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. ali2828
    Nov 21, 2019
    8
    Good game with many things to do. Don't understand all the hate reviews. Please give this game a chance it's really fun
  2. nicoshiii
    Nov 21, 2019
    9
    I LOVED the game. It has an interesting story with ties to British mythology, a lot of great characters, which I all love (in exception of maybe 2 people). The soundtrack also isn't "weak" compared to Toby Fox' song and especially the late game music is absolutely great. The graphics also look, maybe not technically, but art style wise really good. It only took me 25 hours to finish theI LOVED the game. It has an interesting story with ties to British mythology, a lot of great characters, which I all love (in exception of maybe 2 people). The soundtrack also isn't "weak" compared to Toby Fox' song and especially the late game music is absolutely great. The graphics also look, maybe not technically, but art style wise really good. It only took me 25 hours to finish the game but that doesn't really matter to me since I pretty much enjoyed every second of it, and I still sink a lot of additional time. The only two things I didn't really like (also why it's not a 10/10) were the wild zone and some Pokemon being shiny locked (legendaries and starters). The wild zone is too empty and really slows down the game if the switch isn't docked. The Dynamax raids are great though and also really good for shiny hunting. I honestly didn't really notice the absence of the National Dex when playing, so I can't really subtract points because of that.… Expand
  3. hamele
    Nov 21, 2019
    8
    Muy buen juego. Con diferencia el juego de pokémon más inmersivo hasta la fecha, el mundo se siente muy vivo y te crees lo que ves
    Un punto muy a favor es que han dejado atrás a algunos pokémon y movimientos, dando importancia a las nuevas incorporaciones y dando un giro de 180º a todo el meta-game casposo vigente en entregas anteriores.
    Efectivamente, gráficamente es mejorable en muchos    Muy buen juego. Con diferencia el juego de pokémon más inmersivo hasta la fecha, el mundo se siente muy vivo y te crees lo que ves
    Un punto muy a favor es que han dejado atrás a algunos pokémon y movimientos, dando importancia a las nuevas incorporaciones y dando un giro de 180º a todo el meta-game casposo vigente en entregas anteriores.
    Efectivamente, gráficamente es mejorable en muchos aspectos, pero el arte está bien conseguido y consigue atenuar este factor.    … Expand
  4. Reaper2187
    Nov 21, 2019
    5
    Awesome game it could have done a few things differently but overall definitely worth playing! I have played every pokemon since red and blue and this did not disappoint. Ignore the low score it's just butthurt fans complaining they didn't get exactly what they wanted.
  5. Madarame
    Nov 21, 2019
    1
    Simply lazy work from GF, the game have many objective shortcomings. The biggest issue is that it simply does not live up to the performance of a switch/home console game. Many of the friend favourite features were cut (whether in general arear, pokemon following/ Mega and z-move/ secret base) and replaced with very little additional content. GF promise the removal of the national dex willSimply lazy work from GF, the game have many objective shortcomings. The biggest issue is that it simply does not live up to the performance of a switch/home console game. Many of the friend favourite features were cut (whether in general arear, pokemon following/ Mega and z-move/ secret base) and replaced with very little additional content. GF promise the removal of the national dex will bring about improvement in other area and that's simply untrue to those that have play the game.… Expand
  6. jojobbb
    Nov 22, 2019
    9
    I adore the game very much. But it also has a certain con. I rated a 9 because I love how the aspects and the coloring including the story line was. I am not a fan of the cut more the re used animations. But I love the wild side of it and the bike rides including the flying taxis. But I still wished they put more time into the game like fix the map
  7. Kjoagamer
    Nov 21, 2019
    7
    É um bom jogo mas tem seus problemas, como a mecânica de gigantamax confusa e mau explicada, pouca variedade de pokemons, sistema on-line confuso e pago, wild áreas com clima sem nexo de geografia e pouca capacidade de modificação de personagem tanto em altura e forma física mas de resto é um jogo bem regular
  8. Sagerronan
    Nov 21, 2019
    7
    In spite of the removal of many pokemon and the fact that Gamefreak simply reused many assets, Pokemon Sword is still a good, if somewhat easy experience. I had been kind of burnt out on Pokemon for a while since Sun and Moon, but Sword and Shield rekindled my interest of pokemon. It does have some glaring flaws, but I still found it an enjoyable game.
    First, the game is very easy. You    In spite of the removal of many pokemon and the fact that Gamefreak simply reused many assets, Pokemon Sword is still a good, if somewhat easy experience. I had been kind of burnt out on Pokemon for a while since Sun and Moon, but Sword and Shield rekindled my interest of pokemon. It does have some glaring flaws, but I still found it an enjoyable game.
    First, the game is very easy. You get an experience share that gives all of your pokemon in your party experience. You can end up overleveled very easily because you can't turn off the experience share. It's pretty rare I actually get bored with battles because of being over-leveled, but Sword managed that.
    Second, the journey to the pokemon league is far too short, it took me 4 days of play to reach it.
    Third, the wild area can be very confusing and frustrating alongside max raids. Ai is often brainless in higher rank max raids, making it difficult to defeat some of them even with proper strategy. You could just get unlucky and get bad ai teammates that do nothing if you can't find real people to join. I find that anti fun.
    I'm sure there's some more that I missed, but I'm trying to get this review positive, so on to the good.
    I enjoyed the character creation and customization. Characters are a lot more customizable then in previous games.
    Max raids can be fulfilling for working on your pokedex or getting new TR moves for your mons.
    Breeding competitive pokemon is much easier.
    Being able to fly/bike to places freely without having a pokemon that knows Fly is very nice.
    Will old Pokemon players have fun with this game? Probably not. Will newcomers? Maybe. At least give it a chance.    … Expand
  9. swarthy126
    Nov 21, 2019
    2
    Pokemon will never be bad. Starting a new adventure, catching charming and cool new pokemon, training to defeat the strongest trainers, this is the core gameplay of pokemon that everyone loves. That is why I won't rate this game based on if it does just that, but on how it compares to this era's standard of gaming, and to it's predecessors.

    The animations are below par. You have models    Pokemon will never be bad. Starting a new adventure, catching charming and cool new pokemon, training to defeat the strongest trainers, this is the core gameplay of pokemon that everyone loves. That is why I won't rate this game based on if it does just that, but on how it compares to this era's standard of gaming, and to it's predecessors.

    The animations are below par. You have models of characters doing the same movements in a crowd, Hop repeating the same two poses, poorly done rotations. The standards for graphics are higher each year, but it seemed they regressed in Sword and Shield. There should be nothing that's a triple A, $60, top franchise game that should have graphics or movements similar to N64.

    Some of the main characters are very one dimensional for most of the game. Though I give a few points to having characters with interesting designs. Then again, which pokemon game in the past didn't?

    As for the new mechanics, Dynamax and Gigantamax, they don't add to the competitiveness to battling. They are also not very fun, especially since you're forced to use certain Pokemon to have that function. You could say the same for Mega Evolutions, but Mega Evolutions at least helped much weaker pokemon to be viable to play with, and could've been balanced for some in the future. Z-moves at least were usable on every single pokemon. The raid battles are way to straight forward, there's almost no sense of strategy other than the preparations of choosing the correct type.

    Not a lot of post game events. The new Rocket Team is lack luster; they're not a big organization, nor gangsters, nothing noteworthy. Just a bunch of hooligans and fanatics that aren't even as amusing as Team Skull.

    The Wild area was fun at first, but it became pretty stale after the first hour or so. The area is also not as vast as it seemed in the trailers. That was the biggest selling point for me, and I was a tad bit let down. Great idea that can be improved on in future games.

    Overall the game was too easy. My pokemon were over leveled with ease. Pretty linear as usual.
    When Pokemon was finally hitting the Switch, to the main console, some of us were hoping for that new innovative break through, like Zelda BotW, Mario Odyssey, Smash Ultimate. But with the way things are going, people still rate it high for "being a Pokemon game". And if it sells well, GF doesn't really have a reason to change it direction. Pokemon will be good, but never great, and that's why I refuse to give the review of "Pokemon is fun because of catching charming pokemon is fun", because that is a review for Pokemon as a whole, the Concept and World of Pokemon, and not for Sword and Shield itself, in respect to the standards of this gaming era.    … Expand
  10. sarahpod
    Nov 21, 2019
    8
    I am enjoying this game. Yes, I know the graphics aren't spectacular, but I am willing to look past that as this is a Pokemon game after all . The gameplay is fun, the new Pokemon are great, and when it all comes down to it, it's a game that I want to keep playing. My one complaint would be that the game does hold your hand on the main campaign a little bit too much. All in all, II am enjoying this game. Yes, I know the graphics aren't spectacular, but I am willing to look past that as this is a Pokemon game after all . The gameplay is fun, the new Pokemon are great, and when it all comes down to it, it's a game that I want to keep playing. My one complaint would be that the game does hold your hand on the main campaign a little bit too much. All in all, I think most of the reviews from fans are too low, and this game deserves better.… Expand
  11. FrankyF4Fingers
    Nov 22, 2019
    7
    Very good Pokemon. Some Problems like 2 or 3 rly bad looking pokemon, Multiplayer is not that stable and its a little hard to get a full party for a dyna raid. But the rest of the game is rly fun and well polished. The new arena Theme is awsome and i am exited to finish of the league champs today. The reduced Pokemon Pool is no real Problem because it kind of pushes you to try new once. IfVery good Pokemon. Some Problems like 2 or 3 rly bad looking pokemon, Multiplayer is not that stable and its a little hard to get a full party for a dyna raid. But the rest of the game is rly fun and well polished. The new arena Theme is awsome and i am exited to finish of the league champs today. The reduced Pokemon Pool is no real Problem because it kind of pushes you to try new once. If all would be there i may have not found Riffex and i love that Dude ;-). Oh yea sometimes you get Framdrops while there is a Picture in Picture but that was my only technical Problem.… Expand
  12. Cabi0l
    Nov 22, 2019
    1
    Bugs ohne Ende.
    Auch die Dreistigkeit nicht alle pokemon zu übernehmen. Einfach Geld macherei.
  13. XSoulbound
    Nov 22, 2019
    1
    This is certainly a low point for the series. Despite being put on a far more powerful console, this game contains fewer features, a weak story, boring characters, a nonexistent post game, barely improved graphics, and of course fewer pokemon. It's a massive disappointment, and isn't worth the new inflated price tag. The pokemon cuts are the biggest issue, as there is no reason for itThis is certainly a low point for the series. Despite being put on a far more powerful console, this game contains fewer features, a weak story, boring characters, a nonexistent post game, barely improved graphics, and of course fewer pokemon. It's a massive disappointment, and isn't worth the new inflated price tag. The pokemon cuts are the biggest issue, as there is no reason for it other than laziness. The graphics and animations are far below standard for a triple A title, and the models are nearly identical to the last generation. It amazes me that the largest media franchise in human history could release a mainline game of such low quality.… Expand
  14. PokemonCrossing
    Nov 22, 2019
    6
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. The game has a great UI and some welcome quality of life improvements, but the length of both main story and postgame content, including the dex cut which was not balanced out with the amount of new pokemon as well as being too short and easy (took me around 15-16 hours to beat the main story, plus 1-2 hours for the postgame episode), make it feel like a step back in the main series Pokemon games, where it should be bigger and better on the switch. The story is also mediocre, with no real evil team. Usually, I would get both games but this time I only got sword because of the step back for a more expensive game, 6/10

