForce
    Nov 20, 2019
    0
    Worse than 97% of youtubers are saying the game is great, which is an unreasonable lie, please stop lying about the game you idiots.
    game clearly incomplete and ridiculously easy.
  25. thepowered
    Nov 20, 2019
    1
    These critics were clearly bought for rating such a game with these grades !!!!!!!!!
  26. moosbuckel
    Nov 21, 2019
    1
    Played it now 40 hours its just an old game with wii graphics, gameplay was really boring, story was very unimportant. The routes are as well boring and nothing to explore. the game is WAY to easy because of this EXP system and the new naturezone is a laggy piece of crap. More then 500 pokemon are missing. Never trust Gamefreak again
  27. Adigael
    Nov 22, 2019
    2
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I tried to remain positive playing this game but so far the experience has not been rewarding. It's a buggy mess. The raid feature, which is supposed to be the huge selling point, doesn't work. The AI is terrible, picks terrible pokemon to help you, and if you can't clear a raid, they won't reset. So you're stuck in a raidless wild area forced to spam wishing pieces just to get 3 star useless pokemon. If people are posting about safe resetting just to do stuff, it just means it's not worth it. The graphics feel lije a 3DS port, I don't care what anyone tries to tell you.… Expand
  28. aoshistark
    Nov 22, 2019
    0
    I purchased my copy of this game at Wal-mart on release. I beat the first gym leader with bare-minimum effort then returned the copy on Monday. Pokemon as a game franchise is in its death throws.

    Playing this game is like putting on a rubber baby helmet in a room full of padding. It is impossible to lose at anything. If you are the kind of person who thinks its a triumph of your ability    I purchased my copy of this game at Wal-mart on release. I beat the first gym leader with bare-minimum effort then returned the copy on Monday. Pokemon as a game franchise is in its death throws.

    Playing this game is like putting on a rubber baby helmet in a room full of padding. It is impossible to lose at anything. If you are the kind of person who thinks its a triumph of your ability to get the participation awards at events, this is the game for you. If you're a seasoned Pokemon Master, this game will make you ill.

    Game Freak had a valuable chance to really change the franchise for the better with this, but they didn't. They stuck to safety, they stuck to what a marketing team probably told them would sell best. I wanted desperately to enjoy this game. There are fleeting glimpses of a good Pokemon game hiding in the mist, but you'd be hard pressed to draw them out.

    Don't buy this title. Don't bother with it. Its not worth your time.    … Expand
  29. Amirmijo
    Nov 22, 2019
    2
    If Pokémon company only care about money we get it . But this is for sure not a 60 bucks game I feel o got scammed. Before the game came out they said wait until you play it so you judge it now we bought it and I didn’t like it . I feel gamefreak did a lazy work I’m sorry they need to be more creative and stop the non sense dynamax. Keep it simple and add more content more story more sideIf Pokémon company only care about money we get it . But this is for sure not a 60 bucks game I feel o got scammed. Before the game came out they said wait until you play it so you judge it now we bought it and I didn’t like it . I feel gamefreak did a lazy work I’m sorry they need to be more creative and stop the non sense dynamax. Keep it simple and add more content more story more side quests add the option so users become gum leaders and also elite four leaders not only focusing about breeding cus not everyone into that . Please let the fans design the Pokémon some designs are horrible . Thanks… Expand
  30. xPakoUchiha
    Nov 23, 2019
    0
    Muchos Pokémons no aparecen y encima graficos reutilizados. Voy solo por la segunda medalla y ya apenas tengo ganas de jugar.
  31. Darth_Zakr
    Nov 23, 2019
    0
    I don't care about national dex. I'm putting this out there so you don't think my review is because of this. And to be fair a game can only be a 0/10 if it is unplayable. Well, this is somewhat of a subjective definition. For some unplayable means full of glitches and bugs. But for me, well unplayable means unplayable. I am going to go into why this game is unplayable, and why the devsI don't care about national dex. I'm putting this out there so you don't think my review is because of this. And to be fair a game can only be a 0/10 if it is unplayable. Well, this is somewhat of a subjective definition. For some unplayable means full of glitches and bugs. But for me, well unplayable means unplayable. I am going to go into why this game is unplayable, and why the devs did an unbelievably lazy job and why it is NOT worth your money, much LESS your time.

    As soon as the game starts you are forced to watch cutscene after cutscene. And that's generally not a problem. The problem in this game is that cutscenes are unbearably long. Most video game developers allow you to skip the dialogue by the press of a button, but this game forces you to watch the characters open and close their mouths (in silence) on average of 10 seconds after you have finished reading the text. Even at the fastest setting, you still have to wait until the animation is over. That 10 seconds, over hundreds of animation, add up to a significant portion of one's time throughout the entire game.

    Animation in this game is horrible from the start. The animation is like taking 2 toy action figures and making them communicate and act out your imaginations. The limitations of those toy action figures are the same limitations in all of the animations of this game. Every single character is an action figure that moves to the limitation of all action figures. It's sloppy and lazy from any creator to put out content like this.

    The only way to cut through the cutscenes is to ignore them completely, skip them completely. There's no middle ground where you can read the text and skip it as soon as you're done the reading. No, they force you to watch their miserable efforts in animation. I suspect this is done purposefully to make a short game appear longer.

    What makes the animations worse is that it's in complete silence. Meaning no voice acting. Come on are you serious? You're going to force me to watch your horribly lazy attempt in animation and not even provide voice acting?

    At least there's music to accompany that silence? You would be right if you considered that cacophony of sound music. It's like taking nails and scratching a chalkboard while a 3-year-old uses your kitchen pots as a drumset and your angry parrot squawking in the back. The soundtrack is a mess. An amalgamation of what appears to be guitars, drums, cymbals, and trumpets that have no harmony. Every single musical score is horrible (except perhaps the theme of the Weald which I really enjoyed btw).

    What about the art direction? Again a failing score. The characters in this game are some of the ugliest looking characters I've seen. Look at the champion's attire. He's wearing a shirt, with tights, with short shorts on top of the tights, with a cape. What the actual heck is going here GF devs? If the champion looks this ridiculous imagine everything else?

    Then you have the graphical quality. It is horrible. When played on my 4k screen (which is the average screen in today's time), you can see how horribly pixalated the graphics are. There are no smooth lines in this game, even the main characters shirt is jagged. If you ever played games on the playstation 1, you remember how jagged the characters were. Well that is because the ps1 did its best with its hardware limitations. Why am I comparing it to ps1? Seriously the main character has a graphical fidelity of Squall Lionheart from FF8 with an upscaled resolution screen filter applied. Today, on the switch, GF devs have no excuse to mess this up. Then take a look at the trees in the wild, if you made trees on MS Paint it would look better. The skins on the trees are horribly out of focus. You have a game like BOTW where everything is beautiful, and then you have this horrible mess. It's unjust.

    Speaking of the wild, they may have not even included it. GF tries to force you into thinking this is some huge expansive area to explore but in reality its just a glorified route. It's just a plain open field, with the ugliest trees in gaming history, pink rocks with holes (which they call dens), and grass copied and pasted across the entire place. That's all it is.

    Finally, the plot in this game is so ridiculously boring. They try to oversell the plot by making the dull lifeless character. The only character that has any kind of enthusiasm is your rival and a weird robotic enthusiasm. He basically is in every cutscene, and his actions are the same in every cutscene. He boucnes up and down in forced excitement in every single cutscene he is in. GF devs are forcing the hype, but everything about is disdainful, cringeworthy.

    All in all this game looks like someone pulled an all-nighter to complete a project they had a year to do. And this is why it deserves a failing grade. It is the worst waste of time in my years of gaming (since Rascal on the ps1).    … Expand
  32. Ishrod24
    Nov 23, 2019
    0
    Tired of these half ads games! I understand you want to make it kiddish for the young ones but if you want the support of adult gamers then make better games!
  33. Gabe120402
    Nov 23, 2019
    0
    I made an account just to give this a 0. Models directly cut from previous games. Animations lazily ripped, too. Corporate liars gave us an unfinished game, and a bad one at that. This is the only game in the series where you cannot catch them all. I have been following and purchasing Pokemon games for a while now. I am infinitely disappointed. I'll keep my $60 and spend it on cat foodI made an account just to give this a 0. Models directly cut from previous games. Animations lazily ripped, too. Corporate liars gave us an unfinished game, and a bad one at that. This is the only game in the series where you cannot catch them all. I have been following and purchasing Pokemon games for a while now. I am infinitely disappointed. I'll keep my $60 and spend it on cat food before purchasing this dumpster-fire.… Expand
  34. JustTheTruth
    Aug 5, 2020
    2
    Straight to the point:

    1) The music in this entire game is unbearable. From pokemon encounters to gym battles it nearly ruins the game. Sad because pokemon traditionally has a great score. 2) The villians/goal of the game. Say what you want about “focused on selling to children” well so were the original pokemon games and they - to this day - are held as favorites over all the most    Straight to the point:

    1) The music in this entire game is unbearable. From pokemon encounters to gym battles it nearly ruins the game. Sad because pokemon traditionally has a great score.

