#swsh was :/ because it was on the switch it seemed like a 3ds game still yknow i was not impressed by the wild area at all

[invisiblemelonmoose]

My personal thoughts on actual game canon and main protag by game/region/generation.

Incredibly convoluted, just like the actual canon timeline appears to be.

First, objectively, at this point it has been established that there are multiple timelines, with the establishment of Rainbow Rocket. I've mentioned it before, but the original gameboy versions do not appear to be within the same continuity of time as the GBA/DS game. They do potentially seem possibly connected to the 3DS era games via direct trading through PokéBank, as well as adult Red showing up in the same game as young Wally. The Switch games are still up in the air as to how or even if they are connected directly.

I think the two official timelines seem to be

RGBY → GSC (BDSP?) → XY → ORAS → SM/USUM (→ SwSh → PLA somewhere in this coninuity → SV?)

and

FRLG ⇒ RSE → HGSS ⇒ DPPt → BW → B2W2 (→ SwSh → PLA somewhere in this continuity → SV?)

Not quite sure where the Let's Go games fit into the mix, but If the switch games have their own continuity, I might shove them in there...

While most people treat the remakes as the most definitive games of their region, I think that it would actually be the third version of each region (if there is one).

However, because there are two games per region each generation, some of which have vastly different outcomes for their opposing version, I feel like there is a another unofficial split that follows either the first named game or the second named game in the generation.

For example one timeline could be:

FR ⇒ R → HG ⇒ D→ B → B2 → X → (U)S → Sw → S

All of that being said, these are the games I take as canon and the protags of each:

Yellow: Red as protag (Blue/Leaf exists, but not within the game's events.)

Crystal: Kris as protag (Gold/HIbiki and Kotone don't exist, but if they did, they do not know Kris)

Emerald: Yuuki as protag

Platinum: Hikari as protag

Black + Black 2: Hilbert as protag followed by Rosa (Hilda and Nate hang out in the battle subway, and Hilda is Hilbert's twin sister).

Y: Serena as protag

Sun: Elio as protag (Selene probably doesn't exist, no gf Lillie :< )

Shield: Gloria as protag (Victor probably doesn't exist, no bf for Hop :< )

Scarlet: Florian as protag (Juliana exists and is a regular student)

As there are alternate timelines, starting with Unova, the protags swap as well as which game events are canon (e.g White + White 2 with Hilda and Nate, X with Calem, Moon with Selene, etc). Things get a bit more confusing in regions with remakes.

RGBY Red is still protag, but FRLG Blue/Leaf is, with their situations swapped.

GS has Gold/Hibiki as the protag with neither girl existing, but HGSS has Kotone as protag and Hibiki as her childhood friend.

Ruby and Omega Ruby has Yuuki still as protag, but Sapphire and Alpha Sapphire have Haruka.

Diamond and Brilliant Diamond have Kouki as protg, but Pearl and Shining Pearl have Hikari.

I do have a personal timeline wherein I imagine all three Johto progats co-existing, but that is honestly for another day.

[mell0bee]

hey tumblr. do i buy pokémon legends arceus or do i buy like 2-3 indie games (probably hades and omori)

i played sword and shield and got maybe 2/3rds of the way through it and tbh im surprised i made it that far. it wasn’t very fun for me to get thru. legends arceus seems like it appeals to me a LOT w/ the open world and more real-time mechanics + research upgrades but the pokémon franchise has just. burned me so badly lately and i’m not about to spend $60 on a game i won’t want to finish when i could buy indie games i’ll enjoy more w that money

[doubleddenden]

Got Legends Arceus, been playing for about 4 hours now. Honest thoughts so far:

I like it so far.

Refreshing, different, a remix of various ideas and formulas brought up in the past and modified to work here. Honestly the catching premise is like Let's Go, only less annoying, quicker, and actually fun, and with actual battles, and not a soulless JUST FLING YOUR ARMS AROUND AND HOPE YOU CATCH IT mechanic.

Battles are quick, finding items and crafting is quick, you can now change nicknames and moves on the fly and have access to every move your Pokémon has learned to that point. In addition, tutoring moves is a lot easier to do, merely costing money you earn from missions and such.

Animations and graphics... mixed bag. The good out of the way, this is the best looking Pokémon game Game Freak has ever made- that doesn't mean there's not room for improvement, and this definitely does not include non GF games like New Snap or Pokken, but at least it doesn't look like a 3ds or mobile game anymore (now it looks like a Wii game lol).

Visually it's passable, but there's weird glitches in grass and flowers that are jarring and very noticeable. Pop in isn't as bad as SwSh was for Pokemon, but you can still see things pop in at random, like textures and shadows, and it's not a good look. It even happens to tree shadows behind you, very close by.

Move animations look great, though, it's weird to say that, but yeah, it's true. A lot of Pokémon look and behave a lot more naturally, even playfully, vs how they would look like lifeless, plastic toys with 2d texture faces before. Some models seem to have been improved too to add more depth and mouth flaps rather than gifs on round faces.

I can't tell about human models moving, though. In the 3DS and Switch games prior, it was very easy to see that models moved along in grids and recycled a TON of animation. Nothing too jarring just yet, still stiff in some areas, but it is improved, that much I can tell. I do wish the character was faster and that he didn't run weird though.

Music so far is pretty good, but it still sounds like they're using DS and 3DS sound fonts and instruments here and there, which to me doesn't sound as good as the normal music. But the music is good on some degree anyway and Jubilife Village especially is pretty soothing.

Character customization is... eh. Better than BDSP and LGPE, a smidgen less categories than SwSh, but a lot of variety per dress item and unlike usually, guys and girls have pretty evenly distributed clothes and hair styles and such. You unlock more as the game progresses, although I do wonder if it would be much more trouble to just add hair, eye, and skin tone customization right at the beginning instead of making it a shop feature.

