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. Overlorde
    Jun 22, 2020
    4
    This game has some cool new features , a really nice over world and "open area". That being said , its the shortest main game in the franchise , the legendary pokemon are boring and forgettable , and the roster of available pokemon is lack luster and almost depressing. Essentially they ripped out a chunk of the available pokemon roster , and sold it back to us. If the game looked amazingThis game has some cool new features , a really nice over world and "open area". That being said , its the shortest main game in the franchise , the legendary pokemon are boring and forgettable , and the roster of available pokemon is lack luster and almost depressing. Essentially they ripped out a chunk of the available pokemon roster , and sold it back to us. If the game looked amazing or had some great graphical enhancements or even brought back player favored core mechanics , id be more happy. Overall its short , boring , non repetitive due to the short pokemon list , and overall disappointing for a new system release and a 2020 pokemon game.… Expand
  2. Maxttvd
    Jun 22, 2020
    6
    Falta brilho num jogo de uma franquia que necessita urgentemente de uma reinvenção.
  3. Unquer
    Jun 22, 2020
    1
    This game has some good stuff, i actually like the new pokemon designs, the soundtracks are really good, the story even though it felt short, is enjoyable, has some useful new features like the way wild pokemon appear, how ever, these pokemon games are very disappointing, they removed 60% of the pokemon in order to "improve graphics and animations", how ever, the graphics are relativelyThis game has some good stuff, i actually like the new pokemon designs, the soundtracks are really good, the story even though it felt short, is enjoyable, has some useful new features like the way wild pokemon appear, how ever, these pokemon games are very disappointing, they removed 60% of the pokemon in order to "improve graphics and animations", how ever, the graphics are relatively poor, and animations didn't really improve much if any compared to previous games, the post game is really bad, the battle tower is a horrible downgrade from previous ones, no multi battle option here, online multibattles have a horrible system, i personally enjoy doing multibattles in the battle towers with my friends the most in the post game, or being able to queue with a friend to team up against other people online, how ever, this is not possible in these games, they removed features fans love like mega evolutions and Z-moves, they took away options from the players and sold them out as "new features" like forcing you to exp. share, the cities feel empty, overall the game feels rushed and incomplete, as someone who has play pretty much every single pokemon game from the main series, this game was insanely disappointing, it feels like GameFreak does not care about the fans or their games, just about the money… Expand
  4. Joseph28
    Nov 17, 2019
    1
    1/2 the roster severely hurts a game with all the flaws of the original game. Less interesting new mons and all your faves gone. Very little postgame and a shrunken metagame.
  5. Axldelta1
    Jun 21, 2020
    0
    Tengo el pokemon escudo (bueno ya no, lo he vendido), pero lo pongo tambien aqui ya que ambos son la misma basura.
    Sere breve.
    Una estafa.
    No lo compres (a no ser que quieras tirar tu dinero para conseguir perder el tiempo).
  6. Ultra-cesar
    Jun 21, 2020
    6
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Realmente la falta de una pokedex nacional, una historia muy corta y villano deplorable me hacen cuestionar si valio la pena comprar el juego, pero no todo es malo, las mecanicas de los dinamax es bastante interesante y le da un sabor dirente tanto a las batallas de gym y las batallas para consegir el titulo.
    Sin embargo tengo que resaltar que pudo ser mejor y tener un mejor desarrollo como juego en todos sus aspectos.    … Expand
  7. K3vher
    Jun 21, 2020
    4
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. El juego me aburrió al empezar con tanta cinemática, al juego le falta dificultad y mejores rivales, me preocupa que los siguientes juegos sean iguales… Expand
  8. Brans812
    Jun 21, 2020
    8
    Pokemon SW/SH is great in innovation, with the wild area, Pokemon have introduced a excelent and very fun experience when is about catching pokemon, maybe we´re missing the national pokedex, but in fact, is something that you forget when you´re enjoying the adventure. Althought the fact of seeing Pokemon appearing of no-where is something that kills the immersion, is something that shouldPokemon SW/SH is great in innovation, with the wild area, Pokemon have introduced a excelent and very fun experience when is about catching pokemon, maybe we´re missing the national pokedex, but in fact, is something that you forget when you´re enjoying the adventure. Althought the fact of seeing Pokemon appearing of no-where is something that kills the immersion, is something that should be improved in next titles. In my opinion this titles are a good begining for the franchise on home consoles. Probably not the best titles, but are fun and they have a lot of innovation that should be enjoyed.… Expand
  9. Diego271094
    Jun 21, 2020
    0
    Una basura completa juego lineal sin historia sin sorpresas aburrido una basura completa la peor generacion de todas pokemon escupo y estafa
  10. Kotoxfi
    Jun 21, 2020
    3
    They had a big chance to make this a great pokemon game, but choose not to. There are so many bad decisions made by the developers. I can't recommend this game.
  11. Lazariyo
    Jun 21, 2020
    8
    There are a lot of missed opportunities in the main story, but where it lacks in that is compensated by a lot in other aspects: The game is very accesibleis in building competitive teams, the music is top notch as always, the environments and landscapes are diverse and beautiful, gym battles are the most immersive of the entire series and of course the wild area and max raid battles.
  12. mpesk
    Jun 21, 2020
    8
    good game, the new pokemon and artworks look good. During the campaign there's an actual story consistently present. The rivals during the story have their own personality, which is characterized quite good, more than the latest games for sure. The whole concept of gym challenges is a bit refreshed and enhanced, thanks to the dynamax feature too. The post game is almost existent, it triesgood game, the new pokemon and artworks look good. During the campaign there's an actual story consistently present. The rivals during the story have their own personality, which is characterized quite good, more than the latest games for sure. The whole concept of gym challenges is a bit refreshed and enhanced, thanks to the dynamax feature too. The post game is almost existent, it tries to hide it with the dynamax raid and the release of new form, sometimes it makes it, sometimes not. It's perfect for competitive pokemkn, by speeding the process of making pokemon for official competitions. On the graphic side there some losses, some bad animations and some textures are not so good, especially if compared with the 3d models of the pokemon, which are well made and good looking. Dven the online is messy and not so well managed. In the complex is a good game, with some fresh air contents that I hope will be expanded in the future.… Expand
  13. pipechile
    Jun 21, 2020
    0
    nintendo masssss de lo mismoooo... necesita aires nuevos... ya me tienen hasta la recha¿¿ con sus pokemin
  14. Cross2killer
    Jun 20, 2020
    6
    It's just okay at best. Nothing really to write home about. I cant help but feel like it is a bit of a step back from the older games. I also am a bit worried about what the DLC model will mean for the future of the franchise.
  15. Flippy09
    Jun 20, 2020
    10
    Such a great game, everything I enjoy about pokemon, well over five hundred hours into this game.
  16. Lindagamer
    Jun 20, 2020
    0
    El juego esta incompleto, y te lo venden a trozos , las versiones anteriores tienen mas contenido que este.
  17. Calabasaloka
    Nov 15, 2019
    0
    Pokémon nunca ha sido una franquicia especialmente ambiciosa. Es más, para algunos su atractivo reside, precisamente, en su anclaje a un estilo de combate por turnos que parece haber quedado en el olvido por el resto del mercado (con excepciones, claro está). A mi parecer, su conservadurismo ha llevado a Pokémon a ser lo que es hoy: un producto mediocre, incapaz de reinventarse, que cadaPokémon nunca ha sido una franquicia especialmente ambiciosa. Es más, para algunos su atractivo reside, precisamente, en su anclaje a un estilo de combate por turnos que parece haber quedado en el olvido por el resto del mercado (con excepciones, claro está). A mi parecer, su conservadurismo ha llevado a Pokémon a ser lo que es hoy: un producto mediocre, incapaz de reinventarse, que cada nueva entrega trata al jugador con mayor condescendencia. Jamás había visto creadores tan ajenos a su producto. Si Pokémon alguna vez fue un proyecto apasionado, ya solo quedan los restos insulsos de lo que alguna vez fue. Los fallos de estas nuevas entregas son muchos, por lo que haré una lista de algunos, aún a sabiendas de que será insuficiente:
    -Apartado gráfico sorprendentemente malo, sumado a las animaciones ortopédicas. No soy ni diseñador gráfico ni animador, tan solo un jugador del montón. Pero esto tiene que ser de coña. Tomándolo con humor, hasta agradezco que sea tan descaradamente desastroso visualmente; soy de quienes lloran de la risa con la cutrez del primer Resident Evil en este aspecto. No hay mucho que explicar, los que jugamos entregas anteriores sabemos que han reciclado hasta las animaciones de los personajes humanos (que ya de por sí dejaban mucho que desar) y que la cuestionable calidad de modelados y texturas se hacen más evidentes que nunca con el salto al HD.
    -Repartir experiencia forzado, que hace del juego prácticamente injugable. Un juego de estrategia en el que la estrategia es innecesaria, a mi parecer, es muestra de una incomprensión absoluta del modo en el que el juego debe interactuar con el jugador. No hay tensión ni placer en el jugar.
    -Eliminación de la GTS. Nada más que añadir.
    -Sustitución de mecánicas ya consolidadas (véase la megaevolución) por otras más pretenciosas que solo agradarán a los jugadores de Pokémon GO.
    -La ausencia de todos los Pokémon hasta la fecha. Esto no es algo que me moleste particularmente, de no ser por el desdén con el que se ha tratado a sus potenciales consumidores. Espero que la desconexión entre compañía y usuario se vea reflejada en las ventas.
    El único punto positivo de los juegos son los diseños de los pokémon, algunos más creativos que otros, pero tan ideales como siempre; más sintiéndolo mucho, unos diseños bonitos no redimen ni por asomo sus carencias.
    En resumen: la saga Pokémon ha muerto definitivamente, (para quienes lo dudasen incluso tras la salida de los Let's Go) y tristemente, los consumidores de comida basura que son sus fans, los responsables de su muerte, no la dejaran descansar en paz. De hecho, los fans estarán encantados con los títulos, para ellos lo tendrán todo: fanservice a más no poder y la inflada de precio a los 60€ que muy gustosos pagarán en su afán consumista, junto a los múltiples servicios de pago. Ah, y no nos confundamos. Esto no es un producto dirigido a los niños, sino a adultos que se niegan a crecer. La franquicia de Super Mario ha crecido junto a sus jugadores aún siendo accesible a nuevas generaciones. Pokémon intentó crecer, pero no pudo, porque sus jugadores nunca lo hicieron.
    P.D. Muy fan de la escena inicial del juego, que no echa en falta doblaje ni mucho menos.    … Expand
  18. Robertinho123
    Jun 20, 2020
    7
    I really enjoy the base game, but there's very little postgame, raiding is okay, but honestly the online system is so crap that 5 star pokemon are almost impossible to catch.