    2) The villians/goal of the game. Say what you want about “focused on selling to children” well so were the original pokemon games and they - to this day - are held as favorites over all the most recent games. Having corny gangsters in alolan to the weirdest groups in Sword/S, it ruins the premise of competing with a worthy opponent. They need to add better writing and create more memorable realistic characters. No one wants another Hop by their side

    3) Battling - yes fire crushes grass every time but there is 0 challenge to this game. (Yes you can make it hard if u try to by not training pokemon at all and keep substituting) but it eliminates the point. Stop making it so easy to get xp and make battles more challenging, esp trainer and gym battles. The elite 4 used to be so hard to get through, now i can pet my pokemon and “its all okay”. Maybe save that for a spinoff game, ppl want battles and growth not curries and brushes to get to the top. 4) the pokemon out in the wild is very cool and the battle encounters are much better - minus points above. But the battle animations are completely outdated and the environments are limited and barely memorable.

    5) CutScenes and Hop - no one wants to be stopped by an annoying NPC every 5 seconds to be told what to do. Take things like that out of the game completely or leave them as optional. Its okay to let ppl playing figure things out.

    Overall, huge let down by a company blatantly ignoring years of feedback and clearly missing a much larger opportunity, dispute how well the games have sold.    … Expand
  35. TheSoyBoy
    Nov 24, 2019
    2
    

I do not own a copy of this game, I was fortunate enough to borrow a copy to play the game myself.




    Pokemon Sword and Shield are Gamefreak’s first mainline Pokemon game on a home console. With game’s like Dragon Quest XI, Zelda Breath of the Wild, and Mario Odyssey on the Nintendo Switch, there were high expectations among Pokemon fans for Gamefreak to produce a game that    

I do not own a copy of this game, I was fortunate enough to borrow a copy to play the game myself.




    Pokemon Sword and Shield are Gamefreak’s first mainline Pokemon game on a home console. With game’s like Dragon Quest XI, Zelda Breath of the Wild, and Mario Odyssey on the Nintendo Switch, there were high expectations among Pokemon fans for Gamefreak to produce a game that represented the success and popularity of the Pokemon franchise.

    

Let’s start off with some positives. 

Firstly, the ability to customise your character is the best it has ever been in the franchise. The options players have to customise their characters are fresh and creative. And, while there were more options for female characters, it has definitely been a step in the right direction.

    

I really enjoyed the battle theme and most of the new Pokemon designs (some of them certainly fell flat). As someone who has been a massive fan of the Pokemon franchise since Red, Blue, and Yellow, it’s disappointing to see some really awful designs. I would even prefer the excluded Pokemon from the beta versions of Gold and Silver over some of the ones we received this generation.



    Dynamaxing and Gigantamaxing are a new mechanic where Pokemon become giant, gaining an increase to their stats and changing the effects of their moves. I personally really disliked this. I would have preferred Gamefreak to stick to mega evolutions instead of introducing gimmicks that only last a generation. I would not have minded keeping the giant Pokemon as raid bosses, but I find it really poor to see them being used so widely throughout the game. It just comes off as very tired and uncreative, especially for a multibillion dollar franchise.



    The biggest negatives of this game however, is the linear design of the region, the same washed out 3D models used in the previous generation, bad battle and cutscene animations, the increased handholding, the lack of an interesting and expansive post-game story (or even the availability of new post game content seems to be largely missing), the exclusion of the National Dex, and watering down, removing or excluding features introduced in other generations that were a massive benefit to the quality of life of the game, such as the Player Search System, Global Trade System, Wonder Trade, and the PokeNav system from Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire. 



    While it’s still to be seen what Pokemon Home will look like, it is very concerning to see the Global Trade System that included in the previous generations be excluded in this one, only to be repackaged in Pokemon Home that will require a subscription (on top of the Nintendo Switch’s online subscription).



    There is so much that has been done poorly that the interesting and new things Gamefreak introduced to this generation are mostly overlooked. Unless having an expansive list of curry recipes is really that important to you, I think most people who are looking for a Pokemon experience that is rewarding and challenging will find that Pokemon Sword and Shield are not the game for them.

    

If you are someone looking for a casual experience with little difficulty and something they can finish within a week or two and move on, then Sword and Shield are definitely for you.



    However, for a game that is essentially an enhanced repackage of the previous generation with a significant portion of content cut, it is hard to recommend Sword and Shield to anyone when the game has increase its cost compared to its 3DS counterparts. If you are looking for an easier game to pick up and begin your Pokemon journey, I would recommend you look at Pokemon Ultra Sun/Ultra Moon on the 3DS, as it provides a better overall experience for what you are looking for.

    In short:
    - Good battle music.

    - More character customisation.
    - Easier to enhance your Pokemon for competitive battling
    - New designs are hit or miss. Some are really great, others are really awful.

    - Creative region design but very linear. Would have really benefitted from properly designing cities and towns to be more than pathways to the next objective.
    - Dynamaxing and Giagantamaxing are uninteresting gimmicks only intended to last this generation. It’s quite unfortunate that they replaced mega evolutions. 



    Major negatives:
    - Removing or excluding mechanics/features that were great in previous generations
    - No National Dex
    - Excluding the Global Trade System and putting it behind a second subscription in Pokemon Home
    - Poor story writing and poor character development. Some of the characters are truly insufferable.
    - Not much content for players to explore, especially post-game
    - Too easy and overly ‘hand-holdy’
    - Pokemon 3D models, battle animations, and character animations taken from the previous generation. This makes me question why there is so little content, especially new content.    … Expand
  36. Djarjb
    Nov 24, 2019
    4
    Has the makings of a good game. The environments are awesome and the "gym challenge" adds a great tournament air the game. Pokemon on the overworld makes the environments feel alive. But game is far to easy with only one battle in the whole game keeping me on my toes. Furthermore the new mechanics of dynamaxing and camping are gimmicky and add very little to the game. Also I suggest neverHas the makings of a good game. The environments are awesome and the "gym challenge" adds a great tournament air the game. Pokemon on the overworld makes the environments feel alive. But game is far to easy with only one battle in the whole game keeping me on my toes. Furthermore the new mechanics of dynamaxing and camping are gimmicky and add very little to the game. Also I suggest never using half the items from Max raids if you ever want to have even a modicum difficulty. Plays like a tutorial the wholeway though the game. The greatest sin in this game is the fact that it feels like a tech demo. It shows of what the switch is capable of but does little else. The Story is bland and short. The post games is a joke that can be completed in under an hour. There are no vastly explorable area or even side quests. It's feels small and compact yet somehow empty. I was prepared to like this game and enjoyed my first three hours but it disappointed. It pains me to see such a potentially entertaining entry in the series so poorly executed.All in all would not recommend. Go play fire emblem three houses instead.… Expand
  37. christopher857
    Nov 25, 2019
    3
    GameFreak definitely doesn't know how to develop games. Since Pokémon Gold not the effort to improve. Pokemon Sword is bad, limited, bad graphics, lots of bugs, Pokemon size inconsistency. I don't recommend it, it's time for GameFreak to pass Pokémon to another developer.
  38. Kempe1
    Nov 25, 2019
    3
    Has gameplay elements from 1995.

    - straight corridors from point A to point B - Textures are non existant - Graphics are wii/early 360 rather than 2019 title - Music still not orchestrated - Battkes are just ñress a, there is no point in the single player part of the game - Not every pokemon is in - Animations in pokemon stadium 2 rival some of the avergae ones in this game while being    Has gameplay elements from 1995.

    - straight corridors from point A to point B
    - Textures are non existant
    - Graphics are wii/early 360 rather than 2019 title
    - Music still not orchestrated
    - Battkes are just ñress a, there is no point in the single player part of the game
    - Not every pokemon is in
    - Animations in pokemon stadium 2 rival some of the avergae ones in this game while being better tgan the worst ones.    … Expand
  39. Chaoslyo
    Nov 26, 2019
    4
    Despite how much I loved Pokemon, this game failed to attract me. Unrefined graphic, incomplete National Dex, repetitive story and lack of end game content.
  40. Jhinl3m0n
    Nov 26, 2019
    1
    Let's be real about this game.

    Pros: - I'm sorry but i don't think this game have some pro. Cons: - Recycled animation from past games (marketing lie) - 10 routes total, 6 are BEFORE the first gym. (another marketing lie, because when they have done the promo event with the journalist, the demo allowed you to play until the first gym, so they structured the overworld layout    Let's be real about this game.

    Pros:
    - I'm sorry but i don't think this game have some pro.

    Cons:

    - Recycled animation from past games (marketing lie)

    - 10 routes total, 6 are BEFORE the first gym. (another marketing lie, because when they have done the promo event with the journalist, the demo allowed you to play until the first gym, so they structured the overworld layout like this, just to lie another time about contents that had to be there, but aren't.)

    - Dynamax mechanic is overpowered, and will ruin the competitive scene.

    - Gigamax, this are pure trash for a bunch of reasons, first off all, you can't breed them correctly, that means the stats wont be perfect as it should be in competitive, they are 25 (3 of them not released yet) on 400 vs over 45 mega forms cutted.

    - Online infrastructure is just a joke, the pokemon company actually won't buy any server to make this game have a decent lobby design model to work good, that nowadays is the most used in the world, that means that the competitive scene of the game will not exist.

    -The story is not a story, team yell is doing NOTHING, i finished the game and i dont know why they were here, all is a joke when you realize that you are able to oneshot everything from the first gym to the champion, plus cutscenes are mute, so i think it's enough.

    -Background of battle scenes are simply unfinished, and the overworld looks like this too, snes texture.. in 2019. When you compare to zelda BOTW i don't think someone can defend pokemon anymore.

    -Retail price 60$ that speaks alone.