Characters are... well, I like em. They still suffer from the usual "WOW YOU'RE SO GREAT YOU'RE SO TALENTED HERE LET ME GIVE YOU 50 ITEMS YOU BEAUTIFUL BABY" mentality, but I think it's been dialed back to feel less condescending. Granted there's still a bit too much ass kissing for my taste, but at least the characters aren't annoying and actually express and emote their personalities pretty well. The thing is too, the tutorials they force on you is a bit long, but it's needed, and each bit is done quickly. For once, I'm actually glad to have a catching tutorial. Plus when they give you items, you need em.

I will say too, it's refreshing to see some brutal honesty from some of the NPCs at first, not trusting you immediately. Things are appropriately dire and not nearly as sugar coated as usual too. Like they straight up say the word "die" a few times. Very refreshing, I'm appropriately afraid.

I'm not going to say they give you total freedom, but I was able to explore instead of having to go directly to the next mission. In fact, I saw an Alpha Snorlax during one of the opening bits. I avoided it because I don't want to die, but it felt cool knowing I didn't have an annoying asshole screaming at me to go left. It seems like each area is separated like a Monster Hunter game, which is fine and a step in the right direction, but in the future I'd just want it to be open world entirely.

Difficulty is pretty manageable. It's not hard, but it's not as easy as I thought either. Pokémon will do a lot more damage than you expect, and guess what? They will gang up on you. Battling is easy, it's the dodging and sneaking that takes practice, and managing your inventory while keeping your team healed up.

I know it's a lot just for an initial reaction, but honestly it's a lot to take in. Not quite seeing "best Pokémon game ever" material just yet, but it is already a contender for best Pokémon game for Switch, and I am still in the beginning.

I look forward to playing this game more

[beakybirdsong]

Sigh okay it's Pokemon News Drop Day so I'm gonna make a quick appearance for initial thoughts. But uhhh they're not great lmao

So if you don't like debbie downers probably don't read this lol

Because I got a bit...edgy

But like...I actually *hate* that we're getting 3 different games and none of them look remotely...good, all for different reasons.

The D/P remakes, from what we've seen so far, just don't excite me in any way. My opinion could change going forward but for right now it looks like it might as well be a remastered port, which is...not really what I've come to expect from Pokemon remakes, even as someone who's generally become a huge pessimist over the years lmao. HGSS added Pokemon following, the Pokathalon, a customizable Safari Zone, team photos, polished bits of existing storyline (like awakening the legendaries or disguising yourself as a rocket), and I think even the Battle Frontier iirc. We got much less in ORAS, but the story was admittedly still polished up good from what it was, including a little post game romp where we could catch Deoxys, the DexNav, which was super fun to play around with, and additionally Mirage Islands, a bunch of minimaps in the region that changed every day, which you essentially could collect from others by playing online or using Streetpass and accessing BuzzNav. It was also the first game to let us really hunt a hoard of legendaries, some of which were hidden in really cool updated areas (lookin at you Sea Mauville).

My point of all this I guess is that if you're going to give us a trailer for DP remakes can you not make it look like...samey and bland lol?? I'm not saying there WONT be any new content, but I am saying that if there isn't then it just...is not gonna be worth the money that a Switch game costs. Especially after Swsh left such a bad taste in my mouth. Like H O N E S T L Y I'd probably be being a lot nicer right now if Swsh was like...a good game lmao but that shit still has bugs and even after two full DLC drops there's nothing to DO (outside of being a crazy person like me and hunting shiny legends in Dynamax Adventures).

NOT TO MENTION HOLY SHIT, the longer time goes on the less forgivable it gets that these characters are sooooo fucking static!!!! The whole *thud* thing worked fine back in the DS era because it was....yknow, the DS era, but it just looks so stupid over a decade later. You can't add any more movement than that?? Barry's static pose in battle is also just completely devoid of personality. I'd honestly be fine with the chibi style if they did something interesting with it. Which is my point ig. Please please pleeeaaassseeee do something interesting with these remakes. Give me a reason not to just play on an emulator, or hell. Dig out an old copy and play on the 3DS, which still supports DS games lmao.

Okay phew ANYWAY.

Idk if it's because I'm coming down off of that hot mess but Pokemon Legends is actually...kind of interesting in concept. Like it takes place in the past, neat. And it's """"open-world,"""" okay neat. And the starter options are remixed, neat (I have a lot of thoughts on that actually and they aren't bad but this isn't the time or place). And they clearly told the tree-renderers to get their fucking act together, but like...that's a good segue into the problem I'm having with it which is that it still just looks empty. And boring?? And I think what I'm getting hung up on is that part of my brain is like ooh cool but there's a much bigger part of my brain that's like "OK but WHY"

It's just so frustrating as a longtime Pokemon fan to look at these two games which are both set in Sinnoh and only seeing wasted potential. Why aren't we getting one really good Sinnoh game that could happen with a little more time and less spread-thin resources? One looks bad because it's static and underwhelming port of an otherwise big beautiful labyrinthine region and the other looks bad because it looks good in places but is otherwise is an empty looking world in the way that the Wild Area was. We could have all the good stuff in one package but why would they do that when they can double up on profits by shipping out two mediocre games?

Speaking of, the nastiest taste in my mouth by far was the fact that we're getting three new games at all. Other parts of first-party Nintendo are making a point to ask for understanding and delay releases because of the pandemic and it seems like Pokemon just isn't letting up. What kind of conditions and crunch are these developers working under while also dealing with the handicap of doing it all remotely?? Do they get to sleep and eat like Jesus fucking Christ. I know there's a studio name I don't recognize helping with the DP remakes but STILL. It's not worth it! It's not worth it! Make a better game later!!! Stop beating your own franchise and the people who make it half to death!! Getting even one new mainline Pokemon game a year is unrealistic and unsustainable and it needs to stop fucking yesterday!! Hell, I would cry tears of joy if we went a year with no new Pokemon news at all! That's how ugly this feels.

