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Sword & Shield **Official news only** DLC Crown Tundra 22nd October
- Thread starter DHR-107
- Start date
I've just read the Eurogamer, VG247 and THR ones.
Eurogamer and VG247 are pretty insighful, Eurogamer is pretty hard on the games, even by my own standards.
Don't waist your time with THR. THR's is not a review, no depth at all.
Eurogamer and VG247 are pretty insighful, Eurogamer is pretty hard on the games, even by my own standards.
Don't waist your time with THR. THR's is not a review, no depth at all.
Some of these reviews are... Hm. Best Pokemon game ever? Really?
The Eurogamer review saying GF has carried on with limiting dungeons to corridors and cutting a lot of exploration/access is disappointing. That was the worst part of SM. Not sure if an open field like Wild Area makes up for that.
The Eurogamer review saying GF has carried on with limiting dungeons to corridors and cutting a lot of exploration/access is disappointing. That was the worst part of SM. Not sure if an open field like Wild Area makes up for that.
I'll stand by what I said on one of the datamine threads.
It might actually be the best pokemon game ever.
Not because it's particularly good, but because all of them are bad and share the same issues, just players never spoke up against the issue this much vocally.
I'm not going to read the reviews so my expectations don't get affected, though I will happily admit that my expectations are pretty low. Not a knock on GameFreak, I just mean that I don't play a whole ton of other games so it's not like I'm going to compare their graphics to some others, for example. I'll also say that my expectations are different. I prefer not to have an open world tbh, and to this day I have no idea why people are whining about "Dexit". They didn't make a formal announcement probably because they, like me, don't think it's a big deal, not because they wanted to just sweep it under the rug.
Legit trying to go into the game knowing only as much as they've told us officially and the Pokedex. Being oblivious to what others think is a blemish on the games will definitely improve my experience of them anyway, for the simple reason that I probably won't even notice it.
Legit trying to go into the game knowing only as much as they've told us officially and the Pokedex. Being oblivious to what others think is a blemish on the games will definitely improve my experience of them anyway, for the simple reason that I probably won't even notice it.
I found Gamexplain to have a good balance of criticism and praise. I can’t post a link because I’m on mobile, but Gamexplain praised it for being arguably the best for getting into the competitive scene, but it you are someone who’s a casual player, your gonna find the stories and areas flat.
So ORAS got a 7.8 and SS got a 9.3 from IGN? Aight imma head out.
Is it Friday in your time zone? West coast USA and I still have a full 12 hours but haven’t ordered the games so I likely won’t have anything until Monday.
It was actually Thursday. Sometimes they sell the games a day earlier here. I went to a store at 1pm and they told me they had already sold out but were going to get more copies later in the day so I just left my contact info. Received a call at 4:30pm and went back to buy it lol.
A weird short video from Pokemon for the midnight release. Why does the Shield title screen lag so much?
So I just started Shield, and here are my thought on the art direction so far; keep in mind I’m playing on handheld.
The routes, Houses, and buildings are beautifully decorated full of detail and color. Even the backgrounds are very detailed and beautiful to look at.
Unfortunately, because there’s no moveable camera, it’s hard to appreciate the background, and it’s sad because there’s detail there you can barely appreciate. In fact, after playing DragonQuest, Fire Emblem, Mario and Zelda, a moveable camera should be a staple for these kind of RPGs, and not having one really feels sore.
And then there’s the cutscenes. For most part, the cutscenes are so blurry that I have a hard time enjoying them. To put in perspective, it’s like watching a film with the camera out of focus all the time. The background is always blurried, and even parts of character are blurried as well. It’s far too noticeable to the point that I can’t enjoy the cutscenes.
A lot of people also state game should have voiced cutscenes, and seeing the “ Into the World of Pokemon Intro “, being in a giant Stadium with thousands of people cheering, the fact that Chairman rose is totally silent hurts the experience, and ruins that atmosphere.
It’s not all bad though, the first new route is filled with only new Pokémon, so at least you get a taste of the designs assuming you have not been spoiled. And I must say, I really like the designs so far- There all capture the personality and type of the Pokémon well. Hopefully James Turner comes to direct future games. The characters are significantly more expressive, especially the protagonist, a huge step from Sun and Moon.