    -Dexit for a lot of reasons, like all the franchise is based on Gotta catch em'all you remember that guys ? and pokemon home? wtf i have to do with it now ?    … Expand
  41. Dopke
    Nov 26, 2019
    4
    Honestly, I beat it over a weekend, which is disappointing that the campaign isn’t longer. Post game is dismal. There are only 2 legendary Pokémon. The only gen 1 starter is charmander. I’m just disappointed. With the resources this company has, this could have been breath of the wild levels of quality, and it’s just not. A dud.
    Music in the game is sick though.
  42. JasonLightheart
    Nov 27, 2019
    3
    Unfortunaly, I won’t say more than the others but with my 90h playtime I can say:
    God the game is empty, easy and take you by the hand from the start to the end.
    Wild area is empty, ugly and don’t turn online on here, or else say bye to those FPS. Speaking of Online, well it’s pretty good if you’re in 2006, X/Y were way better than.... this Dynamax is boring, Gigamax kill purpose for    Unfortunaly, I won’t say more than the others but with my 90h playtime I can say:
    God the game is empty, easy and take you by the hand from the start to the end.
    Wild area is empty, ugly and don’t turn online on here, or else say bye to those FPS.
    Speaking of Online, well it’s pretty good if you’re in 2006, X/Y were way better than.... this
    Dynamax is boring, Gigamax kill purpose for every other Pokemon from the same species and you can’t even use them online. I miss Mega so bad.
    Online battle, yeah everyone use almost the same team, I don’t call that « balanced »
    Story, welp at least Leon had a better adventure than us since he did all the cool stuff.
    And of course our dear National dex that modder have already begun to fix in less than 3 days.
    My conclusion, I was so hyped at the very first trailer but since then every new trailer killed my hype little by little, those game was supposed to be the best of all, but in the end just a greedy lazy one...
    And I love Pokémon, it’s my favorite games, so it’s hurt even more to see how Pokemon have become. But even If I love Pokémon, I can’t let that pass, yeah I had a fun time playing sword but... that’s it. Just a short fun time...    … Expand
  43. Sydannus
    Nov 29, 2019
    2
    I love Pokemon, but this was just lazy and boring. Gen 5 was my favourite because of all the Team Plasma stuff, I really enjoyed X and Y too. This just had nothing going for it. It wasn't fun, every time you think you're finally going to get involved with the story Leon runs off, announcing that he will handle it and Hop (the most annoying and weak rival yet) yells at you to come with himI love Pokemon, but this was just lazy and boring. Gen 5 was my favourite because of all the Team Plasma stuff, I really enjoyed X and Y too. This just had nothing going for it. It wasn't fun, every time you think you're finally going to get involved with the story Leon runs off, announcing that he will handle it and Hop (the most annoying and weak rival yet) yells at you to come with him and train... because you're his 'rival'.

    I'm not about to sit here and complain about the National Dex being gone either, it's not the biggest problem this game has. I'm not happy they removed them but I was expecting it at some point down the line. This game simply isn't well made and feels like an absolute regression in storytelling, pacing and difficulty from all previous generations. The most clear example of this regression is, at least to me, the selection of available outfits within Sword and Shield. There's no end game item store and there's really only 2 or 3 'different' styles of tops/dresses (not counting recolours). It's incredibly lazy and the excitement of creating your own trainer who goes through the world in their own way is one that has been huge in distracting me from the series' flaws in recent releases. Similarly, the post-game is something that typically makes me excited to continue playing. In Sword and Shield, I felt that I largely got dumped off the deep end and the writing remained as uninteresting as before, even if it was still my favourite part. I would once again reference X and Y and it's Lumiose City quest chain (as well as the reputation for the upper-class fashion shop) as a good Pokemon end game - this one fell flat.
    I'm not going to sit here and say Pokemon should be difficult but it would be nice if the NPCs could learn to switch their pokemon, as it could potentially create more than a slow-paced medieval slug match with unimpressive animations.

    On the positives: The fairy town was really well designed and looked amazing. The place where you meet the legendary Pokemon also looks good visually. The first 10 minutes of the game where you enter the Slumbering Weald had me legitimately excited for where the story could go. Pokemon still has a competitive scene, even if gigantimax is incredibly unhealthy for it.    … Expand
  44. fiTy
    Nov 29, 2019
    2
    An RPG game with competitive online system with more exploits than its 20+ years ago predecessors.
  45. aaw510
    Nov 29, 2019
    3
    Way too short and annoying at times. I beat every gym and had a solid team after about 20 hours, which is way too short for a $60 game. In addition, I seem to be the only one experiencing a problem with watts (a form of in-game currency) and some pokemon not respawning. None of the dens i visited over 24 hours ago respawned watts, leaving me with little to no way to collect them withoutWay too short and annoying at times. I beat every gym and had a solid team after about 20 hours, which is way too short for a $60 game. In addition, I seem to be the only one experiencing a problem with watts (a form of in-game currency) and some pokemon not respawning. None of the dens i visited over 24 hours ago respawned watts, leaving me with little to no way to collect them without having to fight pokemon. I’ve also been trying to catch all Eeveelutions, but after catching two, they no longer spawn in the known location where they can be found (again even after 24 hours). I think this might actually be my last Pokemon game, just not worth the price tag.… Expand
  46. Elpazto
    Nov 30, 2019
    4
    Bad game
    Game freak lied
    Recycled models, horrible dynamax mechanic, no mega, no Z move
  47. solarhorse
    Nov 30, 2019
    4
    Are you looking to get back into Pokemon after losing interest several years ago, eager to see how the franchise has changed? This game isn't for you.

    Are you a die-hard Poke-fan excited to see what a mainline Pokemon game looks like on a home console? This game still isn't for you. Pokemon Sword and Shield, the latest installment in the Pokemon franchise, marking the start of the    Are you looking to get back into Pokemon after losing interest several years ago, eager to see how the franchise has changed? This game isn't for you.

    Are you a die-hard Poke-fan excited to see what a mainline Pokemon game looks like on a home console? This game still isn't for you.

    Pokemon Sword and Shield, the latest installment in the Pokemon franchise, marking the start of the 8th generation of core game titles, is tacky, uninspired and offers little of the wonder and adventure that the franchise used to be celebrated for.

    Like previous entries, the game sees you, a young aspiring Pokemon trainer from a quiet town, setting off on an adventure with a starter Pokemon of your choosing through a large region as you catch, train and battle Pokemon to earn all 8 gym badges and defeat the regions champion. Nothing much is new here, except that now the region is based on England, very loosely.

    But the lack of originality could be forgiven if the game could at least excel in what it had to offer, and for a while the tried-and-true cycle of discovering, catching and raising brand new Pokemon was enough to keep me hooked for a while. There's nothing quite like the excitement of discovering a new Pokemon for the first time, hence why I always go into these games blind.

    But the excitement stops when you realize that there are only 80 new Pokemon, not that much considering previous installments typically add over a hundred of them for the first pair of games. And when the excitement stops, the disappointment sets in. But what's so disappointing about this game? Is it all just a lot of non-issues cherry-picked by fans who got too caught up in the "Dexit" controversy leading up to release? I'll let you decide if the following complaints are "cherry-picked".

    My first complaint, the game feels lifeless. The design of the towns and cities lack any depth or character, populated only with small groups of NPCs standing around doing nothing, (and the numbers seem even smaller when you factor in the pop-in issues). Buildings, walls, rivers and roads look like they're built out of cardboard. You never feel like you’re exploring a living, breathing world as much as you’re watching a stage play with cheap props.

    The lifelessness doesn't end with towns or people, it also extends to the Pokemon themselves. If the animations in battle seem frigid, wait until you try out "Pokemon Camp", a feature which allows for all six party members to interact with one another. What could have been a great device for building character turns out to be a complete mess, with Pokemon sliding all over the place like bumper cars as animations fail to sync with motions and AI fails to find appropriate paths around other characters.

    Second complaint, the story. Pokemon has never been known for daring stories, but they're at least functional. There's an evil team with an agenda, a legendary Pokemon gets involved, the world ends, there's stakes, there's urgency, etc. Sword and Shield has this, technically speaking, but decides to cram it all at the very end of the game, leaving the majority of the campaign with no antagonists, no tension and any hint of danger washed over as other characters deal with issues that in any other game you would need to deal with yourself.

    My third complaint, the formula is stale, particularly the combat. There's nothing wrong with turn based combat per se, and anyone who says it's outdated clearly hasn't tried out the Shin Megami Tensei games, but it has to be done right. The combat here, however, plays exactly like every other Pokemon game has played since Red/Blue. What worked fine for a Game Boy feels out of place on a modern console, particularly when played on the big screen. It's slow, it's cumbersome and it needs to change.

    My fourth complaint, the purging of Pokemon, the source of the infamous "Dexit" controversy. I'm less bothered by not having access to all Pokemon from previous titles and more bothered by what the design philosophy behind this game is. The game isn't a "fresh start", as discussed above. It isn't reinventing the wheel, it's building on the established foundation. But it also removes from the foundation by not having all Pokemon available. If a lack of technical expertise or manpower are the reason for this, then it would've been a better idea to give Pokemon a hard reboot and "re-invent" the franchise instead. At least that vision of the game would've been achievable.

