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Post by Sai on Mar 1, 2019 16:49:17 GMT -4
I guess there's no better time to bump this thread after 4 years than with the announcement of a new Pokemon Generation: Sword & Shield for the Nintendo Switch!! What are everyones' thoughts? Which starter are you leaning towards?
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Post by stranger on Mar 6, 2019 19:32:46 GMT -4
So mixed emotions, but mostly positive...
For the positives, I can't WAIT for a pokemon switch title! The world looks charming and distinctive. People say it looks like the region is based on the UK, but I say the region is based on Koda Kumi's epic album, Dejavu! New pokemon are always welcome. I wonder what type the legendaries will be this time? Maybe poison or fighting? Or steel to match the concept of the titles (sword/shield)? Will there be a new eevolution? And finally, beautiful looking sprites of all (or some) of the pokemon I love so much!
On the other hand, I doubt there is any extra game content that makes it worth the extra $20. Pokemon Let's Go Eevee and Pikachu were extremely poorly handled in terms of end game content, despite the price. There was not even the cool GTS and battle options from the 3DS games. For me, it decreased the lasting appeal of the game by a bit. Even worse, this game doesn't capitalize on the things that Let's Go Eevee and Pikachu excelled at: getting rid of the random encounters. Sigh. I suppose it's easy to run away, but I enjoyed feeling like I was searching or hunting for pokemon, and the pure joy I experienced when I saw an extremely rare pokemon walking across the land. In the end, these things aren't dealbreakers, but seeing the pokemon in the overworld would've been welcome...
They do have things to shake up the formula enough to make each of the entries defining (Sun/Moon: Z Moves, X/Y: Mega Evolutions, Gold/Silver: Babies, etc.). Now what will they bring along this time?
The starters aren't as likable as the Sun/Moon. I guess I'll take Mr. Bunny! (For real!)
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ℓoro
«6» BRAVE PHOENIX
Posts: 259
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Post by ℓoro on Mar 6, 2019 19:54:13 GMT -4
I skipped the Let's Go games because I wasn't really interested... the whole Pokémon Go implementation thing threw me off quite fast. Sword and Shield looks very good though and I'd be super happy with a new Eevolution! I'm still thinking about which starter to pick. Litten threw me off because I thought it was so cute, only for it to turn into a big (bara furry) fire cat... So Popplio it was for me even though Rowlett is also super cool. Judging from the first evolution, I'd also go with Mr. Bunny!
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Post by Sai on Mar 10, 2019 23:43:54 GMT -4
"Mr. Bunny", Hahaha. I think that one's my pick, too. I wasn't big on the starters when they were revealed, but Scorbunny has definitely grown on me. Re: Eeveelutions: I've seen some people throwing around the idea of a Steel and Dragon duo, to go with European lore and have a knight vs. dragon thing going on. I suppose they could do that for the two mascot legendaries as well, though! I hope that if they're going to throw in some new mechanic to shake things up, they actually commit to it. 6th gen had Megas which were completely forgotten in 7th gen, and I suspect that might happen to the regional forms/Z-moves that 7th gen brought. Though I wouldn't entirely mind getting rid of Z-moves, which just seemed needlessly extravagant to me. People say it looks like the region is based on the UK, but I say the region is based on Koda Kumi's epic album, Dejavu! Rumour has it that Game Freak looked into the future and based Johto on Koda Kumi's iconic album JAPONESQUE, too!
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ℓoro
«6» BRAVE PHOENIX
Posts: 259
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Post by ℓoro on Mar 12, 2019 19:45:05 GMT -4
Oh, I totally agree with the Z-move thing! The only interesting Z-moves are Pokémon specific ones. Mega was/is a cool concept but it's sad they didn't do much with it over time...