    When some of the mechanics are so broken, it's hard to give it more than a 7. If they fix the online, I'll bump it to 8, but I doubt that'll happen.
  19. timren1
    Jun 19, 2020
    1
    Franchise ruined by GreedFreak who refuse to put any effort into their games anymore and push out games every year like it's Call of Duty. Pokemon died after Gen 4.
  20. sabiogamer
    Jun 19, 2020
    0
    Un juego Recortado, eh incompleto, muy mal, le falta mucho por delante, y recortaron el juego solo para cobrar mas. las gráficas son las peores
  21. lokip1983
    Jun 18, 2020
    3
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. i was looking forward to sword i even got a new poke-ball to get mew, when i seen the expansion coming out i knew i had to get it when i seen legend Pokemon out i knew it was going to be good but i was mistaken i completed the first map in 4 hours ive not seen any legends in my game but when i play the battle raids i seen people use legend Pokemon thats not even out yet is it worth it NO is it worth the money NO, they need to put more Pokemon legends in there like i said ive not got one im not looking forward to the 2nd part of the new map the crown tundra.... so disappointing… Expand
  22. dislexicpotato
    Jun 17, 2020
    6
    Pokemon Sword & Shield are by far the weakest mainline Pokemon games in years, just a bit of context:

    Gamefreak lied to the fanbase, claiming that they needed to remove over HALF of the Pokemon in order to ‘improve animations’ when in reality the animations are ripped right from the 3DS games. The annual releases are killing this franchise nevermind the mediocre graphics, laughable    Pokemon Sword & Shield are by far the weakest mainline Pokemon games in years, just a bit of context:

    Gamefreak lied to the fanbase, claiming that they needed to remove over HALF of the Pokemon in order to ‘improve animations’ when in reality the animations are ripped right from the 3DS games. The annual releases are killing this franchise nevermind the mediocre graphics, laughable animations, noticeable pop in, EXP share being mandatory making the games even easier than usual when the Pokemon games are already too easy, the game also only takes 15 hours to beat and has practically 0 post game. Do not support Gamefreak with these half assed efforts. They even removed Aipom wtf???    … Expand
  23. riverkev95
    Jun 17, 2020
    5
    Es un juego con muchas ideas interesantes pero ejecutadas de una forma cuestionable.
    Muchas decisiones del juego son polémicas y definitivamente se nota que le hicieron muchas horas de desarrollo para obtener una experiencia decente.
    El juego brilla por sus mecánicas clásicas, accesibilidad a nuevos miembros y curiosas innovaciones, pero falla terriblemente en quitar cosas de    Es un juego con muchas ideas interesantes pero ejecutadas de una forma cuestionable.
    Muchas decisiones del juego son polémicas y definitivamente se nota que le hicieron muchas horas de desarrollo para obtener una experiencia decente.

    El juego brilla por sus mecánicas clásicas, accesibilidad a nuevos miembros y curiosas innovaciones, pero falla terriblemente en quitar cosas de generaciones anteriores que ya estaban muy bien recibidas por los jugadores.
    Un gran error fue recortar casi la mitad de los pokémon y carecer de un post-Game decente. Este contenido faltante se venderá en un pase de expansión de $30.00 que contendrá más de 200 pokémon y el post-game que le hizo falta, aún así no se completará la pokedex nacional.

    En conclusión, Pokémon Sword/Shield no es un pésimo juego, pero está lejos de ser un buen juego. Es un juego entretenido, pero mediocre. Los más fanáticos, aquellos que compraban ambas versiones desembolsarán mucho dinero ya que pasarán de gastar $80.00 a $180.00 ya que el pase de expansión es ligeramente diferente para cada juego y se vende de esa manera.    … Expand
  24. Aaa4
    Jun 16, 2020
    2
    Wow i got mad seeing how this game turned out, i shouldn't really say anything because other people alredy said it. It's the shame of the franchaise
  25. Nebbyy
    Jun 15, 2020
    6
    It’s really generic in my opinion, fun but still hella generic. I really enjoy all Pokemon games but this was not a standout. It just doesn’t give me the excitement that platinum or black and white 2 gave me. Also why did you cut out soo many Pokemon :((
  26. Lizarino
    Jun 13, 2020
    5
    This game is very mixed for me. It is the same formula as the previous Pokemon games with a few nice additions but a lot of flaws with it.
    I would give this game a 6 or 7 / 10 but because of it's price (£40 or more at current) I'm lowering it to 5/10.
    - This is the first and only Pokemon game I've played where I've abandoned my starter at the start of the game. All 3 starters and their    This game is very mixed for me. It is the same formula as the previous Pokemon games with a few nice additions but a lot of flaws with it.
    I would give this game a 6 or 7 / 10 but because of it's price (£40 or more at current) I'm lowering it to 5/10.

    - This is the first and only Pokemon game I've played where I've abandoned my starter at the start of the game. All 3 starters and their evolutions are just ugly, boring and have no interest in them at all.
    In terms of new Pokemon this generation it is also mixed. There are some that have really good designs and moves, and then some which are just really boring and uninspired.
    The new forms for old Pokemon I like and the new legendaries I like.

    - The story and characters are probably one of the worst of the Pokemon games as well. I can't even really remember the story that much after finishing the game a few days ago. The characters are really annoying and bland, namely Leon. This game also lacks a clear "bad guy / team".

    - The graphics and performance at first I thought were pretty good for Pokemon standards. However the further I got into the game the more performance issues I got, mainly frame drops and lots of really bad pop in.

    - The gyms were what you would expect from Pokemon games. They're almost the same as previous games which I like. Only thing I don't like about the gym battles were that they took place in stadiums, where you couldn't hear anything but the loud and annoying crowd. Music and other sound was mostly non-existent.

    - I didn't like dynamaxing at all. It felt like an annoyance that was forced on me instead of mega evolutions which I personally really like.