    It's not all gloom and doom though. For example, the gym battles are easily the best in the franchise, with giant "Dynamaxed" Pokemon, music that escalates as battles progress and gym leaders that ooze personality. It's as though the gym battles and the Dynamax gimmick were what Game Freak started with before adding in a half-hearted game afterwards. It's a shame they couldn't start by imagining how to recapture what made Pokemon such a wondrous experience to begin with.    … Expand
  48. Goodra2
    Nov 30, 2019
    3
    I would say extremely mediocre.
    - the story is basically not there
    - the characters are uninteresting (except for Hop after he gets **** on buy Bede) - most of the animations are outdated - the graphics arent that good - the wild area is much like ocarina of time’s hyrule field, empty and boring - There were barley any new pokemon introduced - dynimax was a mistake - the battle tower is    I would say extremely mediocre.
    - the story is basically not there
    - the characters are uninteresting (except for Hop after he gets **** on buy Bede)
    - most of the animations are outdated - the graphics arent that good
    - the wild area is much like ocarina of time’s hyrule field, empty and boring
    - There were barley any new pokemon introduced - dynimax was a mistake
    - the battle tower is more boring than sun and moon’s
    - gts was removed (why?)
    - the ladder half of the game felt rushed - when you are online in the wild area there is horrendous lag
    - pokemon arent properly scaled - half the pokemon are gone - you cant turn of exp share
    - the game holds the players hand
    - the game is way to easy - the routes are literally a glorified hallways
    - megas are gone
    - the game is overpriced (in terms of how much content there is and the quality)

    The game felt overall rushed and unfinished.

    If you’re a die hard pokemon fan and you wanna keep getting the same mediocre trash every year than this is the game for you. If you’re someone who's looking to get a switch for yourself or someone else and you’re consider this to be the first game you get, then dont. There are way better games on the switch (Breath of the Wild, Mario Odyssey, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, The Witcher 3, Fire Emblem: Three Houses).
    Those games are infinitely better than Sword and Shield, and are worth all 60 of your hard earned dollars.    … Expand
  49. terryangx
    Dec 1, 2019
    1
    Been a hardcore fan of this franchise for over 2 decades. Very meh at best.
  50. Noreak
    Dec 1, 2019
    2
    I am disappointed. -No nationaldex (you get 400 out of 807 Pokémon! 52% are missing. This includes the Starters, exept of charizard)
    -animations that get stomped by a game from the Wii (Pokémon Battle Revolution)
    -they cut megaevulutions
  51. Miotke
    Jun 1, 2020
    4
    4/10ᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠ
  52. PipeRomero
    Dec 1, 2019
    0
    Malo técnicamente, malo gráficamente, carente de contenido y bueno en diseño de Pokemon y ambientación musical.
  53. Cubsie
    Dec 2, 2019
    2
    This is a short game, a very short game.The game is not only short, but easy, and limits your exploration. The thing i personally was excited about most, was the wilds, and at early game, you were limited to where you could go, not only because you couldn't catch every pokemon you can see, but you would certainly be wiped out if you go too far. This limits the exploration that theseThis is a short game, a very short game.The game is not only short, but easy, and limits your exploration. The thing i personally was excited about most, was the wilds, and at early game, you were limited to where you could go, not only because you couldn't catch every pokemon you can see, but you would certainly be wiped out if you go too far. This limits the exploration that these marketers boasted about while hyping this game up. It is too linear, even more so than any other pokemon game. The new dynamax feature...love it, or hate it, going to the spots where the dynamax pokemon appears grants you items that makes sure you're whole team is wildly overpowered and stays overpowered. This game holds your hand for you every step of the way, there is no challenge, nothing, and this is all without the postgame in mind. There really is nothing to do in the post game, it's lackluster and far from polished and with very little to do. In a modest 20 hours, you can become the pokemon champion of a short over priced lackluster game from a blockbuster series. If you want to spend $60 on a game, you want more than 20 quality hours of it. Only look at this game if there is a sale, or they updated it to give it some new features, or brought some really good free quality dlc, but for now, leave it alone.… Expand
  54. Pinzonerone
    Dec 3, 2019
    0
    The game is made for childrens. Short story, not challenging contrincants. Easy battles. No interesting story. No much pokemons to choose. It is a waste of money
  55. LUCIID
    Dec 3, 2019
    2
    The game has a few good things but its quality is nowhere near past games.

    10-hour game, 20 if you take your time No postgame Generic backgrounds during battles 2019 one saving slot? The same storyline for the past 20 years Recycled animations 400 pokemon only Pokemon has little to no personality during battles Frame drops 0 difficulty 2019 and no voice acting? Pros:    The game has a few good things but its quality is nowhere near past games.

    10-hour game, 20 if you take your time
    No postgame
    Generic backgrounds during battles
    2019 one saving slot?
    The same storyline for the past 20 years
    Recycled animations
    400 pokemon only
    Pokemon has little to no personality during battles
    Frame drops
    0 difficulty
    2019 and no voice acting?

    Pros:
    Minimalistic UI
    No HM moves
    Camping
    Few good pokemon designs

    Overall this game is in no 2019 game. Standard things are treated as innovations. Pretty similar to 3ds entries. The only pokemon game I played was XD of darkness/coliseum on the Gamecube and honestly... it's not even close to that level. Gamefreak really rushed this project and you can definitely tell    … Expand
  56. Onichan_69
    Dec 3, 2019
    0
    Baja calidad de animaciones, no tiene todos los pokemon, historia corta y mala. Simplemente no vale la pena el juego es un ultrasol o ultraluna recortado.
  57. DetPikachu
    Dec 3, 2019
    4
    I'm going to keep this to bullet points but before I do I have to say this is coming from a person who's first game was pokemon red.

    This game is a massive disappointed, I fear for the series and I'm moving to temtem until I see massive changes. -Can't change outfit on bike and in stadium -No following pokemon -No rideable pokemon -Can't catch high level pokemon until you have the badges    I'm going to keep this to bullet points but before I do I have to say this is coming from a person who's first game was pokemon red.

    This game is a massive disappointed, I fear for the series and I'm moving to temtem until I see massive changes.

    -Can't change outfit on bike and in stadium
    -No following pokemon
    -No rideable pokemon
    -Can't catch high level pokemon until you have the badges even though you couldn't control them anyways
    -Story is lacking, very liniar, blan and almost non existent with the main villian doing something at the very end and only focusing on the tournament battles throughout the rest of the game not feeling like an adventure but rather just a competition.
    -Rival is annoying
    -beggining takes too long
    -Hidden abilities can only be found through gigantimax pokemon
    -Selective Egg moves can't actually be transferred meaning they lied again. i.e volt tackle
    -Animations and frame rate are garbage with constant drops in fps, and texture pop ins
    -Money is hard to get in a timely fashion in the end game unless you know a work around with meowth and selling pokeball bought with wats
    -Huge lack of past starters
    -Battle tower is not put together well and offers decreased rewards after completion
    -Choice of dialogue means nothing
    -Online play needs to be reworked
    -Only difficulty of raids is being pair with NPCs that bring pokemon that the raid Mon is super effective against
    -No plans to bring updates with new content giving it a poor shelf life
    -Sounds are still being re used including models
    -Dynamaxing loses its touch and flare after a while and feels less and less special in a short time also the amount of gigantimax pokemon is miniscule compared to megas
    -Shiny pokemon do not appear in overworld unless you start a battle to see if it is. Taking a step down from let's go -Humans in the world feel lifeless and don't move what so ever unless talked to
    So    … Expand
  58. JamesS00
    May 22, 2020
    4
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. The game was too short for me and I still can't play with people in raids.One of the worst pokemon game.… Expand
  59. SteviLsGaminG
    Dec 8, 2019
    2
    The Game Seems really Rusht and Unfinisht, Old Pokemon are Reused.

    Pokedex uncomplete

    Game Laggs when online.

    Store only told not played -_-

    New Pokemon almost Ugly
  60. kenshingensai
    Dec 8, 2019
    0
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. postgame is lacking, there is no Elite Four, you fight the same trainers all over again instead, wild area don't care for, raid battles don't care for, towns are empty, lifeless animations, feels more like a port from 3DS, improvements come at way too high a price, the game suffers from many graphical issues. Pokemon, trainers, and objects will just pop into and out of the overworld for seemingly no reason. I can go on and on its trash.… Expand
  61. kaimaru
    Dec 16, 2019
    2
    Animações lamentáveis reaproveitados dos jogos passados, gráficos da Wild Área ridículos, Atraso de aparição de objetos, não contem a NationalDex o que é um absurdo, Sistema Online precário, Pokemons não dublados em pleno 2019 com um dos consoles mais forte da Nintendo, o que é decepcionantemente não sei por qual motivo não da para trocar de uniforme nas batalhas de ginasio, vende noAnimações lamentáveis reaproveitados dos jogos passados, gráficos da Wild Área ridículos, Atraso de aparição de objetos, não contem a NationalDex o que é um absurdo, Sistema Online precário, Pokemons não dublados em pleno 2019 com um dos consoles mais forte da Nintendo, o que é decepcionantemente não sei por qual motivo não da para trocar de uniforme nas batalhas de ginasio, vende no ginasio mas você sò pode usar normalmente mas nas batalhas de ginasio ele usa o que ganha no começo, se não da pra trocar pra que colocar essa m**** sò pra você comprar de trouxa achando que da pra usar, pra finalizar novamente não tiveram o trabalho de traduzir para português sendo vários outros jogos estão com legenda, não á desculpa para isso!… Expand
  62. Stallodesu
    Dec 9, 2019
    2
    Removed pokemon. Removed features. Low FPS. Reused assets and models. Reused animations. Terrible draw distance. Terrible textures. Terrible story. **** lackluster handheld experience sold at a console price for a console. Do not recommend.
  63. Sergiovolker
    Dec 10, 2019
    0
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Si bien es cierto que plantea una forma de liga Pokémon que más se asemeja al manga o al anime me parece una falta de respeto que te curen después de cada combate, vale así sería justo en la vida real, pero venimos de una considerable reducción de dificultad respecto a anteriores entregas a excepción de X e Y que literalmente podías salir a curarte en medio de la liga. .
    A que viene que Berto interrumpa la liga y todo el mundo aplauda, si se ha convertido en el líder tipo hada tiene derecho a participar en la liga, no tiene que andar montando numeritos y el postgame, los hermanos hacen bastante el ridículo.