    Pros: -great UI
    -quality of life improvements

    Cons: -step back on the switch where it's more expensive than 3DS games
    -no National dex, few new Pokemon
    -short and easy content, lack of optional areas
    -surface level story    … Expand
  15. Fetch
    Nov 22, 2019
    5
    I'm going to start by saying, yes. The national dex removal was dumb, unnecessary, and disheartening.
    But I have to put that aside for this review, because if it factored into my review I'd rate this game a 3. However, I don't think this game is worse than average.
    Lets start with the Gyms. Gym battles feel AMAZING this time around. Not really everything surrounding the fight with the    I'm going to start by saying, yes. The national dex removal was dumb, unnecessary, and disheartening.
    But I have to put that aside for this review, because if it factored into my review I'd rate this game a 3. However, I don't think this game is worse than average.

    Lets start with the Gyms.
    Gym battles feel AMAZING this time around. Not really everything surrounding the fight with the leader, but the actual Gym battle feels unique.
    The routes between towns leading up to the gyms are minimal. The puzzles leading up to the gym battles are either boring, or even non-existent. There is a part in the game where suddenly there are no more puzzles during the gyms, instead it is replaced with a lazy "Battle 3 or more trainers before you get to the gym leader!"
    The battles themselves feel great... Aside from being pretty easy, but the music, and theme, are wonderful. Fighting in an arena, with the crowd cheering you on, is something I have always wanted.

    Story. What story? It's non-existent. In fact, 2 other characters in the game get to experience the story, while occasionally bumping into you along THEIR adventure. Whenever something pops up, they just say "You keep taking on the gyms, we'll handle this!" Which was really boring. There were points in the "Story" where I was expecting something to happen, but was just told to keep battling the gyms. Which made the end feel strange.
    On top of this, the total run time for the story is about 20 hours, and I'm being generous. And the post game is... non-existent. You have the battle tower, again, and competitive as always. But that is it. There is a bit more story you can get, but it lasts maybe an hour.

    Graphics. Alright, personally this is a high point for me. Yes, the tree textures or horrible. And the water is meh. But the character designs, lighting, and in-general other aesthetic graphics look great.

    Dynamaxing isn't as bad as I expected. The GIgantmaxing is... Eh. It's stupid. You can only get it by catching the specific pokemon in a raid battle, the trait doesn't pass down through breeding, and it is not allowed in competitive. So it is really just for show. I guess. There is no real reason to use the feature, other than in raid battles and during the story (which doesn't even last long enough to experience the feature, since you can only use the feature during gym battles).

    So many of the new pokemon look bad, or uninspired. There are a few designs I like, but most of them just feel weirdly proportioned.

    This game just feels average to me. It's the best looking Pokemon game by far, it's great to play on my TV with a controller, and the dynamax/raid battle feature is pretty neat.
    But it has little to no content to it. AND THEY ARE CHARGING YOU $20 MORE. For a product that isn't even close to a 3DS game.    … Expand
  16. newjg
    Nov 22, 2019
    3
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Good points:
    1-New pokemons
    2-Methods to increase ivs and change natures
    3-No need pokemons MO
    4-Pokemon dynamax
    5-Addictive raids
    6-Character customization options

    Bad points
    1-Lack of the national pokedex
    2-Lack of mega revolutions
    3-Not being able to breed a gigamax poke
    4-Quality of the little intuitive curry
    5-Greater difficulty for those of us who have been playing pokemon for some time
    6-Unbearable companions (PAUL)
    7-Lack of eeveelutions
    8-Online
    Neutral points
    1-Include the rest of the regions
    2-A better parenting system    … Expand
  17. casualdoggo
    Nov 22, 2019
    8
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. This is an unbiased review and my experience with the game. Overall I had a good time in Galar but it suffers from many problems and I was constantly questioning aspects of the game as I was playing.

    The GOOD

    There are many new pokémon with really creative and cool designs.

    Gameplay is still fun.

    The new camping and the way you are able to interacting with your pokémon was honestly amazing. Hopefully this gets improved for the games to come.

    The removal of random encounters was a blessing. The world felt more alive when you can see the pokémon walking around and interacting with the world.

    The gym challenges was really creative and fun.

    Although the graphics are not great there were a few places that were inspiring and unique.

    Character cusomization is great.

    Music is good and at times great (winter town and the first forest near your house)

    Ballonlea city looks amazing, sad you only go to the gym and then you are out of there. Team yells city was also really cool.

    The BAD

    No national dex (didn't bother me but does for a lot of people)

    Most characters were often made to goofy or anoying. Instead of cool characters they often run around with phones and do stupid poses. The 8th gym trainer could have been this mysterious and interesting guy but he really isnt.

    The story was really weak and poorly done. You basically just go around defeating gyms and at the end it picks up a little bit but it is still bad, weird and confusing. Chairman Rose's was a terrible villian and it honestly feels like it was a decision they made 1 month before launch.

    Not much of post gameplay.

    Team Yell doesnt really do much expect block paths and sometimes battle you.

    Wild area is enjoyable but still feels very empty.

    Normal battles almost gave me headaches, from the encounter until you can use any moves there are 4 different cutscenes. When a pokemon uses a move there are also a bunch of cuts. When your opponent throw a new pokeball you dont see them do it it just cuts away from them and then a pokeball comes flying from their direction. It makes the characters feel like robots.

    Many walking animations feels off and it looks weird.

    CONCLUSION

    Good game but maybe not a what I was expecting, does fix a few problems but doesnt really inovate the series that much. Most kids will probably have a good time. You only play the game to catch, battle and train pokemon and explore the region. Not for story or the characters. Dynamax is meh, it works but just barely.

    You will most likely have a nice time but you will notice problems.

    If it wasnt one of the best game series of all time it would have been an 8 or 8.5 but since it is I can only give it a 7.5.

    If rounding off to an 8    … Expand
  18. Andrefelipesrg
    Nov 22, 2019
    1
    Unfortunately, Game Freak messed up with everything. Missing national dex, terrible animations, bugs everywhere, basically it’s a BAD 3ds game in the Switch. Sad.
  19. Shane88
    Nov 28, 2019
    8
    El juego es entretenido, esperaba muchísimo menos de esta entrega pero al adquirirlo me dejó sorprendida de lo entretenido que es.
    Loa gráficos sí son un salto de la 3ds para mejor ya que en algunas ciudades se ve bastante bien, mas sin embargo para una Switch quedaron cortos.
    La historia pues, Pokémon no suele tener una gran historia nunca, pero la dinámica de las incursiones y al área    El juego es entretenido, esperaba muchísimo menos de esta entrega pero al adquirirlo me dejó sorprendida de lo entretenido que es.
    Loa gráficos sí son un salto de la 3ds para mejor ya que en algunas ciudades se ve bastante bien, mas sin embargo para una Switch quedaron cortos.
    La historia pues, Pokémon no suele tener una gran historia nunca, pero la dinámica de las incursiones y al área salvaje es bastante entretenida.

