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. Kemmo_ado
    Nov 21, 2019
    0
    Litrally all the things that the dexers said about the game is now true 60% of the pokmeons are gone Reusing the same models and animations we’ve seen for the past 6 years

    The world is just a bunch of hallways with nothing much to do in it The story is none existing and has the same cookie cutter formula The graphics look mediocare all the way down to the N64 trees Only 81 new pokmeons    Litrally all the things that the dexers said about the game is now true 60% of the pokmeons are gone Reusing the same models and animations we’ve seen for the past 6 years

    The world is just a bunch of hallways with nothing much to do in it The story is none existing and has the same cookie cutter formula The graphics look mediocare all the way down to the N64 trees Only 81 new pokmeons and only 400 mons in the entire game And the problems keep on piling on and on and on. So much for a 60$ game. “But it said the footage is not final” now all I can do is laugh about that sentence... all in all buying a 60$ game that doesn’t have that much content is a waste of money and time as you can use said 60$ to buy other games. Not only that but buying this game would mean that you’re supporting game freak with their laziness and supporting TPC with yearly releases and getting less content.    … Expand
  2. Demien
    Nov 21, 2019
    10
    Für mich ein richtig gutes Spiel
  3. SilverScale
    Nov 18, 2019
    10
    This game is incredible, I dont know how people dont like it, this game is a masterpiece and is a good step of Game Freak on Nintendo Switch
  4. LuGaMi
    Nov 21, 2019
    10
    Un gran juego, entretenido de principio a fin, es una gran evolución a la franquicia de Pokemon, Esto es un videojuego a toda regla, sin pretenciones.
  5. goldenjonnie
    Nov 21, 2019
    4
    Insufficiente in ogni singolo aspetto, dalla grafica all’online. L’unico aspetto decente è la caratterizzazione e lo stile dei nuovi Pokemon.
  6. Kjoagamer
    Nov 21, 2019
    7
    É um bom jogo mas tem seus problemas, como a mecânica de gigantamax confusa e mau explicada, pouca variedade de pokemons, sistema on-line confuso e pago, wild áreas com clima sem nexo de geografia e pouca capacidade de modificação de personagem tanto em altura e forma física mas de resto é um jogo bem regular
  7. Paladean
    Nov 21, 2019
    8
    German/Deutsch

    Ich für meinen Teil, habe richtig Spaß an/mit diesem Pokémon Spiel. Endlich sind wieder Arenen da, neue coole Features wie das Camping, die Naturzone, neue Möglichkeiten zu leveln usw. Das Post Game könnte etwas ausgebauter daherkommen, aber alles bis dahin ist in sich genommen so stimmig, wie eh und je. Mindestens 30 Stunden Spielspaß.
  8. nafechinde
    Nov 21, 2019
    0
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. this game does not deserves your hard earned money, save it for much much better indie games on pc… Expand
  9. Ohmmega
    Nov 21, 2019
    3
    What to say... the game doesnt meet a switch game quality, it’s nothing more than a 3ds game with high resolution texture. The world feels small and empty, the new pkmn are ugly , overall its a very boring game
  10. Potasticpunda
    Nov 21, 2019
    7
    So... let's begin with the good things of Pokemon SS:
    It has a good OST, loved the changes in the battle theme when you dynamax your pokemon. And it has a track from Toby Fox so... yeah, great. :)
    The Wild area is a good change but I kinda feel like... it's not that big and the weather is very unrealistic, it totally breaks the inmersion. The visuals are quite good, I loved the grass,    So... let's begin with the good things of Pokemon SS:
    It has a good OST, loved the changes in the battle theme when you dynamax your pokemon. And it has a track from Toby Fox so... yeah, great. :)
    The Wild area is a good change but I kinda feel like... it's not that big and the weather is very unrealistic, it totally breaks the inmersion.
    The visuals are quite good, I loved the grass, characters and overall the cities I think they really nailed that UK thing but didn't lose the fantasy part. The wild area still has the blurry tree of death that everyone hates tho.
    Totally hate that the characters and pokemon kinda pop up out of nowhere from time to time.
    And totally loved that you can change the skin color of the character and that the character's mom will have the same skin tone. Kudos to Game Freak for that.
    Another great thing about the game is the character customization, it has so many hairstyles and clothes to pick up for and that is something that helps the game feel a little bit more immersive.
    The story is not that great, it's the same old portable pokemon story. Would love to see something different like with Pokemon Colosseum.

    I can totally understand why everyone is so pissed off with Game Freak, they lied. Reused models and... for being one of the greatest IPs the game just feels kinda disappointing and I would rather have to wait a little bit more for a better product. But as a person that hasn't played a pokemon game since 2010 I truly had fun. You should totally give it a try. : )    … Expand
  11. Franco2000
    Nov 21, 2019
    0
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. National Dex is not in the game this make me sad y grow up with the games and I want to catch em all… Expand
  12. cobradactyl
    Nov 21, 2019
    10
    Bought the double pack! Innovative for the series. All new pokemon on a grand scale. Love the game for what it is.... not what it isn't! The game is simply fun to play. My daughters love it!
  13. eikku89
    Nov 21, 2019
    7
    It´s middle of road pokemon game.

    +Pokemons look good +Towns look good +New pokemon looks great +Calm lands are big and great +/- Story is same old pokemon story nothing new +/- Some battle animations looks amazing, but there too little of them -Pokemon looks good but lack animation -You can see rushed/lazy grapichs -too easy - lack of internet optimation in trades and    It´s middle of road pokemon game.

    +Pokemons look good
    +Towns look good
    +New pokemon looks great
    +Calm lands are big and great

    +/- Story is same old pokemon story nothing new
    +/- Some battle animations looks amazing, but there too little of them

    -Pokemon looks good but lack animation
    -You can see rushed/lazy grapichs
    -too easy
    - lack of internet optimation in trades and dynamax battles
    -need more routes and bigger routes especially in the before
    -lags in game when online

    I had fun playing this but it could to more time in devoloping.
    I have no problem with nat dex, but they´re better make colosseum game with all pokemon for competite pleyers.
    I liked how they did league battle, but it really needed more people to battle.
    Exp. candies make game too easy, i wished usage of them were limited somehow and i wished
    i could turn of exp.share. It would better game if it were at least harder to play, enemy trainers lvl were lower than wild pokemons and it annoys me.
    So its playable but not for hardcore pokemon players who wants decent challenge, i hope next one they make is more balanced in diffuculty.    … Expand
  14. Aerialslayer
    Nov 21, 2019
    8
    At first I was hesitant on actually playing Pokemon Sword due to all of the negativity surrounding it. But I decided to dive in myself and create my own opinion. Overall it is a pretty solid game. My only real issue with the game is the wild area can have some pretty significant frame drops when it's raining or hailing. The other thing is it would have been nice to of coarse have all ofAt first I was hesitant on actually playing Pokemon Sword due to all of the negativity surrounding it. But I decided to dive in myself and create my own opinion. Overall it is a pretty solid game. My only real issue with the game is the wild area can have some pretty significant frame drops when it's raining or hailing. The other thing is it would have been nice to of coarse have all of the Pokemon included in this version. but nonetheless, it still holds up. Enjoying the new generation of Pokemon and the gym battles. Voice acting would be a cool thing to have added as some of the cut scenes have the characters really expressing themselves.… Expand
  15. Matforadocomun
    Nov 21, 2019
    0
    O jogo cortou mais da metade dos pokemon das gerações anteriores e oferece uma história pífia e superficial. Não recomendo.
  16. RepentantSky2
    Nov 21, 2019
    10
    Far beyond my expectations. Sword is a beautiful game, with amazing gym leaders, fantastic music, and endless fun. Despite people's complaints, these two new games might be the best ever made for mainline Pokemon, and review bombing be dammed, I will stand by that.
  17. Ulle
    Nov 21, 2019
    9
    Great world, great story, great characters. I play pokemon for almost 20 years now, this gen is the best since d/p. Only thing is the missing pokemon and attacks, but hey we have new ones. Try it!
  18. Madarame
    Nov 21, 2019
    1
    Simply lazy work from GF, the game have many objective shortcomings. The biggest issue is that it simply does not live up to the performance of a switch/home console game. Many of the friend favourite features were cut (whether in general arear, pokemon following/ Mega and z-move/ secret base) and replaced with very little additional content. GF promise the removal of the national dex willSimply lazy work from GF, the game have many objective shortcomings. The biggest issue is that it simply does not live up to the performance of a switch/home console game. Many of the friend favourite features were cut (whether in general arear, pokemon following/ Mega and z-move/ secret base) and replaced with very little additional content. GF promise the removal of the national dex will bring about improvement in other area and that's simply untrue to those that have play the game.… Expand
  19. gargom
    Nov 21, 2019
    0
    Esto es absurdo, un juego a medio hacer con las texturas a 144pixeles y repitiendo exactamente lo mismo que en nintendo ds pero en switch, innovación cero. Un juego hecho con prisas y sin novedades, no pienso comprarlo, no parais de reiros de vuestros fans, game freak porfavor dejad de querer hacer dinero fácil sin esforzaros lo más mínimo.
  20. Shayneros
    Nov 21, 2019
    4
    Perspective from someone who's been playing since OG Red.
    A lot of potential but lazily wasted. First off the Wild area is a great idea and practically the only area of this game that's fun. Even then though it's super bare bones. Nothing to explore, a bland landscape, and the trees. My god the trees are ugly. Also any time it rains or snows be prepared for your FPS to drop below 20.    Perspective from someone who's been playing since OG Red.
    A lot of potential but lazily wasted. First off the Wild area is a great idea and practically the only area of this game that's fun. Even then though it's super bare bones. Nothing to explore, a bland landscape, and the trees. My god the trees are ugly. Also any time it rains or snows be prepared for your FPS to drop below 20.
    -Raids are fun but incredibly broken. They provide such a ridiculous amount of XP that if you do a couple when they introduce you to them at the beginning of the game you're going to be vastly over leveled for the whole game ruining the already bland experience.
    -XP share being non-toggleable is flat out ridiculous. Game Freak was really too lazy to spend 15 minutes coding an option to turn it off
    -Story. There is no story. Literally EVERY TIME something significant happens the "adults" take care of it and tell you to go get gym badges. That's the whole game. There literally is no story until the very end. The whole game is literally just walking gym to gym, nothing inbetween. There's nothing to do even in the routes. The routes are the worst they have EVER been in Pokemon. They're insanely short and there is absolutely NOTHING to explore. It's just a 20 second walk down a single path. The writing is atrocious and "cut scenes" feel like they're never ending. Also Hop, your rival is the worst rival yet. He's ridiculously annoying and just doesn't shut up. Be prepared to hate him with a passion.
    -No dungeons/caves which are usually the most challenging part of the games. The only cave you go through in the game only has 1 alternate path that only takes you about 5 seconds off course. No multiple dead ends. No various caverns with hidden secrets, nothing.
    -Overworld Pokemon is still great. It's grown on me and I do like it better than the OG random encounters    … Expand
  21. lucasts02
    Nov 21, 2019
    0
    Holy Jesus, 100 dollars on the bundle for a trash game. Cant even play 5 hours of the game, it is a disguting gameplay.
  22. AsusCrafter
    Nov 21, 2019
    8
    It's a good Pokemon Game
  23. Reaper2187
    Nov 21, 2019
    5
    Awesome game it could have done a few things differently but overall definitely worth playing! I have played every pokemon since red and blue and this did not disappoint. Ignore the low score it's just butthurt fans complaining they didn't get exactly what they wanted.
  24. hamele
    Nov 21, 2019
    8
    Muy buen juego. Con diferencia el juego de pokémon más inmersivo hasta la fecha, el mundo se siente muy vivo y te crees lo que ves
    Un punto muy a favor es que han dejado atrás a algunos pokémon y movimientos, dando importancia a las nuevas incorporaciones y dando un giro de 180º a todo el meta-game casposo vigente en entregas anteriores.
    Efectivamente, gráficamente es mejorable en muchos    Muy buen juego. Con diferencia el juego de pokémon más inmersivo hasta la fecha, el mundo se siente muy vivo y te crees lo que ves
    Un punto muy a favor es que han dejado atrás a algunos pokémon y movimientos, dando importancia a las nuevas incorporaciones y dando un giro de 180º a todo el meta-game casposo vigente en entregas anteriores.
    Efectivamente, gráficamente es mejorable en muchos aspectos, pero el arte está bien conseguido y consigue atenuar este factor.    … Expand
  25. nicoshiii
    Nov 21, 2019
    9
    I LOVED the game. It has an interesting story with ties to British mythology, a lot of great characters, which I all love (in exception of maybe 2 people). The soundtrack also isn't "weak" compared to Toby Fox' song and especially the late game music is absolutely great. The graphics also look, maybe not technically, but art style wise really good. It only took me 25 hours to finish theI LOVED the game. It has an interesting story with ties to British mythology, a lot of great characters, which I all love (in exception of maybe 2 people). The soundtrack also isn't "weak" compared to Toby Fox' song and especially the late game music is absolutely great. The graphics also look, maybe not technically, but art style wise really good. It only took me 25 hours to finish the game but that doesn't really matter to me since I pretty much enjoyed every second of it, and I still sink a lot of additional time. The only two things I didn't really like (also why it's not a 10/10) were the wild zone and some Pokemon being shiny locked (legendaries and starters). The wild zone is too empty and really slows down the game if the switch isn't docked. The Dynamax raids are great though and also really good for shiny hunting. I honestly didn't really notice the absence of the National Dex when playing, so I can't really subtract points because of that.… Expand
  26. rayy07
    Nov 21, 2019
    10
    Game was pure fun and amazing! Love every second and enjoyed that it took 36 for me to beat the game while enjoying all its content on the way.
  27. Nudie
    Nov 21, 2019
    1
    Lazy, lazy lazy game design, where should I start?
    This game is a 3ds game ported over to the switch with some enhanced features. The textures, battle mechanics, animations, lack of Pokémon from other generations, lack of puzzles and an extremely underwhelming story have made this game lacklustre to say the least. The game suffers from ageing in all aspects and even has been rated lower    Lazy, lazy lazy game design, where should I start?
    This game is a 3ds game ported over to the switch with some enhanced features. The textures, battle mechanics, animations, lack of Pokémon from other generations, lack of puzzles and an extremely underwhelming story have made this game lacklustre to say the least. The game suffers from ageing in all aspects and even has been rated lower than shadow of darkness, which is decades older... Unfortunately this game missed a huge opportunity to showcase what Pokémon could look like on a modern day console, for example, Zelda breath of the wild had some of the most beautiful textures in a large map we’ve ever seen in any Nintendo game, which, we were eager to see in Pokémon. This was not the case obviously, as the textures are pixelated and unbearable. The greatest thing about this game is the fact that it is still some what of a Pokémon game, but that’s not enough in this day and age, I feel like I literally purchased a. 3ds game..... I would miss this one for sure, or try and buy it for under $20