Overall though, the flaws are quite noticeable to the point that I can’t help but notice them when I play the game. Of all RPGs on the Switch, this one gets my award for the worst looking. 3 Houses gets critcized for its graphics, but for the most part it’s not very noticeable unless you go out of the way to look for it. Here, I barely started game and already noticed problems. Really a shame, Because this game had potential to look great, but it was held back by GF’s conservativeness and/or TPC’s limited budget and desired for a rushed game.
The routes, Houses, and buildings are beautifully decorated full of detail and color. Even the backgrounds are very detailed and beautiful to look at.
Unfortunately, because there’s no moveable camera, it’s hard to appreciate the background, and it’s sad because there’s detail there you can barely appreciate. In fact, after playing DragonQuest, Fire Emblem, Mario and Zelda, a moveable camera should be a staple for these kind of RPGs, and not having one really feels sore.
And then there’s the cutscenes. For most part, the cutscenes are so blurry that I have a hard time enjoying them. To put in perspective, it’s like watching a film with the camera out of focus all the time. The background is always blurried, and even parts of character are blurried as well. It’s far too noticeable to the point that I can’t enjoy the cutscenes.
A lot of people also state game should have voiced cutscenes, and seeing the “ Into the World of Pokemon Intro “, being in a giant Stadium with thousands of people cheering, the fact that Chairman rose is totally silent hurts the experience, and ruins that atmosphere.
It’s not all bad though, the first new route is filled with only new Pokémon, so at least you get a taste of the designs assuming you have not been spoiled. And I must say, I really like the designs so far- There all capture the personality and type of the Pokémon well. Hopefully James Turner comes to direct future games. The characters are significantly more expressive, especially the protagonist, a huge step from Sun and Moon.
Overall though, the flaws are quite noticeable to the point that I can’t help but notice them when I play the game. Of all RPGs on the Switch, this one gets my award for the worst looking. 3 Houses gets critcized for its graphics, but for the most part it’s not very noticeable unless you go out of the way to look for it. Here, I barely started game and already noticed problems. Really a shame, Because this game had potential to look great, but it was held back by GF’s conservativeness and/or TPC’s limited budget and desired for a rushed game.
Apparently it's not specific to Pokémon.
It's because the exFat driver on the Nintendo Switch is what is buggy, and ANY kind of saving in an exFat SD card can corrupt it. Savegames are safe, unless you use a hacked Switch as they are saved on internal memory.
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Yes, there's one quite early in the game and another in the first gym.
when does PSD start with gen 8?
Loving the game so far, almost ten hours into it and only have one badge. I like how they introduce the Wild Area pretty early on so it's not just a bunch of story and getting badges. Been trying to catch a ton of Pokemon too and really just taking my time with the game. I'd imagine that getting TRs and Watts will eventually be a bit of a grind, but so far it's not too bad.
Not Legendary, but every storyline in the Pokémon Mystery Dungeon games.
I would be so excited to see somebody do a Nuzlocke of Sword and Shield.
Does anyone have a list of ingredients for the best curry?
MOD EDIT: Please don't triple post - CRoll
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Not sure if this is exactly the right thread, though I just want to give a few quick initial thoughts on my first few hours with the game (note, I tend to go through a game more slowly: talking with every NPC, interacting with all things I can interact with, looking in every crack to see if there's a hidden item, and trying to catch all Pokemon I can at the moment). Just in case I'm putting my thoughts in spoiler tags:
Well, that's Day 1 for me. With the weekend coming I'm hoping to get a lot more time in.
Not exactly related to the game, just wanted to mention the Switch (Lite) is really user friendly. I bought the Zacian & Zamazanta Switch Lite a few days ago and setup was quick and easy. And today I just bought a year of Nintendo's online service which was also nice and quick. Makes me excited about what my next Switch game should be when I'm "done" with Shield. :)
Anyway, onto the game and just to get a few quick facts in:
Version: Shield
Starter: Scorbunny (Hasty nature, on first try and not bad)
Current Team: Scorbunny, Rookidee, Blipbug, Chewtle, Yamper, Galarian Zigzagoon
Current Location: Wild Area Station (just stopped before entering the actual Wild Area)
The reviews didn't lie, even taking it at an easy pace the game quickly rushed you through a lot of stuff. I haven't even entered the Wild Area and I feel I've been introduced to a whole batch of features I've yet to touch. Heck, the pace even feels speedy for leveling up my Pokemon, I don't think all my Pokemon have been at this high a level before the first Gym. And I'm not even battling wild Pokemon, all my experience is from catching Wild Pokemon and the few Trainer Battles there have been so far.