    Some of the features I liked in this were the Pokemon jobs system, accessing your boxes from anywhere, character customisation and the league card system was okay. The camping system was mixed, although I liked the playing with your Pokemon part, it was very lacking in what you could do. The curry system I didn't really enjoy.    … Expand
  27. Teosas
    Jun 8, 2020
    1
    This game is just incomplete, it isn't funny and the cut of the roster is one of the worst things in the world, it isn't make sense, the graphics is decent but is not up to the hardware.
    (The switch can run Zelda BoTW)
  28. Shaedowhunter
    Jun 6, 2020
    2
    A lot of bugs, immersion breaking due to unreasonable/unnecessary pop-ins, decisions on some parts of the game are baffling and nonsensical, the story-line is terrible, even for a young audience it's too childish. The decisions on dialogue in the middle of battles and "multiple choice" on the dialogues in the story are useless, and serve no meaning to the story or have any consequence. TheA lot of bugs, immersion breaking due to unreasonable/unnecessary pop-ins, decisions on some parts of the game are baffling and nonsensical, the story-line is terrible, even for a young audience it's too childish. The decisions on dialogue in the middle of battles and "multiple choice" on the dialogues in the story are useless, and serve no meaning to the story or have any consequence. The game would've been better without the story-line and dialogues. The only reason I bought this was in hopes the Crown Tundra DLC would be worth it.… Expand
  29. Dave300
    Jun 6, 2020
    2
    As a big Nintendo fan and a Pokemon fan as well. I'm so dissapointed with this game. It's not the first time. Last few Pokemon games have been losing quality but this one is the most dissapointing one. Gen 6 was dissapointing. 7 was worst, Let's go games were bad. I was super excited for this game espacially after the Pokemon direct but that E3 gameplay killed all mine and a lot of fan'sAs a big Nintendo fan and a Pokemon fan as well. I'm so dissapointed with this game. It's not the first time. Last few Pokemon games have been losing quality but this one is the most dissapointing one. Gen 6 was dissapointing. 7 was worst, Let's go games were bad. I was super excited for this game espacially after the Pokemon direct but that E3 gameplay killed all mine and a lot of fan's hype. There were no national dex. Gamefreak said they did it so it would have better graphics and animations. And the graphics looked even worst than N64 games. Animations are all reused and low quality. This game is on the same system as Botw and Mario Odyssey. I wouldn't care about graphics if they didn't lied. The worst part is they are bringing a lot of old Pokemons with new DLC. They are literally selling the rest of the game. I thought they said that switch could not run every pokemon while DS and 3DS did? The base game is not even worth 60 dolars. We also have to pay money every month to bring our old Pokemons which is so expensive. So much more than the old one. We also have to pay for switch online. İt's ridicilous. The story is rushed and the gameplay adds nothing new. There are giant pokemon fights. How amazing! The strange part is graphics looks great when you are in a town but the wild area looks worst than the N64. They probally rushed the wild area. İf you have already played a Pokemon game before than just don't buy this cash grab. But the fact that this game sold 16 million in 3 months shows that fans just doesn't care at all. But buying this game will make next Pokemon games worst. Pokemon is no longer a good franchise for me. I'm done with it. This game only sells because it is a Pokemon game. That's it. The only reason why I gave this 2 stars is because I love Pokemon's gameplay. But the game is just not worth it. Just replay old Pokemon games and you will be better. Don't waste 60 dolars and don't support this.… Expand
  30. LeMagiMagikarp
    Jun 5, 2020
    6
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I felt compelled to write a review so I could do justice to the game. Being clear, it isn't the worst game ever. Where it shines, shines. But the shinning spots coexist in a multitude of problems, some of them old dear "friends" of the Pokémon franchise.
    In first place, let's talk about the Dexit. Being a player since 1999, when I first started Pokémon Red, all games always felt unbalanced. And the great expansion of the Pokédex along the years hasn't done anything to really fix that. Rayquaza needed its own tier. Meta in last generation was vastly dominated by Tapu and Ultra Beasts. Protean Greninja was a thing in Gen 6, when the use of Megas was almost required. Game Freak does a poor job recognizing these problems. Rebalancing a game around 400-ish creatures, well-selected, with new monsters, abilities, movepool alterations would be a welcome project, stimulating experimentation and giving some overlooked Pokémon the opportunity to shine. Switching from Megas and Z-moves and other obvious gimmicks to a single, less buffed, mechanic would also dynamize battles.
    Sadly, none of this actually happened the way it should. Dynamaxing became pretty centerfold of combat, and we got still another Charizard power-up. Few to none Pokémon was reworked to make it viable, with the exception being few Galarian forms. And, after Alolan Meowth, I don't know anyone who honestly thought that was a Pokémon in need of another recharacterization. Now, was partly undone in a scammy DLC-exclusive route, which doesn't seem - again - to fix our problem. So, what was broke, just remained.
    That said, the cartoony atmosphere of the game was very well-done and cohesive. The game is cohesive. The UI is clean and the best in the series so far. New Pokémon are creative and well-designed. The trainer customization has evolved a lot. QoL improvements very needed came to light in this instance. Be it the accessible boxes, the easily-manageable exp, EVs, IVs and Natures (making competitive much more approachable in a time-scarce world) or the HMs fully begone. The most notable one though, is the Pokémon being visible on field. The humour is also top-notch comparing to previous entries, the Fairy Gym sub-arc and the train line blockade being among my favorites.
    On the artsy side still, the soundtrack is ok with a few highlights, such as the gym leader battle theme, but it sounds like composed without its setting in mind. It's still definitely a Pokémon soundtrack, but a subpar one. Toby Fox's presence.
    And it ends here. Sword (& Shield) suffers then problems the series has struggled with its newfound identity since Kalos. The post-game, once the most anticipated and challenging part of the game is quasi-gone. In its place, we have a pretty short (and dull) narrative about the continent's lore, which doesn't even expand the lore at all. No more dungeons, or anything resembling explorable areas. The map is the most linear since Kanto (which, even then, gave you some freedom to the order you would traverse it). Caverns, mountains and volcanos with any backtracking or silly puzzles? No, none of it. And what appears at first time to be a colorful and extensive land becomes fully seen in no more than 20 hours. For comparison, the fixed camera angle and successive corridors feel more a limitation than a creative choice. The Gym challenge helps to break the tedium. Challenges are, for most, fun, solving the old problem of making gyms less repetitive (and enjoyable again). But the leaders mostly come out of nowhere. There isn't a clear and compelling reason to keep going on the campaign and it's also too short. The new format for the league, on the other hand, is a breath of fresh air. It makes the gym leaders and their scalling a little more believable. The "championship" format is well-done enough to feel alive, and your title as champion as something earned, in opposition to the soft-rebooted status it has amid previous iterations' postgame content.
    In my earlier remarks it's clear much of the problems within the game come from its linearity. Some people as I may had hopes the massive Wild Area would solve this. It's not the case. Raids are a new fun element and all, but the difficult to connect to other partners and repetitiveness of the task undermine it. And there's little more to the Wild Area than this. The lack of explorable environments and constant popping up of Pokémon and field elements only make it worse. Many times I felt bored, obligated to do this to get any Gigantamaxes.
    At last, the subplot is among the weakest. It's not about being simple or childish. JRPGs with simple plot can be meaningful (ex: DQ). It's not the case. Much is reused from Alola: the characterization, the villain plot twist. Team Yell is just tiresome, and the Chairman's machinations aren't that coherent. I could congratulate the build-up to Eternatus fight, which is careful. The fight is itself underwhelming. As is, as exposed, the whole game.    … Expand
  31. priZ_Ex
    Jun 4, 2020
    6
    Pokemon Sword and Shield is the 8th generation of Pokemon games. For me, the game lacked any challenge, the exp. share makes the game easier then it needs to be. The story is okay for the most part, if played in one sitting it can be very short. Post-game there isn't much to do. You have the real short and tedious post story, and that's about it. The wild area is neat with it's camera andPokemon Sword and Shield is the 8th generation of Pokemon games. For me, the game lacked any challenge, the exp. share makes the game easier then it needs to be. The story is okay for the most part, if played in one sitting it can be very short. Post-game there isn't much to do. You have the real short and tedious post story, and that's about it. The wild area is neat with it's camera and the raids that can be held there. The cities and certain other places do have vibrant colors and some places do not. The mechanics are basically the same with new items, and Pokemon. The game doesn't feel like it's worth $60 dollars, more like $40. Hopefully the expansion makes up for the lackluster story.… Expand
  32. urzu_se7en
    Jun 4, 2020
    3
    If you think this game worth 10 points you never played a Pokémon game before.
  33. Winnd
    Jun 3, 2020
    1
    Not have all pokemons
    This game is a mix of the legend of Zelda ocarina of time with pokémon snap
    Ps2 Graphics
    3d models taken from Nintendo 3ds
  34. The-Pad
    Jun 2, 2020
    4
    This game is bad. The graphics are comparable to late PS2 releases, the plot constantly interupts you, the Wild Area is emptier than the streets during a World War. DO NOT BUY.
  35. Zezuca
    Jun 2, 2020
    6
    I've played every single Pokémon release since Red and Blue. While this game is not worse than Sun/Moon or X/Y, it's certainly lackluster and disappointing, all things considered.

    The new "dynamax" mechanic is gimmicky and doesn't change gameplay a lot. As the story progress and the player gets stronger, dynamaxing is unnecessary, since the battles are child-like easy. The story is    I've played every single Pokémon release since Red and Blue. While this game is not worse than Sun/Moon or X/Y, it's certainly lackluster and disappointing, all things considered.

    The new "dynamax" mechanic is gimmicky and doesn't change gameplay a lot. As the story progress and the player gets stronger, dynamaxing is unnecessary, since the battles are child-like easy. The story is nothing to write home about, pretty standard Pokémon plot. The characters are certainly likable and the dialogues can sometimes be interesting or funny, especially Sonia's lines.

    But none of those things were the main selling points of the series. Exploration and monster-collecting are the two pillars that the franchise should never drift away from. Unfortunately, this iteration really disappoints the players who enjoyed travelling through the past game's locations: like Sun and Moon, this has nearly no depth and all the paths are linear, no mazes or challenging locations. If rushed through, this game can be finished in less than 20 hours.

    The gym challenge is as easy as it has never been before. Even considering the dynamax mechanics, I couldn't elongate the battles to enjoy the good music, because one-hitting every single Pokémon is a given. This is a pattern that goes all the way through the champion. Mash A with a right type matchup and the job is done. This is a good welcome for newcomers, but adds absolutely no value for old-timers like me.

    Now, the graphics. They are not beautiful. All houses' interiors are the same. Textures are bad and this game feels like an upscaled 3ds title a lot of times. Surely, there are some stunning places and routes, but you'll not spend more than 30 minutes to pass through those. Overall, the graphics are really lackluster, plenty of recycled animations and assets are not balanced by the nice art style.

    The music is very nice, and keeps up to the series' good standards.
    Pokémon camp and curry aren't really exciting as I expected them to be. Pokémon don't really have unique interactions and the whole Camp thing seems buggy and rushed. The curry gimmick has no depth, and it gets repetitive really fast. It did not make me want to complete the "curry dex", since the whole mechanic is basically combining random ingredients with berries then proceeding to the minigame.

    The one thing this game nearly nailed where the raids: a really cool new way of getting Pokémon and a new breath of fresh air in the franchise, completing the Pokédex was a fun challenge, trying to change the raids and looking for new monsters everyday. The problem lies in the NPCs that fight alongside you in singleplayer: they are absolute thrash. Those bots hinder the player more than helps, as they keep dying, which leads to failure in defeat the raid. It's a problem especially after the 5th badge, and the steep difficult between 4* and 5* battles turn the previously fun (but repetitive) battles in frustrating experiences for those who don't usually play online.

    Now, for the multiplayer features: seems like the developers tried to emulate a MMORPG in the Wild Area, but the game absolutely suffers when connected to the internet, with gross frame drops and severe stuttering. The stamp system is buggy and not a good way to connect to other players, but there are no alternatives. Often, the game'll display outdated stamps of events (raids, battle, trades) that are not up anymore, and delays in updating the invitations are a given.

    The main problem is that the overall quality drops significantly after the 4th badge, and the game starts to feel rushed and unpolished. Up to this point, the experience is actually quite good and entertaining. Then, everything feels rushed and repetitive. Some cities are no more than a single street with a pokémon center.

    This is the weakest Pokémon release since X/Y. Also, for those who actually completed the National Dex, a staple in the franchise's history, the feature is now locked into yet another paywall, alongside Wonder Trade: Pokémon Home.

    It's no better than a 3ds title, even though it costs more and runs on a way stronger device. The problems of this game lies not on what it is, but on what it could have been.    … Expand
  36. Miotke
    Jun 1, 2020
    4
    4/10ᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠ
  37. XIPaulDarcy
    Nov 18, 2019
    3
    The Pokémon series means something different to everyone.