    There is no excuse for not bringing all the Pokémon over all voicing the characters. Look at fire emblem, all cut scenes voiced to perfection, great textures, many characters and classes, long game (played 250hours). Come on don’t lie to us game freak this game was pumped out to get in before Christmas.    … Expand
  28. Evenstar1985
    Nov 21, 2019
    9
    I find it sad how on the 2 previous 3DS games the user score was less than 1000 people, now you see those fake negative scores/reviews on a really good game.
  29. ali2828
    Nov 21, 2019
    8
    Good game with many things to do. Don't understand all the hate reviews. Please give this game a chance it's really fun
  30. Another_user
    Nov 21, 2019
    10
    Honestly this is by far one of my favourite pokemon games i was genuinely afraid i was going to hate sword and shield but getting into the game i found myself to love this (sure they removed half the Pokémon every hates that and thats why it got some die ahed fans to hate this game) but don’t let that be the reason you dont pick up this game, in the wild area and in other routes pokemonHonestly this is by far one of my favourite pokemon games i was genuinely afraid i was going to hate sword and shield but getting into the game i found myself to love this (sure they removed half the Pokémon every hates that and thats why it got some die ahed fans to hate this game) but don’t let that be the reason you dont pick up this game, in the wild area and in other routes pokemon are wondering around and it actually feels like the galar region is inhabited by pokemon for once and its amazing. The gym battles and the championship battles are amazing it actua Feels like these battles are important for not just you but everyone in the region and i love that about these new games when the crowd start chanting and screaming its the best pokemon game I’ve played… Expand
  31. Desolark
    Nov 21, 2019
    8
    Don't listen to the review bombers who are salty their favorite Pokemon didn't make the cut! This is easily the best Pokemon game since gen 5 and maybe even better than that quartet. While I am sad at the dexit, the game's pros far outweigh that one massive con. Max Raid Battles are a blast with friends and the story and pacing are so much better than the slog that was SuMo/USUM. If youDon't listen to the review bombers who are salty their favorite Pokemon didn't make the cut! This is easily the best Pokemon game since gen 5 and maybe even better than that quartet. While I am sad at the dexit, the game's pros far outweigh that one massive con. Max Raid Battles are a blast with friends and the story and pacing are so much better than the slog that was SuMo/USUM. If you like Pokemon, you'll have fun with Sword or Shield!… Expand
  32. killerjdog51
    Nov 21, 2019
    6
    I have mixed feelings for these pokemon games. I love the wild area, even though they look terrible the concept is good. I also love all the new and unique pokemon, I just wish they had animated the pokemon better or had better move-sets. Because you do a move, and your pokemon is just picked up and shook in the air or something stupid like that and it seems lazy. My main issue though isI have mixed feelings for these pokemon games. I love the wild area, even though they look terrible the concept is good. I also love all the new and unique pokemon, I just wish they had animated the pokemon better or had better move-sets. Because you do a move, and your pokemon is just picked up and shook in the air or something stupid like that and it seems lazy. My main issue though is the story of the game. It was always like "go to the next gym" or "oh look there's a cool and exciting explosion over there, you cant go though so instead go to the next gym" and the story was simply boring and linear and I didn't like it. I did love the camps and that you could visit other camps. I was kinda disappointed that there weren't any Eevee-lutions or good post-game content.

    The reason I love pokemon Fire Red/Leaf Green/Emerald/Soul Silver/Heart Gold the best is because they had cool stories and great post-game content. Like gyms weren't the main story, they were more like side quests and I liked that. Or you could beat the league, and then a league captain would go away somewhere to train and you'd have to find them, and then when you rechallenged the pokemon league the champions would be so much stronger and I loved that. I loved the sevi-islands or the battle frontier that those games had. I just wish Gamefreak worked more on the story of Sword and Sheild, and that it wasn't like "fight the league once and you're done".

    I have mixed feelings about the game, I like some of the new stuff, I just wish it was done better. But by no means are these terrible games. It is a step in the right direction, I just think Gamefreak needs to spend more time polishing everything up. Hopefully the Diamond/Pearl/Platinum remakes are done well and given the proper time (just like fire red, leaf green, emerald, soul silver, and heart gold).    … Expand
  33. Rstark1991
    Nov 16, 2019
    6
    Fresh change from the classic playstyle but the exp share makes it a little easy
  34. FishLegs
    Nov 21, 2019
    1
    Watching your favorite game get bogged down by bad gameplay, low quality management, and piss poor animations and graphics hurts a lot. Playing these games since childhood especially stabs you in the throat just because of how much games like these mean to you.
  35. Dargonet
    Nov 21, 2019
    8
    I'm having fun with this game. Obviously Switch could handle technically more than this, but I still enjoy Pokemon and I love all those QoL improvements. I prefer them over Sun and Moon and now I'm hopefull for the future of the series. For a full price release it feels too much like a mobile game though. Only text dialogues, uninteresting in game cutscenes and still a story that isn'tI'm having fun with this game. Obviously Switch could handle technically more than this, but I still enjoy Pokemon and I love all those QoL improvements. I prefer them over Sun and Moon and now I'm hopefull for the future of the series. For a full price release it feels too much like a mobile game though. Only text dialogues, uninteresting in game cutscenes and still a story that isn't really offering anything to explore.… Expand
  36. Natalka
    Nov 21, 2019
    0
    0 из 10.
    Го6но тупого го6на.
    Где текстуры? Почему всё в мыле? Возможно нужно играть в каких-нибудь Тесла-глассес, где всё выглядит красиво отрисовано? За 60!!!! $ !!!!!!!! Я получила сырое нечто, во что невозможно играть даже после летс го, я уж молчу про какой-нибудь Y. Верните деньги!!!    0 из 10.
    Го6но тупого го6на.
    Где текстуры? Почему всё в мыле?
    Возможно нужно играть в каких-нибудь Тесла-глассес, где всё выглядит красиво отрисовано?
    За 60!!!! $ !!!!!!!! Я получила сырое нечто, во что невозможно играть даже после летс го, я уж молчу про какой-нибудь Y.
    Верните деньги!!!
  37. QuAc
    Nov 21, 2019
    6
    This game is the definition of mediocre. As a lifelong Pokemon fan I still don't give 2 flying **** about the national dex, most people complaining about it wont get even close to 100. The game does lack polish with my game crashing once during the 20 or so hours I have put into the game. it feel like a 40 dollar 3ds Pokemon game rather than a home console 60 dollar upgrade. But this isThis game is the definition of mediocre. As a lifelong Pokemon fan I still don't give 2 flying **** about the national dex, most people complaining about it wont get even close to 100. The game does lack polish with my game crashing once during the 20 or so hours I have put into the game. it feel like a 40 dollar 3ds Pokemon game rather than a home console 60 dollar upgrade. But this is still a fun Pokemon game, I went from town to town collecting Pokemon, battling other trainers and going to gyms which is the only part that makes this feel like a polished home console game. Going to a gym and after doing a mini game and maybe some story stuff, feel amazing. You walk into what looks like a sports arena and battle against the leader. which leads me to dynamax, which shows up just the right amount of time. you will only see them in gyms or in raid battles. the game shows so much charm with not only if you spin doing a jojo's pose, or the cool characters in gym with the pokeball on their head.overall an average game with some big technical flaws. I would give a 6.5 with them in and 7 if they patch them out.(also they got so many waifus god damn game freak). thank you for coming to my ted talk… Expand
  38. Borja_Ibrahim
    Nov 21, 2019
    4
    Tengo muchos sentimientos encontrados con este videojuego. Aunque no puedo parar de jugar y seguir capturando y entrenando, no puedo dejar de ver fallos y errores por todos lados que me dejan un sabor bastante amargo en la boca. Supongo que este placer culpable es fruto de querer ser "medio ciego" con esta franquicia a la que le he dedicado más de quince años de mi vida.