Speaking of Pokemon, I'm surprised how many options and the variety they gave us in just the first two routes! As you can see in my team above I have a varied Type team and there's plenty of "back-ups" in my box (including the Event Meowth who I had on my team for a little while but have overall decided it doesn't offer much). Though I want to quickly mention that I LOVE what they did the Pokedex. The Pokedex does two things I really like: first once you catch all Pokemon in a location it tells you! Not as visually nice as the Habitat List/Dexnav, but it's something I can go on and I'm fine with that. Second, if you haven't caught all the Pokemon in an area, you're then suggested some Pokemon you can catch and shows where you can catch them, making filling those empty dex slots easy!
BTW, remember when I said about looking around for hidden items. While at first most items were pretty much presented to you, even the "hidden" items that now sparkle, I found my first TM! There's a path to the right of Magnolia's house that leads "behind" it which at the end has the TM for Payback! I'm hoping the Wild Area and upcoming City will also have such hidden goodies for the inquisitive explorer. :D
As for the story so far, it has me intrigued. I do appreciate that the player didn't just move in and it's implied we've been friends with Hop and his family for a while, letting us cut past the rival(s) having to introduce themselves (and trusting us in understanding we consider Hop a friend). Speaking of Hop, I like the way they've presented his and Leon's quirks, some possibly hinting to a future conflict (Hop getting caught on little things around battling but doesn't have an affect on battling such as the way he tosses the Poke Ball) and another just a silly thing about the character (like Leon being bad with directions, though that's more implied than shown).
I also liked the details inside their houses and their bedrooms. Hop & Leon's home has pictures and trophies of Leon around, but Leon's room has a hat collection (though I was disappointed it didn't look like they hid some easter eggs by having him hats from previous protags or even some of Ash's)! Nothing that interesting about Hop's room, but Sonia's room showed a bit of her character with it having makeup and beauty supplies all around (sure, a bit stereotypical, but after speaking with Sonia she seems to be having a little "what do I do with my life" crisis as she's no longer Leon's rival and she's actually not officially her grandmother's assistant. We also learn she maybe had a fateful encounter like we did in the Slumbering Weald...).
Speaking of which, that was a REALLY interesting encounter I've never seen done in Pokemon before! I'm genuinely impressed. You encounter a mysterious Pokemo... it's the mascot Legendary, let's not pretend. Anyway, you enter a battle with it(!) where it's name and level was ??? and no matter what move you use it seems to "vanish" before affecting the Legendary. And instead of attacking the Legendary just creates more and more fog, making it difficult to see until the fog completely blocks your view and the next scene is Leon having come to fetch you and Hop. I'm now curious if they do this any other time or was it just for this one battle.
Anyway, onto the game and just to get a few quick facts in:
Version: Shield
Starter: Scorbunny (Hasty nature, on first try and not bad)
Current Team: Scorbunny, Rookidee, Blipbug, Chewtle, Yamper, Galarian Zigzagoon
Current Location: Wild Area Station (just stopped before entering the actual Wild Area)
The reviews didn't lie, even taking it at an easy pace the game quickly rushed you through a lot of stuff. I haven't even entered the Wild Area and I feel I've been introduced to a whole batch of features I've yet to touch. Heck, the pace even feels speedy for leveling up my Pokemon, I don't think all my Pokemon have been at this high a level before the first Gym. And I'm not even battling wild Pokemon, all my experience is from catching Wild Pokemon and the few Trainer Battles there have been so far.
Speaking of Pokemon, I'm surprised how many options and the variety they gave us in just the first two routes! As you can see in my team above I have a varied Type team and there's plenty of "back-ups" in my box (including the Event Meowth who I had on my team for a little while but have overall decided it doesn't offer much). Though I want to quickly mention that I LOVE what they did the Pokedex. The Pokedex does two things I really like: first once you catch all Pokemon in a location it tells you! Not as visually nice as the Habitat List/Dexnav, but it's something I can go on and I'm fine with that. Second, if you haven't caught all the Pokemon in an area, you're then suggested some Pokemon you can catch and shows where you can catch them, making filling those empty dex slots easy!