    Puedo resumir todo el juego en sube, baja, atraviesa, círculo, atraviesa, izquierda subir y bajar, vuelta derecha, sube y repite

    Entiendo que según la entrega aparezcan unos u otros Pokémon pero que digan que es por la animación cuando reciclan las de 3ds. Además porque crean un banco nuevo de almacenaje de todos los Pokémon con acceso a espada y escudo sino se puede pasarlo todo? Dos opciones, DLC de pago para completar Pokedex o en uno segunda versión de la saga con todos incluidos a precio de juego nuevo    … Expand
  64. Drago-S132
    Dec 14, 2019
    4
    -> (The review is also in English to the bottom ;)
    El juego, aunque cumple con entretener, lamento decirlo, es simplemente malo, pues al final sus defectos sobrepasan por mucho a sus virtudes:
    -No están todas las MT's (como es el caso de Tóxico, movimiento clave en muchas estrategias). - No están todos los pokémon (si pensabas que aquel reclamo de traer toda la pokédex de vuelta era    -> (The review is also in English to the bottom ;)
    El juego, aunque cumple con entretener, lamento decirlo, es simplemente malo, pues al final sus defectos sobrepasan por mucho a sus virtudes:

    -No están todas las MT's (como es el caso de Tóxico, movimiento clave en muchas estrategias).

    - No están todos los pokémon (si pensabas que aquel reclamo de traer toda la pokédex de vuelta era un tanto exagerado permiteme decirte que vas a extrañar a más de un pokémon en este juego, ya sea solo porque te gustaba, o porque realmente era parte importante de algún set o estrategia).

    -El juego es Demasiado fácil (El repartir experiencia es obligatorio, lo que causa un sobreleveo espantoso, rompiendo la experiencia de los combates de gimnasio y del juego en general).

    -No hay interacción entre pokémon salvajes (con el tiempo comienzan a parecer animatronicos sin alma caminando sin sentido)

    -Graficamente pobre y deficiente. (No hace falta explicar este punto, hay juegos de Gamecube que le dan mil vueltas a sus gráficos, especialmente en la zona del área silvestre)

    -El juego marca error y te saca de la partida (Ya me pasó, y muchos han reportado que tal error puede dañar o formatear tu memoria SD en tu switch, así que cuidado).

    -Animaciones muy mal hechas, o incluso inexistentes. (muchas de las animaciones en combate son muy pobres, poco creíbles, o fuera del juego inexistentes, por ejemplo, a usar un corvinight para ir a otro pueblo o zona uno esperaría ver alguna animación, pero no existe tal cosa).

    -Faltan mecánicas, como megaevoluciones y movimientos z, y más que faltar, las dejaron fuera por completo, como si nunca hubiesen existido.

    En cuanto a virtudes, el área silvestre es de lo poco disfrutable del juego, y aunque me gustaría decir que es su mayor virtud, lamentablemente se siente incompleta, sin exploración real, sin secretos, vacía, corta, limitada y muy pobre gráficamente.

    Lamento decirlo, pero al final el juego me decepcionó mucho, a pesar de que amo pokémon y fue mi regalo de cumpleaños.

    _________________________________________________________

    The game is simply bad, unfortunately its defects exceed its virtues:

    -Not all MT's (as in the case of Toxic, a key movement in many strategies)

    - They are not all Pokémon (many of the favorites are not even for strategies)

    -The game is too easy (experience share causes over-level breaking the experience of the gym fight and gamen in general)

    -No interaction between wild Pokémon (they seem animatronic without soul)

    -Graphically poor and deficient

    -The game marks error and takes you out of the game.

    -Very badly done, or even nonexistent animations.

    - Mechanics are missing, such as megaevolutions and z movements

    The wild area is the unpleasantness of the game, and I would like to say that it is its greatest virtue, but unfortunately it feels incomplete, without exploration, without secrets, empty, short and very poor graphically.    … Expand
  65. Matthewbraith
    Dec 15, 2019
    0
    Pokemon Sword and Shield is a massive piece of f*cking S*it. Also it has multiplayer.
  66. ExistDragon29
    Dec 16, 2019
    0
    OMG I am so sad that my favorite pokemon Cryogonal was not in this game. Why in the world would they take out sooooooooooo many pokemon like wtf its not like they make 100+ new desines every game or anything. And there is a tree in the game that looks bad so the graffics are horribel. And omg the rival picked Grookey which is the worst pokemon even and all starters suck and bad pokemonOMG I am so sad that my favorite pokemon Cryogonal was not in this game. Why in the world would they take out sooooooooooo many pokemon like wtf its not like they make 100+ new desines every game or anything. And there is a tree in the game that looks bad so the graffics are horribel. And omg the rival picked Grookey which is the worst pokemon even and all starters suck and bad pokemon designs look like fake fan made pokemon oh wait fans can do better. And the water looks too much like oil. Shame on you Gamefreek you guys can do better. I am now boicotting pokemon bye… Expand
  67. DavidLFen
    Dec 25, 2019
    0
    Objetivamente, el juego parece un port cutre de un juego de 3ds y ni siquiera de uno que explote al máximo de la 3ds, las animaciones son cutres, la exploración es nula y el balanceo está roto, el juego entero está ROTO, cada elemento mínimamente interesante de la narrativa es desaprovechando, y el postgame es casi inexistente, quita mecánicas a las que nos acostumbramos hace mucho como laObjetivamente, el juego parece un port cutre de un juego de 3ds y ni siquiera de uno que explote al máximo de la 3ds, las animaciones son cutres, la exploración es nula y el balanceo está roto, el juego entero está ROTO, cada elemento mínimamente interesante de la narrativa es desaprovechando, y el postgame es casi inexistente, quita mecánicas a las que nos acostumbramos hace mucho como la GTS y encima añaden cosas molestas como las MT de un solo uso, la ausencia de más de la mitad de los pokemon se nota mucho, es un insulto a los fans de toda la vida, si alguno de tus pokemon favoritos no estabprogramado por que a los de GAME FREAK, les apetecía rascarse las pelotas, jodete, y para colmo esta cosa cuesta 60€, no gracias… Expand
  68. LeonSan
    Dec 20, 2019
    1
    How arduous Pokémon player I can not pass up the disaster that these games mean, it seems that a mobile game (pokego) consumed the whole soul and brain of the company I love. From game mechanics to the worst story, in addition to a poorly optimized game, simple and painfully disappointing
  69. bringbacknatdex
    Dec 26, 2019
    2
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I have been playing this series since Pokemon R/B/Y came out for the GB, and have played every single Generation since. I have truly enjoyed this series, as it is part of my childhood, but I still played Pokemon Sw/Sh despite all the controversy surrounding it in hopes of Gamefreak sticking to their word of having "higher quality animations".

    Nope.

    To start off, I hate that the National Dex has been cut and GF has not really stuck to their word as much as I'd like it to. I do love some of the new mons like Dragapult, Frosmoth, Galar Darmanitan, Alcremie, to name a few, the graphics are pretty good in terms of the 3D stuff. I love the idea of Wild Areas and the new UI, customisation.

    But there are other errors (which may just be me being picky but idc) - such as when Hop throws the pokeball to catch Zacian / Zamazenta in the post-game where it is nonexistent, random overworld pokemon in the WA that just pop up out of nowhere and I am forced to do an encounter, Piers's cutscene, Sordward and Shielbert in general (especially that clapping sequence near the end of postgame lolol), ending credits mouse cursor lol.

    I just feel like none of the characters in Sw/Sh have been memorable except for maybe Hop and Bede, who probably has a bit of development that I can appreciate. But I miss the times in games like S/M where we could capture all the legendaries from games past, battle former champions like Red, Blue, Cynthia, when characters were really memorable (still waiting for N and Gladion to make a reappearance).

    I'm not saying that Sw/Sh is not fun, I did enjoy certain moments of it such as the Eternatus battle and the arrival of the legendary wolves, but I feel as if GF did a really lazy job on it and just threw a half-assed product at us. And as a hardcore fan since Gen 1, I think that it's unfair to receive this product that has such a shallow plot, an even shallower postgame imo, characters that are not memorable to an extent, wack move animations (seriously, Cinderace kicks to punch). I miss the old mechanics like ride mons and soaring (literally just soared around Hoenn for 3 hours at one point), but now, flying taxis don't even have a cutscene or anything. The music in general is meh, it's fine but previous titles have been better. I mean, just ask Zinnia. Or Wally, or N, or Hau, or the protagonists from S/M where we actually had our own champion theme. I was literally crying by then because I loved it so much.

    Seriously, the whole game just felt like I was just supposed to become the champion and nothing else. Rose? Nah, I have the championship to worry about. Like come on, give me a side quest at least? Or have more interactions with characters like Bede. I was such a big fan of him by the end, I wish I had more interactions and more development with him. Or Marnie. idk.

    I also found it harder to trade pokemon with friends, even with the link code that never seemed to work. Either it would take way too long, or I'd get matched up with someone other than my friend. EV yields for competitive battling are harder to discern because they no longer show what EV spread your mons have. F in chat for the GTS, you will be missed.