    Es Pokémon. Lo    Tengo muchos sentimientos encontrados con este videojuego. Aunque no puedo parar de jugar y seguir capturando y entrenando, no puedo dejar de ver fallos y errores por todos lados que me dejan un sabor bastante amargo en la boca. Supongo que este placer culpable es fruto de querer ser "medio ciego" con esta franquicia a la que le he dedicado más de quince años de mi vida.

    Es Pokémon. Lo mismo allá que cuando empecé en la franquicia cuando era un crío con Zafiro/Rubí, con Verde Hoja, Perla, Platino y un largo etc. Es lo mismo de siempre, sin evolución, pero sí con mejoras, que no es lo mismo. Trataré de explicar esto: cuando nos referimos a evolución, hablamos de que la fórmula del videojuego se ha reinventado por completo, quedando potenciada y mejorada en comparación con su fórmula anterior; cuando hablamos de mejoras, hablamos de que la fórmula clásica ha variado ligeramenta y se ha mejorado en ciertos aspectos.

    Con esto quiero decir que Pokémon jamás ha evolucionado. Sus mecánicas jugables han mejorado, gráficamente ha cambiado, etc. Pero la fórmula ha sido siempre la misma, aunque quieran decir que no cambiando de nombre a los Líderes de Gimnasio por Recorrido Insular o por Desafío de Gimnasios. Igualmente, los Movimientos Z o Megaevoluciones no una evolución de la franquicia, son mejoras jugables para un videojuego concreto, ya que hemos visto en SS/SH que han quedado borradas del mapa, como lo estará en el futuro el fenómeno Dinamax/Gigamax.

    Pokémon SS/SH no supone ningún tipo de aire fresco para la saga. De hecho, creo que Galar es, con diferencia, la región peor diseñada, la más pobre, simple y pasillescas de todas. Galar es un pasillo muy largo. Creo que Game Freak no supo, en ningún momento, adaptar al 3D. En Kalos y Alola pasa algo por el estilo, pero no tan exagerado como aquí, y en cuanto a diseño se salvan y escapan con bastante buena nota. El problema que no han sabido suplir es el de la cámara. Antes los mapeados los diseñaban como grandes zonas cuadradas por las que poder moverse ya que la cámara era cenital. Ahora, con la cámara frontal, las regiones se han convertido en una especie de pseudo-plataforma 2D. Pero paradójicamente es un problema que solucionan en el mismo videojuego. No hay más que ir al Área Silvestre para ver lo bien que le sienta (POR FIN) a la saga el manejo libre de la cámara. Si el diseño de Galar estuviese pensado desde este punto de vista, estaríamos ante una región muy diferente y no tan lineal.

    Eso sí, la dirección de arte me encanta. La paleta de colores es estupenda, pero gráficamente por momentos creo estar viendo un port mal hecho de 3DS. Es horrible. Creo seriamente que Let's Go se ve infinitamente mejor que Espada/Escudo, y me parece incomprensible.

    Pero bueno, más allá del apartado gráfico, que en Pokémon nunca ha sido el fuerte y puede pasar por alto (aunque ya estando en sobremesa, debería haber un mínimo de decencia), la jugabilidad tampoco mejora mucho. De hecho, como decía, es tan exageradamente lineal, que resulta aburrido. No hay zonas que puedas explorar mínimamente como siempre (más allá del Bosque Luminario y algún que otro pequeño rincón), ya que todas las zonas son guiadas. El pasillo te marca el rumbo. Puedes encontrar alguna que otra bifurcación, para algún objeto o algo, pero nada más. Las cuevas de esta región (las dos minas que hay) son dos líneas rectas. Fin. Es que no hay más. Han presumido de tener una región enorme y amplia y precisamente por esto que comento se queda como la más pequeña de todas. De capturar no tengo nada que decir, ya que es lo mismo de siempre; pero de los combates sí que quiero mencionar los combates en gimnasio, y es que molan mucho. El Dinamax (junto a esa BSO que potencia mucho el combate) mejora la estrategia de combate ligeramente (tampoco mucho, si tienes dos dedos de frente te das cuenta de que siempre es el último Pokémon el que Dinamaxiza) y aumenta un poco la dificultad.

    Sonoramente creo que todos coincidimos con que es de lo mejor. La BSO es una delicia y el apartado sonoro está muy cuidado. Mis dieses.

    A nivel de Pokédex yo soy de los que no le hace gracia el Dexit, pero en parte lo entiendo y lo puedo llegar a comprender. No me hace mucha gracia ver que más de la mitad de la Pokédex regional sean Pokémon de otras regiones y que solo 81 sean nuevos (mismo número al inicio de Sol/Luna, que después se amplió hasta 88), siendo la que menos tiene después de Kalos. Qué ganas tengo de volver a ver una región con una Pokédex nueva completa... Como ocurría hasta la Gen. 6. Ahora se tira por incluir a viejos conocidos y unos cuantos nuevos, y es un modelo que particularmente no me gusta nada.

    Y pese a todo, le echo muchas horas y trato de completar la Pokédex y entrenar. Porque le tengo mucho cariño a la franquicia y sigue siendo Pokémon. Pero... No es el videojuego que nos merecemos en Switch.    … Expand
  39. Frooshlime
    Nov 15, 2019
    4
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I think that the fun that comes from this particular game is supposed to come from the player, not the game. What's frustrating is that there's not much fun to derive from this game on its own because of how little content there is. What really hurts this game is that you could easily find more fun out of a ROM of Ruby and Sapphire.… Expand
  40. Swarley74
    Nov 21, 2019
    8
    Je ne comprends pas les notes des gens.... Si vous avez déjà joué à Pokémon avant, le jeu est plus beau, plus riche, il ajoute de la coop, une zone ouverte, des pokémons visibles... Pour un jeu Pokémon, il est génial. Par contre il est toujours aussi facile, et malheureusement aucun choix de difficulté possible. Mais en même temps c'est écrit Pokémon sur la boite pas witcher ou xenoblade.Je ne comprends pas les notes des gens.... Si vous avez déjà joué à Pokémon avant, le jeu est plus beau, plus riche, il ajoute de la coop, une zone ouverte, des pokémons visibles... Pour un jeu Pokémon, il est génial. Par contre il est toujours aussi facile, et malheureusement aucun choix de difficulté possible. Mais en même temps c'est écrit Pokémon sur la boite pas witcher ou xenoblade.
    Le prochain il a interet d'avoir :
    - Pokédex complet
    - mode hard : pas de multi-xp, taux de capture plus bas, prix plus élevés..
    - un vrai monde ouvert
    - l'antialiasing ON
    - le retour des GTS    … Expand
  41. Aldo1991
    Nov 21, 2019
    10
    Il brand finalmente getta basi per una nuova struttura, con un gameplay più fluido ed una veste grafica si altalenante ma guidata da un’ottima direzione artistica, do 10 per ovvie ragioni: bilanciare nelle mie possibilità voti non sense al di sotto del 5.
  42. asesinator21
    Nov 21, 2019
    4
    It does not offer enough content for its price. They are selling a 15 hour long game for 60 bucks,biggest rip off ever.
  43. drosan
    Nov 21, 2019
    4
    Game feels like being made while severely rushed - lots of basic gamedesign mistakes, UI flaws, lots of low-res "temporary" assets and textures. Lots of reused models from the same game - you can have 100% identical NPCs down to clothes. Understandably GameFreak tried to keep their annual pace and release the game before Christmas but they clearly didn't care about quality that much.Game feels like being made while severely rushed - lots of basic gamedesign mistakes, UI flaws, lots of low-res "temporary" assets and textures. Lots of reused models from the same game - you can have 100% identical NPCs down to clothes. Understandably GameFreak tried to keep their annual pace and release the game before Christmas but they clearly didn't care about quality that much.
    Delayed game will eventually be good, rushed one - won't ever be good.    … Expand
  44. Vengar1965
    Nov 21, 2019
    10
    I have never played a Pokémon game untill now. So I can't argue with criticism that people post. However, I can give my own personal view on the game. I am extremely enjoying this game. It is very short but I still am having fun. Especially playing with my friends etc. I like the fact the Pokémon are quite a few but not a massive list that I end up forgetting about some in my arsenal. TheI have never played a Pokémon game untill now. So I can't argue with criticism that people post. However, I can give my own personal view on the game. I am extremely enjoying this game. It is very short but I still am having fun. Especially playing with my friends etc. I like the fact the Pokémon are quite a few but not a massive list that I end up forgetting about some in my arsenal. The graphics are ok as it is a switch game after all and I wouldn't own one for graphics in the first place. It is very charming and colourful and quite addictive. I love the combat and cooking, fishing and camps are very interesting. Looking forward to further updates to game.… Expand
  45. FaffyWaffles
    Nov 21, 2019
    5
    A step in the right direction and 2 steps back. The wild area was brilliant, but sparse. Pop-in was rampant. The National Dex Removal just hurt. More than half the Pokémon are gone. The graphics and animations were not an issue (for me at least) until Game Freak made them an excuse for cutting content. For a franchise that makes more than Marvel, and with the power of the Switch behind it,A step in the right direction and 2 steps back. The wild area was brilliant, but sparse. Pop-in was rampant. The National Dex Removal just hurt. More than half the Pokémon are gone. The graphics and animations were not an issue (for me at least) until Game Freak made them an excuse for cutting content. For a franchise that makes more than Marvel, and with the power of the Switch behind it, it felt sub-par. By itself? It was... fine.… Expand
  46. Mack_thge_Sack
    Nov 21, 2019
    0
    I'm going to state my points and not my emotions, (although, i'm quite unhappy with gamefreak)