    Me gustó lejos de lo que oensaba que sería un pésimo juego.    … Expand
  20. Chana85
    Nov 22, 2019
    7
    เป็นภาคหลักที่ได้กลับมาเล่นหลังจากห่างหายไปจากเกมตระกูลไปนาน เพราะส่วนตัวเล่นม่อนโกมากกว่า ข้อดีคือกราฟฟิคและการอนิเมทตัวโปเกม่อนทำได้ค่อนข้างดี ถ้าไม่นับรวมถึงการเอาอนิเมชั่นเก่าๆมาใช้ ความสนุกยังเหมือนเดิม ที่ขัดใจที่สุดคือฉากของ Wild Area ที่ทำออกมาดูชุ่ยๆ และคุณภาพต่ำกว่ามาตรฐานของเกมสมัยนี้, ตัวละครออกแบบได้ดี Interface ในเกมทั้งหน้าจอเมนู ฯลฯ ทำออกมาได้ดูทันสมัย เรียบง่าย ใช้งานง่าย,เป็นภาคหลักที่ได้กลับมาเล่นหลังจากห่างหายไปจากเกมตระกูลไปนาน เพราะส่วนตัวเล่นม่อนโกมากกว่า ข้อดีคือกราฟฟิคและการอนิเมทตัวโปเกม่อนทำได้ค่อนข้างดี ถ้าไม่นับรวมถึงการเอาอนิเมชั่นเก่าๆมาใช้ ความสนุกยังเหมือนเดิม ที่ขัดใจที่สุดคือฉากของ Wild Area ที่ทำออกมาดูชุ่ยๆ และคุณภาพต่ำกว่ามาตรฐานของเกมสมัยนี้, ตัวละครออกแบบได้ดี Interface ในเกมทั้งหน้าจอเมนู ฯลฯ ทำออกมาได้ดูทันสมัย เรียบง่าย ใช้งานง่าย, ผมไม่ค่อยคิดใจเรื่องการตัดม่อนเกือบครึ่งออกจากเกม เพราะไม่ได้เล่นมานานล แต่ในอนาคตยังอยากให้มีการอัพเดทม่อนเข้ามาเพิ่ม, หรืออัพเดทให้กราฟฟิคของ Wild Area ดูดีกว่านี้ รวมๆสนุกดีครับ… Expand
  21. LimitBoZz
    Nov 23, 2019
    9
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Ich bin kein Fanboys und sondern ein Pokènom OG und gebe meine ehrliche Meinung zu dem Spiel ab sowie ich es bei jedem anderen Spiel mache. Zuerst mal Das Spiel macht unglaublich viel Spaß und ist wunderschön.Die sotory ist nicht zu kurz sondern lang genug. Einige Routen sind zu kurz und manche orden kamen auch viel zu schnell hintereinander. Die Story hätte man auch viel besser gestalten können wenn man ein richtiges böses team eingebaut hätte. Es kamen sehr viele pokemon bei Trainern aus der 5. Genrationen zum Einsatz was ein bisschen einseitig vorkam wenn man das Spiel schnell durch gespielt hat. Aber das waren auch schon alle Kritik Punkte von mir und das Spiel macht das auch alles eigentlich wieder weg. Deswegen auch 9 Punkte von mir und keine 8 oder noch weniger. Ich hoffe einige teilen die selbe Meinung wie ich würde mich sehr freuen. Und jeder der sagt oder schreib das spiel hat Bugs oder stürzt ab TOTALE LÜGEN das ist mir in 45 Stunden Spielzeit noch KEIN EINTIGES MAL AUFGEFALLEN und ist noch kein mal.passiert also lässt euch mal nicht verarschen!!!… Expand
  22. JoshuaF
    Nov 23, 2019
    9
    El juego es entretenido y engancha bastante, podría mejorar un poco la parte gráfica pero fuera de eso está bastante bien
  23. Mishtacody
    Nov 23, 2019
    9
    A solid Pokémon game despite whiners complaints. The wild area is a great addition and the game looks and feels phenomenal
  24. KingGoonie1217
    Nov 23, 2019
    9
    This game is awesome! Exactly what I wanted in a console version. I’ve played about 5-6 Pokémon games through the years and this is either my favorite or second favorite behind sun-moon. I don’t notice the lack of national dex or missing Pokémon I guess since I’m not a hardcore kneed to catch them all!!!’ Pokémon player. I enjoy to play the games until beat main quest and that’s it. IThis game is awesome! Exactly what I wanted in a console version. I’ve played about 5-6 Pokémon games through the years and this is either my favorite or second favorite behind sun-moon. I don’t notice the lack of national dex or missing Pokémon I guess since I’m not a hardcore kneed to catch them all!!!’ Pokémon player. I enjoy to play the games until beat main quest and that’s it. I try to catch as many Pokémon as I can and level them up as I progress and that’s as fun as ever in this one!… Expand
  25. HeyImRandom
    Nov 23, 2019
    9
    The game honestly got review bombed pretty hard

    I found the game really enjoyable and I will find myself coming back to it. I understand why people are mad, No National Dex, cut features, questionable graphics, but overall the games are a blast! Although there wasn’t much of a story I will admit, the game overall was still fun. The gameplay was really good and I loved how it was made.    The game honestly got review bombed pretty hard

    I found the game really enjoyable and I will find myself coming back to it. I understand why people are mad, No National Dex, cut features, questionable graphics, but overall the games are a blast!

    Although there wasn’t much of a story I will admit, the game overall was still fun. The gameplay was really good and I loved how it was made. It deserves better reviews    … Expand
  26. SKG
    Nov 23, 2019
    8
    Jumping into this Pokemon game has been a bumpy ride. Hearing all the controversy made me concerned. But now that I've actually played it I can finally give my honest opinion of it. First off the graphics. Seeing so many good looking games on the switch it made me look forward to Pokemon. The game has both good and terrible graphics. The Pokemon look fine and some areas look beautiful butJumping into this Pokemon game has been a bumpy ride. Hearing all the controversy made me concerned. But now that I've actually played it I can finally give my honest opinion of it. First off the graphics. Seeing so many good looking games on the switch it made me look forward to Pokemon. The game has both good and terrible graphics. The Pokemon look fine and some areas look beautiful but others are not good, for example the wild area. The wild area really makes this game worthwhile with the Pokemon walking about and an actual movable camera. It's big and fun to walk around in but the graphics are terrible and it has horrible frame rate drops when connected to WiFi. In all with all it's problems it's still fun to play in especially with raid battles which I'll get into later. Next the story is something I have mixed feeling about. Pokemon really tried to mix up how they write there stories with this game but it feels weird. From playing tons of Pokemon games with great story's this game feels rushed and not much thought went into the story. The only really good parts of the story are short and only happen toward the end. The characters are half and half. Your rival is ok his personality grows throughout the story but it's kinda really boring. Other characters are great such as the gym leaders, Bedde, and Marnie. It's just a bummer that they don't really expand on there characters. You want to make a connection to them but can't because the story won't let you. Now with gameplay it's the same old Pokemon game except with a few changes that some will hate and others will love. One exp share does make the game easier which is a little bummer. I was finding myself not finding the game a challenge which made me wonder why gamefreak doesn't add different difficultys to balance out there game. Next are raid battles which at fist I didn't really think would be fun but oh man was I wrong. Raid battles have allowed me to play with my friends unlike any other Pokemon game has. There exillerating and the addition of dinamaxing really makes it fun. The dinamaxing moves look amazing and they remind me old the good old days of mega evolving and Z moves. The basic turn base battle system is the same which is great. It brings back memories of playing my fist Pokemon games. In the end Pokemon Sword/Shield are fun games. Yes there are a lot of things that Gamefreak needs to work on in there next game but it all comes down to if the experience was enjoyable. The things that really stood out and bothered me I eventually ignored and forgot were there. I had a great time playing this game and I don't believe this game deserves a 0 or a perfect 10 but an ok score. I do hope though that Gamefreak learns from there mistakes and the positive and bring out a game on the switch which earns an amazing score in the near future.… Expand
  27. GuessWhat
    Nov 24, 2019
    7
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Yea, the game isnt over 8.0 in my opinion. The graphics look like somebody was likeL "hEy WouLDnt It Be CooL If wE WouLD mAkE UlTra MoOn Hd ANd CaLl iT a NeW GaME?" (and yes i know the story is diffrent af plz dont kill me) the animations are hot garbage and the animations for the *LEGENDERY POKEMON* who are supposed to be the second most important pokemons on the story (right behind you're starters) have one animation. walking. im not kidding instead of having a turn around animation they litterly walk forward and turn around. gamefreak freaked up. yea they have the wild area. but all of the routes are so boring and have nothing special and rememberable. the wild area makes my game run at 2 fps and raids suck alone beacuse you get such bad NPC's one time i was vs a dinamax Mudsdale and i got evee and pikachu as my NPC's and all they did was the evee spammed helping hand and the pikachu did barley anything. The story is really bland and suprise suprise rose the obvious bad guy is a bad guy... who couldve know? the starters (besides scorbunny his ok) evolve into hot garbage and look like the person who designed them was on **** weed or something and it doesnt help that they removed so many pokemons like i know it makes sense but since when does pokemon makes sense? it never made any sense and now when they need an excuse to be lazy they say "it doesnt make sense" or "we need more quality". the game costs 60$ for a game that looks like 20$ game and has a story that a 3 year old probobly wrote before going to nap. with all that its still a ok game, i love the way they made it less grindy by making the exp share always work and buff ur pokebro's. i think that if the game got nintendos quality tag then i dont trust the quality tag anymore. ik i just said so many bad things and only one but for some reason i guess i still like the game...… Expand
  28. AkumaTV
    Nov 24, 2019
    8
    Me parece un muy buen juego por cosas como los nuevos pokemon, la historia, las incursiones y como se han tomado el competitivo pero hay un par de aspectos que no me gustan como que el juego es muy lineal y muy corto (la historia) pero por lo demas me gusta mucho
  29. AsterAether
    Nov 24, 2019
    3
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Looks amazing, runs rather fluently and has the core Pokemon elements. That's more or less what I can say that's good about it.

    The bad stuff:
    It just feels unfinished. Some animations aren't polished, still have clipping in places etc. The story is a joke, only explained vaguely in exhibition in the aftermath. And I still don't fully get the full scope of the story. And adding onto the unfinished part:No animation for the flight quick travel, no puzzles anywhere in the routes, no VMs that would enable puzzles, even your bike is given to you extremely early. I had everything I could hope for by the 4th arena, and breezed through the rest. I can't even remember in which order the arenas 5 to 7 were, so lackluster they felt. There is so much fun potential in the polished elements, but it's heavily downgraded by the unfinished parts.    … Expand
  30. LucasEVille
    Nov 24, 2019
    2
    Stripped back features, Pokédex limited, “pop” distance of objects ruins any realism the wild area tries to bring to the game.

    A lost opportunity to have perhaps made the best game of this console generation.
  31. Chozo94
    Nov 25, 2019
    8
    Sword and Shield - Hate or Love?

    What makes a Game a good Game? Do graphic matter? We should all ask ourselfs what do we expect from certain products. Think back to the good old time of the N64 or PS1. How do these games look today? Well, still pretty good tbh - but thats mostly nostalgia. Links Awakening (GB) was a pretty good Game aswell. Was it because of the graphics? Most    Sword and Shield - Hate or Love?

    What makes a Game a good Game? Do graphic matter?

    We should all ask ourselfs what do we expect from certain products. Think back to the good old time of the N64 or PS1. How do these games look today? Well, still pretty good tbh - but thats mostly nostalgia. Links Awakening (GB) was a pretty good Game aswell. Was it because of the graphics? Most certainly not.

    A Good Game is a Good Game (or not) judged by everyone individually. Its combined by the feelings you get by playing, no matter if the graphic is good, RPG elements are on top, the combat ist perfect or whatever (I mean cmon, there are people who say OOT is a bad game).

    Now to Sword

    I now completed the Main Story and became the Champ. i pretty much "rushed" thru the game, I never was the biggest fan of "gotta catch em´ all" heck, i never finished a Pokedex. It took me around 16 hours to become the Champ. Now there is a bunch of Post Game. So time investment is pretty good!

    The Graphics
    Oh man the Graphics. How does it look? Pretty good. Its not a AAA titel and im glad about that. How do Nintendo Games look in general? Not really realistic, every (ok almost every) Game has a set and fitting artstyle. And it doesnt matter if the Trees are 4K UHD Trees with seasonal change and individual Leafs. Important is, if at all fits together and looks good, and yes, Pokemon Sword/Shield looks good. Its, as i said, not something u´d need a RTX 2080TI for, but it still looks good.