    To many, it's all about the battling. For others, their entertainment is in the story. And for some, it's about the bonds that have been forged through years of play. Pokémon Sword and Shield, while promising to be a game for the "long time fans", falls short in all of these elements. Long gone are the old days of Pokémon's    The Pokémon series means something different to everyone.

    To many, it's all about the battling.
    For others, their entertainment is in the story.
    And for some, it's about the bonds that have been forged through years of play.

    Pokémon Sword and Shield, while promising to be a game for the "long time fans", falls short in all of these elements.

    Long gone are the old days of Pokémon's difficulty. Where poison could faint your allies in seconds OUTSIDE of battle, and the toughest of trainers, the gym leaders and Elite Four of the region, actually took some strategy or training to beat.

    As for the plot. It was about as much as I expected from a Pokémon game. Protagonist leaves home with rival to finish the "gym challenge" meeting some sort of villainous team along the way, all before saving the world and finally beating the champion of the region. Which isn't a bad thing, but Pokémon games have been sorely lacking on post game content since Heart Gold and Soul Silver. Where's our Battle Frontier? Where's our second region?

    Lastly, we have the removal of the National Pokédex. Why does this matter? I don't believe it's because the ability to "catch 'em all" has been removed, I myself have a living Pokédex in past games, and not being able to transfer each of them to Galar hasn't phased me in the slightest. It matters to those who have had Pokémon with them for years. You're buddy that you've had with you since childhood, has now been declined access to Galar, and that's a heavy blow for some people, which is why my review loses two extra points, because if they've removed some now, who's to say they won't remove others like Gengar, Tyranitar, Mimikyu, Gardevoir ( My personal favorite ) or Umbreon in the future?

    TLDR? Sword and Shield was all it needed to be to appeal to casual and competitive Pokémon players ( a game branded "Pokémon" ) but for long-term fans, falls short when compared to other AAA games out there. With so many elements showing a lack of polish and effort, GameFreak really needs to step it up for the future of the series.

    Thanks for reading!    … Expand
  38. MauriMauri
    May 29, 2020
    10
    Excelente juego, el mejor de la franquicia y por fin tiene DLC !!! espectacular
  39. Vadu1337
    May 27, 2020
    3
    Worst Mainline Pokemon Game yet! The New Pokemon are uninteresting. The Open World is done really really poor. Story line is boring. Even though I was a former Pokemon Fan I'm definitely gonna skip the Pokemon Games from now on unless many many things change.
  40. CrispCicada
    May 27, 2020
    5
    Pokémon Sword and Shield are very controversial titles. Gameplay-wise, this is Pokémon at it's core. You catch Pokémon, grind them a bit, fill up your Pokedex. You use your Pokémon to challenge other trainers. After travelling a good distance, you'll reach a gym, in which you complete a small challenge and fight other trainers along the way. Gym leaders are basically the bosses in thisPokémon Sword and Shield are very controversial titles. Gameplay-wise, this is Pokémon at it's core. You catch Pokémon, grind them a bit, fill up your Pokedex. You use your Pokémon to challenge other trainers. After travelling a good distance, you'll reach a gym, in which you complete a small challenge and fight other trainers along the way. Gym leaders are basically the bosses in this game. They have the ability to dynamax their Pokémon and are generally harder than your average trainer. Every now and then, you'll fight one of your rivals, which are also decently more challenging than a regular trainer. Whilst travelling, you'll find Pokémon centers and nurseries. Nurseries are where you'll drop off a pokemon and they'll automatically level up over time. Pokestops are a place where you can heal your Pokémon and shop a little. Dynamaxing is this game's gimmick where your Pokémon will grow massively in size and their stats are improved for a little while. Graphically, this game is consistently inconsistent. There are a good amount of lovely looking areas such as the cities or the forest in this game. Then there is the Wild Area. Throughout the entire game, there is the feeling of laziness. In the Wild Area, all of the trees are copy and pasted and have the same ugly, stretched texture. The robotic movements of the characters in this game and the shoddy animations really disturb me. To be fair though, this game has some amazing new Pokémon designs. Also, the new gimmicks are actually sorta fun. In conclusion, this game is pretty mediocre and I wouldn't recommend it. I'd personally wait for more emulation on the Switch so you can play games like Pokémon Black and White. Have a lovely day/night, folks.… Expand
  41. Mattia9336
    May 27, 2020
    6
    The most disappointing Pokemon game I've ever played. It's still a 6/10 because it's still Pokèmon and the gameplay is as good as always, but from a technical prospective is really bad and the story is meaningless to me
  42. JamesS00
    May 22, 2020
    4
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. The game was too short for me and I still can't play with people in raids.One of the worst pokemon game.… Expand
  43. notakid
    May 20, 2020
    2
    How anybody who's been a fan of the pokémon games for a long time can excuse big flaws of these games is truly beyond me. All of the criticism directed towards the developer is fully justified seeing as the complaints have to do with things that could have been implemented in such a way to increase everyone's satisfaction with the games.

    Higher quality and more advanced animations? An    How anybody who's been a fan of the pokémon games for a long time can excuse big flaws of these games is truly beyond me. All of the criticism directed towards the developer is fully justified seeing as the complaints have to do with things that could have been implemented in such a way to increase everyone's satisfaction with the games.

    Higher quality and more advanced animations? An option to turn off the EXP. Share that is making the game too easy even for a small child? Having all the previous pokémon included in the game, seeing as we know they have the models for them? All of these suggestions, do they hurt you? Is this sort of criticism "unfair" or "exaggerated"? Who do you think you are to decide what is "reasonable" criticism? The fact is, these things clearly matter to the majority of user reviews - looking at the user score clearly reveals that. If you can't handle people disliking a game you yourself like then, man, life has to be very difficult for you. Implementing these suggestions would hurt nobody. The games would be of a higher quality.

    There are many more reasons as to why users dislike these games, just have look at the reviews, but one thing is for certain: Game Freak is a lazy developer who is not to be trusted, considering all the lies that have been spouted.    … Expand
  44. asapas
    May 19, 2020
    0
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. They just DON'T CARE ANYMORE!! It's their first Switch try and they completely messed it up.
    As of now, playing even the Pokemon Yellow version on GameBoy, is a more exciting experience

    There in Gamefreak, they should FIX IT OR LEAVE IT!!!
    Awful!!!!    … Expand
  45. MrShidow333
    Nov 15, 2019
    0
    Es un insulto a la inteligencia de los fans, producto mal hecho y sin corazón
  46. ONYX137
    May 18, 2020
    3
    I have mixed feelings about this game. I do really enjoy the game but I'm not a huge fan of some of the newer generation Pokemon , and there are very few old generation Pokemon. The game gives you gym uniforms as prizes for beating gym leaders , and allows you to buy them, but yet you cannot wear them in battle. What is the point?? Also in 2020 I would expect a heck of a lot betterI have mixed feelings about this game. I do really enjoy the game but I'm not a huge fan of some of the newer generation Pokemon , and there are very few old generation Pokemon. The game gives you gym uniforms as prizes for beating gym leaders , and allows you to buy them, but yet you cannot wear them in battle. What is the point?? Also in 2020 I would expect a heck of a lot better graphics and design than this. Seems lazy and like little effort was given in creating this game. So basically a money grab. That being said, since I haven't played a Pokemon game since the Gameboy, I am enjoying this game.… Expand
  47. Darthcharizard
    May 18, 2020
    10
    Amazing game. Best pokemon game in quite some time with amazing graphics and new mon as well as a cool region. Only big drawback was team yell. Incredibly annoying and stupid team
  48. illigian
    May 14, 2020
    3
    This game is really short, fast and too easy for the standards.
    - during the "championship" between each fight your team is auto-healed and you can also change party members (just as an example of how easy it is).
    - There isn't a "bad" team in all the game; the "team" here is composed just of fans of a rival of yours, they haven't an agenda or something, they just want their favourite    This game is really short, fast and too easy for the standards.
    - during the "championship" between each fight your team is auto-healed and you can also change party members (just as an example of how easy it is).
    - There isn't a "bad" team in all the game; the "team" here is composed just of fans of a rival of yours, they haven't an agenda or something, they just want their favourite trainer to win.
    - The real bad guy have a story arc of 5/10 minutes (i'm not joking here) and his motivation is really stupid; he is not evil, just "clumsy" and in a "rush" (i'm saying that in this way in order to avoid eccessive spoilers); in 3 minutes of his narrative arc he is sorry and ask for forgivness, the fastest change of mind in history.
    - There is just one single quest in the end game, i presume the others are in the dlcs...
    - This is the first pokemon game that i finish in 16,5H of play with the main team at level 65 and above (top one is at 77)... and i didn't even took pokemons from poke home in order to feel the real difficulty here (so none)...
    - only 10 routes
    - no strategy needed, you can brutforce every opponent
    - Game freak didn't improve animations for the mons; all the old gen ones are plain rip off from X, Y, Alpha and Omega; not a bad thing per se but they lied on this point.
    - camping minigame is somehow funny but with few options
    - lack of costumization for some little things that could be there (as the pose in battle and winning pose that was there in previous gens)
    - gts function is now with a subscription (or with nintendo subscription or with pokemon home and the android app) but is broken becouse you can offer your pokemon and ask something in return that could not exist (strange low lvl as 5-10 for legendaries for example, they just don't exist and gts refuse the trade because they are not legit) and the script don't block you from asking but it is impossible for anyone to confirm the trade; the gts is full of this cases and it is really difficult to trade something because every visual slot is taken by those offers... I have putted some legit shinys for trade 4 days ago and no one traded them even knowing they are requested pokemon and i do not asking for anything strange

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

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

    conclusions:
    - PRO: smooth game with some improved function that make your life easier in pkm games (as the possibility to access your boxes from everywhere)
    - CONS: bad story, short game, bad written characters, boring mini games, too easy, lack of some previous features, no bad guys, lack of good endgame, gts is broken, etc...    … Expand
  49. TheGauss
    May 13, 2020
    8
    Playing this game was overall a beautiful experience.