    You can disagree, you can defend this game until the end, but my opinion on this is that it is an unfinished game that just lacks a lot of aspects that could have been fixed had GF just been not lazy with this. A mouse cursor can get into the credits scene, but not pokemon like Metagross, Garchomp, Salamence? Pokemon who I loved and constantly spent so much time with on my 3DS and had so many memories battling with both online and off.

    Also GF, why the hell would you cut Mega Evolutions from the game? If it's not broken, don't fix it. Still don't know what to feel about Dynamax. It's just too broken imho - like I get that if you're locked into a move with a choice item or something, you can Dynamax to get out of that and so can your opponent, but I seriously loved Mega Evolution with all the new forms and abilities and...god I miss the old pokemon.

    Yeah. I don't have high hopes for the next games. GF, get your act together. Also, still waiting on those Sinnoh remakes (please don't nerf Cynthia).    … Expand
  70. SirBadger
    Dec 27, 2019
    2
    Biggest dissapointing of this year. Cuted Pokedex, pathetic small wild area and animstions of attack will leave without comment...
  71. Ghuze
    Dec 28, 2019
    1
    Absolute garbage. Boring, ugly, sloppy, don't even bother with this game, it's not worth it.
  72. hewientrucko
    Dec 30, 2019
    0
    What a amazing game! POOR STORY POOR SYSTEM POOR NETWORK AND IT BROKEN MY SWITCH DOWN! Even it's not a part of Pokemon's game......still terrible. Don't buy it unless you don't want your son play too much switch.
  73. Seanna1998
    Jan 6, 2020
    1
    This game is technically so outdated to be embarrassing. There is no postgame, no dungeon, no evil team and most importantly, no details nor passion into this game at all. It is impossible to raid in multiplayer due to this sticker system which doesn’t update. Overall the writing of dialogues is not for children, is just childish, it’s frustrating not only for grown up players but also forThis game is technically so outdated to be embarrassing. There is no postgame, no dungeon, no evil team and most importantly, no details nor passion into this game at all. It is impossible to raid in multiplayer due to this sticker system which doesn’t update. Overall the writing of dialogues is not for children, is just childish, it’s frustrating not only for grown up players but also for kids. Not worth 60€, I’m deeply disappointed Game Freak. Looking at Pokémon’s income those games shouldn’t be like this.… Expand
  74. Crobi
    Jan 18, 2020
    4
    Missing Pokémon aside, the game has outdated graphics, blurry textures, little to no story, and a laggy wild area. The game feels empty and uninspired at best. Some towns are barely more than a Pokémon centre and a street. If this was made by an indie studio I'd be more understanding, but for a mainline Pokémon game in 2019, this game is disappointing at best.
  75. Catachoys
    Jan 16, 2020
    1
    Los graficos nunca han sido algo importante en la saga de Pokémon pero creo que graficos de Nintedo 3DS o incluso de 64 en una Switch ya es muy poca calidad Pasando a la historia, es corta, muy poco inovadora y demasiado simple para nada comparada a la de las anteriores generaciones y ni hablar de lo basico que es la zona salvaje En este juego hay varios personajes interesantes de los queLos graficos nunca han sido algo importante en la saga de Pokémon pero creo que graficos de Nintedo 3DS o incluso de 64 en una Switch ya es muy poca calidad Pasando a la historia, es corta, muy poco inovadora y demasiado simple para nada comparada a la de las anteriores generaciones y ni hablar de lo basico que es la zona salvaje En este juego hay varios personajes interesantes de los que se podria haber sacado más partido pero como en todas las ultimas entregas de pokémon el rival ya no es mas que un amigo y el juego es bastante facil haciendo que un niño de hasta 5 años no tenga ninguna complicacion en terminarlo ya que el juego te guia de un punto a otro haciendo una historia lineal en la que para nada se toma en serio la exploracion Este sera mi ultimo juego de pokemon porque ya no se que esperar de Gamefreak… Expand
  76. Exxenoz
    Jan 18, 2020
    0
    It feels more like an unfinished, overpriced and boring Indie-Game than a video game from a billion dollar franchise. Definitely one of (if not) the worst Pokemon Game ever.
  77. missile
    Jan 31, 2020
    1
    The game would be good if it was a 30 box game, but no instead you pay the full price (60 box). I still don't understand why you should have 2 versions of the game, you pay the full price but you got half of the game. Personally, I finished the game in less than 9 hours. I expect more from this full-price game and don't speak about this **** system of den which is a painful way to longerThe game would be good if it was a 30 box game, but no instead you pay the full price (60 box). I still don't understand why you should have 2 versions of the game, you pay the full price but you got half of the game. Personally, I finished the game in less than 9 hours. I expect more from this full-price game and don't speak about this **** system of den which is a painful way to longer the life of this game. Now they ask 30 box more to get what should have been in the game from the start and right now,16 box for Pokémon home. No I got enough of it. I don't support this, they are doing to us a BO3. It's time that they understand that we are not cows. It will be the last Pokémon game that I buy. And for everyone that things that there is still hope see you again at the next game.… Expand
  78. Entalpi
    May 4, 2020
    3
    Honestly it is a shell of a game. The earlier games in the series were far more fleshed out and exciting than this empty husk of a Pokemon(TM) game.
  79. urzu_se7en
    Jun 4, 2020
    3
    If you think this game worth 10 points you never played a Pokémon game before.
  80. TheSoyIsStrong
    Feb 4, 2020
    4
    This is by far the least ambitious Pokemon game of all time and manages to have less content than past games. The Dex cut, while embarrassing on his own due to the fact that nothing in the game would justify it, is sadly just one of the many issues.

    Whereas other franchises like Mario and Zelda keep improving and evolving, the Pokemon games just stay stagnant and get worse in certain    This is by far the least ambitious Pokemon game of all time and manages to have less content than past games. The Dex cut, while embarrassing on his own due to the fact that nothing in the game would justify it, is sadly just one of the many issues.

    Whereas other franchises like Mario and Zelda keep improving and evolving, the Pokemon games just stay stagnant and get worse in certain aspects, with Sword and Shield being a massive decline in every shape and form compared to Gen 7.    … Expand
  81. taffyandtora
    Mar 24, 2020
    0
    People will **** on games like star wars battlefront 2 and fallout 76 for their awful business practices but I would argue that Pokémon sword and shield are just as bad as these games. To access all of the content you will need to buy 2 separate games 2 £30 dlc packs and pay for 2 subscription services one of which costs more than Nintendo switch online. I would excuse all of this if thePeople will **** on games like star wars battlefront 2 and fallout 76 for their awful business practices but I would argue that Pokémon sword and shield are just as bad as these games. To access all of the content you will need to buy 2 separate games 2 £30 dlc packs and pay for 2 subscription services one of which costs more than Nintendo switch online. I would excuse all of this if the actual game was good but it just isn't. There is almost no strategy to the combat, the xp candy system is so broken I had a level 100 Pokémon by the third gym, they cut out half of the pokemon, the graphics and animation look like they have came straight out of a PS2 game and you are just stopped by all these characters who constantly tell you about the the boring backstory so much making the entire experience miserable. I fell dirty that I bought these games and I am never buying a Pokémon game again unless they drastically improve.… Expand
  82. Devilboy
    Feb 10, 2020
    3
    Pokemon sword and shield is an amazing game. However, game freak did not think about user's feelings. Firstly, they made expansion pass. This choice was so bad. Pokemon is not a cheap game already. Therefore users should spend too much money on playing this game. Switch console+swich online+pokemon game chip+expansion pass needs too much money. The most disappointing point is that gamePokemon sword and shield is an amazing game. However, game freak did not think about user's feelings. Firstly, they made expansion pass. This choice was so bad. Pokemon is not a cheap game already. Therefore users should spend too much money on playing this game. Switch console+swich online+pokemon game chip+expansion pass needs too much money. The most disappointing point is that game freak used their pokemon as a tool to make users to pay more. For example, you cannot meet some pokemons. However, if you buy expansion pass, you can meet those pokemon. At first, I thought the game freak did not put some pokemons because it is too hard for them to make. But it was because of money...If you clear the story, you have nothing to do unless you buy online or expansion pass. I think this was worse than Sun and Moon.… Expand
  83. CyberSurge
    Feb 12, 2020
    3
    While on the surface this seems to be the best pokemon game in years, once you step into it you will find one of the most shallow pokemon games ever made. The tutorial of the game is extremely long and drawn out, despite the fact that you only travel in a straight line. The game will ask if you need help sometimes, giving you the option to skip the tutorial, but it is very inconsistent.While on the surface this seems to be the best pokemon game in years, once you step into it you will find one of the most shallow pokemon games ever made. The tutorial of the game is extremely long and drawn out, despite the fact that you only travel in a straight line. The game will ask if you need help sometimes, giving you the option to skip the tutorial, but it is very inconsistent. Once you are done with the tutorial, you are brought to the wild area, the game's main selling point, which is a shame since it is so lackluster and dull. The only things you can do in the wild area is catch pokemon, participant in raids, and camp, none of which feel particularly fun after you repeatedly do them over and over again in quick succession. If you play online, the wild area will be inhabited by NPCs that use the attributes of real player accounts to make it appear like there are real people playing with you, but the game doesn't do a good job of convincing you of this. All NPCs (not just the wild area ones, either) move extremely rigidly as if they were still mapped to a grind like in past games. Their animations are so stale and lifeless you could practically see the code running on screen. Most characters only have a few animations as well, with most of the main characters (especially Hop, who even had his animations ripped straight from US/UM) will end up repeating the same 3 poses throughout the entire game. This bleeds into the completely flat story, which the game doesn't even let you see, much less play through. There is almost no storyline in this game other than a few moments in the game where the NPCs act panicked because of some unnamed threat that gets resolved before you even get to the location the threat is at. The only time that you actually get to play through a story conflict happens literally at the very end of game, which only involves you backtracking through the tutorial areas and fighting an unbeatable boss fight. After the game is over, there's no postgame content other than doing more raid battles and grinding pokemon for competitive play, neither of which are engaging or fun. Raid battles are extremely sluggish and slow and boil down to you pressing the at button 5 times over a 10 minute period, as the boss can deploy a shield that completely negates all damage for several turns, with no way to strategize around it. Overall, the game seems extremely rushed with only the bare minimum effort put into it. This game is not worth $40, much less $60. You are better off playing any other pokemon game, or even another more fleshed out and enjoyable RPG that provides much more fun than this game could ever dream of… Expand
  84. fanmadeendings
    Feb 4, 2022
    4
    It's about as entertaining as any cookie cutter pokemon game, but never more than that. By far the most disappointing entry in the series, made by technically incompetent developers, and devoid of any meaningful content.
  85. DoomGuy64
    Mar 24, 2020
    3
    Cutting Pokemon from the roster just to make a season pass... It’s just slimy. It’s an absolutely atrocious way of treating your fan base.
  86. Nexusphantom
    Apr 4, 2020
    4
    I waited several month before adding my rate. For more objectivity, and it's still a bad rate.