In an attempt not to end on a sour note I guess, Snap looks good enough to get. I'm curious to see how many courses there are, but the characters look endearing enough, and by nature of being an on-rails game the world feels alive because it's not an unrealistic ask to make it feel that way (they did it just fine on the N64, even with the technical limitations of the time). I would much prefer mainline Pokemon games veer away from this "open-world" direction they're going in and just focus on making their little segmented areas tighter and more immersive in terms of aesthetic and exploration and maybe like one or two static encounter mons with a bit of personality. But I'm getting carried back into the Mainline Game Bad Thoughts Zone and I don't wanna be there. So. Idk check out that Venusaur doing a cannonball! Instant serotonin. Hoping there will be some fun pokemon interactions you can apple into happening like Surfing Pikachu or the Jigglypuff concert. Snap looks fun. I like fun. This is fun. This is fine!!!!!!!

[pokemonruby]

i finished swsh for the first time today (i'm still playing through the post game - sordward and shielbert like sent me into hysterics when i first saw them everything about them is SO ridiculously funny) and really enjoyed it- i was pretty nervous about it bc i've seen how people talk about swsh but i honestly love the characters a lot esp hop sonia and leon!! do you have much thoughts on the game? :0

i’m so glad that you enjoyed the game! tbh, i have my criticisms - a lot of them, but at the end of the day i really did enjoy swsh (i mean, there’s a reason i’ve clocked in over 445+ hours... though most of that is from shiny hunting dskdsjdkj) i’d have to say my favorite aspects about swsh are, well, the pokemon - i think it has a pretty good line-up, with some becoming all-time faves (i.e. corviknight, wooloo, alcremie, galarian ponyta, and the scorbunny line),  AMAZING characters, i honestly think swsh has the best cast out of any of the mainline games with the exception of black/white... i really enjoy pokemon camp, the soundtrack is god tier but that’s a given, game freak always comes through with the music... and i actually quite like the dynamax mechanic and max raids! they’re lowkey addictive and the amount of shinies i’ve gotten from them is insane. 

... but as far as criticisms go, i have a lot, as i said. though this has been a particular gripe of mine since the switch to 3d, aka after gen 5 - the series has... seemed to decline in quality. x/y were rushed, unfinished games, and while i do like them, more than the average fan at least - i can at least acknowledge that it has a ton of flaws. i LOVE omega ruby/alpha sapphire but that’s because i’m biased, it definitely could have gotten a better post-game (#BRINGBACKTHEBATTLEFRONITER) and gen 6 was just... too easy honestly. they remedied this in sun/moon, which i love very much, a good plot, characters, setting, INCREDIBLE pokemon - it was a bit hand-holdy at times but ultimately very good games (usum is a different story but i’m not about to open that can of worms. i’m just going to pretend like it doesn’t exist.)

now as for gen 8... i think it was also a bit rushed, like x/y. it definitely could have gotten more content in the main game, as i don’t include dlc because it honestly shouldn’t have been dlc in the first place, but that’s just me hating capitalism. the graphics aren’t... as terrible as people make them out to be, but considering that it’s on a stronger hardware now, the really bad textures (like the mostly barren wild area) can’t really be excused. the characters are fantastic, but underdeveloped with the exception of hop. and the plot... i honestly think it’s a contender for the worst in the series, mainly because it’s practically nonexistent up until the very last moment when it throws the apocalypse at you without any build-up whatsoever or even attempts to develop the antagonists. i mean, sure, they reference the darkest day occasionally, but it’s never really fleshed out. somehow the five-minute long twilight wings specials did a better job at developing the cast than the actual games. and like, don’t even get me started on the kanto pandering - i cannot fathom why leon’s signature pokemon is a charizard instead of a gen 8 ‘mon. i’m really hoping this trend dies with gen 8 and i never have to see another charizard for the rest of my life. 

... i’m sorry that this got so wordy, oh my gosh. i’m just very passionate about this franchise, as you can tell fkdjsdksjdksj 

TLDR: swsh aren’t bad games, i thoroughly enjoyed them - but if they had just had more time to develop them, then i sincerely believe they could’ve been the best in the series. it feels more so like a missed opportunity than anything else, if you get what i mean. 

[danwhobrowses]

Pokémon Direct 26th Feb 21 Thoughts (Happy Pokémon Day)

Happy Pokémon Day everyone! 25 Years since Red and Green hit stores and would change gaming for so many people.

Yesterday though, Pokémon dropped a special Direct revealing new info and titles, which compared to the Nintendo Direct and Playstation State of Play had a lot more hype towards it, at least for me. So I’m gonna run down the contents - a combination of stuff learned from the video and the website

Spoilers for the Direct below if you haven’t watched it yet

Part 1: Pokémon New Snap - New Information

More information about the New Snap game came up first, revealing that it’ll be releasing on 30th April and available for Pre-Order.

On top of throwing apples to encourage new behaviour, there is also the possibility to play tunes. Most unique though is the ‘Illumina Orb’, this item when thrown at Pokémon will cause a glowing aesthetic either on the Pokémon or any elements they may summon, the Illumina phenomenon seems to be a core part of the game’s story alongside getting the Photodex (each Pokémon having 1-4 Star photo slots).

You can also upload your photos via Switch Online, though that’s not really for me so I’ll probably just use an SD to transfer pics or something.

