Review: Pokemon Sword/Shield (2019)

Original post: https://misthold.dreamwidth.org/10156.html

Pokemon Sword/Shield (2019) is the newest (primary) game in the Pokemon franchise and the only one I've really played since Pokemon X/Y (two generations ago). I'm a big Pokemon fan, but some of the gameplay in the last few games have been a bit iffy for me and I never really clicked with them. However, I VERY much enjoyed playing Pokemon Sword and can definitely recommend it for both old and new fans.

You play as a competitor in the Champion League trying to beat everyone else, while also sort of helping a non-Professor character figure out the mystery of why Pokemon can Dynamax in Galar. You of course need to travel around Galar battling gym leaders, fighting henchmen, and catching Pokemon.

Here's my final team, which I settled on somewhere around the halfway point. Pokemon can often use different move types from their own personal type, which makes it easier to cover more potential match-ups. Like, a fire/ground Pokemon might also have a rock or steel move, so I've got three types covered in one Pokemon and don't have to keep switching them out to beat a particular gym leader.

So even though I technically didn't have a Pokemon specifically for beating the Dragon types in the last two major battles, I had one Pokemon (Ein) that had a fairy type move which could kick their butts, so it worked out. I DID have to sacrifice some Pokemon to revive the ones I really needed in the last battle in particular, but since I saved every Max Revive I ever got, I had more than enough to do that.

The gameplay in Sword/Shield is MUCH more player-friendly than in some previous games. For instance, your team is automatically fully healed/restored between matches in the last run-up to the Championship match. I remember in previous games having to load up on potions and revives just to make it through Victory Road, and even then sometimes running out!

Other things that make it easier to play:

1. Once you add a Pokemon to your Pokedex, you'll be able to see which moves are most effective against it– even in battles. I spent much less time looking up Pokemon type compatibility charts, always the most annoying part of battling.
2. You can set up a camp to heal your Pokemon (and make friends with them) while out roaming around. This is a free action and doesn't cost anything but time and cooking ingredients, and has real benefits if you befriend your main team.
3. You can fly between cities and major meeting points as soon, as you visit them for the first time to unlock them.
4. You have a bicycle which can turn into a water bike, meaning you don't have to waste a Pokemon on the Surf HM. I also don't remember having to destroy any rocks to get anywhere, or cutting trees. No more HM slaves!
5. There are treasures in the Wild Area which you can sell for LOTS of money, meaning you're not dependent on saving money from battles.
6. The map has instructions on where to go next, if you don't play for a while and forgot where you were going. It will also give you hints on which wild Pokemon in which areas you still need to catch.
7. All the Pokemon on your team will automatically share experience points. You can also send the Pokemon in your storage box on “jobs” to earn XP and items.
8. The Gym leaders' Pokemon will automatically adjust to be closer to your own team's levels. Ditto the wild Pokemon. That DOES mean you can't just over-power yourself before battling someone, though.
9. The wild Pokemon are (mostly) visible, walking around in real time, so you can dodge them if you want. On the other hand, they DO chase you if they see you.
10. There a “wild area” with Pokemon of all types wandering around and lots of random items, so if you love the exploration part of Pkmn you’re totally set.

Other nice things: pretty graphics, funny British-centered English translation, people remember you're the Champion after you win and say nice things, really fancy Gala-specific Pokemon variants (fairy type Rapidash!!!), lots of places to sit and take screenshots.

That said, the storyline isn't all that exciting. In (almost all?) the previous games, you'd be dealing with a megalomaniac trying to take over the world or something and have to beat up their henchmen in every town you went to. In this one, the henchmen belong to a fellow competitor who isn't even a baddie, and the actual baddie also isn't a baddie and is just too impulsive. The scenes AFTER you win the championship is closer to a typical Pokemon storyline, but it's over in less than an hour so, like. Eh?

Also, there is literally NO POINT going into people's houses, since they rarely give you anything and they're just sitting staring into space like zombie creatures. Boring.

I think Sw/Sh was trying to push the friendship stuff more than before, and make it more of a mystery with the Sw/Sh heroes and whatnot, but you don't actually get to investigate anything and the friendship is just standard rival bantering. Most of the dialogue choices are just two versions of the same sentiment, which is also boring. Eh.

There could also be an argument that the gameplay is TOO easy, since the battle difficulty adjusts to your own team so you don't have to do as much prepping as in other games. I also miss the Pokemon Professors who were REALLY into you filling out your Pokedex; Sw/Sh seems too focused on battling rather than capturing Pokemon.

There's now an Expansion Pass which adds two areas onto the game; apparently it's a similar concept to (for instance) Pokemon Ultra Sun/Ultra Moon, which was a separate game set in the same area as Sun/Moon. That explains the $30 price tag, which I thought was a little high for what seemed like just a game update. As a nice bonus, players can carry their save data forward into the expansion pass instead of having to start over fresh like they would've with Ultra Sun/Ultra Moon.

It took me about 30 hours to beat the main game, including the post-Championship sequence. That feels very short to me, but I also can't remember how long it took to beat any of the other Pokemon games I've played, sooooo.

I haven't bought the expansion pass yet but I do plan to, once I complete the Pokedex in the main game. Right now I'm at 117 Pokemon out of 400 (not including the new ones in the Expansion) and some of these Pokemon are VERY prone to dying before I can throw a Pokeball at them.

Price: $59.99

I played Pokemon Sword because it had the blue Pokemon on it, lmao.