    Pokémon rpg games don't evolve and worst they regress. I m not talking about the fight mechanic because it's why I love Pokémon Pokémon. game freak should stop cutting mechanic which are good or USEFUL!! And game freak should stop being the developers of the pokémon rpg. For 60 euro you have a    I waited several month before adding my rate. For more objectivity, and it's still a bad rate.

    Pokémon rpg games don't evolve and worst they regress.

    I m not talking about the fight mechanic because it's why I love Pokémon Pokémon. game freak should stop cutting mechanic which are good or USEFUL!! And game freak should stop being the developers of the pokémon rpg.

    For 60 euro you have a game with less features than any other Pokémon, i don't count 1 and 2 generations because they had a lot technical limitation. But in 2019 and 2020 they are no more excuse. The menu for the online look like something made by amateur and still I think amateur will try to improve their interface but not here, it's like they are doing it wrong intentionally (you have to connect and disconnect repeatedly for refreshing the raid) They broke their own game so people have to glitch in order to play with correctly. And Pokémon game are too expensive for what they offers, if you want all the pokémon (legendary) you have to buy the 2 games so 120 euro, for playing online you need nitendo online, 20 euro, if you want to trade by the gts( who was free before) correctly you have to pay 15 euro, and with the upcoming dlc ( with specific legendary in each of them) you will have to pay 30 euro for each so 60 euro again. Total for the complete Pokémon experience 215 euro in 1 year. I preferred an third version of the game like before (45+45+45) 135 euro. The graphics are bad butt he artistic direction is good, it's look like Pokémon lol. Playing online is really laggy in game. The story is the most pitiful story I have ever read in an video game, really I m not joking, even an 5 years child will say "meh" The map if full of emptiness... And is 90% of the time it's an straight line.

    But you realise that after finishing the game.

    For the most prolific company, this game is a scam because they Know they will still sell it even if the game are bad.

    If you want a good game take Skyrim on switch and you will have a better game, even if the game is 9 years old    … Expand
  87. FunkyVonFresh
    Dec 2, 2020
    1
    An utter embarrassment of a game, and a complete waste of your money and time. The game lacks content, largely thanks to intentional corner cutting on GameFreak's part. This entire game feels dull, uninspired and overall cheap. Despite the promise of a more open world, Pokemon feels more linear than ever. This game is easy in the most boring way, and feels more like it was made forAn utter embarrassment of a game, and a complete waste of your money and time. The game lacks content, largely thanks to intentional corner cutting on GameFreak's part. This entire game feels dull, uninspired and overall cheap. Despite the promise of a more open world, Pokemon feels more linear than ever. This game is easy in the most boring way, and feels more like it was made for toddlers than an audience with any semblance of a brain. The region of this game feels smaller than ever with large empty wastelands and uncreative routes in-between the tiny feeling towns and cities. The story is plain and forgettable. I used to love this series. Gamefreak, get your **** together.… Expand
  88. ShakiraShakira
    Apr 10, 2020
    2
    the mouse cursor in ending credits ruined everything. two points for pokemon and music.
  89. RedahTheD00D
    Apr 11, 2020
    3
    Pokemon Sword and Shield prove that a game doesn't have to be good to be amusing. I had a meh experience with this game but after i started analyzing the game, it all fell apart. The game's art direction is beautiful, but the absolutely horrendous graphics ruined it. The trees look like they have come from a N64 game and the rest of the character models are lackluster in comparison toPokemon Sword and Shield prove that a game doesn't have to be good to be amusing. I had a meh experience with this game but after i started analyzing the game, it all fell apart. The game's art direction is beautiful, but the absolutely horrendous graphics ruined it. The trees look like they have come from a N64 game and the rest of the character models are lackluster in comparison to other switch titles. The Pokemon models are copy and pasted from the 3ds games which is fine as they were made with long term usage in mind, but the animation is horrible. It is worse than the animation in Pokemon stadium which came out in 1998! I know that stadium was a battle oriented game, but it came out when the hardware was infinitely worse also Pokemon is the highest grossing media franchise so Game Freak should have a lot of budget but they couldn't animate the moves despite the fact that they have created models that can be used to make the animation far more high quality. All in all Pokemon sword and shield are glorified 3ds games put on the switch, made only to appease competitive battlers without caring about the people who just want to have an immersive, fun experience that isn't too easy. Also the games are too pricey and now they are asking us to pay them money (Which makes the total price $90) To have as much content as X and Y Or Sun, Moon and the ultra games (Which are $45) while still pulling off the two games stunt.… Expand
  90. Karnib
    Apr 15, 2020
    4
    The game was fun and the graphics were good but that was pretty much it. I was disappointed from the small map that was limited to one small region, the small variety of pokemon, and the low difficulty of the game. The game ended pretty quickly and i felt like the game was half as long as I expected it to be and way too expensive compared to game quality. I am a lover of the series andThe game was fun and the graphics were good but that was pretty much it. I was disappointed from the small map that was limited to one small region, the small variety of pokemon, and the low difficulty of the game. The game ended pretty quickly and i felt like the game was half as long as I expected it to be and way too expensive compared to game quality. I am a lover of the series and have played all the games ever since I was a child, I hope that the next game would be more similar to the older games.… Expand
  91. Ochoxygen
    Apr 21, 2020
    1
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. There are so many things fundamentally wrong with this game. The storyline, for starters, is incredibly shallow and forced. It drags you around to each different gym with no real purpose other than to complete this “gym challenge” they told you about in the beginning, with absolutely no other plot lines to supplement this like other Pokémon games. In fact, the only time the plot deviates whatsoever is at the very end, when you’re literally about to fight the champion - absolutely no buildup to that point, mind you - and it just feels out of place and pointless. It’s so forced. The game is forced. 1/10… Expand
  92. Rafft
    Apr 24, 2020
    4
    I dont need a National dex to Like Pokemon Sword and i have no lags or bucks and i must say if you run thrug the game you could be underlevelt for the 4 arena.
  93. Dave300
    Jun 6, 2020
    2
    As a big Nintendo fan and a Pokemon fan as well. I'm so dissapointed with this game. It's not the first time. Last few Pokemon games have been losing quality but this one is the most dissapointing one. Gen 6 was dissapointing. 7 was worst, Let's go games were bad. I was super excited for this game espacially after the Pokemon direct but that E3 gameplay killed all mine and a lot of fan'sAs a big Nintendo fan and a Pokemon fan as well. I'm so dissapointed with this game. It's not the first time. Last few Pokemon games have been losing quality but this one is the most dissapointing one. Gen 6 was dissapointing. 7 was worst, Let's go games were bad. I was super excited for this game espacially after the Pokemon direct but that E3 gameplay killed all mine and a lot of fan's hype. There were no national dex. Gamefreak said they did it so it would have better graphics and animations. And the graphics looked even worst than N64 games. Animations are all reused and low quality. This game is on the same system as Botw and Mario Odyssey. I wouldn't care about graphics if they didn't lied. The worst part is they are bringing a lot of old Pokemons with new DLC. They are literally selling the rest of the game. I thought they said that switch could not run every pokemon while DS and 3DS did? The base game is not even worth 60 dolars. We also have to pay money every month to bring our old Pokemons which is so expensive. So much more than the old one. We also have to pay for switch online. İt's ridicilous. The story is rushed and the gameplay adds nothing new. There are giant pokemon fights. How amazing! The strange part is graphics looks great when you are in a town but the wild area looks worst than the N64. They probally rushed the wild area. İf you have already played a Pokemon game before than just don't buy this cash grab. But the fact that this game sold 16 million in 3 months shows that fans just doesn't care at all. But buying this game will make next Pokemon games worst. Pokemon is no longer a good franchise for me. I'm done with it. This game only sells because it is a Pokemon game. That's it. The only reason why I gave this 2 stars is because I love Pokemon's gameplay. But the game is just not worth it. Just replay old Pokemon games and you will be better. Don't waste 60 dolars and don't support this.… Expand
  94. ChesterField
    Apr 27, 2020
    4
    Another pokemon game similar to the previous ones, for some reason they refuse to add mechanics of the previous ones like megaevolutions. It is inconceivable that in 2019 a pokemon game will come out in which there are only half to catch and more when your main motto is to 'catch them all'. How is it possible that they didn't even add voices to the game when 15 years ago games like PokemonAnother pokemon game similar to the previous ones, for some reason they refuse to add mechanics of the previous ones like megaevolutions. It is inconceivable that in 2019 a pokemon game will come out in which there are only half to catch and more when your main motto is to 'catch them all'. How is it possible that they didn't even add voices to the game when 15 years ago games like Pokemon Stadium did. Even these games had more difficulty than this. It is a pity that in 20 years of saga there has not been a single progress in the pokemon or mechanical battles. graphically the game has improved but not even close to the level of great titles of Nintendo, again a shame. In short, more of the same but easier and a little more beautiful. a purchase only mandatory for the most fanatics of the saga (among which I include myself) but in turn very disappointing.… Expand
  95. DanPlasmius
    Apr 27, 2020
    1
    The main story is too easy, you always get type advantage over Hop, after beating the main story there's really not to much to do. Graphic are mediocre, models are re used through all the game even if they are different characters, for example in the Team Yell there are only 3 different characters that repeat over and over again, at some moment you even see a Team Yell crowd that it's justThe main story is too easy, you always get type advantage over Hop, after beating the main story there's really not to much to do. Graphic are mediocre, models are re used through all the game even if they are different characters, for example in the Team Yell there are only 3 different characters that repeat over and over again, at some moment you even see a Team Yell crowd that it's just 2 models repeated all over the place, making it look low effort. That may have worked in past games because of lower resolution, less powerful hardware, but not on switch, where the hardware is more powerful and also the game costs more without a real justification. Also the lack of voice actors make some scenes look really awkward. Wild Area concept is nice but execution is poor, there are some serious frame drops when entering, or when pokémon appear, love the fact that you can freely move the camera. I love the new pokémon from Galar, they have nice typings and cool type combinations, sadly I can't say the same about the game, looks rushed, unfinished, low effort or uninspired, let's see what the expansion pack brings to this game but don't expect too much.… Expand
  96. ONYX137
    May 18, 2020
    3
    I have mixed feelings about this game. I do really enjoy the game but I'm not a huge fan of some of the newer generation Pokemon , and there are very few old generation Pokemon. The game gives you gym uniforms as prizes for beating gym leaders , and allows you to buy them, but yet you cannot wear them in battle. What is the point?? Also in 2020 I would expect a heck of a lot betterI have mixed feelings about this game. I do really enjoy the game but I'm not a huge fan of some of the newer generation Pokemon , and there are very few old generation Pokemon. The game gives you gym uniforms as prizes for beating gym leaders , and allows you to buy them, but yet you cannot wear them in battle. What is the point?? Also in 2020 I would expect a heck of a lot better graphics and design than this. Seems lazy and like little effort was given in creating this game. So basically a money grab. That being said, since I haven't played a Pokemon game since the Gameboy, I am enjoying this game.… Expand
  97. nookcrook
    Apr 29, 2020
    1
    I've been a fan of Pokemon games since 3rd gen and grew up with this series and it's absolutely shameful how bad of a game this is. It's the same Pokemon formula we've had for the last twenty something years but more restricted than it has been in years. There's no innovation or motivation to play it.