The characters include Professor Mirror (missed chance to use an adult Todd Snap), Phil - you seems to be your rival and Rita - who seems to be the tutorial guide character. The environment of some expeditions will vary by level as well so there will be cause for repeatability.

The New Snap is more of a ‘does what it says on the tin’ kinda game, you’re there to take photos. But the new stuff does look to entice players to play around with it all and see how good they can get out of the photos, it is definitely something that will live to expectations.

Part 2: Pokémon Day Commemorative Events

Afterwards we got some info on the events happening around today. Pokémon Café Mix is having a login promotion for Golden Acorns, Pokémon GO is doing Kanto Legendary raids and in Masters EX Leon is in the game with Charizard

For SwSh G-Max Pikachu is back until the 28th, there are chances for a Shiny. If 1 million are beaten you’ll also get 100 of Dynite and Armorite ore.

These Pikachu are not that easy though in Solo raiding, AI is usually awful but this Pikachu will know a combination of Surf, Disarming Voice, Volt Tackle (and a special G-Max variation that paralyzes Neighboring Pokémon), Discharge, Brick Break, Iron Tail and its usual spamming of either Nasty Plot or Double Team. So be careful of accuracy issues or your AI failing you...a lot

On top of this if you use  P25MUS1C as a code you’ll get a Pikachu that knows Sing.

Part 3: DP Remake

Years of People demanding and you got this. Perhaps a lesson to be constructive in criticism since the remakes have already drawn its own controversy for being different to the other games fans criticized and even boycotted for a short while.

Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl brings the old DS games to a new form with the same top-down camera from the games of old, blending an old-Final Fantasy and Animal Crossing-esque chibi type overworld character that has received mixed reviews and, along with the next part, comparisons with the Legend of Zelda series, particularly for this one Link’s Awakening.

Other than the new graphics, the trailers haven’t revealed any new content that is genuinely new to the series, but the website suggests ‘player-friendly conveniences’ which may help in reducing the grind. Of course, this is only the first taste, there still can be plenty more.

I must confess, but DP was always a bit of a Red-Headed Stepchild for me in terms of the series, I certainly didn’t hate it, I just felt like the main story lacked a bit. It could simply be because Cyrus’ story only really peaks for Platinum but most of it is due to the fact that I was able to get through the whole game within 24 hours of play. I am also in the party that’s not too thrilled about the chibi design, I had always feared that Pokémon Player and NPC models would fall into Mii territory and this does feel like a step in that direction, I also love customization (though male characters do not get as much choice) so it always feels a bit of a let down when we remove that. Also I think that the shaders could’ve been upped because you look at these 3D artworks and they are magnificent.

Also the names are a bit, uninspired. I mean we usually get dichotomy in the new names too: Fire and Leaf, Heart and Soul, Alpha and Omega, so going to Brilliant and Shining seems weird. What about Hope Diamond and Faith Pearl? Stone Diamond and Sea Pearl? Time Diamond and Space Pearl? I felt like there were more options.

On the positive side though, Underground is back with will be fun, maybe they’ll update bases too. They might add the Platinum stuff in there too, revamped Distortion World sounds cool, and I hope the Pokétch comes back, it was a handy tool especially the Day Care app

Part 4: Pokémon Legends - Arceus

Now this, is more like it.

Sticking with Sinnoh comes a prequel story of ancient times, where humans are only slowly settling into the region and the landscape is vast with free roaming Pokémon. The series takes its RPG-style deeper with the open world as players go on to complete the first ever Sinnoh Pokédex.

Battle or sneak up on Pokémon by using ancient steampunk-esque Pokéballs, this becomes a pure capturing adventure light but not completely devoid of being a ‘trainer’. No Elite 4 or Pokémon League, this is all about exploration leading all the way to Arceus.

Coming in 2022, the art and landscape is beautiful drawing parallels to Breath of the Wild, the UI is clean and simplistic and we get a new shift in our starters being different to the generation’s 3, instead you pick between Oshawott, Rowlet and Cyndaquil, but with sightings of Piplup in game you can be sure that the Sinnoh starters will be catchable.

The idea of going into the past is fresh for Pokémon fans, it’s something that looks very promising as a new recurring title for the series, the character design of old clan robes is also a nice touch. I do hope that future main series titles adopts this more open world environment and art style, the piano music is also very Ghibli esque which is a huge plus for me. I am keen to see how the journey develops as we go up to face god itself.

Part 5: Conclusion

The direct was good, even though there was stuff I’m not thrilled about it continues to reiterate my love for this series, which has been a core part of my life ever since getting a Game Boy Color & Pokémon Blue bundle for Christmas as a kid. I may still hold out on getting the DP remakes just yet but Snap and Legends will definitely be something I intend on buying, Pokémon continues to develop and evolve which has kept it going for 2 and a half decades, and I look forward to more evolutions to come.

[zhsocial]

The more I see of Pokémon Sword & Shield, the more I feel like history’s repeating itself. While most people on the Internet like to compare these games to Sun & Moon or Breath of the Wild, I can’t help but compare them to Pokémon Black & White (The OTHER most controversial games in the series) for various reasons:

A) Both games try to do something new and innovative to the series, though they’re doing it in different ways. While BW did this by essentially making entirely new games from scratch in terms of story, characters, etc., SwSh seems to be mixing & matching various elements from the previous games to make something different yet nostalgic.

1) The gym challenge feels like a mix between classic gyms & the trials

2) Dynamaxing & Gigantamaxing have aspects of Z-Moves & Mega Evolution

3) Hop, Marnie, & Bede are similar to the various types of rivals we’ve seen in the past (the friendly rival, the frenemy rival, & the jerk rival respectively)

4) Galarian forms bring back both regional variants and cross-gen evolutions

While this may upset some people, I don’t see this as a bad thing. Personally, I think it’s smart since it works with Pokémon’s current state of handling games and avoids the risk of people complaining they’re making the games too different like they did with Gen 5. Plus, all of these points are taken at face value since there are other factors behind them such as fitting with SwSh’s lore and themes or bringing back elements from past games that fans loved and wanted to return.