    I'll quickly go through the critical points for which Sword and Shield come off as underappreciated (at least in Metacritic's peer reviews). Ok, I'll give that the game has some awful battle animations, Double Kick being the prime example, but not every single animation is like that a lot of them are actually amazing and very    Playing this game was overall a beautiful experience.

    I'll quickly go through the critical points for which Sword and Shield come off as underappreciated (at least in Metacritic's peer reviews).

    Ok, I'll give that the game has some awful battle animations, Double Kick being the prime example, but not every single animation is like that a lot of them are actually amazing and very polished, like every single signature move, or even Quick Attack and Brave Bird.

    The 3 rivals all share two things: they have a great character arcs (especially Hop), and that you can sweep their whole teams with the correct lead. I'm more than a fan of the former, and not so much of the latter.

    Outside of some underwhelming animations, this game looks quite well (it's not technically on par with peak Switch titles, but that's always been the case for Pokémon). Also, this game has plenty of great music, if there's something that Game Freak never gets wrong, that's the music.

    The introduction of Wild Area and visible encounters in a main series game is more than appreciated, and I'd like to see these expanded in later releases.

    This game also adds some quality of life improvements, such as the Corvinight Taxy, which is Fly but can land or routes, being available early in the game, the Escape Rope is now an unlimited Key Item, and cities are allowed to have more than one pokémon center.

    Of course, not everything can be positive, or the score would be a 10/10. I guess I don't have to introduce you to the Dexit (hopefully this one will get patched away), and that abomination that's the Y-Comm. This game is also too easy: the only remotely challenging battles are one fo the first 3 gyms, depending on the starter you chose, and Dandel, for the rest, even without grinding for a single second, you find yourself sweeping entire teams with just your lead, including the gym leaders. Last painful note, there's hardly any exploration in the whole game, not even a single puzzle (outside of a couple of gyms), or dungeon (no, the corridor mines don't count).

    Bottom line, Pokémon Sword and Shield are enjoyable titles, but they are severely lacking in some aspects.    … Expand
  50. DarkVivid
    May 9, 2020
    2
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. This game just wants to **** with me I am at the fairy arena and The questions she is giving me are just a bunch of jokes, it's like the game hates you or something, it's sad that the Pokémon games aren't the same anymore.… Expand
  51. Baozane2708
    May 9, 2020
    10
    I don't know why people hate this game but for me this Pokemon game is absolutely good. The soundtrack of this game is magnificent. Although the story was short, I enjoyed every second of it.
  52. Melon_man
    May 7, 2020
    7
    Decent and enjoyable pokemon game, but needs improvement for a switch game.
  53. Entalpi
    May 4, 2020
    3
    Honestly it is a shell of a game. The earlier games in the series were far more fleshed out and exciting than this empty husk of a Pokemon(TM) game.
  54. danoreviewsbro
    May 3, 2020
    0
    disgusting, boring as f*ck, awful and crap graphics, no excuses since pokemon is the highest grossing franchise of all time
  55. SOl0mon
    May 2, 2020
    1
    Compared to previous titles, this is a far cry from the series that I’ve come to love. Exploration is minimal with the removal of dungeons/caves, the scaled down dex, lack of a post game, removal of moves.. etc. I could go on and on but honestly this is a poor entry in the series. On a positive note the wild area was enjoyable for the time but other than that this game is not worth the 60Compared to previous titles, this is a far cry from the series that I’ve come to love. Exploration is minimal with the removal of dungeons/caves, the scaled down dex, lack of a post game, removal of moves.. etc. I could go on and on but honestly this is a poor entry in the series. On a positive note the wild area was enjoyable for the time but other than that this game is not worth the 60 dollars.… Expand
  56. TDTH
    May 2, 2020
    10
    This game is incredible! I have almost finished the game at around 18 hours into the game, The gym battles start easy and get harder and harder to the point where you may have to attempt the gym several times before getting the badge which is fun as it makes the game more challenging, sure the story line isn't the longest in the pokemon franchise but its fun, the visuals are nice andThis game is incredible! I have almost finished the game at around 18 hours into the game, The gym battles start easy and get harder and harder to the point where you may have to attempt the gym several times before getting the badge which is fun as it makes the game more challenging, sure the story line isn't the longest in the pokemon franchise but its fun, the visuals are nice and relaxing, mechanics are simple and nice, performs well on my Nintendo Switch (Which is less than a week old writing this). One of the best pokemon games I have played. It may not be the most challenging pokemon game but its certainly fun to play. I never felt bored plaything this game because there was always a challenge you need to complete to progress.

    This isn't the game for everyone but as a pokemon fan I don't mind this game at all, sure it is a bit rushed but as long as I enjoy it then its fine for me, for you, that's for you to decide if you enjoy this game or not.    … Expand
  57. Minemon106
    May 1, 2020
    7
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Alright so Pokémon sword is a decent Pokémon game but it's kinda disapointing for a switch game, It could of been so much more then it is especially now that the series is on the switch but it still feels like a 3ds Pokémon game, the graphics are better at some parts but horrible in others, easiest example, the trees, they look like something from ocarina of time, The animations are pretty eh as well, I mean a few of the character animations have been recycled from sun and moon, why!? And the Pokémon? Same sprites that we have been given for the past 7 years oh and 51% (I believe) of the Pokémon are locked through DLC or Pokémon Home, But the new Pokémon are pretty cool and extremely powerful, Some of the more competitive things about Pokémon are a lot easier then before like EV Training ( Usually took forever to do since you had to take down hundreds of Pokémon to get a single EV stat up to max but now it only takes 5-6 hours to EV train an entire team ) and shiny hunting is a bit easier too thanks to the Masuda Method ,The online has improved though, You can still trade and battle like usual but now you can meet up with friends in wild areas and battle in raids (Doing 5* Raids by yourself is a death wish, becuase the computer players will just faint and you'll get kicked out of the raid, Don't ever do it alone) it's definitely an improvement or start compared to past games (Looking at you sun and moon) story wasn't important at all, nothing anyone said mattered unless it was at the end of the game or when hop said he was depressed (still not important but was fun to read), the new mechanic with dynamaxing Pokémon Is alright, Problem is, you can only use it in raids, online battles, battle tower and gyms (counting the final stadium) which makes me wonder more why they didn't include mega evolution or Z-Moves (It was even in let's go) they couldn't of nerfed them or made it so you could only use one or the other but nope! The music is good l, like the gym battle, battle tower themes, I have mixed feelings with hop's and The champion's though. To sum all of this up, Game Freak Have An Incredibly Popular Franchise In Their Hands But They Aren't Doing A Lot With It This Game Could Of Been A Lot Better If They Just Added Everything From Past Games Into This One, Give it A Few New Animations (Not talking just about Pokémon) And Make It Harder And Fix Those Trees! The only reason why it gave it a 8 Is becuase..I Love Pokémon?… Expand
  58. nightstroller
    Apr 30, 2020
    6
    For what it is, it's okay. I don't think it was worth a full $60, but at least GF went back to the gameplay mechanics of what made pokemon games fun for me growing up. You can actually battle pokemon in the wild, unlike in Let's Go. I'm not judging this game for the things it doesn't have or should have like all of the pokemon, the hide-outs, or any of the other past features. Yes, itFor what it is, it's okay. I don't think it was worth a full $60, but at least GF went back to the gameplay mechanics of what made pokemon games fun for me growing up. You can actually battle pokemon in the wild, unlike in Let's Go. I'm not judging this game for the things it doesn't have or should have like all of the pokemon, the hide-outs, or any of the other past features. Yes, it would be ideal to have all previous bells and whistles with this game, but for what it is, it's mildly enjoyable and imo better than Let's Go.

    For their next foray with the switch, I hope GF can take a good look at what a good majority of their audience wants and actually, simply, do that. It should not be all that hard to make a slam-dunk of a Pokemon game for the switch, but GF has shown us (with the right development team) it can be.    … Expand
  59. BoseMiau
    Apr 30, 2020
    2
    Very dissapointing game. The game has zero value for long time fans. Regret buying.
  60. nookcrook
    Apr 29, 2020
    1
    I've been a fan of Pokemon games since 3rd gen and grew up with this series and it's absolutely shameful how bad of a game this is. It's the same Pokemon formula we've had for the last twenty something years but more restricted than it has been in years. There's no innovation or motivation to play it.

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

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

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

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

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

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

    I could go on.