    First of all, the graphics are ugly. A Pokemon game for a home console in the year    I've been a fan of Pokemon games since 3rd gen and grew up with this series and it's absolutely shameful how bad of a game this is. It's the same Pokemon formula we've had for the last twenty something years but more restricted than it has been in years. There's no innovation or motivation to play it.

    First of all, the graphics are ugly. A Pokemon game for a home console in the year 2020 should not be nearly as ugly as this game turned out to be. The trees are disgusting. The render distance is horrible and completely breaks immersion. The towns are boring and all the routes are one dimensional, linear, and incredibly short. These graphics are on par or worse to the first 3D Pokemon games, X and Y, which came out in 2013. The animations and models are minimal and I believe many are reused from the 3DS games. Customization is similar to X and Y. Nothing is improved.

    Gameplay is OK for a Pokemon game, if said game was a demo. The battles are the same except shorter and easier. Most grunts use the same weak mons and you fight the same handful of character models over and over again. Every route is the same with nothing meaningful to find. There's less to do in this game than any other Pokemon game I've played. Cooking curry is boring and pointless. The campsite gets old when you've seen it once because it doesn't do anything besides aesthetics. The wild area is a chore to get through and the game doesn't even let you catch most mons if you haven't progressed far enough. There are half as many pokemon as there actually are, so have fun seeing the same mons you don't live everywhere. Competitive is broken because of the time limit, so most people play a flash game for competitive instead of this.

    The story is boring, the few characters who stalk you talk too much but they don't say anything interesting.

    Want to change the sound? Talk to a rando you probably skipped to unlock it. Choices.

    And because Pokemon knows people will buy this game because it's a mainline Pokemon game on the most successful Nintendo console, their customers are paying an absurd amount to play this game. The base game is 60 dollars, the most expensive main line Pokemon game ever. DLC is 30 dollars for barely any additional gameplay and a couple hundred mon's you have to pay for. Want to transfer mons? Pay 3 dollars a month for one service and then 5 dollars a year for the other and also online for however much if you want to do anything online at all.

    I could go on.

    If you aren't a child, hard pass.    … Expand
  98. BoseMiau
    Apr 30, 2020
    2
    Very dissapointing game. The game has zero value for long time fans. Regret buying.
  99. SOl0mon
    May 2, 2020
    1
    Compared to previous titles, this is a far cry from the series that I’ve come to love. Exploration is minimal with the removal of dungeons/caves, the scaled down dex, lack of a post game, removal of moves.. etc. I could go on and on but honestly this is a poor entry in the series. On a positive note the wild area was enjoyable for the time but other than that this game is not worth the 60Compared to previous titles, this is a far cry from the series that I’ve come to love. Exploration is minimal with the removal of dungeons/caves, the scaled down dex, lack of a post game, removal of moves.. etc. I could go on and on but honestly this is a poor entry in the series. On a positive note the wild area was enjoyable for the time but other than that this game is not worth the 60 dollars.… Expand
  100. illigian
    May 14, 2020
    3
    This game is really short, fast and too easy for the standards.
    - during the "championship" between each fight your team is auto-healed and you can also change party members (just as an example of how easy it is).
    - There isn't a "bad" team in all the game; the "team" here is composed just of fans of a rival of yours, they haven't an agenda or something, they just want their favourite    This game is really short, fast and too easy for the standards.
    - during the "championship" between each fight your team is auto-healed and you can also change party members (just as an example of how easy it is).
    - There isn't a "bad" team in all the game; the "team" here is composed just of fans of a rival of yours, they haven't an agenda or something, they just want their favourite trainer to win.
    - The real bad guy have a story arc of 5/10 minutes (i'm not joking here) and his motivation is really stupid; he is not evil, just "clumsy" and in a "rush" (i'm saying that in this way in order to avoid eccessive spoilers); in 3 minutes of his narrative arc he is sorry and ask for forgivness, the fastest change of mind in history.
    - There is just one single quest in the end game, i presume the others are in the dlcs...
    - This is the first pokemon game that i finish in 16,5H of play with the main team at level 65 and above (top one is at 77)... and i didn't even took pokemons from poke home in order to feel the real difficulty here (so none)...
    - only 10 routes
    - no strategy needed, you can brutforce every opponent
    - Game freak didn't improve animations for the mons; all the old gen ones are plain rip off from X, Y, Alpha and Omega; not a bad thing per se but they lied on this point.
    - camping minigame is somehow funny but with few options
    - lack of costumization for some little things that could be there (as the pose in battle and winning pose that was there in previous gens)
    - gts function is now with a subscription (or with nintendo subscription or with pokemon home and the android app) but is broken becouse you can offer your pokemon and ask something in return that could not exist (strange low lvl as 5-10 for legendaries for example, they just don't exist and gts refuse the trade because they are not legit) and the script don't block you from asking but it is impossible for anyone to confirm the trade; the gts is full of this cases and it is really difficult to trade something because every visual slot is taken by those offers... I have putted some legit shinys for trade 4 days ago and no one traded them even knowing they are requested pokemon and i do not asking for anything strange

    overrall game freak done good job on coding in almost every aspect of the game even if sometimes you can experience some frame drops and strange object beheviours but they wrote the worst and most boring story ever for one of the most easy and umbalanced game...

    BTW i finished the game in 16h and half with even the end game quest but i have procrastinated a lot with raids and the camping function and i have talked to every character and catched every pokemon that was not registered in my dex; i'm sure that this game could be finished even in less time...

    conclusions:
    - PRO: smooth game with some improved function that make your life easier in pkm games (as the possibility to access your boxes from everywhere)
    - CONS: bad story, short game, bad written characters, boring mini games, too easy, lack of some previous features, no bad guys, lack of good endgame, gts is broken, etc...    … Expand
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Awards & Rankings

79
#79 Best Switch Game of 2019
1
#1 Most Discussed Switch Game of 2019

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
80

Generally favorable reviews - based on 87 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 66 out of 87
  2. Mixed: 21 out of 87
  3. Negative: 0 out of 87
  1. Nintendo Force Magazine
    Apr 30, 2020
    80
    Sword & Shield stumble in a few areas and history may not be kind to them, but they're setting up a future that I'm excited to see. [Issue #44 – January/February 2020, p. 73]
  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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