    Story
    Well, it is a pokemon game after all. I did not expect the biggest plot twist of all time or a Rival who has a personality that keep me awake at night (to be fair, Hop has no Character at all). You start as a small Kid from a small town to become the Champ. Thats basiclly it. There happens a buncha stuff with the dynamaxing at the Legendarys, the big CEO and so on, but the Story is nothing really to talk about. Doesnt sound that fun eh? I still had alot of fun. I dont play Pokemon for the story, i play it for the Pokemon.

    National Dex/ Pokedex

    Oh boi. The national dex. All the pokemon that are not in the Game. For me, i could not care less. You have over 400 Pokemon to choose from, and to be honest with yourself you will only use 3 of them because u dont need more. I have no idea, why this is such a big deal. Its not Pokemon Gold, Emerald, Pearl or Black, its Pokemon Sword/Shield. Its a individual Game with its own rules. Nothing to hate about.

    Difficulty

    Is it a hard game? No. Did my whole team ever fainted and i had to retry anything? No. Why is that you ask? Is it too easy? It is not too easy. And it is maybe because the target group for pokemon are 12 year olds. I am 25. I have played almost every Pokemon game. Of course Pokemon is not a Dark Souls! Its a game designed for kids. Why should it be hard?

    Well, i had lots and lots of fun with pokemon Sword. Im not done yet, still gotta do alot of postgame or Shinyhunt. Would i recommend it? Hell yes, i would.

    Note: English is not my native language, im sorry if this is kinda hard to read. :)    … Expand
  32. LisaRueh
    Nov 25, 2019
    9
    I have reviewed Pokemon Shield but as they are both quite similar here the same review.

    --- This is a great game - I had a lot of fun playing it and enjoyed the whole thing. It isn't a 100 % there yet and is still a bit rough around the edges but I don't regret buying or playing it. The game play is nice and works well - there are three things bothering me within the game - 1. you    I have reviewed Pokemon Shield but as they are both quite similar here the same review.

    ---
    This is a great game - I had a lot of fun playing it and enjoyed the whole thing. It isn't a 100 % there yet and is still a bit rough around the edges but I don't regret buying or playing it. The game play is nice and works well - there are three things bothering me within the game - 1. you cannot turn off or filter all the notifications you receive on the lower left hand side for online playing, 2. the instructions for how cooking works are a bit too limited, 3. the limitation of implemented Pokemon (even though I don't think, that this is such a big deal).
    Otherwise I think it is a great game with a really great story, great game play and I really enjoyed that the game and the opponents you face have actual emotions and things happen, that you don't naturally expect. I also really enjoyed the graphics and the 3D world - how the Pokemon run around on the map and I can actually see them - that was great and an awesome addition.    … Expand
  33. rubbdugger
    Nov 25, 2019
    10
    People are very dramatic about the re-used animations and tree graphics. I have been playing Pokemon since gen 1, and I actually really enjoyed this game. After the first 3 gyms, the difficulty spikes, and it got much more enjoyable. The wild area was awesome to explore, and I hope the expand upon this concept in future games to give it more of a BOTW feeling. Some of the starter designsPeople are very dramatic about the re-used animations and tree graphics. I have been playing Pokemon since gen 1, and I actually really enjoyed this game. After the first 3 gyms, the difficulty spikes, and it got much more enjoyable. The wild area was awesome to explore, and I hope the expand upon this concept in future games to give it more of a BOTW feeling. Some of the starter designs were dissapointing, there was some very entertaing dialouge, and the dynamax mechanic added a new element. This is the most unique Pokemon technique I have played in a very long time.… Expand
  34. GideonSloth
    Nov 25, 2019
    8
    Pokemon Sword es un juego con detalles que lo vuelven agridulce, pero viéndolo como un paquete completo consiguió sumergirme en el mundo Pokémon como nunca antes había hecho otro juego la saga.

    Lo mejor: -Soundtrack -Batallas de gimnasio con más peso en la historia -Nuevos pokémon -Diseño de los personajes principales -Mecánicas más pulidas para respetar el tiempo del jugador    Pokemon Sword es un juego con detalles que lo vuelven agridulce, pero viéndolo como un paquete completo consiguió sumergirme en el mundo Pokémon como nunca antes había hecho otro juego la saga.

    Lo mejor:
    -Soundtrack
    -Batallas de gimnasio con más peso en la historia
    -Nuevos pokémon
    -Diseño de los personajes principales
    -Mecánicas más pulidas para respetar el tiempo del jugador (competitivo)
    -Recorrer el Área Silvestre
    -Cinemáticas

    Lo peor:
    -Poca dificultad
    -No intro al inicio del juego
    -No zoroark
    -Caídas de framerate, sobre todo al estar conectado a internet
    -Animaciones inconsistentes, unas padres, pero otras muy simples
    -Algunas texturas bastante vergonzosas en elementos del mundo
    -Historia corta y poco profunda    … Expand
  35. ShadyPirate
    Nov 25, 2019
    9
    Pokemon looked better then it ever has before. All of the routes and towns look great, but the the wild area looks worse than the rest of the game. All of the new Pokemon look great. Going back to the old style of Gym Battles and adding in an island trial like thing for each gym was fun.
  36. TheCoolguy225
    Nov 25, 2019
    8
    I enjoyed Pokemon Sword. The game is just what i expected it to be. I had a great time just breezing through the game with 30 Pokemon. Is that so wrong? The absence of the national dex is not a big deal to most of the people playing the game. Most people are also not reading every article online about how the models are re-used or the game can wipe your save data, most of the time thoseI enjoyed Pokemon Sword. The game is just what i expected it to be. I had a great time just breezing through the game with 30 Pokemon. Is that so wrong? The absence of the national dex is not a big deal to most of the people playing the game. Most people are also not reading every article online about how the models are re-used or the game can wipe your save data, most of the time those issues don't affect the game play.

    I didn't walk through the game saying, "wow. this game sucks." No. Its Pokemon. It what I paid for. I didn't wait for a game that would sweep every game at the game awards. No, I bought Pokemon. People asking the game to be completely remade from the ground up is a fantasy. They already have a game on the switch and would never do what the fans wanted. i completely new and refreshing experience. No, its the same formula every game. Expecting something new after a game already being on the switch is kinda ridiculous.

    issues with the game. Yes most things such as the national dex being removed is a big deal to some people. Sorry, but not every Nintendo game has a Smash budget. It is a shame that I don't get to have some of my favorite Pokemon though. Also, the controversy about game breaking bugs and re-used models. The sd card save wipe is a REALLY big misconception. This only happened to specific copies of the game with specific sd card and only in Japan. People in the west complaining about this have no clue about the actual terms of the glitch.

    I liked the game, but it had some issues, hence my review score. A game i can enjoy is always a 8/10 in my books. I shouldn't give a bad review just because other peoples experiences were bad. Like bruh.    … Expand
  37. Andots101
    Nov 25, 2019
    8
    The thing I disliked the most was the lack of in game content, but I think they made up for it in their PvP and PvE content. Sure the story is shorter in comparison to others, but I believe that the story was not the focus. They really made the competitive scene and the user to user interactions a lot of fun.

    By getting rid of the, they did alienate some of their audience but I don't    The thing I disliked the most was the lack of in game content, but I think they made up for it in their PvP and PvE content. Sure the story is shorter in comparison to others, but I believe that the story was not the focus. They really made the competitive scene and the user to user interactions a lot of fun.

    By getting rid of the, they did alienate some of their audience but I don't think that's a reason to disregard the game. There's so many cool new pokemon and by cutting some pokemon others get a chance to shine in the competitive scene. I know not a lot of people may not even play competitively but if there ever was a time to get into it, now would be the best time. They have made competitive so much more approachable.

    Now I wanna talk about raid battles. Joining up with 3 other friends and taking on these gigantic pokemon is a lot of fun. And you can help friends who might want to get some really good pokemon or even a gigantamax pokemon.

    The graphics are not the best graphics of all time, but for pokemon I think they are a step in the right direction. I've seen some people compare them to games that focus on realism, like Death Stranding, but that's not what pokemon is about. People play pokemon for the gameplay. Sure nice graphics are wonderful, but gameplay is much more of a focus.

    To summarize, this is a pokemon game. It's not winning any awards for story or graphics, but I don't think where the true value of this game is. The best part about pokemon in general is exploring a vast world with never before seen pokemon (which I think the wild area does very well). There's a lot of fun to be had outside the lacking story. I highly encourage all pokemon fans to get this game or at least don't ignore it. Newcomers might be turned off by all the vocal "haters" of the game, but I implore you to make your own opinions on the game. Having been a fan of pokemon since I was a kid with pokemon platinum, I can say I enjoyed this game a lot. It may not be the perfect pokemon game, but it sure is a lot of fun.    … Expand
  38. Truconium
    Nov 26, 2019
    7
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. (This first paragraph is everything about the game that I wanted to list but didn't know where to put.) The game frame drops very frequently, the routes are very short, Eternatus barely makes an appearance, and Eternatus is a guaranteed catch. I believe that the exp share should not be given until after the 1st gym because it makes the game way too easy. I would've also really liked to see Mega Evolutions return because they have been my favorite addition to Pokémon.

    Firstly, The villain in this game is not existent. Piers, the leader of Team Yell, isn't evil, and Rose is only evil at the very end of the game. Sordward and Shielbert are the most villainous people in the game, but they are both found in the post game.

    There are too little Pokémon in the game, yet the animations aren't as good as most people expected. The Corviknight line is well made because it isn't just a generational normal-flying type bird evolution line. However, Yamper is just another electric dog like Electrike, who is also in the game. Game Freak should've included more of the well designed Pokemon such as Garchomp and not Pokémon that are just normal animals from the real world like Purrlion and Pidove. In addition, Zacian is literally just a wolf with a sword in its mouth. The legendary wolfs look too similar, too.

    There should have been voice acting in the game. Maybe not for every line, but for characters like Hop, Rose, Leon, and the gym leaders. It would've really brought the characters to life. The voice actors could've even mostly been British to emphasize the fact that Sword and Shield take place in Great Britain.