B) The National Dex controversy = Complaints of only using Gen 5 pokémon (only more divisive). While SwSh’s situation is more extreme than BW, the complaints from both subjects come from the same issue: the inability to transfer your pokémon from previous games. Though BW did allow you to transfer your pokémon in the postgame, this one detail was the biggest complaint against the games (outside of Unova’s linear format or the metagame), causing a massive split in the community and (much like what we’re seeing now with SwSh) they were heavily bashed and criticized before they were even released. They both even led to sub controversies with BW causing the rise of “Genwunners” overly criticizing Gen 5’s pokémon designs since we were stuck with them for most of the game, and SwSh causing everyone to nitpick the graphics of the game to the point where people are complaining about trees or checking to see whether or not the Pokémon models were just copied/pasted into the game since they were Game Freak’s main reason for cutting the National Dex.

C) Both games are refined versions of the previous games' engines. Looking back at BW, the games are pretty much the same as the Gen 4 games except for improvements in graphics such as fully animated sprites, more use of 3D animation via the environments, more use of close ups or camera angles, & redesigned character sprites. Plus, even though Pokémon didn’t follow you like they did in HG/SS, the overworld sprites from that feature were still used in the dream world & new ones were made for various Gen 5 pokémon in the same style. Similarly, I'll agree that SwSh has the same engine as Sun & Moon (and possibly Let’s Go), but like BW there are massive improvments in the graphics. True, the battle animations are the same and some character animations are reused, but there are still signs of improvements like from the massive environments or how they polish up minor aspects of the character models like making their individual fingers move (if people can nitpick about trees or Flamethrowers not coming out of a Pokémon’s mouth, I can nitpick about this). Granted, this makes SwSh worse in comparison since the games are now on the Switch, but Game Freak has always made gradual improvements in quality with each game. The main reason it’s a big deal now is because it’s the first home console Pokémon game.

D) The story of SwSh has the potential of being as innovative as BW, only rather than focusing on the ethical aspects of Pokémon battles, they focus more on the entertainment and competitive side while also focusing themes of corrupt sports. Even before BW came out, I know people were excited about the story and said they saw it had the potential to be great, despite the controversies it was getting at the time.

E) They both try to shake up the metagame through their pokédex limitations and by introducing new minor aspects (not counting this gen’s new gimmick) such as moves, items, and abilities. BW especially did this being the first generation to introduce hidden abilities (and I still remember people complaining about “the weather wars” from Gen 5).

F) They both have strong elements in areas like the music & characters (though I don’t want go too in-depth with this aspect since then people will think I’m over analyzing or something)

Are all these statements subjective and possible nitpicking? Yes. Are these points just pushing the surface of both games & there’s more to them than what I mentioned? Absolutely! Will Sword & Shield be as good as Black and White? Who knows?

All I know is that everything I’ve been seeing with Galar (the good, the bad, and the controversies) is giving me deja vu of when Unova was the current generation. The point I’m trying to make is that Sword & Shield should at the very least be given a chance.

Currently, I think these games will be good, but I don’t think they’ll be as good as Black & White. That being said, I want to give Sword & Shield the chance to prove me wrong since Black & White had so much going against them and were bashed on constantly when they were the current generation, but now they’re seen by many as either the greatest Pokémon games of all time or the peak of Game Freak’s push for quality. For all we know, Sword & Shield could surprise us and go down as one of the best Pokémon games to date.

[nuttyrabbit]

So, to be honest I'm quite an amateur when it comes to Pokemon but the recent games. Shield and Sword, what do you think of them, as in your personal view and opinion?

Okay, I knew this question was coming eventually, so I’m going to lay it bare right here and now. I’m going to be rather vague so as to avoid spoilers. 

On the whole, I’m very mixed about Sword and Shield in general both from what’s been officially revealed up to this point and what’s been leaked

To start on the positive note, I think SwSh have a pretty great selection of new Pokemon. Iirc there’s more new Pokemon here than in either Alola or Kalos, which is a great thing. A lot of the new pokemon have really interesting designs, typings, movepools, etc, and while  I don’t love as many Galarian Pokemon as I did Alolan or even Unovan ones, there’s still quite a few standout Pokemon. 

 I’m also a big fan of the regional forms, and I’m glad that we’re finally getting ones for Pokemon outside of Kanto, and there’s a couple I plan to put on my team ASAP.

Unfortunately while I really like the new Pokemon, this unfortunately leads me into the big elephant in the room: Dexit. 

I’ve heard a ton of arguments back and forth about the dex culling, and whether or not it was even necessary to begin with (From what I’ve seen, it apparently is only necessary because Gamefreak is bad at programming but don’t quote me on that), it’s something that’s souring me on the game big time, not just because I’m suddenly unable to bring over all my favorite Pokemon, but also because I’m going to be completely unable to use the 20+ boxes of competitive mons I raised in USUM.  It won’t ruin the game for me like it did for a lot of other people, but it’s something that’s left a bad taste in my mouth.

Speaking of bad tastes in my mouth: Dynamax.  I’m going to be blunt: I don’t like Dynamax at all. It feels like a halfassed combination of Z-moves and Mega evolutions without the mechanics that made either one (relatively) balanced or interesting.  While a couple of the Gigantamax forms look interesting, others just look really dumb and a lot of it is yet more needless Kanto pandering. I’m not looking forward to it in a competitive sense

Moving onto the presentation, it looks like an upscaled 3DS game and it’s clear Gamefreak are struggling to make the game work on the Switch. Seriously, I know it’s been nitpicked to death, but there’s a lot of things in the game that just look kinda bad, and if the leaks I’ve been hearing are true, it gets worse.

