Review Source: https://smashtonbound.wixsite.com/smashton-plays/post/pok%C3%A9mon-violet-review
Introduction
Pokémon has always been a comfort game. Beginning with the original Red and Blue games on the Gameboy when I was just a small child, all the way up to Pokémon Platinum on the Nintendo DS, Pokémon has always circled around my life. I’ve made and deepened friendships through it, as a kid I consumed countless hours of the anime and its corresponding films. Even in school, during “reading time,” you could find me reading one of the instruction manuals or one of those thick game guides for Pokémon Emerald if I was lucky enough to convince my parents to buy it for me. Yet, as I got older and began expanding my tastes, as I started seeing what other Japanese RPGs were doing in their franchises, this comfort franchise began to turn into discomfort. The flaws and problems inherent to this franchise had started to become something that could not be ignored or brushed away. As Pokémon Scarlet and Violet released I began to wonder if new Pokémon games can ever capture me the same way their older, sprite-based predecessors could.
To say the 3D era of Pokémon has been a mixed bag would be an understatement. Pokémon X and Y on the 3DS were nice novelties but lacked staying power. A similar experience can be found with Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire, remakes of the third generation (Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald) which I hold extremely dear. Then, Pokémon Sun and Moon released, games which were going to finally change the formula--no gyms, z-moves, a more mobile and explorable environment! Despite these exciting deviations from the traditional formula, these (along with their counterparts Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon) would be the first Pokémon games I never finished. Pokémon Sword and Shield fared no better. I actively disliked these, finding the open-zone exploration mechanic to be a singular bright spot with loads of potential in an otherwise basic game. Had my love for this franchise waned? Was Pokémon no longer the game franchise that I found so much comfort and nostalgia in? Had I moved on from it?
Then, came Pokémon Legends: Arceus. A semi-open world Pokémon game focused entirely around exploration and capturing Pokémon. Set in an ancient Sinnoh region--my favorite region of all time--and with a style that seemed to greatly deviate from anything we had seen Pokémon do before, I couldn’t help but find myself excited by its release. But, I was trepidatious. I had a similar feeling with Pokémon Sun and Moon and yet those flopped for me. How would this be any different? Would I be proven once again that Pokémon is too formulaic, too by-the-numbers, too simplistic for my tastes? Despite the fears, Arceus became an incredible experience. Exploring the open-zone areas was rewarding, the graphical style--while in need of major polishing--was unique and interesting, the moment-to-moment gameplay and goals were addicting. I actually, for once in my life, considered completing the Pokédex. It had its flaws, no doubt: performance issues plagued the game, graphical limitations made everything seem a bit washed out at all times, and some of the zones seemed to have more care put into them than others. But, overall the experience rekindled an enjoyment for Pokémon that I was unsure I had anymore. Thus, when Pokémon Scarlet and Violet were introduced as expanding upon the open-zone idea of Arceus and turning it into a true open-world experience, filled with trainers, gym challenges, evil team battles, and more, I once again found myself incredibly excited. Pokémon Legends: Arceus had just shown me the potential this franchise still had left. The only question remaining was: could they achieve the same level of innovation twice?
The Cufant in the Room
Pokémon Scarlet and Violet have major issues which should be addressed right off the top. The most obvious being in its performance and bugs. The game, quite frankly, runs like a bicycle in mud. It almost never can hit a consistent FPS and quite often feels like it is running at the 15-20 FPS range at best. At its worst it can feel like 5. Texture and character model pop-in is insanely noticeable as well with the player seemingly needing to be within 5 feet of a character or Pokémon before the game decides to render them into the world. The textures on trees, rocks, buildings, and all around you look ripped straight out of an average PlayStation 2 game, sometimes worse. There are quite often bugs as well which can shatter immersion. Pokémon randomly appear inside your body as you unpause the game, Pokémon being thrown into walls which they cannot escape, Pokéballs disappearing inside floors… and that’s the tip of the iceberg. It is honestly a shame and embarrassment that The Pokémon Company and Nintendo even allowed this clearly unfinished, unpolished game to hit shelves. It is one thing to talk about Bethesda’s glitch woes when playing a game like Skyrim or Fallout on release, those are massive titles that attempt to have at least a good level of graphical fidelity, depth, and complexity. Pokémon Scarlet and Violet find themselves on a different level. These games needed at least 3-6 more months in the oven before they were hot, fresh, and ready to go. Thankfully, outside of one crash, my experience with Pokémon Violet’s bugs and glitches were exclusively visual in nature, though I have seen horror stories from others online.