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Post by stranger on Mar 17, 2019 1:13:00 GMT -4
You two make some great points. Regarding the mechanics (sorry if this is a little long): Mega Evolutions were an inspired design choice because it gave a chance for some of people's pokemon that do not have any relevance to the competitive scene to become more viable. For example, my love Gardevoir gained nice boosts to her special attack (insanely high damage), a GREAT ability that made her fierce in doubles matches, and a nice speed boost. Gardevoir then had the stats of a legendary pokemon! Unfortunately, since it was applied to some already overpowered pokemon (Mewtwo, Salamance, etc.), it sometimes had the opposite effect. Since you can only have one mega evolution, it was usually best to give it to the strongest pokemon possible, to make that one pokemon unstoppable. The biggest problem with mega evolutions is, like Sai mentioned, it was ONLY relevant for the generation it came out in. Sure, they carried it over in the next gen (Sun/Moon), but no new mega evolutions became available, and it was an afterthought (figuratively and literally). Same for the Let's Go series. So, it will be interesting to see if they just abandon it completely with the upcoming game. Remember sky battles? Triple battles? Rotation battles? Are those even a thing still? I also agree with you both on Z-moves. On the surface, Z-moves seem like a decent idea in the vein of mega evolutions (make the battle more intense!!). However, I think the use of z-moves benefited offensive-oriented pokemon and crippled defensive-oriented pokemon. Not sure if that was necessary or not, especially when there are already moves like "Swords dance" and "Nasty Plot" available. As previously mentioned, I'm perfectly OK with them abandoning this... I certainly hope they do not give up on the new forms. That was one addition I thoroughly enjoyed. It was a new experience with pokemon I already have loved and enjoyed for years. Also, it was a nice way to increase the different types of pokemon you can catch without actually increasing the actual pokedex number. For new mechanics, since this is on the switch now, I'd love for them to incorporate online/multiplayer into the game more. They did a nice job with sun/moon and even Let's Go, but Nintendo still seems a bit stuck in the past when it comes to online/multiplayer experiences. I want to be able to share the experience in the games with others.
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Post by stranger on May 31, 2019 22:18:05 GMT -4
It looks like they'll be announcing more details on June 5th. I imagine this will include the "core" new feature (whatever this game's version of Z-moves/mega evolutions is), the fully evolved starters and the legendaries on the box art!
Just for fun, I'll predict that they're both steel legendaries, sword being steel/dark and shield being steel/poison.
Also, they announced that coming early 2020, there will be Pokemon Home! Basically pokemon bank, but you can transfer Pokemon Go/Pokemon Bank pokemon into the Pokemon Home. Only sword/shield can withdraw pokemon from the Pokemon Home (which is what I would prefer, anyways). You can also trade with others from it AND you can do it from your phone or your switch! Cool!!
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Post by stranger on Nov 19, 2019 18:44:04 GMT -4
So, it's been out for a few days now!
My quick summary of thoughts... Pros: - Music was, again, above expectations (I liked Sun/Moon's music a lot, especially for the different types of boss battles). The gym battle being this addictive electro-techno-sounding track was shocking. - Best looking game, by far! Areas like Ballonlea and the Glimwood Tangle were captivating - Generally removed tedious aspects from the game, such as the filler trainer battles with the NPC - Wild Area is the best new feature brought to this game. After you beat the game, it gives you something to do if you do not want to slaughter level 5 Wooloo's on route 1 for the rest of eternity. Please, GF, continue expanding and adding to this going forward! - Heart-pounding gym battles, thanks to the dynamax feature! Very enjoyable!
Cons: - Lack of all pokemon in the national dex. Some could argue having all the pokemon is overwhelming for new players. But for the casuals, they already have "Let's Go", let the hardcore fans have their pokemon!! - Removal of past game mechanics (Z moves, mega evolutions) to add this Dynamax thing that will be also removed in 3 years time? - The online interface is extremely clunky and just doesn't work sometimes. I don't think the matchmaking system for max raid battles was implemented correctly. This will need to be fixed in future patches. Trading works OK so far. - Going online in the wild area can sometimes make the game slow down considerably. YET, there's no benefit to seeing these random people roam about aside from collecting used hamburgers from them! - Story is uninspired and characters are generally unmemorable, particularly the "villains". They mostly felt like an afterthought.
OVERALL VERDICT: Worth a play, one of the best pokemon games I've played!
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