Onto the more general mechanics, it’s a very mixed bag.  I’m glad we’re getting the return of gyms, E4, and the champion, but something in the back of my mind is telling me that it’s going to be...lesser...this game for some reason.  Mechanics like the job system look interesting and seem to be expanding upon the sidequests of USUM, and the camp thing seems to be  expanding on shit like Pokemon-amie and the Pelago, so that looks kinda interesting. But then there’s shit like EXP share being on by default, the lack of actual routes, and the raid battles that just seem kind of....really dumb attempts at being “innovative”.  However, my feelings on a lot of these mechanics may change when I get my hands on the actual game, so we’ll see.

That feeling also extends to the story and region. To be honest, I on’t remember a lot of the story elements talked about in trailers, and a lot of the characters seem forgettable, but again, we’ll see how it plays out once the game is actually out.

In general, as I said before, I’m very mixed on SwSH. There’s a lot to apparently like, but there’s a lot I’m mixed to negative about.  I feel like it’ll be a game akin to X/Y wherein it’s a perfectly functional game, but there’s a lot of glaring issues and when put against what comes before and what comes after, it won’t stand up.  But again, I don’t think I’ll be able to make a proper judgment call until the game is in my hands and I’m playing it, so we’ll see.

I’ll definitely come back to this after I’ve finished the game

[pokefan531]

A Year of Sword and Shield Overview - Part 1

Sword and Shield Overview

So today, I will be doing an overview of one of the infamous Pokemon games up to date, Sword and Shield. Reason why it’s infamous is its history behind it. I will go over the very first announcement from Feb. 2019 reveal, the National Dex problem, the animations and datamine that happened last year, the reputation, the DLCs, and the redemption. I wanted to do a balanced review of the game and seeing how the game evolved a year later, it is pretty interesting how it went from disappointing to a fine Pokemon game. I do want to address a couple of things going on to the game and stuff.

The beginning.

Well, Sword and Shield reveal got its positive reaction since Pokemon Day 2019. It was the main Pokemon Switch game that everyone wanted. For couple of months, all of the game trailers were all positive at this point. Let’s Go Pikachu and Eevee weren’t as great as we hoped for, since it was a second remake of Kanto, and also removed most of the new mechanics, and much less connections with Pokemon GO. With Sword and Shield at the moment, it was a game that can open up more doors to see its potentials.

The first downfall of Sword and Shield.

June 5th was the last reveal trailer that got its positive reputation. Nearly a week later, we got an E3 presentation. We thought it’s gonna be the best representation of the game, but we were WRONG! They announced the cut on National Dex and half Pokemon will not make it to the game, and it got everyone to ruin their excitement. The E3 announcement on June 11th was when Sword and Shield started to get its bad reputation. Me, personally, was disappointed, as we didn’t get much answers. We only hear that they had to cut the pokemon out to do “Best Animation Quality” in time for release, which was a big no. We also saw the tree with bad texture quality and even for a beta presentation, it was a bad look. We all saw they’re rushing the game for the Holidays for Christmas, which really kills many company’s reputation and game’s quality. At the time, we all blamed Game Freak for their decision before more evidence of The Pokemon Company. I was disappointed like them and wished they delayed the game to 2020. I would think it wouldn’t be as bad if they mentioned that they would add more Pokemon later on by game updates. Still, it was a disappointment of how the game got this treatment. I wanted the game to do well. With High Quality Animation in the game, that’s what made us pay more attention to the game’s graphics and animation. It was a real bad case and we would’ve not care about the graphics or the animation as much if that wasn’t said. However, in retrospect, they had to complete the game to not have game breaking bugs, which it didn’t have. Game Freak had no choice but to admit the quality of the game, and it was sad to hear this. Generally, many of us don’t want our good games to be rushed at all, especially if it has to be on a holiday. Guess what? Video Games don’t sell very high on the Holiday season, the Hardware does. None of us want to see a game getting rushed, after No Man’s Sky, the PS1 Classic, Sonic 06 and Sonic Boom from 2014, and Battlefield V (Which the game itself is much worse) and we are afraid to see this for Sword and Shield.

The Harassment to Game Freak and my thoughts

For the first few weeks after the E3 Presentation, Game Freak's employer, Masuda, came and said he and the company got threats and stuff for lack of Pokemon for Sword and Shield. Well, I could ignore really bad fans, I could never accept the fact that they give them death threats. Whenever something happens to any innocent actor, game devs, or writers, it is not acceptable. I could go on and discuss the bad side of the fans and everything, but I decide to not pay much attention to them. We got BringBackNationalDex hashtag on twitter, and while I agree with the idea and all, I don’t agree with what anyone at social media platform treats real people with threats and stuff. We live in an age where many people use social media like Twitter, and Twitter is the most toxic social media platform in existence. I’ve seen this happen before. What happened to Masuda and Game Freak isn’t a new thing to social media, as I've seen this happen to many movies or games that turn out worse. An actress of one character from TLOU 2 got threats for playing a horrible character. Kelly Marie Tran got bullied on Instagram for playing a badly written character. THere are more examples. While I do see the toxic side of any fandoms literally, anyone on the internet will do those things and think it’s okay to do this online when this shouldn’t really be done. I don’t think Sword and Shield’s dexit has the very huge split of the fandom in half that badly due to the brand not having its damage or seeing toys and stuff fall off sales. It did get bad attention as we all saw, I’ve been in much worse situations outside of Sword and Shield backlash, like The Last Jedi debacle. It was two straight years of worse, it had a huge split in the fandom and the director of the movie wanted it that way, brand lost so much money, and it was a war between fans and the studio, and it’s such a huge mess during entire 2018-2019, and I still was involved with the Star Wars Sequel Trilogy backlash during the Sword and Shield stuff so I had a harder time with the former than dexit situation. I can thank Game Freak and Masuda for understanding the frustrations and not teasing the fans. I understand and agree with the disappointments, but no harassment. It’s worse if the people who worked on the game or movie ever do any harassment to the fans like what I saw with TLJ, TLOU2, or Battlefield V. I don’t doubt that the hatred of SwSh was a bit too far, and I can make a paragraph about it, but I would like to ignore a great amount of the bad side. Still, what could’ve been done was if GF were allowed to say they will eventually add more Pokemon by updates, and not having to focus on graphics and animation, of possible, or admit more content will be available, we would’ve got a shorter and small backlash so we would’ve seen the games in better spot.