    1. People say not having every Pokemon in the game is "reasonable", why? i ask that because previous games on the DS, a solely handheld/portable system. (that I'm willing to bet has far less processing power than the switch) X and Y, OR/AS and Sun and Moon, Contained every pokemon and they are    I'm going to state my points and not my emotions, (although, i'm quite unhappy with gamefreak)

    1. People say not having every Pokemon in the game is "reasonable", why? i ask that because previous games on the DS, a solely handheld/portable system. (that I'm willing to bet has far less processing power than the switch) X and Y, OR/AS and Sun and Moon, Contained every pokemon and they are 3DS games, you're telling me that it was possible to put them all in those games but it was too much work to put them all into a CONSOLE game. i'm gonna call **** especially when there are those of us spending 120$ on both versions.

    2. Gigantamax and Dynamax is stupid(just an opinion(but the right one)), a) mega evolution had Twice as many forms making it much more versatile and meaning more people could have their favorite pokemon become even more powerful. 48 mega evolution, 20 some odd gigantamax.
    b) Sure every pokemon can gigantamax, but, you cant gigantamax whenever wherever like with mega evolution, also having your pokemon simply become giant and lose all of its unique moves (in my opinion) is far less appealing than keeping the moveset that i designed to work a specific way, if i wanted z-moves id play more sun and moon i don't care for your knockoff "dynamax" moves
    c) the ONLY way to get gigantamax is thru luck, in max raid battles, or through possible future events, so if i want to make sure my pokemon has the proper IVs, ability, Nature and characteristic i should probably just forget gigantamax unless i wanna spend every waking moment scouring the wild area, it makes the new staple for battling extremely inaccessible and undesirable

    3) finally the lack of content is absurd, i was waiting for maybe a second wild area(maybe in that snowy region) or something maybe a new post game area like previous games but its nothing its a tiny region(maybe the smallest so far) with short poorly thought out routes, uninteresting caves, Absolutely no Victory Road. and back to the lack of mons in the game, if they didn't put time into the out world, they obviously didn't put any more time and effort into animations than they did with X/Y-US/UM, no work on the plot of the game, then where did the resources go? gamefreak has either a lot of work in updates to do or pokemon is gonna be a thing of the past and ill just keep playing my DS versions where i can keep my longtime companions.    … Expand
  47. Kurisuda2992
    Nov 21, 2019
    1
    Compared to other Pokemon games that I have played this isn't one of the greats. The game itself isn't all too breathtaking, the battles only got a few animation improvements but that's about it. The wild area is the best part of this game and it slowly becomes dull, the curry cooking and relaxing with your pokemon is great. The one thing that irritated me was the lack of postgame content.Compared to other Pokemon games that I have played this isn't one of the greats. The game itself isn't all too breathtaking, the battles only got a few animation improvements but that's about it. The wild area is the best part of this game and it slowly becomes dull, the curry cooking and relaxing with your pokemon is great. The one thing that irritated me was the lack of postgame content. Dynamax is cool for a little while (4-5 times for me) then it got boring as well. If the game gets some updates in regards to more content or adding pokemon from previous games then I'll raise up my score.… Expand
  48. Xenoh
    Nov 20, 2019
    3
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. The game feels short und rushed. There is nothing to explore After finishing the Story. Only 3 legendarys and Team Yell is a joke.
    I dont care that there are only 400 Pokemon in the game, but putting almost all of them in this small open world Area is just sad. You can cycle in unter 10 seconds from one Route to the next. Nintendo rushed this game. Kids will enjoy it but a Pokemon fan will Not.    … Expand
  49. KrakenOfPepsi
    Nov 21, 2019
    4
    Metacritic has a pretty small character limit on their reviews, so in order to get all of my points across I'm going to split my reviews across the Sword review, and the Shield review. As a two parter of sorts. This is part 1.

    - The graphics are extremely poor in comparison with other Nintendo Switch games – with jagged, low-poly, blurry environments/textures, as well as dated, recycled    Metacritic has a pretty small character limit on their reviews, so in order to get all of my points across I'm going to split my reviews across the Sword review, and the Shield review. As a two parter of sorts. This is part 1.

    - The graphics are extremely poor in comparison with other Nintendo Switch games – with jagged, low-poly, blurry environments/textures, as well as dated, recycled models and animations (that were also used on the 3DS) as well as significant performance issues throughout the entire game.
    - For the first time in the entirety of the series they have decided not to include all Pokémon in the game – with the regional/national dex totaling just 400. Where as in Ultra Sun and Moon (the previous mainline installment) the regional dex had 403 Pokémon, as well as also having all 803 Pokémon in the game which you could trade over from previous games. It’s also worth mentioning that data miners have now revealed that all of the removed Pokémon have perfectly functioning models and code in the games files which aren’t used.
    - A new subscription service called ‘Pokémon Home’ is required to store Pokémon from Sword and Shield and other new Pokémon games. As well as this however, you will need your Nintendo Online service to access internet functionality on your Switch, and if you want to transfer your Pokémon from previous games you will also need a Pokémon Bank subscription. Yes – you will need to pay for three subscription fees to have access to what is a main staple of the series.
    - The amount of time spent in most of the game's areas is tiny. Within an hour I had defeated two gyms back to back and finished all of the areas in between them. These areas unlike previous instalments, feature very little diverging paths, little to no trainer battles, no puzzles, and nothing interesting to explore. These areas are tiny, and boring. And to make it worse, you can now avoid a lot of trainers, so you can almost just skip entire areas on your bike in mere minutes with little to no consequence because of how easy the game is. These areas also lack many exclusive Pokemon as most can be found in the Wild Area, this on top of having no HMs to unlock in the game means backtracking isn't necessary at all, and you will almost definitely never return to these tiny areas in your play through, making them totally forgettable and completely dull.
    - Dynamax sucks. When you Dynamax your Pokémon, it becomes extremely large without any other design changes for three turns and gets access to incredibly powerful moves. Mega Evolutions were introduced two generations ago, and were expanded upon with each following game. As well as this, they also implemented Z-Moves as an alternative to Mega Evolutions. Z-Moves let you unleash an incredibly powerful attack, much like the ones you can use when Dynamaxing, but you could only use once per-battle and couldn’t Mega-Evolve in the same battle if you used one. Mega-Evolutions are interesting, because it changes the stats, appearance, ability and sometimes even typing of a Pokémon when used, making some Pokémon viable to use which mightn’t have been before, and greatly changed how you could use others. The beauty of it was you could use it in literally any battle you wanted. It wasn’t necessary to beat the game, but it breathed new life into the competitive scene of the game, and also gave more casual audiences a fun little mechanic to play around with. Dynamaxing on the other hand completely replaces these mechanics, and can only be used in very specific circumstances in the main game. The only actual utility of this is to tank hits and deal huge damage, and 90% of the time you will only use Dynamax Pokémon against other Dynamax Pokémon, because normal Pokémon often cannot compete. My point in short is I think Dynamax takes two perfectly good mechanics which appealed to both hardcore and casual audiences, and replaces them with that is basically a worse version of both mechanics which only appeals to casual audiences instead, and in doing so alienates a portion of the for little to no good reason. And perhaps Dynamax could’ve seamlessly blended the two mechanics together if they bothered, but it’s painfully obvious that these mechanics were implemented for no other reason than to show off flashy animations
    - Almost every Pokémon in the game is available to catch, this includes third evolution Pokémon and very rare Pokémon such as Milotic. This removes any rarity and value the Pokémon had. For example: Dusknoir isn’t a valuable Pokémon anymore, because I don’t need to trade it with another player holding a onetime use item anymore, I just find it and easily catch it. Part of me thinks not being able to trade with older games is actually a good thing, because this totally ruins the “in-game economy” if you will, of the Pokémon series.    … Expand
  50. Crom1919
    Nov 21, 2019
    8
    is alright. played 50 hours min-maxing my team but didn't have a lot to do with a said team outside of playing with friends. the story is bad, environment and graphics i like. QOL improvements are really solid and a big step up from previous games.
  51. sakurai
    Nov 21, 2019
    6
    The game is fairly mediocre in all regards. The music stands out as pretty good and is the only outlier. Besides that, this feels like the most stripped down the series has ever gotten, and that's after the infamously bare bones Let's Go games. Yikes.
  52. triffy
    Nov 18, 2019
    9
    While the game is not the next gen leap many might have hoped for, it takes A LOT of steps into the right direction. Pokemons have Never been that accessible to catch and to train. High IV Pokemon appear in the super fun online raids. Yes, it’s far from perfect. But it is the most fun I had with a Pokemon game yet. And I played them all.
  53. Lance22
    Nov 21, 2019
    8
    Honestly I don’t get what all the controversy is about, Pokémon sword and shield aren’t that bad, Sure there are some things that could be rectified and/or updated (such as better graphics, A national dex to come out later or overtime, and a harder difficulty) in the future, So do I think the game is bad? No Absolutely not, The best way I can describe this is simply by saying “the game didHonestly I don’t get what all the controversy is about, Pokémon sword and shield aren’t that bad, Sure there are some things that could be rectified and/or updated (such as better graphics, A national dex to come out later or overtime, and a harder difficulty) in the future, So do I think the game is bad? No Absolutely not, The best way I can describe this is simply by saying “the game did not surpassed my expectations but it didn’t go below them either“ Anyway that’s my review on Pokémon sword and shield… Expand
  54. thepowered
    Nov 20, 2019
    1
    These critics were clearly bought for rating such a game with these grades !!!!!!!!!
  55. Fyy
    Nov 20, 2019
    10
    C'est un vraiment un très bon jeu injustement critiqué qui avec quelques modifications de Game Freak, aurait pu être parfait, mais malheureusement, ils se sont un peu reposés sur leurs lories, mais cela ne se ressent à peu près que dans les graphismes, l'histoire est prenante et vraiment intéressant !
  56. 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.
  57. Mat145
    Nov 20, 2019
    10
    It’s a great entry into the series. After having skipping the last few i felt this one was a worthy re-entry into the series for me and i wasn’t wrong.
  58. Opportunist
    Nov 20, 2019
    1
    For the sake of brevity, I'll group this game's many flaws into three overarching categories. You've already heard most of the criticisms, so I'll keep it quick.
    1) The lack of content typical of every first Pokemon game in a generation.
    2) Removal of content in previous games being played to an almost funny extreme - morw than half the Pokemon have been removed from the game's code, you    For the sake of brevity, I'll group this game's many flaws into three overarching categories. You've already heard most of the criticisms, so I'll keep it quick.
    1) The lack of content typical of every first Pokemon game in a generation.
    2) Removal of content in previous games being played to an almost funny extreme - morw than half the Pokemon have been removed from the game's code, you can't actually catch em all.
    3) Very, very poor graphics and optimization in conjunction with a slew of gamebreaking bugs.