    If you aren't a child, hard pass.    … Expand
  61. alanwaketan
    Apr 27, 2020
    7
    高清化的宝可梦确实很让人振奋，再也不用看马赛克了。荒野地带也很出彩，算是一瞥开放世界宝可梦的雏形。但本作也就止于此了。其他方面可谓全方位退步。弱智且残缺的故事可谓系列最弱；新宝可梦的造型一言难尽；极巨化算是其中可圈可点的变化，但是超极巨化这么少还要练级才能开启，GF良心不会痛？对于没有全国图鉴，我倒是可以理解毕竟开发量巨大，慢慢DLC补全就好。所以总结一下，实属系列平庸之作。高清化的宝可梦确实很让人振奋，再也不用看马赛克了。荒野地带也很出彩，算是一瞥开放世界宝可梦的雏形。但本作也就止于此了。其他方面可谓全方位退步。弱智且残缺的故事可谓系列最弱；新宝可梦的造型一言难尽；极巨化算是其中可圈可点的变化，但是超极巨化这么少还要练级才能开启，GF良心不会痛？对于没有全国图鉴，我倒是可以理解毕竟开发量巨大，慢慢DLC补全就好。所以总结一下，实属系列平庸之作。
  62. DanPlasmius
    Apr 27, 2020
    1
    The main story is too easy, you always get type advantage over Hop, after beating the main story there's really not to much to do. Graphic are mediocre, models are re used through all the game even if they are different characters, for example in the Team Yell there are only 3 different characters that repeat over and over again, at some moment you even see a Team Yell crowd that it's justThe main story is too easy, you always get type advantage over Hop, after beating the main story there's really not to much to do. Graphic are mediocre, models are re used through all the game even if they are different characters, for example in the Team Yell there are only 3 different characters that repeat over and over again, at some moment you even see a Team Yell crowd that it's just 2 models repeated all over the place, making it look low effort. That may have worked in past games because of lower resolution, less powerful hardware, but not on switch, where the hardware is more powerful and also the game costs more without a real justification. Also the lack of voice actors make some scenes look really awkward. Wild Area concept is nice but execution is poor, there are some serious frame drops when entering, or when pokémon appear, love the fact that you can freely move the camera. I love the new pokémon from Galar, they have nice typings and cool type combinations, sadly I can't say the same about the game, looks rushed, unfinished, low effort or uninspired, let's see what the expansion pack brings to this game but don't expect too much.… Expand
  63. ChesterField
    Apr 27, 2020
    4
    Another pokemon game similar to the previous ones, for some reason they refuse to add mechanics of the previous ones like megaevolutions. It is inconceivable that in 2019 a pokemon game will come out in which there are only half to catch and more when your main motto is to 'catch them all'. How is it possible that they didn't even add voices to the game when 15 years ago games like PokemonAnother pokemon game similar to the previous ones, for some reason they refuse to add mechanics of the previous ones like megaevolutions. It is inconceivable that in 2019 a pokemon game will come out in which there are only half to catch and more when your main motto is to 'catch them all'. How is it possible that they didn't even add voices to the game when 15 years ago games like Pokemon Stadium did. Even these games had more difficulty than this. It is a pity that in 20 years of saga there has not been a single progress in the pokemon or mechanical battles. graphically the game has improved but not even close to the level of great titles of Nintendo, again a shame. In short, more of the same but easier and a little more beautiful. a purchase only mandatory for the most fanatics of the saga (among which I include myself) but in turn very disappointing.… Expand
  64. Azzytap
    Apr 26, 2020
    6
    I’ll keep this short because most of what I’ll say has probably been said before.

    Graphics were not up to snuff, animations were wonky, and the removal of so many Pokémon is an insult to fans. This would have been fine if this was a fangame or spinoff but for a full on main title this is embarrassing. But otherwise it was a totally fine Pokémon game. Not great, but the new gym leaders are    I’ll keep this short because most of what I’ll say has probably been said before.

    Graphics were not up to snuff, animations were wonky, and the removal of so many Pokémon is an insult to fans. This would have been fine if this was a fangame or spinoff but for a full on main title this is embarrassing. But otherwise it was a totally fine Pokémon game. Not great, but the new gym leaders are some of the best in any Pokémon game, they did try to add some new mechanics, and the story was decent.    … Expand
  65. Rafft
    Apr 24, 2020
    4
    I dont need a National dex to Like Pokemon Sword and i have no lags or bucks and i must say if you run thrug the game you could be underlevelt for the 4 arena.
  66. x2wes
    Apr 24, 2020
    6
    Reasonably fun but missing a lot of the depth and exploration previous Pokemon titles have had. From the starting area to the end of the game, there is one path you do not get a chance to diverge from and routes themselves have limited exploration. In addition, many of the cities are empty, with nothing to do in them. The Wild Area is a good concept with poor execution, and getsReasonably fun but missing a lot of the depth and exploration previous Pokemon titles have had. From the starting area to the end of the game, there is one path you do not get a chance to diverge from and routes themselves have limited exploration. In addition, many of the cities are empty, with nothing to do in them. The Wild Area is a good concept with poor execution, and gets repetitive and boring quickly with the lack of activities to do there. The postgame is almost non-existent and the main game is unusually short. Other than these complaints, the game is mainly fun.… Expand
  67. Ochoxygen
    Apr 21, 2020
    1
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. There are so many things fundamentally wrong with this game. The storyline, for starters, is incredibly shallow and forced. It drags you around to each different gym with no real purpose other than to complete this “gym challenge” they told you about in the beginning, with absolutely no other plot lines to supplement this like other Pokémon games. In fact, the only time the plot deviates whatsoever is at the very end, when you’re literally about to fight the champion - absolutely no buildup to that point, mind you - and it just feels out of place and pointless. It’s so forced. The game is forced. 1/10… Expand
  68. ElSmasher
    Apr 20, 2020
    6
    Here, Pokemon Sword / Shield suffers, not from its relatively few flaws, but from the series. The novelty (even if there is the Wilderness), is not really present, RPGs are really too simplistic especially Pokemon, even if in 1996 it could pass, in 2019 it is always repeated. Speaking of the 90s, despite excellent Art Direction, has Zelda Ocarina of Time graphics, just like a weak lifespanHere, Pokemon Sword / Shield suffers, not from its relatively few flaws, but from the series. The novelty (even if there is the Wilderness), is not really present, RPGs are really too simplistic especially Pokemon, even if in 1996 it could pass, in 2019 it is always repeated. Speaking of the 90s, despite excellent Art Direction, has Zelda Ocarina of Time graphics, just like a weak lifespan for a Pokemon. One of the big disappointments for everyone, a little disappointment for me ...… Expand
  69. Clockworkenergy
    Nov 17, 2019
    0
    Soulless and rushed, lacks the charm of the earlier titles. Really disappointing.
  70. Cosmozerk
    Apr 19, 2020
    6
    As far as the typical Pokémon formula goes, the game doesn't break new ground, after all, Pokémon's formula is one of those things that just works well all on its own, it's fun catching Pokémon, raising them, building your team, taking advantage of type weaknesses, visiting towns, challenging your rival, defeating the evil team, winning gym badges and completing the Pokédex, as it's alwaysAs far as the typical Pokémon formula goes, the game doesn't break new ground, after all, Pokémon's formula is one of those things that just works well all on its own, it's fun catching Pokémon, raising them, building your team, taking advantage of type weaknesses, visiting towns, challenging your rival, defeating the evil team, winning gym badges and completing the Pokédex, as it's always been. It's a tried and true approach that remains as fun as ever so that all checks out. But of course, that's what we take for granted at this point, it's what makes this series what it is. It's everything that surrounds that winning formula that makes these games feel so underwhelming.

    See, I'm not a stickler for visuals, but this game certainly doesn't really take advantage of it being on a home console, this is a running trend as you'll see. The animations are serviceable, some look pretty good, like the Dynamax attacks, some look decent and others look unfinished. I understand that animating every single Pokémon in the way Stadium did it is out of the question, and cutting down the Pokédex is a sensible move from that perspective, but even putting the animations aside, the overall game doesn't feel like it belongs on a home console. Some environments look nice, and other times you're looking at Ocarina of Time trees and low-res textures. For the most part, the game looks just fine, but it's inconsistent and doesn't feel like that big of a step up from what we were shown on the 3DS.

    However, to give credit where it's due, the soundtrack is phenomenal. One of my favorite in series, the gym leader music, specifically, never fails to get my hyped. All of the rival theme's are great, the pieces that play in different areas, and of course, the track done by Toby Fox is a big highlight, it's so Deltarune it hurts, I love it.

    Wish I could say the same about the story tho. Pokémon games have never had an outstanding narrative (except for Gen 5), but most of them still managed to be captivating, with fun characters, a good villain and intriguing plot... for the most part. Unfortunately, this story might just be the worst one yet, it has tons of miss potential, an antagonist with laughable motivations, setups that almost never get good payoffs, a super basic and predictable structure, the list goes on. That's not to say it's all bad, in fact, I like how the journey is set up, with this being like a competition between lots of trainers. Really makes ya feel like... I guess a football player? But with Pokémon. And I think the main rival, Hop, is way more than just Hau 2.0, he actually has a pretty compelling character arc, a nice personality, and a good resolution. The best "friend" rival, without a doubt, and one of the best rivals in the series for me, and that's a hill I'm willing to die on. Outside of those few points tho, nothing in the story is anything to write home about, it's by the numbers, and really undercooked.

    Which also holds true for the gameplay, unfortunately. As I said, Pokémon's formula is fun on its own, but with this being the first mainline game on a home console, you'd figure they'd add something more to really make the experience feel like a logical next step. And it sorta does, the Wild Area is a step in the right direction. It's an open area where you can catch Pokémon, get fruit, set up camps, and join raid battles. But it doesn't amount to anything else beyond that. Eventually, it loses its magic and becomes less of an open world, and more of a bunch of empty space where you try to search for specific Pokémon.

    Pokémon camp is cool the first few times, but there's barely anything to do. You can watch Pokémon interact, give them curry, play with them, and that's basically it. It feels like a worse version of what we had in Gen 7, where we could also clean our Pokémon, pet them and feed em' personally, which really helped me bond with the Pokémon I had. If Camp also had this, it would be great, no doubt, but that just isn't the case.

    And if ya wanna talk about concepts that feel like worse versions of what we had before, just look at Dynamax, which you only use on very specific situations, only really amounts to making the Pokémon bigger, with few getting cool redesigns, and on the whole, it just feels like a less inspired version of the Mega Evolution, only now they've added less impressive looking Z moves for every time you use a move when the Pokémon gets bigger. It's such an underdeveloped gimmick.