The release and another disappointment

In August, I really liked Wheezing’s new form that got jokes for Doug Dimmadome from Fairly Oddparents. The backlash was calmed down. In November, we got ThankYouGameFreak hashtag to show how important GameFreak is to us, and to give them warm thanks after what happened in summer. Well, it didn’t last, because a few days later, everyone saw the datamines and it went the opposite to GF, and we saw no improved animation or graphics on the game as they had to say in E3. It was sad, and it was when the game was about to be released. I know the month of November last year was not really good. We got Coppa for Youtube, and it was worse, but thankfully Youtube listened to our voices so our channels are safe. I had more focus on it than SwSh. However, the problems became apparent, and it made me not want to get it. Seeing how it was rushed and saw the mess again, it was not really good. I thought it was better to wait for the game to have updates and have more content until it became more satisfying to get the game. I thought the backlash had got more quiet since summer, but after the reveal, it was back. I know there’s a phrase like “You can’t judge a book by its cover” and while true, the “High Quality Animation” they promised (or had to promise) didn’t come true, and they reuse models and animation from the 3DS games. The game I heard was all right on its own, but I feel like it’s best to wait until more announcements afterwards. Also those games were priced $60 and it was overpriced as the game has less content. Pokemon is Nintendo’s first party game, so they pretty much decided the price for the game. While the game was disappointing, which was rightfully so, the hatred and not focusing on the great side of the game was kinda put aside back then. To be honest, even if I was disappointed of the game, I never thought it was a terrible game or as bad as 2018’s Battlefield V. I was not having a bad gut feeling about it, so I didn’t really have a huge problem with the game as I could see it being more content like I said.

DLC Announcement and Redemption

Well on January 9th of this year, an announcement of Sword and Shield DLC came in! To see how more content they will bring, it opens up a redemption for the game and so my assumptions for new content was right. I could see the game improve, and so I would wait for the DLC to come out. The DLC pass is priced at $30, which seemed overpriced for two of them, like SwSh, but that’s Nintendo or The Pokemon Company’s decision of the price, mostly the former. Still, this shows up a good potential of extending the games. While it is a different approach than third pillar or sequel like Yellow, Crystal, Emerald, or B2W2, it is pretty interesting. Battling more legendaries and catching them is gonna be the most exciting thing for a Pokemon game. With more Pokemon returning, this shows a good redeeming quality of the game finally. In my opinion of the first DLC, when it came out, I thought it was okay, and while it has less problems than the main game in quality, I did wish it had more content. It was better enough to get me to play the game with an emulator, and later, getting a real Nintendo Switch. The second DLC has more content than the first one, and seeing more Legendaries added, this second part is the best DLC of the two. Well, it did being more fanservice and content, it really paid off. The overall game became more tolerable a year later, and I was happy to see this game evolve. Yes, intended to label it that. XD

Tune in for part 2 to see my review of the game itself. Also will mention the Beta leak there too. Stay tuned!

[fabelyn]

(1) Sorry for the following rant, I hope it makes enough sense. I find it so annoying how a chunk of the player base disregards Hop as a bland and annoying character (and I get it, he kinda is when you first meet him) but I was so happy to finally see a rival with an actual characterisation and personal growth after suffering from the likes of the X&Y's rivals and a one-dimensional Hau from S&M. Sure, he is not that amazing but he is a vast improvement overall.

(3) So, let's find faults in the game where they actually are. It was clearly a rushed game, rushed to meet the release date (why did they not postpone it? something is going on behind the scenes) and it shows in how good some things are and how bad others are. Performance and graphical wise? A disaster. We are on the switch, a better console than the 3ds, but S&M looked and felt so much better! In the end, I still see people having fun with SW&SH and I believe that's important.

(4) But still, it seems that people seem to like to shit on the games just because they want to shit on something. The only thing that I want for the future is: for the love of everything nice, GF and TPC, please! please! take your time making future games! Just stop releasing every few years if it's taxing just take the time to make the game good! AND POLISH IT!!

SWSH anon here, I was pretty much ranting yesterday, my 2 cents. And thanks Tumblr, never change buddy. I think in the missing 2nd part I was talking about the plot? About how I saw a few saying it shows up only at the end while in reality there were pieces from the start? I liked the whole "Ehy the legend/truth of the legendaries was lost/hidden, it was new and interesting. And it's pokemon, the games never shined for the story (for me the only exception is BW). In the end SWSH is a 7.5 at best

I didnt play SM so I cant really say what Hop is compared to the companion there, though i still stand by that he’s annoying af, sorry.

First because of how constant and forced on you he was at the beginning. he got better when he got depressed but by then I was so annoyed that the narrative being like “oh wow, Hop is so down” just made me angrier. Doesnt help that the plot shits on Bede for acting high and mighty...and Hop is the same. Secondly at the end of the game they keep acting like this brat who failed to so much as kill one pokemon of mine is somehow my rival. Are other rivals just as bad? If they are, that doesnt make Hop less annoying to me. Bede had a better set up.