    For the gym leaders, I like that there are version exclusive gym leaders and the fact that we have our first every dark-type gym leader. The dark-type gym leader is against Piers, the leader of Team Yell, which is cool, but Team Yell aren't even villains. Furthermore, you can't even dynamax during the gym battle against Piers. I love that Raihan is a doubles format Gym leader like there was in gen 3; it makes the gyms more interesting. However, Raihan uses Torkoal who isn't a dragon type.

    Finally, the rivals in this game are amazing. Bede is a dick like a rival should be, and Hop shows a lot of character and isn't just a "happy go lucky" rival like other rivals have been recently.

    In conclusion, if Game Freak spent a year more on the next Pokémon games, they would be the best games in the series to date.

    TL;DR - Game Freak spend more time on the game.    … Expand
  39. Joelfolg
    Nov 26, 2019
    10
    Love it! Lack of national dex sucks, but I'm loving all the new stuff and Pokemon. Wild Area is the future.
  40. Mastery6945
    Jan 9, 2020
    10
    It's an excellent game, the best thing about it, is the dynamaxing system where your Pokemon becomes gigantic, definitely recommend it (EDIT) Now that the upcoming expansions are releasing soon, I can expect to see more potential with 200 more Pokemon coming into the game, including all past legends from Dialga, Xerneas, Kyogre, Lunala. And one last thing, they need to reverse those reviewIt's an excellent game, the best thing about it, is the dynamaxing system where your Pokemon becomes gigantic, definitely recommend it (EDIT) Now that the upcoming expansions are releasing soon, I can expect to see more potential with 200 more Pokemon coming into the game, including all past legends from Dialga, Xerneas, Kyogre, Lunala. And one last thing, they need to reverse those review bombed comments, 'cause they didn't know until the expansions were announced.… Expand
  41. Beardyweirdy
    Nov 27, 2019
    6
    I loved this game, it's beautiful and engaging and had some great, compelling ideas for changing up online play. Unfortunately the execution was reasonably poor, the online match making is broken, the online performance is terrible, the routes are tiny, lacking in details and trainer battles, there is little to go back and explore once you have the game's only unlockable skill (Surf) andI loved this game, it's beautiful and engaging and had some great, compelling ideas for changing up online play. Unfortunately the execution was reasonably poor, the online match making is broken, the online performance is terrible, the routes are tiny, lacking in details and trainer battles, there is little to go back and explore once you have the game's only unlockable skill (Surf) and no large explorable dungeons. This is a lazy first entry into the Switch catalogue for Pokemon. Making mattress worse is that GAMEFREAK and the Pokemon Company's response has been extremely poor, and professional reviewers have overlooked glaring issues because they are being paid for ad clicks and ad revenue from being provided with review copies. This is a bad time to be a long term Pokemon fan.… Expand
  42. Blue89Lion
    Nov 28, 2019
    7
    Un gran juego de Pokémon pero con dos puntos que flaquean:
    1) El aspecto gráfico. No está a la altura de una Nintendo Switch en determinados puntos
    2) La escasa dificultad. Como viene siendo habitual en los últimos juegos de PoKéMoN, es excesivamente fácil. Puedes acabar el juego sin necesidad de pararte a farmear como si que era necesarios en los PoKéMoN previos a Nintendo 3DS. Una pena,    Un gran juego de Pokémon pero con dos puntos que flaquean:
    1) El aspecto gráfico. No está a la altura de una Nintendo Switch en determinados puntos
    2) La escasa dificultad. Como viene siendo habitual en los últimos juegos de PoKéMoN, es excesivamente fácil. Puedes acabar el juego sin necesidad de pararte a farmear como si que era necesarios en los PoKéMoN previos a Nintendo 3DS. Una pena, la verdad. Por lo demás. Un buen juego que cumple las expectativas mínimas. Bonitos escenarios, aunque bastante vacios. Bonitos diseños de nuevos Pokémon. Música espectacular como suele ser habitual. Es el tipico juego de Pokémon que "Cuando haces Pop, ya no hay Stop" y no puedes parar hasta que te lo acabas. 25 horas de diversión aseguradas, pese a los dos puntos mencionados anteriores. Recomendado a cualquier aficionado de Pokémon. Se mea bastante en Sol y Luna ;-)    … Expand
  43. whenry
    Nov 28, 2019
    9
    I thought it was a good game overall, with some minor bugs that I have yet to experience since release.
  44. bluziken
    Nov 29, 2019
    9
    If you are a Pokemon fan, you need this game. Everyone can complain all they want but, this game is really good. Obviously, not all the Pokemon are in this game, and yes, Gamefreak was pretty lazy working on a lot of the things in the game. This game has pretty decent story, or above average Pokemon story, but this game is very addicting to me at least. I am a huge Pokemon fan, and weIf you are a Pokemon fan, you need this game. Everyone can complain all they want but, this game is really good. Obviously, not all the Pokemon are in this game, and yes, Gamefreak was pretty lazy working on a lot of the things in the game. This game has pretty decent story, or above average Pokemon story, but this game is very addicting to me at least. I am a huge Pokemon fan, and we haven't gotten our own original Pokemon game since the original Sun and Moon games, so this game really gives me that Pokemon game I have been wanting since I played ORAS and XY. There is some tutorials skips you can do, (not a whole bunch) but its still is a quality of life improvement, and there is some convenient tweaks in the menus. Also at the beginning of the game its a little mysterious, and interesting to hear the "legends" of Zacian and Zamazenta. And you have multiple rivals, a friendly one, a rude one, (like Gary) and a weird one. But I think my favorite part about this game is the new Pokemon, they are awesome! There is so many different type combos, for example, a lightning and poison type Pokemon. Also the designs are just so good, you notice them right away from the beginning of the game. They are probably the best Pokemon we've got since Hoenn. (In my opinion) Even though Gamefreak is struggling to move their new games to a more home console sense, I think they did just enough right to satisfy me with this awesome new game. Hopefully they start realizing the massive disappointment from fans, and start to work just a little bit harder on the next game.… Expand
  45. cdiazre
    Nov 30, 2019
    8
    Pokémon Shield yet again delivers the fantasy of becoming a trainer on the Switch, though it feels rough around the edges, like it was rushed. Very unlike a Nintendo game.
  46. Jman2182
    Dec 1, 2019
    7
    I finished playing the game and the post game like a couple of days ago and now im here to give my thought out review.
    Pros
    I genuinely liked the characters in the game. Hop was no carbon copy of hay and actually got development, Bede is the rival I have wanted for a long time, you can't hate on Marnie, the gym leaders actually matter in the grand scheme of things, and the champion was    I finished playing the game and the post game like a couple of days ago and now im here to give my thought out review.
    Pros
    I genuinely liked the characters in the game. Hop was no carbon copy of hay and actually got development, Bede is the rival I have wanted for a long time, you can't hate on Marnie, the gym leaders actually matter in the grand scheme of things, and the champion was very likable as well.
    The Wild area is a great addition and you can get lost for hours.
    Some of the cutscenes are just godlike.
    Also I liked the idea of version exclusive gym leaders, it helps give the player a different experience other than just the legendary you get.

    Cons
    The game is pretty easy. Personally the best way to play this game is to do a nuzlocke, which is what I did. EXP candies should have never been added into the game because they over level your Pokemon way to much. Not to mention you can't turn exp share off, you have it at the beginning of the game.

    Post game is a little lacking. After you beat the game, all you really have is the battle tower, wild area, and gym leader re challenges.

    Horrible online. I cannot tell you how many times I have done raid battles with friends and have been disconnected mid match and booted out of the fight.

    The fact that they cut half of the Pokemon. The reason this is a critique is because it made a whole spark in the community attacking game freak because the reason they cut half the Pokemon was because they had to make models from scratch and it was time consuming, which was false and any company should be held accountable when outright lying to their community.

    That's all I have to say about the game. It is a really fun game but I don't think it really deserved the $60 price tag when all the other games were $40.    … Expand
  47. Sherlockueu
    Nov 30, 2019
    9
    Melhor na minha opinião, jogo do pokémon uma coisa que não gostei foi o Bede
  48. Guardiangroove
    Dec 1, 2019
    8
    This is pokemon people. Nobody goes to pokemon for a deep story, or good animations. Yes, gamefreak did not deliver in what they said. What they did do is deliver a game for die hard pokemon fans. Not for casuals who play the story and then put the game down.

    Simply put, if you're a die hard pokemon fan and love collecting, and battling competitively (for 20 minutes LMAO) this is the    This is pokemon people. Nobody goes to pokemon for a deep story, or good animations. Yes, gamefreak did not deliver in what they said. What they did do is deliver a game for die hard pokemon fans. Not for casuals who play the story and then put the game down.

    Simply put, if you're a die hard pokemon fan and love collecting, and battling competitively (for 20 minutes LMAO) this is the game for you. If you're a casual who is just going to play the game for story, you would have fun for about 10-15 hours, and that's it. So the choice is yours.    … Expand
  49. Penfort
    Dec 1, 2019
    9
    As someone who has played the game, I can give an honest review on it. I will start with the negative aspects of the game, which is mainly the graphical side of the Wild Area. The concept is great and it's fun to travel around and explore, however, some graphical polishing is needed. There is some minor lag in there as well, but this seems to have been reduced after some serverAs someone who has played the game, I can give an honest review on it. I will start with the negative aspects of the game, which is mainly the graphical side of the Wild Area. The concept is great and it's fun to travel around and explore, however, some graphical polishing is needed. There is some minor lag in there as well, but this seems to have been reduced after some server maintenance.

    The story isn't the best there is, but the characters are nicely designed and written. It's not something as large scale as Gen 7, but the game offers more freedom to roam around as well.

    The game isn't challenging, which is nothing new to Pokemon. Some battles such as Nessa's gym can be tough if you're not prepared, but the rival still not having a full team at all times makes little sense

    I hope there isn't going to be a third version or sequel style games to this next year. Actually, I hope the next games aren't next year (if they're solid remakes, it might work), but the release of annual games is a bit harmful

    However, the positives outweigh the negatives here. Yes, the national dex isn't here and megas and the (mostly unpopular) Z-moves are cut. But Dynamax is more than just Pokemon enlarged; it gives a chance to most Pokemon and its rules and levels can be used strategically. Gigantamax adds to that as well

    Pokemon Sword and Shield seem to focus on the world and culture of Pokemon. The Gym Challenge, the popularity of leaders, the trainer cards, engaging with your Pokemon through camping. You're no longer a lone kid on a journey with few people caring about your gym challenge; the whole region is out there cheering for the likes of you. This is a really nice touch that I hope will be continued.