    Do not buy this game. This series has many better titles to offer that would provide you with a much better experience.    … Expand
  59. Poochingus
    Nov 20, 2019
    2
    I don't give this a low score lightly. In fact, I kept myself aloof from all spoilers. I'm sure people will make their arguments, but at the end of the day, I will say some people are just hateful, while others are foolishly defending a company because of a sense of religious zealotry. I'll give a bullet list

    Pros: -new pokemon look pretty cool(except for the trash box legendaries    I don't give this a low score lightly. In fact, I kept myself aloof from all spoilers. I'm sure people will make their arguments, but at the end of the day, I will say some people are just hateful, while others are foolishly defending a company because of a sense of religious zealotry. I'll give a bullet list

    Pros:
    -new pokemon look pretty cool(except for the trash box legendaries which are impossible to tell apart).
    -many fun new moves and abilites on the pokemon
    -galaran forms are mostly good.
    -the opening town looks pretty
    -the open wilds area was a pretty fun idea
    -mixing the old style of wild encounters with the type from Let's go was nice
    -bede and Mr.Rose were cool characters
    -There is a pokemon named fapple and it is a flying apple.
    -I enjoyed the core gameplay as much as ever.

    cons:
    -$60 price point
    -first time in series history when it jumps to new hardware and there is no graphical upgrade(outside of pokemon models, which I always expected to be the same).
    -no improved shaders or textures, in and out of battles
    -battle backdrops dropped in quality from Sun and Moon including a now static camera.
    -random fps dips despite the lightweight load this game should be putting on the Switch
    -Cutscene animations were very sloppy, and highly recycled looping animations used for non-cutscene interactions
    - I found out that I can't import my living dex(the collection of 1 of each pokemon in existence because I gotta catch 'em all). This includes half of my competitive battlers from generation 4-7
    - doesn't use pokemon bank anyway(wasn't the point to future proof transferring?)
    - Literally makes it so that you can't catch pokemon over a certain level without a badge.
    - routes and town are incredibly short and devoid of exploration.
    - exp curve is whacked out, you don't need to fight/catch wild pokemon for exp ever to beat the game.
    - No large "Celedon City" location. No Victory Road. No Elite 4(recycles gym leaders instead).
    - Character designs for gyms and gym leaders left a lot to be desired. Each gym was the same stadium just a different color and icon. The gym leaders were half good, and half bad. The champion design was also pretty bad. Dark gym leader was the only one I truly thought was actually great.
    -pop in is really really bad. Many times I'd run into pokemon that appeared right in front of me, same with characters in the more "big" towns.
    -repels are glitched and don't seem to work. Stupid little level 3 pokemon popped up after I used repels in the post game and I kept running into them. They worked in Gen7 and the let's go games.

    Overall the real crime is the price. I was expecting them to either cram in content, or really stretch into a new console that has things as breathtaking as Zelda Breath of the Wild. However they did neither. It feels like these games belong on the 3DS, and I can't help but feel like they are less impressive than sun and moon were. If they had released these on the 3DS for $40 it would have been an okay game, still a massive step back in some ways, but at least okay. I don't know where that other $20 is supposed to be going and they left a lot on the table with the Switch and the hardware's capabilities. For now I will say this is my last pokemon game despite being a fan from day 1, sticking with it even when it wasn't cool anymore. This is the first time there are objective steps backwards with core features and a lack of wow factor when jumping onto new hardware. GBA color graphics and sprite design impressed me. the 3D in DS titles impressed me, and the full jump to 3D with the 3DS blew me away knowing how much hard work that was. This was downright tepid. I don't know where all the money goes, but clearly someone at gamefreak is pocketing it and not reinvesting it in games. I wonder if they just maybe got lazy and pushed this out for the holiday rush.

    Until they bring back the ability to bring all my pokemon up I probably will stick with ultra sun and ultra moon to battle a while longer. Outside of that I'll just use online battle simulators to have access to everything old with everything new. That is fine, but I am just sad I have to give up another beloved series because it decided to do silly things.    … Expand
  60. YungProto
    Nov 20, 2019
    0
    Feels like EA made this title. Unfinished game. They cut over half the roster to focus on other stuff to improve but There is nothing but lags and framedrops everywhere from wildarea to dynamaxing . Upscaled 3DS title in my opinion. First big pokemon titles on the powerful hardware and they failed miserably. Almost non existant post game battle tower has less features than the one fromFeels like EA made this title. Unfinished game. They cut over half the roster to focus on other stuff to improve but There is nothing but lags and framedrops everywhere from wildarea to dynamaxing . Upscaled 3DS title in my opinion. First big pokemon titles on the powerful hardware and they failed miserably. Almost non existant post game battle tower has less features than the one from ruby and sapphire wtf GF. 10/10 cashgrab.… Expand
  61. 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.
  62. pavestrella
    Nov 20, 2019
    3
    Too easy. The game makes sure you win everything easily. Lack of content compared to previous games.
  63. Schultzkyle
    Nov 20, 2019
    4
    This game is graphically lazy. It feels small and I hate the wild area. The game is small and the animations look about as good as the N64. Look it up.
  64. Pandacucho
    Nov 20, 2019
    8
    The low scores have been an exaggeration. This is a Pokemon game. Not the game a lot of fans wanted, sure. But these fans want a new kind of Pokemon game that is not yet created, not yet defined. This is, without a doubt, a Pokemon game. No alarms and no surprises.
  65. snakekingdom
    Nov 20, 2019
    10
    I have a suspicion that a lot of the REALLY bad reviews here are from those that haven't even played the game. It is better than 4.0 out of 10.
  66. BruceMemez
    Nov 20, 2019
    10
    It’s good, just because it has a N64 tree and not your favorite Pokémon dosent mean you have to **** on it
  67. Giackbazz
    Nov 20, 2019
    10
    Beautiful graphics and storyline. Been with pokemon since 1998, we grew together. Maybe all those snowflakes throwing S**t at it didn't.
  68. MeloiPT
    Nov 20, 2019
    10
    The most addicting Pokémon game I have ever played.
    Like everybody says, those graphics are a bit better than the Sun and Moon games.
    But for me is a 10/10!
  69. NintendoCritica
    Nov 20, 2019
    10
    This game is most certainly better than most, as it doesn't repeat the same old evil team formula. Usually, the games use 'oh look there's evil guy, and then he take over world, and then you win!' however, Sword and Shield use a formula which is kind of like a fresh breath of air. Sword makes Team Yell seem much better, as they are not really important in the story and are just fans ofThis game is most certainly better than most, as it doesn't repeat the same old evil team formula. Usually, the games use 'oh look there's evil guy, and then he take over world, and then you win!' however, Sword and Shield use a formula which is kind of like a fresh breath of air. Sword makes Team Yell seem much better, as they are not really important in the story and are just fans of Marnie. At first, I was surprised that Nintendo didn't try to cash in on the Ultra Wormhole for Sword, which was probably the worst feature in Sun and Moon. Ultra Wormhole basically broke shiny worth since it was common to get Ultra Wormhole shinies, and I'm quite glad they removed it. Other than that, yes, the models in Sword and Shield are reused, however, the rendering of the models is so much better than previous game model renders. Sword and Shield also takes a while, I skipped most scenes at the beginning and made the dialogue faster, which made my time on this game only 3 hours to the first gym! The first gym route is also quite long, so I can see why most people have trouble on it. It is quite easy, however, Nintendo's target audience is mainly kids, even though adults and teenagers can enjoy their games as much or even more than kids. For one of the younger players like me, it is a great game which might turn out as one of my favorites! I recommend it as a present for the holidays.… Expand
  70. emercy
    Nov 20, 2019
    3
    Mi reseña de Pokemon Sword

    El juego es un salto atrás , como unos 15 años atrás. acepto que me digas que quitaste a la mitad de los pokemon porque no iba a dar tiempo de hacer los gráficos de todos , pero porque aun así tus gráficos son malos , la animación se queda corta para el 2019 , Zelda BOTW lo hizo bien y es enorme , porque aquí no ?, las animaciones de los NPC es básicamente    Mi reseña de Pokemon Sword

    El juego es un salto atrás , como unos 15 años atrás.
    acepto que me digas que quitaste a la mitad de los pokemon porque no iba a dar tiempo de hacer los gráficos de todos , pero porque aun así tus gráficos son malos , la animación se queda corta para el 2019 , Zelda BOTW lo hizo bien y es enorme , porque aquí no ?, las animaciones de los NPC es básicamente inexistente, la misma persona con la que te comenta algo al inicio del trayecto , te la encuentras al final con otro propósito diferente . y sobre los gráficos de los pokemon , faltan animaciones de varios ataques , y no entiendo la necedad de meter a tanto pokemon con aspecto humanoide , por ratos sentía que estaba viendo una caricatura gringa por los horribles diseños de los nuevos pokemon.

    La música solo encontré dos temas relevantes , las demás pasa desapercibida , las canciones de los estadios que debería ser la mas épica , es regular y parece robada de las fiestas brasileñas . que por cierto en la batalla final contra el campeón , la música fue inexistente .

    La historia del juego fue un sufrimiento, el protagonista parecía ser tu rival , todo giraba en torno a el , y tu jamas importabas para nada . ademas la clara ausencia de un buen villano , porque los villanos que había como en típico anime narutesco , se convertían en tus amigos , y el giro en la historia donde aparece el villano , solo dura 5 minutos y ya se acabo .