Other than that, i fully agree with the rest. It is rushed. They should have done a Breath of the Wild and held off release for a few years to give us something big and game changing as opposed to...the same game as always. Which isnt bad, I enjoy playing. But its nothing wowing

The plot isnt strong, but pokemon games never had plot as a forte. The shenanigans right before the finals felt full of plotholes and somehow I was rooting for the “villain” but I didnt really focus on it because Im not playing for that. Back to zelda, I find the plot of breath of the wild shit but 10/10 recc the game

[doubleddenden]

I beat pretty much 90% of Legends Arceus, the only thing left is to find like 10 Pokémon I missed and fill out some dex entries.

I'm gonna kinda review, but it mostly turned into me rambling. I loved my time though. Read on if you want.

Man, what a ride. I went in with high hopes that were mostly met. Legitimately, this is one of the best Pokémon games of all time.

The story actually has HEART put into it and has a lot of fun twists, the gameplay is familiar but new and refreshing, and best of all there's a CHALLENGE. I absolutely love how amplified the life or death scenarios are in this game and just how dark it can get.

Now my initial criticism of graphics still stand, and I figured out what the biggest issue is: draw distance. A lot of textures for very noticeable things like mountains and rivers just do not load until you get close enough, and from afar it looks unfinished. I'm glad they absolutely nailed everything else, because it seems like they rushed on polishing and couldn't quite get it done. If they could just make the environment fully loaded in or have a much bigger draw distance, I feel like it would be a lot less of an issue.

But that said, there are moments where it's absolutely amazing and outshines anything Game Freak has ever put out, especially towards the end. I had legitimate goosebumps in the last fight with a certain character because of the way they handled it.

Music also got a lot better, especially remixes of iconic pieces like Eterna Forest/Heartwood, or battle themes for certain characters. Idk why but at first I thought I was hearing 3ds Sound Fonts, but as the game progresses it sounds more and more professional and orchestrated in some areas.

Overall I'm really happy. This feels like a Pokémon game that was made BY fans for fans, versus how soulless most of the Switch games feel. Honestly I was starting to believe that I had just out grown the series after the rest of the Switch games sucked so, SO much. Turns out those games were just bad and I just needed a fun game lol. I thought maybe the games were always childish and I hadn't noticed, but no, actually this game made me remember just how dark and complex the series can get, and just how dumbed down and insulting Masuda and Ohmori's works have been so far on Switch. In fact, Iwao, same guy that did USUM, directed this, and I realize now a lot of the best games in the franchise were directed by... well, not them, with the exception of BW.

In fact, I think I have a newfound excitement and love for the series. It's so weird because for a game that doesn't treat its audience like a child, I feel like a kid again in the best way possible. So much lore and myths are uncovered or expanded upon- stuff my friends and I used to theorize about as kids. The dangers we thought about are talked about in an honest manner without being grotesque or too edgy, but at the same time its a realistic thing to think about when the wild teams with lions that can fry you alive with lightning to eat you or gigantic bugs with scythes for arms. Ironically, this game is pretty damn edgy in ways the series desperately needed to get away from hand holding and the largely annoying sunshine and rainbows.

And I'm just sitting here in bed wondering what comes next. Obviously I still have stuff in game to do, I meant for the series. Because honestly, I don't think I can go back to hallway routes, babying their audience every 5 steps, and boring cookie cutter Gym challenge plots.

And see here's the thing: I acknowledge a lot of my hatred for SwSh and LGPE is due to the dex cuts, and with base SwSh in particular its because they said they cut half the dex so they could focus on models and animations- and failed for the most part, at best delivering an unfinished 3ds port and making a shit plot too. I hated BDSP because it kept the dumb ass dex cuts, felt soulless, did nothing new for the series, and it felt like a slap in the face to gen 4 fans everywhere with the chibi bull shit, let alone how Affection ruined the challenge that was initially there in one of the toughest games originally made. Both also are guilty of babying and hand holding, and both failed to deliver on the supposed benefits they claimed would come from the corners they cut.

So why is LA so good?

Freedom, open spaces, actual attempts to improve graphics, models, animations, and an actual honest to god attempt to improve and EVOLVE out dated and boring gameplay beyond a one gen gimmick or things the fans never asked for or needed. An actual plot that doesn't rely so heavily on copying past games' homework (with respect that it works with Sinnoh's lore as a base), actual challenge that respects the player as a fully functional player instead of a baby distracted by iPhones, and overall it actually just tries and risks new things and bends conventional rules of the series- and it pays off so much.

Also, unlike SwSh, most of the new designs kinda rock, especially the starters' new forms. That definitely helps.

So now I'm just wondering about the future of this franchise I've been playing for close to 23 years. I'm kinda hoping they take a break from new gens to bring some more Legends type stuff, that way when gen 9 finally comes, it'll be nice and ready, not rushed, have a nice thicc and meaty pokedex of new and great designs, and polished- hopefully more than this game is. And meanwhile, they can expand on lore that's just BEGGING to be expanded on.

Like we could use Legends to figure out what the hell the Original Unovan dragon looks like, or the war that Kalos fought so long ago, or wtf went down in Kanto that made Mewtwo and all of those science experiment Pokémon go wild

But I'm getting ahead of myself. This has turned from a review to a bunch of babbling nonsense on my end.

Please, if my vouch has any influence on whether or not you get the game, get it, play it, have fun. Try not to pirate if you can- we as fans absolutely need this game to do the best it can so GF gets the message.

I promise you it is such a fun time.

So final score? 8/10. It just needs a little more visual polish.