Opinions Clash with Pokémon Sword and Shield
Game Freak’s latest title may leave you conflicted with reused features from previous games
By Catherine Dayton
Game Freak’s latest title may leave you conflicted with reused features from previous games
By Catherine Dayton
A new pair of controversial Pokémon games were released on Nov. 15 for the Nintendo Switch, marking the first time that the long-running series has appeared on a home console. The new titles — Pokémon Sword and Pokémon Shield — introduce the Galar region, an area based on the United Kingdom.
The main storyline of Sword and Shield is focused around two mystical heroes, each aptly titled The Sword and Shield of Galar, along with their partner Pokémon, Zacian and Zamazenta. You play as a young Pokémon trainer looking to become the champion, as is usual in the franchise. Pokémon Sword and Shield is a Pokémon title that has a wildly underrated storyline, although Game Freak’s latest Pokémon title has caused public outcry over several aspects of the games, such as the many cuts to the roster of returning Pokémon and the recycled animations from previous games, among other problems. If you were invested in the long lists of Pokemon returning with each generation, this may not be the game for you, purely because of the loss of the National Pokédex.
Indeed, the main reason I was deterred from the game at first was because of the cleaved list of Pokémon. The roster for Sword and Shield contains around 400 Pokémon, massively brought down from the previous 802, though padded by a large set of new Pokémon. As such, there were many trusty companions that I had carried throughout each generation that were lost and I was reasonably troubled because of it. They even got rid of the Garchomp line, one of my personal favorites.
Another noticeable flaw is that Pokémon games have retained the turn-based battle style for the past 20 years, without any major changes, leaving the fights wholly unsatisfying. Even so, the gameplay is not without some interesting additions from Game Freak. Each set of Pokémon games have a unique gimmick that changes moment-to-moment gameplay, such as Z-Moves from Pokémon Sun and Moon, or the limited Mega Evolution in various 3D Pokémon titles. Sword and Shield have Dynamax and Gigantamax, a mode in which the player can fight with a gigantic projection of their chosen partner. Dynamax is just for show, but Gigantamax allows a certain list of Pokémon to change their appearance entirely and gain a new skill and special move. Dynamax and Gigantamax are limited to gym battles, the Pokémon league, and a new type of combat named Max Raid battles.
In Max Raid battles, the player goes into the den of a wild Dynamax Pokémon in hopes of defeating and catching it. There is the option to invite other players or one could simply choose to fight along with NPCs. These are actually pretty fun compared to normal battles.
Typically after the battle, one gets rewarded with special items like EXP candies. EXP candies grant a chosen Pokémon EXP, which is needed to level up. There are also plenty of other new items that many people will be excited about. One such item, called a mint, changes the flaws and assets of a Pokémon’s stats, cutting down on unnecessary catching. Before mints, in order to get the stats you want, you’d have to repeatedly catch the same Pokémon over and over.
All of this has left me conflicted. The setting of the games is refreshingly different and the lore behind it is extensive and pretty vibrant compared to past games. With an interesting story and new Pokémon, Sword and Shield seems like the type of game that is worth the money of people who are willing to see past the shrinking of the Pokédex and lacking animations.
The main storyline of Sword and Shield is focused around two mystical heroes, each aptly titled The Sword and Shield of Galar, along with their partner Pokémon, Zacian and Zamazenta. You play as a young Pokémon trainer looking to become the champion, as is usual in the franchise. Pokémon Sword and Shield is a Pokémon title that has a wildly underrated storyline, although Game Freak’s latest Pokémon title has caused public outcry over several aspects of the games, such as the many cuts to the roster of returning Pokémon and the recycled animations from previous games, among other problems. If you were invested in the long lists of Pokemon returning with each generation, this may not be the game for you, purely because of the loss of the National Pokédex.
Indeed, the main reason I was deterred from the game at first was because of the cleaved list of Pokémon. The roster for Sword and Shield contains around 400 Pokémon, massively brought down from the previous 802, though padded by a large set of new Pokémon. As such, there were many trusty companions that I had carried throughout each generation that were lost and I was reasonably troubled because of it. They even got rid of the Garchomp line, one of my personal favorites.
Another noticeable flaw is that Pokémon games have retained the turn-based battle style for the past 20 years, without any major changes, leaving the fights wholly unsatisfying. Even so, the gameplay is not without some interesting additions from Game Freak. Each set of Pokémon games have a unique gimmick that changes moment-to-moment gameplay, such as Z-Moves from Pokémon Sun and Moon, or the limited Mega Evolution in various 3D Pokémon titles. Sword and Shield have Dynamax and Gigantamax, a mode in which the player can fight with a gigantic projection of their chosen partner. Dynamax is just for show, but Gigantamax allows a certain list of Pokémon to change their appearance entirely and gain a new skill and special move. Dynamax and Gigantamax are limited to gym battles, the Pokémon league, and a new type of combat named Max Raid battles.
In Max Raid battles, the player goes into the den of a wild Dynamax Pokémon in hopes of defeating and catching it. There is the option to invite other players or one could simply choose to fight along with NPCs. These are actually pretty fun compared to normal battles.
Typically after the battle, one gets rewarded with special items like EXP candies. EXP candies grant a chosen Pokémon EXP, which is needed to level up. There are also plenty of other new items that many people will be excited about. One such item, called a mint, changes the flaws and assets of a Pokémon’s stats, cutting down on unnecessary catching. Before mints, in order to get the stats you want, you’d have to repeatedly catch the same Pokémon over and over.
All of this has left me conflicted. The setting of the games is refreshingly different and the lore behind it is extensive and pretty vibrant compared to past games. With an interesting story and new Pokémon, Sword and Shield seems like the type of game that is worth the money of people who are willing to see past the shrinking of the Pokédex and lacking animations.