    La mecánica del juego a sido simplificada a niveles ridículamente bajos , entiendo que las mecánicas de hace 20 años son obsoletas , pero porque no pones nuevas mecánicas en lugar de simplemente eliminarlas , le baja la dificultad del juego y sientes que todo se te regala , ya no hay una verdadera dificultad o sentimiento de esfuerzo por el que tu luchaste .

    El área silvestre tengo sentimientos encontrados, creo que es una idea interesante , pero mal llevada. Si la hubieran llevado al nivel de tamaño de Zelda BOTW , con mecánicas por áreas , misiones , seria mas entretenida , pero siento como que pusieron todo muy junto y sin orden alguno, espero este punto se sienta diferente en el online

    Conclusión , un juego que prometía mucho no cumplió y quedo defraudando aun mas .
    Emercy.    … Expand
  71. Shellshock010
    Nov 20, 2019
    0
    It looks and feels like the product of a rushed production with ZERO effort into making anything worth the players time. GameFreak holds the reins to the highest grossing franchise in the world and they can't even animate the characters in their own games? Pokemon sword and shield look like a 3DS game with less content and more technical issues. The online is unplayable due to the lack ofIt looks and feels like the product of a rushed production with ZERO effort into making anything worth the players time. GameFreak holds the reins to the highest grossing franchise in the world and they can't even animate the characters in their own games? Pokemon sword and shield look like a 3DS game with less content and more technical issues. The online is unplayable due to the lack of optimization and due to an unstable netcode. I've spent 20 years playing pokemon but now I got tired of not holding GameFreak accountable for their lack of respect towards fans. You want good pokemon games in the future? Don't waste your time on these last two.… Expand
  72. sojasonk
    Nov 20, 2019
    1
    Lazy writing, bad graphics, an absolute mediocre and underwhelming introduction to Mainline Games for the Nintendo Switch. GameFreak has done the community a disservice by removing integral parts to long time loyal fans such as the National Dex. They do this because they feel they can get away with coasting simply on the name of Pokemon alone
  73. Valteck
    Nov 20, 2019
    9
    He terminado el juego, se me ha pasado rapido el tiempo que inverti y puedo decir sin termor que como juego cumple, es divertido. La historia, que se puede decir es un pokemon y punto, si buscas algo mas complicado hay muchos libros hoy en dia. Los guiños a el online y un fututro mmorpg de pokemon ya no parecen tan lejanos y aunque es verdad que el ping es algo malo a veces, es pasable.He terminado el juego, se me ha pasado rapido el tiempo que inverti y puedo decir sin termor que como juego cumple, es divertido. La historia, que se puede decir es un pokemon y punto, si buscas algo mas complicado hay muchos libros hoy en dia. Los guiños a el online y un fututro mmorpg de pokemon ya no parecen tan lejanos y aunque es verdad que el ping es algo malo a veces, es pasable. Lo de la pokedex incompleta me ha quedado claro que no quedara asi y en las incursiones se iran añadiendo esos pokemon que faltan. El post game promete y mucho, la competitividad crecera al haber simplificado la crianza, es un juego que dara muchas horas de si y no dudo que en uno o dos años veamos la version ultra de este juego.… Expand
  74. davidavies
    Nov 20, 2019
    10
    With all of the controversy surrounding Pokémon Sword and Shield before release I will admit I was slightly apprehensive about these games but regardless I pre-ordered a copy of Pokémon Sword upon visiting the Pokémon Center in London. I've played every single Pokémon game on release day and I've always enjoyed them so I was hoping for the same here. Needless to say I was not disappointed!With all of the controversy surrounding Pokémon Sword and Shield before release I will admit I was slightly apprehensive about these games but regardless I pre-ordered a copy of Pokémon Sword upon visiting the Pokémon Center in London. I've played every single Pokémon game on release day and I've always enjoyed them so I was hoping for the same here. Needless to say I was not disappointed! Immediately the game had me grinning from ear to ear, a feat which the series has not achieved with me since the original Ruby and Sapphire versions! I have played the game through casually, going at my own pace, catching everything in sight and simply enjoying myself. Doing A this, including enjoying the online functionality and exploring everything, it took me around 50 hours to finally get around to finishing the main story, and I still have more to do! I'm determined to catch every Pokémon available in the game! Sure, these games don't have every Pokémon available in them but that's not as bad a thing as some would have you believe! These games are an absolute blast and the most fun I've had with Pokémon in years!… Expand
  75. RCKatz
    Nov 20, 2019
    7
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Pokemon Sword and Shield are the best Pokemon experiences since generation 4. With the story taking a back seat during the adventure, the player is focused on competing with their rivals to complete the gym challenge earning a spot in the championship series. Each gym offers some pretty interesting challenges that range from herding Wooloo to answering questions and maneuvering around pitfalls. The atmosphere of the battles was quite stimulating as the stands were filled with fans cheering and shouting making it feel like a much bigger deal than past generations. The game gets a lot of grief for not having much of a post game, but between working to complete your Pokedex, raising Pokemon and participating in Raid Battles/Battle Tower, the player will find many more hours of content in the games! The battle tower format has changed and it is now easier to jump into after becoming the champion with the ability to rent teams. This game follows the Pokemon formula well but aside from Dynamaxing, does little to improve upon it.It also offers the easiest version of the Pokemon League in the series history as your team is fully healed between battles. My biggest gripe with the game is the inability to capitalize upon the rare trainer cards in raid battles. Being able to choose a teammate among the group of trainers you journeyed through the game with would only improve the raid experience. Many times you get stuck with first evolution Pokemon against 5 star raid bosses and spam moves that don't benefit the progression of the battle. Of we could change this with trainer cards and recruit members based on the battle we are preparing for, it would cut out a majority of the luck dependency and the player could focus more on actual strategies.… Expand
  76. Raicakes
    Nov 20, 2019
    10
    Having beaten the game now, I can honestly say this is the next evolution of the franchise. Being in full HD with an insanely large amount of quality of life fixes, the franchise has a bright future if this game is any indication. The Wild Area, in particular, is so much fun - the raids, the camps, and of course the sheer amount of random wild Pokemon you can find here is probably the bestHaving beaten the game now, I can honestly say this is the next evolution of the franchise. Being in full HD with an insanely large amount of quality of life fixes, the franchise has a bright future if this game is any indication. The Wild Area, in particular, is so much fun - the raids, the camps, and of course the sheer amount of random wild Pokemon you can find here is probably the best part. The few negatives, such as the draw distance being just "okay," don't stop the game from being simply amazing.… Expand
  77. Lawrence7
    Nov 20, 2019
    10
    For anyone debating whether they will like the game or not - stay assured that game freak put a lot of thought and love into this game. I played non-stop the last few days, and I have had a blast. A very charming and fresh addition to the series. There is always room for improvement of course, and I hope the next games on the switch are even better. As a casual Pokemon fan I am very happyFor anyone debating whether they will like the game or not - stay assured that game freak put a lot of thought and love into this game. I played non-stop the last few days, and I have had a blast. A very charming and fresh addition to the series. There is always room for improvement of course, and I hope the next games on the switch are even better. As a casual Pokemon fan I am very happy with it and don’t regret buying it at all.… Expand
  78. 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
  79. SennaTheSenna
    Nov 20, 2019
    0
    I don't think the game is really worth a zero (I would say a 5 at best), but I'm just trying to compensate for that big green 82. If you want my honest opinion, user ChocolateCrane describes the problems I have with the game very well. If you want to read their review, which is a very good review tbh, sort by "Most helpful".
  80. 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
  81. Rayomanaka
    Nov 20, 2019
    0
    Total disappointment. This game isn't even a shadow of past games. Lacking moves, pokemon, graphics... everything is a mix of good ideas with a horrible execution
  82. Gamegang
    Nov 20, 2019
    8
    It’s Pokémon that’s all and I don’t care if all the Pokémon are in the game or not.
  83. DoctorFox
    Nov 20, 2019
    9
    This entry in the mainline Pokemon series is a great one. Despite all the negative backlash concerning the removal of the national dex, Game Freak has pushed the series in a successful new direction. The story is easygoing and fun, the dynamax / gigantimax feature is fun too, the wild area is awesome and overall the game is super enjoyable - as games should be!
  84. 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
  85. fpkalac
    Nov 20, 2019
    4
    Well, this is a huge disappointment, this game... where to start?! The story is nothing new and we all know that the story in pokemon games is not that important, so I'll just skip it. I really hoped that when they said they cut down on something, they'll raise the bar higher in other stuff. Like voice acting, visuals, animations.. nope, nothing, they just got lazy and are riding on theWell, this is a huge disappointment, this game... where to start?! The story is nothing new and we all know that the story in pokemon games is not that important, so I'll just skip it. I really hoped that when they said they cut down on something, they'll raise the bar higher in other stuff. Like voice acting, visuals, animations.. nope, nothing, they just got lazy and are riding on the glory of the past entries. We have great games on switch, and pokemon sword and shield are still in a 3ds league. I' would advise you to wait for a wait for a discount to buy this game.… Expand
  86. landon94
    Nov 20, 2019
    9
    Pokemon Sword and Shield changed the negative trends we've been seeing in pokemon games since generation 5. While everyone is complaining about the national dex they are ignoring the fantastic new pokémon in this game. The difficulty isn't there yes that's true but the wild area and other things make up for it. The new changes to gyms made me actually excited to enter a gym for the firstPokemon Sword and Shield changed the negative trends we've been seeing in pokemon games since generation 5. While everyone is complaining about the national dex they are ignoring the fantastic new pokémon in this game. The difficulty isn't there yes that's true but the wild area and other things make up for it. The new changes to gyms made me actually excited to enter a gym for the first time in quite some time. It all feels much better and more satisfying even if the difficulty isn't there. I went ahead in the wild area and spent hours there, the game encourages you to do so thus playing it in your own way, so when you end up beating the game in your own way it gives you an amazing feeling. I enjoyed every second I was playing this game but it isn't perfect, for the majority of the beginning of the game Hop holds your hand through the first gym i believe. The post game is a bit underwhelming and the end of the main game can linger a bit. Team yell isn't much of an evil team at all but your focus on the gym challenge makes it so the game doesn't really need one. All the major plot twists were predicted but that doesn't make any of them less satisfying to uncover. The linear region lead to me to feel the progression and the wonderful scenery allowed me to love every second playing this game. It appeals to old pokemon fans and new pokemon fans, for what nintendo was trying to do pokemon sword and shield hit it right on the head.… Expand
  87. HollyS
    Nov 20, 2019
    2
    Very short, bland and low quality Pokemon game. It is definitely not worth $60. It uses graphics from the 3DS and has many bugs in gameplay, it can even fry your Switch and all other games save files. It only has about 40% of existing Pokemon available. It is very tutorial and baby proofed feeling the entire game. Too easy. Characters are annoying and constantly i interrupt gameplay
  88. firex
    Nov 20, 2019
    0
    Bajones de FPS, las " raids " con bots cuando no entra nadie, esto hace en muchos casos imposible tirarlas, ya que te ponen pokemons que no pueden ni atacar, no puedes intercambiar directamente con tus amigos, es mediante codigo, muchas veces la raids nisiquiera se cargan, historia MUY corta y muy facil, mecanica de curry innecesaria, sobretodo cuando pones la escusa del tiempo en laBajones de FPS, las " raids " con bots cuando no entra nadie, esto hace en muchos casos imposible tirarlas, ya que te ponen pokemons que no pueden ni atacar, no puedes intercambiar directamente con tus amigos, es mediante codigo, muchas veces la raids nisiquiera se cargan, historia MUY corta y muy facil, mecanica de curry innecesaria, sobretodo cuando pones la escusa del tiempo en la cantidad de pokemons añadidos, muy mala gestion por parte de GameFreak, cada vez nintendo pierde mas calidad es sus productos, de momento creo que el juego no vale el precio de salida, si en algun momento cambian estas cosas, modificare la puntuacion.… Expand
  89. Tommeow
    Nov 20, 2019
    8
    In spite of what most people will tell you (at least if the scores are anything to go by), this is not a bad game. It’s still Pokemon, it’s still at the very very least competent, and most importantly it’s still fun, which a lot of games struggle to accomplish. Pokemon Sword and Shield are many leagues better than other games with similar user scores to this, even if it’s disappointing inIn spite of what most people will tell you (at least if the scores are anything to go by), this is not a bad game. It’s still Pokemon, it’s still at the very very least competent, and most importantly it’s still fun, which a lot of games struggle to accomplish. Pokemon Sword and Shield are many leagues better than other games with similar user scores to this, even if it’s disappointing in many regards and honestly speaking most people’s opinions are heavily affected by lofty ideas of what it should have been, not what it is. Removed from the pretenses of being the first Pokemon game on a console this is still a good, albeit underwhelming game. Does it deserve a 10? No, of course not, but it doesn’t deserve anything less than a 4 either. Just because a game isn’t what it could have been doesn’t make it automatically a bad game as much as a lot of people would like to say otherwise.… Expand
  90. scart35
    Nov 20, 2019
    5
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. So I would like to start my review with statement that I'm a big pokemon franchise fan and I realy do care about the games and as every PKMN fan i want them to be good.