    Look, guys, Pokémon Sword and Shield aren't *that* bad, ok? They're enjoyable games, and if all you're looking for is for yet another solid enough Pokémon game, then they fill the quota no problem. But for what was this franchise's big jump into a home console, especially one like the Switch, which has some of the most ambitious titles in Nintendo's history, they just didn't stick the landing. They should've been so much more.    … Expand
  71. KrolMyruh
    Apr 18, 2020
    0
    I'm genuinely shocked people are giving this game a 10. Everything about this game just screams lazy. There has been no innovation in this franchise at all and there are much better games on the switch you should play first. Skip this and go play a good game.
  72. Leb
    Apr 17, 2020
    5
    The game is fun. I wish the series was more mature, but for what it is, it is fun.
  73. brodogger81
    Apr 17, 2020
    6
    Okay game the first run. Looks beautiful during some parts and looks pretty ugly at others. Really inconsistent. Animations are the same way. The "Max Moves" looks really cool alongside a lot of the signature moves that are unique to specific Pokemon. But a lot of the moves (especially moves that're supposed to make physical contact like Double Kick) are really bad. Pokemon almost lookOkay game the first run. Looks beautiful during some parts and looks pretty ugly at others. Really inconsistent. Animations are the same way. The "Max Moves" looks really cool alongside a lot of the signature moves that are unique to specific Pokemon. But a lot of the moves (especially moves that're supposed to make physical contact like Double Kick) are really bad. Pokemon almost look static and feel lifeless during battles too. The GameCube and N64 spinoff games made them feel much more alive.

    There's a lot of cool new ideas like the gym challenges. Game is really linear. Doesn't feel like an adventure and more like a tour. Older games on the Game Boy and DS had more exploration which feels really upsetting. Wild Area is nice at first but once you've explored it all (doesn't take that long) it feels kinda boring. Once you've completed the game there's not much to do except do the boring post game mission, fight through the Battle Tower (pretty underwhelming compared to the Battle Frontier in older games), complete the PokeDex and then shiny hunt if you're into that.

    You can also prepare competitive teams to play on the horrible online system, but considering how easy it is to get hacked Pokemon either through Switch home-brew or especially by generating them on 3DS and then transferring through Pokemon Home, it doesn't make any sense to do the grind when you can just play Pokemon Showdown and get right to the actual fighting (it's free too).

    Tried to play the game again a month after my first play through and I couldn't get myself to go past the 2nd gym. It just wasn't very fun the 2nd time around. Being the first main series Pokemon game on a real console I feel boosted my enjoyment, but if the next Pokemon game on Switch is like this I'm going to be disappointed. If you're not already into Pokemon like me then you might want to skip this one out and maybe play an older (and better) game.    … Expand
  74. Karnib
    Apr 15, 2020
    4
    The game was fun and the graphics were good but that was pretty much it. I was disappointed from the small map that was limited to one small region, the small variety of pokemon, and the low difficulty of the game. The game ended pretty quickly and i felt like the game was half as long as I expected it to be and way too expensive compared to game quality. I am a lover of the series andThe game was fun and the graphics were good but that was pretty much it. I was disappointed from the small map that was limited to one small region, the small variety of pokemon, and the low difficulty of the game. The game ended pretty quickly and i felt like the game was half as long as I expected it to be and way too expensive compared to game quality. I am a lover of the series and have played all the games ever since I was a child, I hope that the next game would be more similar to the older games.… Expand
  75. SuineUzumaki
    Apr 13, 2020
    8
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. This game is fun to play. I love the whole new world and being able to play with my pokemon in the camp. The new pokemon are cute and finally not based on gears or ice-cream so I was excited about that. The storyline is like every other pokemon game. It's alright, could be better but overall what you would expect from a pokemon installment. It's definitely not a Black or White storyline but it isn't as bad as Sun and Moon's. I was happy they brought back gym badges and were no longer sticking to this trial stuff that was introduced in Sun and Moon. Overall I had fun with the new mechanics, being able to dress up my character again, and enjoy another Pokemon Master adventure.

    That being said there are some downfalls. Every now and then there can be some glitches. Doing online with a friend can be hard even if you do local play. It's not perfect but it is better than nothing. The major set back for me was the lack of a full national dex and being able to bring over all my pokemon that I spent years collecting. I've been playing pokemon since the original yellow game and have loved to collect them all. After years of doing it, I finally have my full national dex in the pokemon home (was in bank but moved it. Would recommend pokemon home to anyone who has pokemon from old games that they want to bring over to the new system). Not being able to enjoy my full national dex in the new series is frustrating. They seem to continue the trend of only allowing the dex in the game to limit the pokemon allowed in it and keeping the national dex to the Pokemon Bank and Pokemon Home applications. I believe it started in Sun and Moon and seems to be a trend they want to keep going. Hopefully that changes but it's hard to say. For someone who really wants to be able to bring their old pokemon to this new game, I wouldn't recommend it but would recommend Pokemon Home.

    Besides that, this is a fun game and I had a blast playing it. I would recommend to any Pokemon fan that wants a new adventure.    … Expand
  76. GAMESMAN-T
    Apr 13, 2020
    2
    It is embarrassing that pokemon is such a huge and profitable franchise and all they can come up with is this mediocre and completely forgettable game.
  77. werd10101
    Apr 13, 2020
    4
    Lazy game that needed another year of dev time. For every quality of life improvement came several downgrades
  78. CptTitforce
    Apr 12, 2020
    4
    Obviously released uncompleted, without all the other pokemon and replaced with new ones that are mostly bad designs apart from few like the starters, Wooloo and Sirfetch'd. The graphics outside the main character models are terrible, taking in consideration how large this franchise is. The animations are terrible and seem reused from the other games, though there are some new animationsObviously released uncompleted, without all the other pokemon and replaced with new ones that are mostly bad designs apart from few like the starters, Wooloo and Sirfetch'd. The graphics outside the main character models are terrible, taking in consideration how large this franchise is. The animations are terrible and seem reused from the other games, though there are some new animations atleast, but not enough to justify the amount of cut content. The new dynamax/gigantamax are totally uselesss since once you use yours, the opponent will surely use their own or vice versa, making the whole transformation conpletely pointless since the stats are again balanced out. There are still weird mechanics like having to wait for an key item to get the ability to change sound settings from the menu. The wild area looks terrible and it even discourages trying to find any special pokemon there, because even if you have the stats to get it on low hp, you can not catch it until you have progressed far enough in the game. There is still no voice acting even when we are now at the switch generation where most big nintendo games have gotten a huge do-over like Super Mario Odyssey and Breath Of The Wild. This ks just a sorry excuse to try and milk some money from a huge fanbase, and also selling it to you in parts with the approaching DLC and the outrageous pricing for pokemon bank/home which are basically cloud drives that take only about 3 megabytes IF you even have all the pokemon in there, and when services like google and microsoft offer you gigabytes of free space, there is no excuse for this in addition to the nintendo switch online membership. The only thing I can give props to, are some cool character designs, but that's about it. I would give points for the amount of customization, but even that is really a standard in most rpgs... I bought this game as a used copy for half the price and still regretted it...… Expand
  79. RedahTheD00D
    Apr 11, 2020
    3
    Pokemon Sword and Shield prove that a game doesn't have to be good to be amusing. I had a meh experience with this game but after i started analyzing the game, it all fell apart. The game's art direction is beautiful, but the absolutely horrendous graphics ruined it. The trees look like they have come from a N64 game and the rest of the character models are lackluster in comparison toPokemon Sword and Shield prove that a game doesn't have to be good to be amusing. I had a meh experience with this game but after i started analyzing the game, it all fell apart. The game's art direction is beautiful, but the absolutely horrendous graphics ruined it. The trees look like they have come from a N64 game and the rest of the character models are lackluster in comparison to other switch titles. The Pokemon models are copy and pasted from the 3ds games which is fine as they were made with long term usage in mind, but the animation is horrible. It is worse than the animation in Pokemon stadium which came out in 1998! I know that stadium was a battle oriented game, but it came out when the hardware was infinitely worse also Pokemon is the highest grossing media franchise so Game Freak should have a lot of budget but they couldn't animate the moves despite the fact that they have created models that can be used to make the animation far more high quality. All in all Pokemon sword and shield are glorified 3ds games put on the switch, made only to appease competitive battlers without caring about the people who just want to have an immersive, fun experience that isn't too easy. Also the games are too pricey and now they are asking us to pay them money (Which makes the total price $90) To have as much content as X and Y Or Sun, Moon and the ultra games (Which are $45) while still pulling off the two games stunt.… Expand
  80. heronz
    Apr 11, 2020
    0
    Game is boring for what it is. that would actually make it a 4/10...BUT you can smell the DLC coming to fluff the cost of this game by splitting up all of the catchable pokemon. Not a fan of the quality or the this business model
  81. MCCguy
    Apr 11, 2020
    10
    I loved these games. I am about to put on 1000 hours on the games and not stopping any time soon.

    I am happy with the direction the games are going.
  82. ShakiraShakira
    Apr 10, 2020
    2
    the mouse cursor in ending credits ruined everything. two points for pokemon and music.
  83. Benjones1234
    Apr 9, 2020
    10
    I would say the greatest pokemon game ever, absolutely massive and vert satisfying.
  84. Makashinga
    Apr 7, 2020
    0
    This is by far the worst game Ive ever played in my entire life. I like nintendo but this is the most blatant cash grab I've ever seen, which is sad considering EA exists. The story is trash, the characters are horrifically terrible, the battle system is like dragon quest but less **** the graphics are HORRIBLE especially from a triple a studio. This was the biggest waste of money i haveThis is by far the worst game Ive ever played in my entire life. I like nintendo but this is the most blatant cash grab I've ever seen, which is sad considering EA exists. The story is trash, the characters are horrifically terrible, the battle system is like dragon quest but less **** the graphics are HORRIBLE especially from a triple a studio. This was the biggest waste of money i have ever spent and the worst part is that I lost my receipt so now I have to keep this **** on my switch. I'm a complete idiot for buying this trash.… Expand
  85. PappyBakesCakes
    Apr 5, 2020
    7
    Beautiful game with lots of Pokémon to catch. Story is fun but a bit short (25 hours) and only found one really tough Pokémon battle. Lots of Pokémon to catch.
  86. TimoP1NL
    Apr 5, 2020
    5
    Did buy this for my son 6 year old.
    Only text and no voice means he can not follow the story or know what to do. This is realy bad game design. If u want to have option not to have voice that is ok bud make it an option. The target players for this game start at 5-6 bud the can not read. The like to have the game because hype only to be unable to enjoy it.
    This would be a great game in    Did buy this for my son 6 year old.
    Only text and no voice means he can not follow the story or know what to do. This is realy bad game design. If u want to have option not to have voice that is ok bud make it an option. The target players for this game start at 5-6 bud the can not read. The like to have the game because hype only to be unable to enjoy it.