    The game features a lot of quality of life improvements, from ev training to leveling up and box management, it's easier and sleek. Even breeding seems to have become more accessible (plus 2 daycare centers). Moreover, a form of fast travel is available, and HMs are still out which is very refreshing

    The new Pokemon designs for the majority are really charming and wonderful! This is an objective point of course, but the variety and types available are excellent. The game's dex is around 400 Pokemon, but the way they're spread out across the wild area and routes are balanced enough

    Camping is a great way to engage with your Pokemon, it's so cute! Cooking curry is also fun and has its uses as well. Not only the animations in it are charming and give the Pokemon personality, several animations across the game have been improved (yes, including battle animations. Some rarely used ones are still the same however)

    Trainer costumization has been vastly improved and I love the variety of options offered! The music is amazing as well, and it's good to see that the exp share is more balanced than before
    Finally, the y-comm could be better. I liked having surprise trades in the background, but making a BETTER version of GTS would have been nice. However, Y-comm isn't terrible. Definitely a step up from Festival Plaza

    There are a few things to address regarding the spread of misinformation about the game:
    -The moves removed are mostly Z-Moves and obsolete ones such as rage. New ones have been added, as well as TRs which are one-use TMs. This means there is close to 200 moves you can teach your Pokemon through TMs and TRs
    -The glitch that deletes the save game isn't the game's fault, it's the formatting of the SD card and it's a very uncommon issue
    -The glitches that some people talked about were due to emulators and rigging said emulators purposefully

    In general, the game is charming and falls right into the same engaging and features of previous Pokemon games (main story, side features such as camping, wild area, curry dex, pokedex, trainer cards..etc, post-game, post-game battle facility).
    The expectations of both a botw style game and full roster of Pokemon are unrealistic, the game is fun and has a lot to offer and is not only an improvement from gen 7 in many ways, but in many ways a step in the right direction, even if it's a small step in some areas    … Expand
  50. Odme
    Dec 2, 2019
    8
    The 8th Generation of Pokemon games are the best in the series since Pokemon Black and White 2 way back in 2012. The expansive Galar Region has so much to do and, while linear for the sake of the story, opens up a lot more opportunities in the post game. The huge Wild Area makes completing the Pokedex a breeze compared to previous games, with most if not all available Pokemon showing up inThe 8th Generation of Pokemon games are the best in the series since Pokemon Black and White 2 way back in 2012. The expansive Galar Region has so much to do and, while linear for the sake of the story, opens up a lot more opportunities in the post game. The huge Wild Area makes completing the Pokedex a breeze compared to previous games, with most if not all available Pokemon showing up in some part of the Wild Area. Max Raid Battles are a joy to take part in, especially when you find a rare Gigantamax Pokemon to take on with your friends. Some gripes I have with the game: Obviously, the absence of the National Dex. This ended up not being too big a deal to me as I love all the available Pokemon in Sword and Shield. However, it would have been nice to let us transfer our Pokemon at all. This did not stop me from enjoying the game, however. My all time favorite Pokemon, Absol, is not in this game. Does that hinder my experience? No! There are 400 Pokemon in this game. I will find someone to take Absol's place on my team, and that was relatively easy. The characters in this game are very fleshed out, especially Hop, Sonia, Marnie, and Bede. Overall, Pokemon Sword and Shield offer a Pokemon experience we haven't had in a long time.… Expand
  51. PepeProGamer
    Dec 7, 2019
    9
    I've actually yah know, played the game, unlike most of the poo poo brain reviews on this game review and I would like to say. THIS GAME IS EPIC
    The story revolves around the epic battles of Galar and not the chosen one hosh posh of previous titles. And as a result the battles are epic. The pokedex cut has resulted in a vastly more interesting competitive scene.
    Almost all complaints    I've actually yah know, played the game, unlike most of the poo poo brain reviews on this game review and I would like to say. THIS GAME IS EPIC
    The story revolves around the epic battles of Galar and not the chosen one hosh posh of previous titles. And as a result the battles are epic. The pokedex cut has resulted in a vastly more interesting competitive scene.
    Almost all complaints about this are unfounded. Graphics are pretty then they ever been for Pokémon (I have no idea what you morons expected it's a switch game of course it's not hyper realism)
    To new and old fans it's truly a must buy.
    No its not perfect or everything we've wanted. But it's a big step in the right direction for Pokémon.    … Expand
  52. Crispycheese08
    Dec 8, 2019
    9
    This installment of the pokemon franchise is not bad, on the contrary of what every other pokemon fans say. The lack of a national dex does not really take away from the game in a casual perspective and will itch that need for a pokemon game. The animation aren't perfect, but the graphics are good for this game, it fits. An HD triple A graphics does not fit with the game and so the artThis installment of the pokemon franchise is not bad, on the contrary of what every other pokemon fans say. The lack of a national dex does not really take away from the game in a casual perspective and will itch that need for a pokemon game. The animation aren't perfect, but the graphics are good for this game, it fits. An HD triple A graphics does not fit with the game and so the art direction is good for the game.… Expand
  53. Diego9028
    Dec 10, 2019
    8
    Aunque no sea lo que muchos fans esperaban, pokemon sword es realmente un buen juego de pokemon, trayendo nuevas mecánicas interesantes como lo és el dynamax y el Área Silvestre, este último aunque se ve que hay mucho que pulir es el primer paso para una nueva forma de jugar pokemon. Por último sólo queda decir que en el apartado gráfico deja mucho que desear tomando en cuenta que este esAunque no sea lo que muchos fans esperaban, pokemon sword es realmente un buen juego de pokemon, trayendo nuevas mecánicas interesantes como lo és el dynamax y el Área Silvestre, este último aunque se ve que hay mucho que pulir es el primer paso para una nueva forma de jugar pokemon. Por último sólo queda decir que en el apartado gráfico deja mucho que desear tomando en cuenta que este es un juego de Nintendo Switch, pero aún así no es un grave impedimento para disfrutar de este juego.… Expand
  54. tariacurigamer
    Dec 19, 2019
    8
    I liked pokemon sword but I think it could be better if there was no better gamefrak worked on pokemon lets go the game is enjoyable with many mistakes, a lot on this page exaggeratedly classified by the clipped pokedex, which is a bad game, when in reality is not a bad game, it is simply mediocre but bad it is not to say polish the game but considering that this game only had inI liked pokemon sword but I think it could be better if there was no better gamefrak worked on pokemon lets go the game is enjoyable with many mistakes, a lot on this page exaggeratedly classified by the clipped pokedex, which is a bad game, when in reality is not a bad game, it is simply mediocre but bad it is not to say polish the game but considering that this game only had in development 200 workers and that we are talking about a hybrid where the graphics approach a ps4 because the truth it was obvious that this would literally happen to people just screaming of anything I give it an 8.5 not because it is bad, but because it is a mediocre development and that it could improve by 35%… Expand
  55. AlexSaiyan
    Dec 21, 2019
    7
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. It's a normal Pokemon game like UltraSun and UltraMoon with the graphics in HD with another region, new pokemon and Dynamax… Expand
  56. Toast420
    Dec 25, 2019
    7
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. The story is ok but the starters are to human looking and are not good. Also when you beat the game the raid battles become almost impossible to beat because the ai will revive them selves even though they fainted it will count as being fainted again. The team only has 4 faints and the battle ends when it reaches 4.… Expand
  57. Janek1907
    Dec 25, 2019
    7
    I think That sword and shield are good Games, but with some less good details. For example the graphic. In the year 2019 I don’t want a Game which looks like a 2014 WiiU game. Many people says, that the missing of the National Pokédex is a big problem, but I think, actually it’s not. The story could be better, but is still okay. As a gamer who played every Pokemon game, it is very easy andI think That sword and shield are good Games, but with some less good details. For example the graphic. In the year 2019 I don’t want a Game which looks like a 2014 WiiU game. Many people says, that the missing of the National Pokédex is a big problem, but I think, actually it’s not. The story could be better, but is still okay. As a gamer who played every Pokemon game, it is very easy and for starters it shouldn’t be hard. For me it was too easy. I only needed 25 hours for the main game and for a RPG in the year 2019 it’s not much. But in the end I have to say, that the game really makes fun so I rate the game with a 7.… Expand
  58. CJ2020
    Jan 7, 2020
    10
    My son got this game for Christmas, he is 9 and loves pokemon, you could say he is a walking pokedex!
    So this review is from him, after all he is the target audience in my opinion.
    So graphics, he was very pleased with the game and how it played and looked, yes there are some problems as other reviews have suggested but they by no means detract from the enjoyment of the game. He found the    My son got this game for Christmas, he is 9 and loves pokemon, you could say he is a walking pokedex!
    So this review is from him, after all he is the target audience in my opinion.
    So graphics, he was very pleased with the game and how it played and looked, yes there are some problems as other reviews have suggested but they by no means detract from the enjoyment of the game.
    He found the game very easy to play and navigate, in his first play through he just wanted to get the gym badges as quickly as possible so did find some of those a little challenging at times. The second play through has been much easier as time has been taken to level up and evolve his pokemon to make the game easier and he has actually stopped to look for the various collectables dotted around the map, which are numerous.
    There were a couple of things he found a little disappointing, these were the length of the game, 8 days and 10 hours the first time, although the second play through he is up to 10 hours already and only completed 3 gym badges, so to make the game last I would recommend taking your time. The other issue he had was the lack of extra things to do once the game was complete, there are no side missions as such so he has resolved to try and collect all 400 pokemon available in the game.
    He insisted I give it a score of 10 as he loves the game that much but I thought a score of 7 or 8 was more realistic mainly due to the length of the game and the odd graphical glitch that I saw pop up every now and again.
    So if you are expecting an in depth RPG this is probably not for you but if you're 9 and love pokemon then it's a no brainer!    … Expand
  59. Legoking
    Jan 11, 2020
    10
    One of the best Pokémon games I’ve ever played. Great visuals, awesome gameplay.
  60. AkiBismarck
    Jan 18, 2020
    3
    This is the worst pokemon game so far, everyone who says otherways has either never played a single pokemon game before or is completly delusional. The designes are beyond terrible and uncreative. Gamefreak literally knows it, for what other reason would they place that many old pokemon already catchable at the first routes. They know most of the new pokemon look utter garbage, so theyThis is the worst pokemon game so far, everyone who says otherways has either never played a single pokemon game before or is completly delusional. The designes are beyond terrible and uncreative. Gamefreak literally knows it, for what other reason would they place that many old pokemon already catchable at the first routes. They know most of the new pokemon look utter garbage, so they had to compensate. For anything else wrong about this game there are already enough other reportings like here or on reddit. This game is just a sad picture of what nintendo and gamefreak have become. This isnt pokemon anymore this is a pure money-ripoff… Expand
  61. Joshie
    Feb 2, 2020
    3
    Pokémon sword and shield is a game that feels as if it was a 3DS game rushed onto the switch after the handheld started to die. The game feels like the same game as always and whilst it's a good formula, the amount of rehashed content is near unforgivable.
  62. Allen_Wolf
    Sep 21, 2020
    10
    Un muy buen juego. No es el mejor pokemon, pero es muy divertido. Tiene unos graficos muy bonitos y unos diseños encantadores en lo que a pokemon se refiere. Un juego que brinda incontables horas de diversion junto a tus pokemon favoritos( de esta generacion, al menos. Esperemos que en el futuro añandan a los de anteriores generaciones, o en los futuros juegos de pokemon al menos). MuyUn muy buen juego. No es el mejor pokemon, pero es muy divertido. Tiene unos graficos muy bonitos y unos diseños encantadores en lo que a pokemon se refiere. Un juego que brinda incontables horas de diversion junto a tus pokemon favoritos( de esta generacion, al menos. Esperemos que en el futuro añandan a los de anteriores generaciones, o en los futuros juegos de pokemon al menos). Muy divertido y recomendable.… Expand
  63. Twilwind
    Oct 10, 2020
    6
    Game Freak could have made a better game. The story is too short, and the graphical quality is terrible. Still, there are advantages. The Online Battle function is more balanced and the Internet connection is stable. By the way, I love Galarian Ponyta!!!
  64. Tempest636
    Mar 24, 2020
    9
    Online battles are great, music and visuals are great. Raid battles are decent, the story is a bit weak. Every time something interesting is close to happening the 'adults' take care of it and sideline the main character
  65. 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.
  66. LeeChungyong
    Apr 4, 2020
    10
    It's fun.
    The ash part also existed.Gredo 10 points
    I hope all Pokémon will appear next time.
  67. Benjones1234
    Apr 9, 2020
    10
    I would say the greatest pokemon game ever, absolutely massive and vert satisfying.
  68. 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.
  69. 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
  70. 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
  71. 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
  72. 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.
  73. 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
  74. 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
  75. DanaelQueen
    Jun 24, 2020
    10
    Iconic game, haters gonna hate, i love all the new pokemon, the music and the battles
  76. MauriMauri
    May 29, 2020
    10
    Excelente juego, el mejor de la franquicia y por fin tiene DLC !!! espectacular
  77. Sitheral
    Jan 16, 2022
    8
    The game is fine and user reviews are greatly exaggerated, you know what you getting here before you even start it and it does just that - it very much looks and plays like X/Y, just at higher resolution. There is a wild area which is sort of a bridge to full 3d title we are getting soon and yes it lags in online mode, besides that the world is mostly linear, but with a fair amount ofThe game is fine and user reviews are greatly exaggerated, you know what you getting here before you even start it and it does just that - it very much looks and plays like X/Y, just at higher resolution. There is a wild area which is sort of a bridge to full 3d title we are getting soon and yes it lags in online mode, besides that the world is mostly linear, but with a fair amount of detail. Not every pokemon made it, even after the expansions and that sucks but you still have plenty to play with. I would say go for it if you had a long break and need to scratch that itch, otherwise its not a must play.… Expand
  78. Brainlegs
    Oct 22, 2020
    9
    Love it! Perfect game to play working from home. Same Pokemon style and fun to project on the big screen.
  79. DAVIDROBERTSON1
    Jun 25, 2020
    10
    Overall i love this game even though the pokedex controversy was a minor blow, i kept an open mind and got pokemon sword and just finished the isle of armor dlc pack part 1 and i enjoyed it very much so.
  80. 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
  81. Wilted_Dust
    Jun 23, 2020
    6
    Is a good pokemon game, but the development staff are so lazy and try to sell all the content
  82. Goku1032
    Jun 23, 2020
    9
    The game looks a lot better than on the 3ds and easier to get shiny's. The only thing I truly don't like with this game is that it's not that difficult to beat the game. Auto exp that will just over level your pokemon.
  83. bothater69
    Sep 26, 2020
    10
    i would giv this game a 7 if it werent for marnie...... 10 best game best game masterpiece 10/10
  84. Thebigbumaloo
    Jun 26, 2020
    8
    Probably the strongest entry to the series since Diamond and Pearl. The reduced Pokédex is not an issue, for once I actually completed it and caught all 400 pokemon. The level grinding is severely cutdown thanks to the introduction of Raid Dens and their generous rewards for completing them, mainly the XP Candies (think rare candies but the store brand version).