    That's the correct word,SWSH is only good.

    When you first start the game you're presented with beautiful (for pkmn standarts) cutscene welcoming you to the game. And from here my hype started to vane. As with SUMO game is constantly holding you by the hand and will not let you do anything "wrong". Hau...I mean Hop is the new "rival" if you ever can say that about him as he is too much positive about everything (and he will also heal up your mons everytime you're going to fight him!what a bro) and posing literaly no threat. After a while you'll arrive in the one of the new additions to the series - The wild area. Which is pretty much wider route and it won't take you long to cross it to the first city. Wild area hosts also another adition - raids. Raids are fressh and cool adition to the game but it's shine fades very quickly and it can get very boring after few runs. You can join the raid even without online player and in that case NPCs will join you in your efforts. Which is good for those without stable or even no internet but it's not so good as NPCs are overpowered and will easily defeat the dynamaxed pokemon on their own. After that you're able to cath the weakened pokemon - and here is where the game starts to brake down. Usually pokemons from raids are 15lvl+ are very easy to catch (cought almost 50+ pkmns from raids and never failed a once) and raids drop rare candies and XP candies - which will provide amount of experience depending on the type of the XP candy. Raids are very quick way to lvl-up your pokemons at the start, Which is very bad as with exp share (which you can't even turn off) you'll out level not only the first gym but every other after that. I was personaly constantly at least 10+ lvls above wild pokemons,players and gym leaders, making the game very very easy. Won't write too much about the story as it is almost not existens. Speaking of not existent, the post game is also not there for player not digging the PVP and farming the raids/completing regional dex. Hour to two running errands and cathing legendaries is simply not enough. Combined with baffling removal of the GTS, you're left with wonder trade (renamed to surprise trade) as your "neverending well of fun".
    Oh and did I mentioned the cutscenes and dialogues which are there every 10 to 20 minutes and are not skippable? Yup, it's anoying and most of the time they are not moving the "story" forward. Routes are as short as ever with only few patches of grass and few easy trainers. Game is also missing the classic caves/islands with puzzles.
    For the first entry of PKMN games on the Switch is very...meh. Just meh, Pokemon games can't be bad in their nature and that's why we won't get great pokemon game, GF don't have to make it.
    Technical:
    Models of newly added pokemons are great,animations of them are great and complete style is spot on. But that's it. Old pokemons are not updated for the big screen. Low ress textures, horrible animations that would be bleeding edge on the PS1. SOme moves are only pokemons making a move in general direction (I'm loking at you double kick) and animations in cutscenes are very poor.
    Regarding the graphical side of the game, the game looks good but not so BOTW or SMO beautiful. The object pop/in is ever so present and sometime it's very visible and anoying. Textures are low res and background is even worse - almost of DOS game quality (2019?yuck...) Music is in equal quality and is made of very well know music themes from previous PKMN game. Sometimes is glitchy and missing. And almost forget pokemon cries are still the same,mono MIDI sounds like you know them from the original Gameboy in 90's...why GF why.

    TL;DR - It;s the same old same pokemon game without pretty much any story, with lackluster rival,team yell and dialgues and non existing post game for casual player. Game is always holding your hand and in 90% of the situatins won't let you do it "wrong".Map is small, routes are shorter than ever,no dungeons/caves/islands with puzzles. Newly added content is cool but boring after a whil. With removal of GTS system your only post game is battle tower (meh) and pvp battles. Graphics are ok,music is ok. If you want your Pokemon fix as I did it will sate your hunger only partialy. And that's how the game feels,half baked, half the rating.    … Expand
  91. zycore718
    Nov 20, 2019
    5
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Summing up Pokémon Sword/Shield in one word - "safe". While other Nintendo franchises innovate, Pokémon is stuck in its ways. This doesn't make the games unenjoyable, but leaves me with a feeling of missed opportunities, like the games are being treated as nothing more than a tool to push the brand.
    Game plays well enough. Didn't notice any significant slowdowns. No big changes to the formula. Will say that the League feels the best it ever has, so at least they made some kind of effort to jazz it up. Most trainers have 1-2 Pokémon at most, Gym Leaders 3-4. Basic battles that you can easily take care of if you've played Pokémon before. If you spurn all side activities, you'll be on par level-wise with other trainers for most of the game. It’s okay as it has always been, but in the end just another Pokémon game. Probably my biggest gripe, especially after 20+ years of this over and over. IMO, this is the biggest thing that is holding the series back.
    Played on Lite and graphical flaws weren't that noticeable to me, except the draw distance and ‘pop-in’ on models which is abysmal. Game looked nice in some places, like the Galar Mine. Corners were cut; it’s only day or night at set locations. Several times characters were in a building/city, and teleported to a nondescript field/blank void for battle. Sun/Moon had proper day/night and managed to render backgrounds for all locations, can't understand why they went backwards. Battle graphics do their job well enough, but not much difference from previous games and boring for a 2019 game. Not a lot of improvement over the 3DS era, I understand why people are angry.
    As a UK citizen Galar definitely resembles a touristy version. Route/dungeon designs better than Sun/Moon. Towns don't have a lot to do besides Gyms and clothes shop. Story though inoffensive is basic even for a Pokémon game. Despite this, the game pads with fluff dialogue to keep railroading the player. Hop/Sonia constantly pop up to remind me to go this way or that. Characters are terrible. No difference at all between Hop and Sun/Moon's Hau. Sonia does nothing except exposition to move the plot forward. Team Yell are Team Skull with a punk coat of paint. Chairman Rose and Oleana are obvious 'twist' villains. Only liked three characters – Opal, Piers and Bede, who I wish I got more of. Everyone else is dispensable and unmemorable. Used the Wild Area to get away from the incessant mundane dialogue and characters, this is the only thing that makes it tolerable.
    Overall Pokémon quality has taken a nosedive. I look at Pokémon like Inteleon, Mr. Rime and Eiscue and shake my head. That's not to say there aren't some standout designs in Gen 8 - Dreepy line is fantastic, Falinks is clever, most of the Galarian forms are great. But it feels like Pokémon are now designed to be quirky cartoon characters rather than living monsters in a world.
    Music - Good as always. Hop’s battle music got stuck in my head. Gym Battle music is great and helps make the Gyms feel like an actual spectacle. Wild Area music is phenomenal, just frustrating how grandiose the music would be if only they stopped using the same outdated MIDI-sounding VST plugins, which bring down the soundtrack.
    ‘New’ features mostly repackaged from old games. Tried out various curry recipes before getting bored, whole process is repetitive. Went the whole game not knowing Poké Jobs existed. Dynamax looks cool at first, but novelty wears off quickly and is nowhere near as visual or strategically flexible as Mega Evolution/Z-Moves. Wild Area and the Raids were my sanctuary for much of the game. Had tons of fun wandering around, battling high-leveled Pokémon for a challenge and doing Raid battles online. Quests, more NPCs, more environment variety and little side stories would have made it more vibrant. Yet again, missed potential.
    The game was a comfortable jaunt like previous entries, but having had echoes of ideas that could turn Pokémon back into a wondrous world to get lost in, I came away from Sword/Shield wistful over what could have been. Wild Area sticks out like a sore thumb from the rest of the game, and exposes the datedness of the old Pokémon 'formula'. I always felt disappointed when I had to go back to following the Designated Game Freak Path. Majority of the game ultimately does nothing new and, coming back to the 'Dexit' issue, there's just not enough here that convinces me the cut was really worth it right now. That could change in the future if Game Freak seize the opportunity to refresh the games like developers have with other similarly-aged series. Not optimistic though, as they appear to be inside a nostalgic bubble and believe that as long as they have 'Pokémon' on their games, they don't need to move forward as developers and can coast along with the same old forever. In which case Pokémon as a game is in for a bleak future which will probably end with a whimper rather than a bang.    … Expand
  92. Dicjac
    Nov 20, 2019
    10
    Wonderful Pokemon game with some great new features and gameplay. Love the art style and graphics. Sure some Pokemon are missing but you still have 400+.
  93. EUWraith
    Nov 20, 2019
    2
    - Wild Area is a pretty fresh concept for the franchise but isn't well implemented, it suffers from spouts of lag if multiple players are in the area which ruins the good feeling i get from stepping into pokemon's first open area to explore. Overlevelled pokemon are present in the area which is excellent, however they changed the game so you can't catch pokemon above your badge level, this- Wild Area is a pretty fresh concept for the franchise but isn't well implemented, it suffers from spouts of lag if multiple players are in the area which ruins the good feeling i get from stepping into pokemon's first open area to explore. Overlevelled pokemon are present in the area which is excellent, however they changed the game so you can't catch pokemon above your badge level, this is a major letdown as levelling in this game is ridiciulously easy, essentially forcing the player to railroad the story just to come back to the wild area so they can actually catch the higher level pokemon they encounter, nothing better than seeing a pokemon you really want on your team in the wild area, nothing feels worse than running into that pokemon and the game telling you, you can't catch it.