    This would be a great game in year 2000
    Request to gamefreak please care about your own product enuf to make it the best it can be.
    Yes voice cost lots of money and time bud it is a vital aspect of any good game.

    As is this game = market to kids to want it
    Make parents pay for it
    Let children down that the can not understand it because lack of voice acting
    Make parents frustrated of wasting money on this product.

    @Nintendo please promote voice options in all your games to delight our children with the option to understand what is going on before the can read.    … Expand
  87. LeeChungyong
    Apr 4, 2020
    10
    It's fun.
    The ash part also existed.Gredo 10 points
    I hope all Pokémon will appear next time.
  88. Nexusphantom
    Apr 4, 2020
    4
    I waited several month before adding my rate. For more objectivity, and it's still a bad rate.

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

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

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

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

    But you realise that after finishing the game.

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

    If you want a good game take Skyrim on switch and you will have a better game, even if the game is 9 years old    … Expand
  89. FloresGamer3010
    Apr 3, 2020
    6
    Pokémon Sword is really disappointing and it doesn’t feel like a Pokémon game. First, the music. It feels so over done and the battle music, just doesn’t sound like battle music at all, more like some theme for a cartoon, I personally liked the way battles felt because of the music, and now they just feel so boring. Second, wild Pokémon aren’t wild encounters anymore, you can just go toPokémon Sword is really disappointing and it doesn’t feel like a Pokémon game. First, the music. It feels so over done and the battle music, just doesn’t sound like battle music at all, more like some theme for a cartoon, I personally liked the way battles felt because of the music, and now they just feel so boring. Second, wild Pokémon aren’t wild encounters anymore, you can just go to the grass and there they are, walking around. After Gen 6 is where it really went down for me, I really dislike how there no gyms in sun and moon, which I’m happy to see brought back. Also the game likes to hold your hand at the beginning of the game, and your rivals comments after any critical hit is unnecessary. I hope that for the next game they stick to their roots and go for a pokemon game that’s not too different from gen 1-6s formulas. I love Pokémon but they way it’s being formed is really disappointing… Expand
  90. Ludcario
    Apr 3, 2020
    0
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. It's a Nice try, but so was alola and they keep triying and triying selling us demos with boring underdeveloped characters diguised as deep with a couple lines about how they Will surpase You when they obviously won't, also worst villain ver, could have been Best villain ever, with such fame amd limitless resources, just a moneygrab, it's so sad to seer the love they puto no Mario and Zelda… Expand
  91. Carny
    Apr 3, 2020
    4
    This is what I'm gonna call a Death Stranding situation. The trailers were more interesting than the game. This game is just flat out not fun. Repetitive lies from the devs and an "open-world" aren't what makes Pokemon fun.
  92. RetroThunder
    Mar 30, 2020
    7
    Pokémon Sword and Shield aren't the best games in the series, but they're not "bad" either. It can be seen at first glance that Game Freak has not made a 100% effort to develop them, but in the end they have ended with a good result. I can understand that a section that has bothered me a lot during the game is the graphics, obviously they do not take advantage of the full capacity of thePokémon Sword and Shield aren't the best games in the series, but they're not "bad" either. It can be seen at first glance that Game Freak has not made a 100% effort to develop them, but in the end they have ended with a good result. I can understand that a section that has bothered me a lot during the game is the graphics, obviously they do not take advantage of the full capacity of the Nintendo Switch and there are situations in which they are horrible, but there are also places that look beautiful (especially when they are affected by climates), but would rather have spent more time on visual improvement. Game Freak is supposed to have made a "mistake" when launching these games, and it is the lack of the National Pokédex. Most people have complained about this, but to me it seems like the biggest nonsense in the world. There are almost 1,000 Pokémon in the entire series, and I, with almost 100 hours of play, have not managed to catch the 400 that have left. I don't know if I'm a noob or something, but I'm sure of one thing, and that is that with the amount of content the game has, it lasts for many hours. If Game Freak were to continue the tradition of the National Pokédex, there would be a point where it would be impossible to complete the video game, because there are already too many Pokémon. It is true that they have not made the best selection with the Regional Pokédex and that many people do not have their favorite Pokémon in the game (including me), but you have to understand it. Game Freak would take a long time, increasingly to get a delivery of the franchise, and I'm already happy with the content they have brought to this. In addition, the rest of the section are perfect. The history is one of the best that there has been in the entire franchise, and that is why it has sold so much these games. They are worth playing for a fan of the saga and although they are upgradeable they are still recommended for the console. It may not like everyone and I understand that, but it does not deserve criticism as bad as those that have been given by other users of the platform. This upcoming DLC ​​promises to bring even more content to the game and is now worth more than ever. Thus bringing all the Pokémon of the National Pokédex for those who complained. I hope people know how to value these games as they deserve.… Expand
  93. Videogamer7800
    Mar 29, 2020
    0
    Ive been a fan of Pokemon for ages. My first game was Firered. I enjoyed the game through and through. Going throughout the region, and eventually catching all 386. Fast forward to now,and sword and sheild are just lazy unfinished games. Masuda knows that anything with the name "Pokemon" slapped on it will sell, therefore not working hard at making quality content for the longtime fans.Ive been a fan of Pokemon for ages. My first game was Firered. I enjoyed the game through and through. Going throughout the region, and eventually catching all 386. Fast forward to now,and sword and sheild are just lazy unfinished games. Masuda knows that anything with the name "Pokemon" slapped on it will sell, therefore not working hard at making quality content for the longtime fans. This is a switch game. That can run the witcher 3, BOTW, and many more expansive games. I find it sad that pokemon had to get the short end of the stick. Theres only 400 pokemon in the game. Thats less than a DS game that came out almost 10 years ago. Aside from the dex, ive tried the game. I refuse to buy it, but played a good amount of it from a friends switch, and i cannot even descrive my dissapointment. The game has many bugs, the "animations" they promised to improve are recycled from 2013, and everythjng seems rushed. I hope the developers wake up, and stop giving us the shaft. At this point they should just let nintendo handle the pokemon franchise and leave gamefreak out of it… Expand
  94. Zekroxin
    Mar 26, 2020
    0
    All the Old Pokemon Games are much better than this what they Selled us as Pokemon Game Story really Bad gameplay okay but all in all half done and Trash.
  95. Victorbalbo
    Mar 26, 2020
    2
    The game itself doesn't do any thing differently from the previous ones. This is basically a portable game with the price of a home console.
  96. Bitterfreak
    Mar 25, 2020
    4
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Sucks so bad it hurts my feelings, the online is pretty cool actually except for the fact that there's so much unbalanced mechsnics snd Pokemon wich overhaul the metagame.… Expand
  97. Kriser333
    Mar 25, 2020
    0
    I wish there was an option to give -10.the game was Soo bad that you can finally hate the franchise.disappointment.
  98. Sorrelfur
    Mar 25, 2020
    1
    Got to be honest this game disappointed me. I love the series and I've played every single game. I got both sword and shield and I wanted to play both. But after play shield I regretted my decision so much. The map is insanely small, there's not a full pokedex. And the worst of them all the expansion. That is disgusting on Nintendos part and it screams money hungry. Should've know with howGot to be honest this game disappointed me. I love the series and I've played every single game. I got both sword and shield and I wanted to play both. But after play shield I regretted my decision so much. The map is insanely small, there's not a full pokedex. And the worst of them all the expansion. That is disgusting on Nintendos part and it screams money hungry. Should've know with how crappy the game was that they were planning this. 60 bucks is NOT worth it and neither is the expansion. You shouldn't have to pay like 100 dollars to play a decent pokemon game. Nintendo needs to reevaluate themselves and this decision.… Expand
  99. De4dlyk1tt3n
    Mar 24, 2020
    7
    I enjoyed this game a lot more than sun and moon which i hated every moment of. I am excited to see the expansion content. couple this with pokemon home and you for the first time have a central lifetime pokedex.
  100. SurgeOfDurge
    Mar 24, 2020
    0
    Extremely repetitive. Lacking in customization. Pokémon don't follow you like in other games! Way too much text reading that can't be skipped/ read fast unless you keep tapping continue. Also the classic old school annoyance of having to select yes or no when doing the smallest thing. No co-op unless you pay for online. Then even it's not what could have been. A big pain when you fail, yetExtremely repetitive. Lacking in customization. Pokémon don't follow you like in other games! Way too much text reading that can't be skipped/ read fast unless you keep tapping continue. Also the classic old school annoyance of having to select yes or no when doing the smallest thing. No co-op unless you pay for online. Then even it's not what could have been. A big pain when you fail, yet way too easy most of the time. Can't have multiple save files. They want players to buy one console and copy each! I swear Nintendo is the greediest of all companies in at least the videogame industry. Every game is over normal maximum price. I'd say wait for sale on this one if you can handle the tedious mechanics and elements. No good options and customization worthy. You can't turn up/down music until you "unlock" it as a feature. The spawns are incredibly sad, as there will be many of the same, but many mons you'll miss unless hoarding/grinding. Don't get me started on shinies. The system to rarely get to fight a gigantamax and hope to catch it is a pain. Then you can't find the ones that have the special look unless you're lucky or read online. In 2030 the Pokémon game of that year will look like it came from 2012 if it keeps going like this.… Expand
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Awards & Rankings

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

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
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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