    The cons are that the wild    Probably the strongest entry to the series since Diamond and Pearl. The reduced Pokédex is not an issue, for once I actually completed it and caught all 400 pokemon. The level grinding is severely cutdown thanks to the introduction of Raid Dens and their generous rewards for completing them, mainly the XP Candies (think rare candies but the store brand version).

    The cons are that the wild area is bland, and Isle of Armor was already a big improvement over the originals design. The new pokemon added are meh aside from the legendaries and starters. Oh, and there’s too much story handholding and Hop sucks. It’s aimed at children, so I get it, but kids aren’t THAT hopeless. I beat Pokemon Yellow at 5-6 years old.

    Closing thoughts: To rub salt in the wounds of the people review bombing it, it’s the fastest selling switch game of all time. This was the precursor to The Last of Us 2 review bombing, despite that game being the fastest selling game on the PS4. Coincidentally, they have the same reader review score.    … Expand
  85. WeRateGames
    Jun 26, 2020
    7
    Despite Sword and Shield offering one of the most linear adventures we’ve ever had in the series and
    curiosity failing to provide much in the way of reward, this iteration of Pokemon is still extremely satisfying. There’s nothing groundbreaking here but it’s first steps into the console space are well placed.
  86. Darros2
    Jul 23, 2020
    8
    Juego bastante disfrutable para los fans de pokémon presenta los fallos que tiene la saga hace bastante tiempo, como una historia bastante infantil y sin sentido, no incorpora todos los pokémon con la excusa de realizar mejores animaciones, pero se puede observar que por ejemplo los movimientos y animaciones del rival son las mismas del juego anterior. Lo positivo es que mejora el sistemaJuego bastante disfrutable para los fans de pokémon presenta los fallos que tiene la saga hace bastante tiempo, como una historia bastante infantil y sin sentido, no incorpora todos los pokémon con la excusa de realizar mejores animaciones, pero se puede observar que por ejemplo los movimientos y animaciones del rival son las mismas del juego anterior. Lo positivo es que mejora el sistema de crianza para jugar competitivo haciendo que sea más fácil y rápido que en generaciones anteriores, los combates finales son interesantes y con un buen nivel y el diseño de los pokémon es muy bueno, junto a que a pesar de sus defectos el juego se siente liviana y no se hace aburrido jugarlo.… Expand
  87. OrangePlasma
    Jul 16, 2020
    9
    I've never really understood why there is so much negativity directed towards this game. The graphics certainly could have been better, there's no real debate there. But some of the most well-written characters in a series not very full of those, the amazing Wild Area and overall good extra content made me like it.
  88. Potatonian
    Jul 11, 2020
    8
    When the trailers and announcements first started appearing rumoring the absence of a national Pokédex and the inclusion of only 400 of the 809+ Pokemon (now 893+), I didn't have the urge to buy it like I did for all other main line pokemon games. Especially with the exclusion of Mega evolution, and the poor cutscene animations, the game had needed much to be desirable. Despite gamefreaksWhen the trailers and announcements first started appearing rumoring the absence of a national Pokédex and the inclusion of only 400 of the 809+ Pokemon (now 893+), I didn't have the urge to buy it like I did for all other main line pokemon games. Especially with the exclusion of Mega evolution, and the poor cutscene animations, the game had needed much to be desirable. Despite gamefreaks promise of there being completely new pokemon animations and cutscene animations, both were still clearly present with many pokemon animations appearing as far back as 2 generations prior. This however I believe is not really that perplexing despite the developers' promises as old assets are often used in newer games naturally to save time, resources and production cost which should instead be used to improve upon other parts of a game.

    The wild area graphics such as the infamous tree textures and the stiff pokemon animations are obviously a big let down, I remember the many comparison made to it, most notably the open world of Zelda: Breath of the wild. Despite the wild area being a rather shoddily done job, and being it having much to be desired, I am not particularly displeased as it is the first open world experience, though limited, and the wild area itaelf is magnificent. It also seems that gamefreak has used some feedback on the open world of the Isle of Armor DLC. I bought it near launch regardless and found the story and gameplay to be great,. Contrary to popular opinion I believe dynamax is a great gameplay mechanic added to the game albeit being a less enticing combination of mega evolution and z-moves.
    It has many competitive benefits and are a great aid in any battle. I believe that the competitive scene can truly be cemented with the inclusion of dynamax, mega evoltion and z-moves, allowing for much more stretegic play and a lot less stalling due to an increase in wall-breaking.

    The story itself heavily differed from the traditional stories of old pokemon games as there was no villain team. It had some similarities with Sun and moon's story. The characters however were much more well thought out than in previous games such as the character development of Hop being similar to Wally but much more involved. Leon being made to appear as a great champion much more than any previous game's champion, even going as far as having a remix of the hall of fame being his battle music which perfectly encapsulates his persona and character arc.

    The music in this game was absolutely fantastic with some being nearly or as good as Zinnias's battle theme, PWT final battle theme, Ultra necrozma's theme etc. To name a few, we have Marnies's and Bede's battle themes, the battle tower battle theme made by the illustrious Toby Fox, the champion battle music, the wild area music, Mustard's final battle theme etc. I believe gen 8 music overall is nearly on par with gen 5.