    - Player design is quite solid this gen, customisation options continue to improve beyond the previous gen. The character designs for the story are actually well presented and feel unique to this game. Pokemon designs for this generation are a mixed bag for me as always, especially the starters, but theres certainly something for everyone in this new batch.
    While the design is decent, the characters themselves are so bad it's meme worthy.
    Hop is literally the Galarian form of Hau from Sun/Moon right down to the animations. Leon interrupts your journey every 10 minutes or so to talk about how undefeated he is and his charizard. Marnie is a decent charcter but suffers from being connected with the 'evil' team this generation, Team Yell, who literally do nothing to help the story out save for blocking some roads. Bede is the generic gladion copy / paste except he actually has even less of a character than gladion.

    - Handholding is rampant in this game, the exp share can't be turned off, there are items to boost experience by a lot readily avaliable to the player, moves will now tell you their effectiveness against the opposing pokemon completely ruining the need to memorise type matchups at all and reducing the combat to a braindead one-shot clown fiesta because ALL your pokemon are 10+ higher levels than the champions by the time you get to him due to the exp share. World design is bland and uninspired, copy-pasted rooms, large straight corridors with little room to actually explore the new region are all done to funnel players to the next town, next gym, rinse and repeat until post-game.

    Post-Game is a shambles and feels more like what usually happens near the climax of the main story in most prior pokemon games, instead of seeking out and capturing the cover pokemon before the climatic final battle to help you beat the main threat to the region, the game once again holds your hand by having both covers show up as bots to help you take down the threat, making it pretty much impossible to lose the final fight, removing any stakes or feeling of importance, the covers would have come regardless of your interference and they can basically win the fight by themselves, so there's no point in you even going there because there's no threat, terrible story telling.    … Expand
  94. notadinosaur
    Nov 20, 2019
    0
    Gamefreak should be stripped of their rights being the sole developer of pokemon and give way to younger devs such as those who worked on BOTW and Xenoblade.

    Pokemon has TONS of potential but **** devs don't have the skill to make a full realization of pokemon as it should be.
  95. Kampfer
    Nov 20, 2019
    4
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Un juego más de lo mismo y con contenido recortado, y claro, a precio de juego completo. Los gráficos no son la gran cosa, parecen una versión HD de los de sol y luna, además las animaciones, una de las supuestas excusas para no tener a todos los Pokémon, en su gran mayoría son muy simples, hay unas que están muy bien pero otras pecan de simpleza como el doble patada, las animaciones en los personajes también no son muy variadas.
    En cuanto. ala historia es interesante pero no llega a ser muy increíble. En conclusión este juego que podría haber sido una nueva experiencia fresca sigue manteniendo la misma fórmula, que en si no está mal pero pudieron haber echo una mejor entrada a los juegos a una consola con mayores capacidades que una portátil.    … Expand
  96. DumbFum
    Nov 20, 2019
    0
    I just think it’s bad they don’t have the national Dex Honestly I know not everything is black and white and such but I genuinely believe they rushed the game for sales every November since Sun and moon there’s been a new Pokémon game I don’t like that Sure this game does a LOT right but I still think it deserves this low score to show gamefreak we care about The National Dex and want ourI just think it’s bad they don’t have the national Dex Honestly I know not everything is black and white and such but I genuinely believe they rushed the game for sales every November since Sun and moon there’s been a new Pokémon game I don’t like that Sure this game does a LOT right but I still think it deserves this low score to show gamefreak we care about The National Dex and want our Pokémon games made with time and love feel free to disagree because the simple fact is yeah this mostly cause of the National Dex it’s not cause I want all the Pokémon well I do but still I think slowly but surely if this yearly release thing keeps going then Pokémon’s gonna become no different then Say Madden or Freaking EA sports games bold claim I know but it’s what I believe so yes this is a good game but I’m giving it a low score so maybe hopefully the next Pokémon game is made without the stupid deadline but maybe IM the stupid one… Expand
  97. Sinoce
    Nov 20, 2019
    4
    It's solid in what it does. It is a main line Pokemon game. Sound, graphics, story, all what I expect.

    My first issue the EXP share. I just want to turn it off. If you want to trade early, you are punished because those pokemon will soon stop listening to you in battle. I noticed I hardly used them because I was fighting t keep my other pokemon up to their level. It's great for loading    It's solid in what it does. It is a main line Pokemon game. Sound, graphics, story, all what I expect.

    My first issue the EXP share. I just want to turn it off. If you want to trade early, you are punished because those pokemon will soon stop listening to you in battle. I noticed I hardly used them because I was fighting t keep my other pokemon up to their level. It's great for loading up some weaker pokemon and grinding them up, but everyone was level 25 or higher by the time I got to the first gym.

    Easy mode. I think every few seconds someone is there to heal me before I go and battle someone or something. Its fine for those who need that help, but now their is no challenge for those who are looking for one. I laughed when I got the escape rope as a key item.

    The dynamax system doesn't wow. It feels like the power rangers' villain made the monster grow and I should summon a megazord to fight it. I know sun and moon had the power ranger poses but now we are actually getting giant monster battles. Stay in your lane.

    I actually like the idea of camping out. The idea of being out in the wild catching and leveling up pokemon sounds great. Probably what actual trainers would do. EXP share cuts down the time I would need to be out in the wild areas though.

    Trading is the worst I've ever seen before. I assume close to a million games have sold world wide. Typing in a 4 digit code to maybe find a friend to trade with is a terrible idea. It took my friend and I about 15 minutes to find each other, another 10 to get lucky enough to actually get paired to trade. Trading would work better as an auction house. "Trading ____, looking for ____." Then people could click and trade. At least let me connect to my friends without having to jump through hoops.

    TMs/TRs. When Game Freak first introduced TMs that could be used over and over, I think everyone cheered. So adding TRs is somewhat of a let down. This is a step back in my opinion.

    EV/IV and natures. I'm happy there is a one stop shop to help get all these things. My problem is that in X & Y, they had a mini game that was great for doing it on the spot for training. I wouldn't have to worry about running into the wrong pokemon to battle because I could max out the pokemon's stats after catching it. Now I have to wait until the end of the game before I can focus just on that without a headache.

    These are just some of the things, besides what everyone else is mad about, that I wish would've been fixed or thought over in more detail.    … Expand
  98. dandan791
    Nov 20, 2019
    4
    Copying my review from the Shield version as they are the exact same game;

    I have been a long time Pokemon fan, and I totally feel the disappointment in the negative reviews. I originally gave this a rating of 2 simply because I’m horrified by some of the choices that were made in creating this, but I decided to change my rating to a 4 because even though it’s a “bad“ game compared to    Copying my review from the Shield version as they are the exact same game;

    I have been a long time Pokemon fan, and I totally feel the disappointment in the negative reviews. I originally gave this a rating of 2 simply because I’m horrified by some of the choices that were made in creating this, but I decided to change my rating to a 4 because even though it’s a “bad“ game compared to other pokemon games it’s still a Pokemon game. I wish they had simply focused on really showcasing what they could do with a Pokemon game on the Switch, but rather they chose to cut corners where they IMO really shouldn’t have (especially considering the promises that were made during the creation of the games). I don’t know why, but Let’s Go seemed more polished than this.

    You have 8 preset character designs to choose from, all of which are really really boring, and I wish a more thorough character customization tool (besides hair, eyebrows, and eye color) were in place. They cut a ton of my favorite Pokemon (all in all they cut 400 pokemon out of the games completely). The graphics are bad compared to other switch titles (but obviously good compared to the 3DS versions of Pokemon, but that should go without saying). The story is flat, the characters are uninspiring, and the conversations are dry. “Dynamaxing” and “Gigantamaxing” seem gimmicky. The latter was slightly more intriguing, but I cannot understand the big difference between this and the Mega X&Y forms, so to release it as a “new” feature seemed a bit odd to me. Also, why spend time on that and not time on including all the Pokemon and polishing the game? I managed to ignore other annoyances like the occasional stuttering, lifeless 3DS style animation in trees and greenery, and the odd bug here and there. However, my disappointment peaked towards the end of the main story (no spoilers) when they chose to suddenly change the typical 3D movie scene of people talking to a few still images of blatantly obvious concept art with subtitles running below. It felt random, out of place, lazy, and like a total break from the general art style in the rest of the game. It literally only happened once in the entire game, but during a pretty important conversation. The concept art images were pretty ambitious, so I assume they just didn’t have time to finish the actual scenes. It made me see just how rushed this game was, and it also made me critically look at just how many corners they cut (and promises they broke) in making this game – it’s a lot.

    If they release updates and DLCs in the future I am more than willing to change my review, as I feel like there is a solid skeleton in place here. It just feels hollow compared to other titles. So... as a Pokemon fan I’m incredibly disappointed with these two games, but it seems obvious to me that this is not a proposal to the core fan base. This is to all the parents that want an easy holiday present for their kid and it will sell like hot cakes regardless of the reviews. Kids will gobble this up and be happy, as is the case with every single Pokemon game.    … Expand
  99. 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
  100. DaShCAm
    Nov 20, 2019
    9
    Great Game. Had a lot of fun and enjoyed it alot. I absolutely recommend trying it out and have fun
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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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