BTW, remember when I said about looking around for hidden items. While at first most items were pretty much presented to you, even the "hidden" items that now sparkle, I found my first TM! There's a path to the right of Magnolia's house that leads "behind" it which at the end has the TM for Payback! I'm hoping the Wild Area and upcoming City will also have such hidden goodies for the inquisitive explorer. :D
As for the story so far, it has me intrigued. I do appreciate that the player didn't just move in and it's implied we've been friends with Hop and his family for a while, letting us cut past the rival(s) having to introduce themselves (and trusting us in understanding we consider Hop a friend). Speaking of Hop, I like the way they've presented his and Leon's quirks, some possibly hinting to a future conflict (Hop getting caught on little things around battling but doesn't have an affect on battling such as the way he tosses the Poke Ball) and another just a silly thing about the character (like Leon being bad with directions, though that's more implied than shown).
I also liked the details inside their houses and their bedrooms. Hop & Leon's home has pictures and trophies of Leon around, but Leon's room has a hat collection (though I was disappointed it didn't look like they hid some easter eggs by having him hats from previous protags or even some of Ash's)! Nothing that interesting about Hop's room, but Sonia's room showed a bit of her character with it having makeup and beauty supplies all around (sure, a bit stereotypical, but after speaking with Sonia she seems to be having a little "what do I do with my life" crisis as she's no longer Leon's rival and she's actually not officially her grandmother's assistant. We also learn she maybe had a fateful encounter like we did in the Slumbering Weald...).
Speaking of which, that was a REALLY interesting encounter I've never seen done in Pokemon before! I'm genuinely impressed. You encounter a mysterious Pokemo... it's the mascot Legendary, let's not pretend. Anyway, you enter a battle with it(!) where it's name and level was ??? and no matter what move you use it seems to "vanish" before affecting the Legendary. And instead of attacking the Legendary just creates more and more fog, making it difficult to see until the fog completely blocks your view and the next scene is Leon having come to fetch you and Hop. I'm now curious if they do this any other time or was it just for this one battle.
Well, that's Day 1 for me. With the weekend coming I'm hoping to get a lot more time in.
Similar playstyle to me and my team at that point was basically the same as yours lol. I had the issue with being overlevel as well, since I've been trying to catch as many species of Pokemon as I can every route, but it's not that bad I think. I'm at around 24-25 now just before the second gym.
Love this game - so much more enjoyable for me than Moon, and I’m not sure if I should thank the Switch or the new mechanics. Current squad is Corviknight, Inteleon, Boltund, and three spots I can decide on but I think will be Toxtricity, Hatterene, and either Sandaconda or the final form of Carkol, not sure yet. Just finished 6th gym, gonna fight my friend later today to see who’s got a more “competitive” team.
I only have two badges and have been taking my time, but I like the game a lot more than I expected. It's the first Switch game I've played, but to me the graphics look pretty nice. There's a noticeable dropoff in quality in parts of the Wild Area, but overall the region and the Pokemon look really good. By far the best thing is that the towns and routes seem to have inaccessible areas visible in all directions in the background, something that was almost entirely missing in Gen 7 and was a major factor in making Alola such a tiny failure of a region. Rather than forcing you to actively imagine the rest of the areas that must be around for you to believe the region exists, you can actually see them now.
The Big Pokemon gimmick also isn't as bad as I thought it would be. The fact that it's really a projection makes it much easier to get on board with, and it honestly does look kind of cool in context.
The Wild Area is definitely way too small and needs a lot more variation in terrain (and less in weather between areas right next to each other), but it's still cool and a good start for the concept.
The Big Pokemon gimmick also isn't as bad as I thought it would be. The fact that it's really a projection makes it much easier to get on board with, and it honestly does look kind of cool in context.
The Wild Area is definitely way too small and needs a lot more variation in terrain (and less in weather between areas right next to each other), but it's still cool and a good start for the concept.
About to head to route 6 finally. Was going back through all the old routes and Wild area and completing as much of the Pokédex as I could to save time for shiny charm later. But now I need more gym badges! (Only got 3). No shinies seen yet.
Team:
Appletini - level 36 (Appletun)
Loki - level 35 (Morgrem)
Trevelyan - level 35 (Inteleon)
Pixiepipes - level 36 (G-Weezing)
Shade - level 37 (Obstagoon)
Starship - level 36 (Orbeetle)
Death Petal - level 36 (Roserade)
Pyrosite - level 36 (Centiskorch)
Team:
Appletini - level 36 (Appletun)
Loki - level 35 (Morgrem)
Trevelyan - level 35 (Inteleon)
Pixiepipes - level 36 (G-Weezing)
Shade - level 37 (Obstagoon)
Starship - level 36 (Orbeetle)
Death Petal - level 36 (Roserade)
Pyrosite - level 36 (Centiskorch)