    To name a few unmentioned but nice mechanics: the apparel and customisation in this game, camping and curries, trainer card customisation, pokejobs, max raids, enhanced experience training, nature mints, controllable pokemon league that makes much more sense, and pokebox system.

    One very important and much appreciated thing this game has that no other pokemon game has ever had is a DLC. To explain very briefly why this is the best thing to ever happen to mainline pokemon games: every other mainline pokemon game to come out has always either been a remake or a second version of the game, what concerns us however are the second versions (such as Yellow, Crystal, Emerald, Platinum, Black 2 and White 2, Ultra sun and Ultra moon) all of which had additions and improvements to their older counterparts but too miniscule to be considered worth buying, this is apparent in their sales also as these games have significantly less sales. What the DLC does to benefit us and game freak is rather obvious, it gives us new content for less money whilst guarenteeing a lot more sales than a second iteration would. If this is gamefreak's new formula for the mainline games, it will greatly benefit both parties long term.

    Overall, the absence of key battle mechanics from the past two generations including the absence of many many moves and pokemon definitely knocks off a few points from my rating of the game, as does some poor animations and clear laziness in some parts of the game's development. However, this game is great like any other mainline pokemon game, it has all the mechanics and quirks befitting its status as being part of one of the most illustrious, and important series of games to ever exist. I believe it is a great addition to gamefreak's collection and also an important learning curve for gamefreak. Despite how well-received the game wasn't, I personally still believe that it excelled in many ways and performed better than many of its predecessors in some aspects, and will be remembered as an important game for how great and how bad it was.    … Expand
  89. Themat
    Jul 20, 2020
    10
    This game is amazing! The Galar Region is beautiful and brought to life by a variety of Pokémon from previous generations. The landscape and semi open world is vast and creative as well as the assemble of characters. There’s always something to do and there are new Pokémon as well. I throughly enjoyed this game and highly recommend it!
  90. vigamo
    Jul 23, 2020
    10
    El mejor juego de Pokémon sin duda!! Uno de los mejores juegos para Nintendo Switch
  91. Tri9322
    Nov 10, 2020
    8
    Pokémon Sword and Shield are not perfect. Not at all. They are missing Pokémon, have not the best story and don't look amazing. But, they're fun. It is fun to see the nice graphics (which I think look good but others don't), it is cool to explore the game and catch new Pokémon. It is fun to play with your Pokémon in Pokémon Camp. It is fun to shiny hunt, to try and get dex completion, itPokémon Sword and Shield are not perfect. Not at all. They are missing Pokémon, have not the best story and don't look amazing. But, they're fun. It is fun to see the nice graphics (which I think look good but others don't), it is cool to explore the game and catch new Pokémon. It is fun to play with your Pokémon in Pokémon Camp. It is fun to shiny hunt, to try and get dex completion, it is just a fun game that I enjoy. I just hate seeing constant negativity on the internet, and personally find these games very fun.… Expand
  92. Tavo1994
    Jul 24, 2020
    4
    $60 game and has less content than a 40 Pokemon game. Gamefreak needs to sell their franchise to another developer who actually cares about their fans
  93. MrGoombs
    Aug 21, 2020
    10
    overhated it’s not a bad game it’s not exactly a good game either but it’s fun and that’s what matters i wouldn’t actually give it a 10/10 i just am to counter the trills my real score would be 8/10
  94. Link36
    Aug 26, 2020
    10
    Is a fantastic game...............................................................................................
  95. GhostieGaming
    Sep 12, 2020
    10
    My first experience with the Switch Pokemon games and I was not disappointed. Massive improvement over the 3DS era of Pokemon.
  96. SobbleAJ
    Sep 21, 2020
    7
    This game is not nearly as bad as the internet makes it out to be. People act like it’s the worst game ever made, when that’s simply not the case. It has flaws such as the lack of a national pokedex, but raid battles and the new gyms are pretty amazing. I also really dig the new designs. Sobble is my new favorite Pokémon now.
  97. Leo_Trinity
    Sep 28, 2020
    10
    This game's pretty fun if you are a fan of Pokemon. The game isn't that good but I wouldnt give it a 4.6 like the user reviews on Metacritic show. It definetely deserves more then that, at least above 5.5. If you have friends that are interested in Pokemon, you could easily go around having fun in Max Raid Battles. And since DLC 2 is coming and you'll have the ability to catch moreThis game's pretty fun if you are a fan of Pokemon. The game isn't that good but I wouldnt give it a 4.6 like the user reviews on Metacritic show. It definetely deserves more then that, at least above 5.5. If you have friends that are interested in Pokemon, you could easily go around having fun in Max Raid Battles. And since DLC 2 is coming and you'll have the ability to catch more legendaries, that's gonna be even more fun. Give it a chance.… Expand
  98. immarooned
    Nov 22, 2020
    10
    This game… is truly something else.

    Hear me out. I love this game. A lot. I’m just gonna get that out of the way right now. So if all you wanna read are the negative reviews (which you’ll find plenty of…) then get the heck out of here. I have my gripes, which I’ll get to in a bit… but overall, the positives outweigh the negatives by SO MUCH, that it’s hardly worth a rating reduction.    This game… is truly something else.

    Hear me out.

    I love this game. A lot. I’m just gonna get that out of the way right now. So if all you wanna read are the negative reviews (which you’ll find plenty of…) then get the heck out of here. I have my gripes, which I’ll get to in a bit… but overall, the positives outweigh the negatives by SO MUCH, that it’s hardly worth a rating reduction. It isn’t at all, to me.
    The game is so well-thought-out and just… fun. It really felt like a Pokemon game, despite there being so many new features. Like Dynamaxing, and the open-world style of the Wild Area. I mean, it’s pretty hard to incorporate a sense of nostalgia into a battle that has none of the mechanics or styles of the original games. This game achieves it. And I love every second of it.
    I can tell so much work went into this game. The attention to detail, the humor, the animations. Everything is amazing. The game builds up tension like a movie. There’s a real story there. And while it may not be fair to say things about the other games, saying they’re inferior because they don’t have animations, but it may just be true. In the old games, if you lost, then it’s just… “Oh, I lost… well, time to go crush the Elite Four.” In this, I’m nervous. It plays out battles so well, and the tension is real. Although playing out battles is a problem I actually do have with this game. Not in storyline-important battles, but in the wild. When grinding in the old games, the wild Pokemon were often far inferior to you and you can wipe them out in a second. In this, when you battle them, it takes about as long as a regular trainer battle and about as hard. When grinding, you just want to get them out of there and keep going, right? But no, in this it takes 20 minutes to defeat a wild Meowth.
    I have no problem with the difficulty level in this game. I guess I’m just terrible at Pokemon because I had a lot of trouble, contrary to everything everyone else says. I didn’t often lose all my Pokemon (only 4 or five times the whole game) But I did have to often run back and forth between Pokemon centers and other stuff, and I used them less and less throughout the game, but medicines played a major role in my survival. Seriously.

    The story for this game is kind of all over the place but in a good way. There are some plot points that are brought in and then only used at the end of the game, or other things. The main post-game story is pretty short, and the characters brought in are well-developed but just feel thrown in, because the post-game is so short. The post-game actually kind of feels like the actual storyline, so much (SPOILERS HERE!) so I forgot I was even the champion. (SPOILERS END HERE!) It comes down to preference whether or not you think that’s a good thing. I do think it is, but there’s a chance that I have a bias and just want to love this game. Because I do. I do love this game.

    The game is pretty funny. Funniest Pokemon game since Ranger, actually. There are pretty noticeable character arcs, which isn’t something you get in a game normally. Hop is a really likable character (as are all of them) and every single character is memorable and plays a part in the story. My problem with Hop is that he is constantly challenging me, sometimes right before or after I battle, and either I’m in deficient health already, or I’m going to be in deficient health when I go into my next battle.
    
So that’s a bit annoying.

    There’s actually a lot more to do for post-game, I haven’t quite done it yet. I won’t be touching the DLC content for this review, just the immediate post-game.

    Game Freak lied to us?! I don’t care! Honestly, I’m not enveloped in international media at all. I had no idea that Game Freak said anything about the Pokedex. Honestly, after a little bit of time spent in comment wars over whether or not this game is a masterpiece or an abomination, I still don’t know what they lied to us about! I assume the Pokedex. Anyway, 1,200 Pokemon is DEFINITELY enough for me. Isn’t that more than it was in the whole franchise when it came out?

    The Wild Area is a step in an amazing direction. I can’t wait to see what Game Freak does with it in future games. It’s basically open-world now, it’s fantastic! By now I've been playing post-game for a week, and still haven’t discovered everything in the open-world part of the game.

    The graphics and animation are gorgeous. I don’t think Game Freak made them cartoony because of laziness, and in my opinion, it shows. Amazing.

    Hilarious and well-developed characters make the game really fun to play.

    I really like how straightforward it is. For the direct story (SPOILERS HERE!), at least, it’s just, beat this gym, then beat this gym. Beat all of the gyms until you get to the Championship. All the while subtly hinting at the ulterior storyline.

    I love this game so much.

    Ten. Out. Of. Ten.    … Expand
  99. juancarlosq10
    Nov 26, 2020
    9
    I really enjoyed my time with Pokemon Sword, sure it is not the most impressive game graphically or story wise, but compared to the previous entries in the series like Pokemon SM and Pokemon USUM this game made me remember the joy there is to find in Pokemon Games. I found Galar really interesting and the settings simply cool. The game focuses mainly on becoming Champion which I reallyI really enjoyed my time with Pokemon Sword, sure it is not the most impressive game graphically or story wise, but compared to the previous entries in the series like Pokemon SM and Pokemon USUM this game made me remember the joy there is to find in Pokemon Games. I found Galar really interesting and the settings simply cool. The game focuses mainly on becoming Champion which I really liked because usually I simply don't like the story in other Pokemon games, so I liked not wasting much time on it, I also really liked the new Pokemon. Simply put this is a fun game and that is what I expect from a Pokemon game… Expand
  100. blueshiny
    Dec 1, 2020
    9
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. i picked up pokemon sword Christmas last year i would say that it has a great story and great selection of pokemon though the removal of the national dex and the Sudan difficulty spike around the third gym is very frustrating. even with the expansions it which you cant access till post game so their really isn't much to do with them in conclusion the game is really good with a few flaws… 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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