New and Missing Features
I would also be remiss if I did not point out the several features which Game Freak ripped out of this game that were as natural to Pokémon as trees to a forest. Having no Set mode, a mode which prevents the game from asking if you want to switch your Pokémon out after knocking out your opponent’s, is one which baffles the mind. Set/Switch mode had been a mainstay of Pokémon games since the very beginning only to be suddenly removed. Individualism and player choice has also been somewhat reduced as your ability to customize your player character is severely limited. The only things about your character you can really change are small things like your choice of hat, your socks, and gloves. But the school uniform stays on. Oh, and absolutely no way can female characters dare have skirts or dresses, not in this family friendly Pokémon game (despite characters having dresses in this game already and previous female leads having skirts and dresses already). A more minor but still aggravating change which has stuck from the recent titles is a perpetual EXP share which cannot be turned off. If, for any reason, you do not wish a Pokémon to receive EXP, you are required to place it in your box, it cannot be in your party or else it will continue gaining experience no matter what. Removing features present in previous games is not a new thing to Pokémon, but not features so basic and inherent to the game itself such as Set/Switch mode.
To their credit, there is one new feature in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet that I had been advocating more games include--especially turn-based JRPGs--auto-battling. Back in the mid-1990s a little game studio called Ape had already figured this mechanic out with a Super Nintendo game called Earthbound. In it, after you had become strong enough or had defeated the boss of a certain area, any smaller enemies you encounter would automatically be defeated and grant you the proper amount of EXP and rewards. This allowed for two things: it allowed for traversal to become a lot easier after you had already completed an area, and it allowed for easier grinding. At long last, a traditional Pokémon game includes auto-battling in a way which makes sense and is useful for grinding. Granted, Pokémon Legends: Arceus had a similar feature, but I think Pokémon Scarlet and Violet improved upon it and I couldn’t be happier about its inclusion. The only gripe I can find with this new auto-battle system is that each Pokémon has a different speed with which they walk around with you which can slow your progress. Some pokemon even specifically need to walk with you using this feature--called the “Let’s Go” mechanic--in order to evolve. In one instance, Pawmo, the Pikachu equivalent in this game, needs to walk around with you for over 1000 steps before it will evolve into its final form, Pawmot. But the little guy is so small and waddles so slow that you have to slow down your exploration or else he will fall too far behind and just fly back into his Pokéball.
Another feature that should be given credit is the move re-learning feature. In previous games, if you wanted a Pokémon to relearn a move you would need to find a specific NPC designated as the “move relearner” and go through a few text boxes before being allowed to do so. Now, all of this is located directly in the menu and is easily accessible at all times which not only makes this process more convenient but also allows your Pokémon team an added level of flexibility for different scenarios. Need a designated “catcher”? Just change one of your grass types to have moves that help you catch other Pokémon. Need that same Pokémon to shift into an offensive move-set? Just use the menu to re-learn its more powerful moves before it goes into battle. It’s all quick, easy, and very convenient. As much as I may gripe about some of these legacy features being removed, the quality of life changes in this game do help even out the loss.
Terastralization will get a brief mention here as, though it is a neat mechanic in concept and is certain to shake-up how competitive Pokémon is played, I did not find myself overly fond of it. It was pretty and could have had potential to be a game changing mechanic that shifted the tide of battle at the right time, but I often forgot its existence until a Gym leader or Elite Four member used it on me.
An Alluring Adventure or a Dull Disappointing Drag?
Since this is Pokémon's first true attempt at an entirely open-world adventure, there are two things it has to do right: the new Pokémon need to be well-designed, and the world needs to have enough character and rewards to encourage exploration. To the first point, Pokémon Scarlet and Violet succeed in the best way since Pokémon Black and White. The designs of the new Pokémon are fun, interesting, and tow a line between modern Pokémon design philosophy and classic style. While I am not a huge fan of the new starter Pokémon, there are some genuinely incredible designs littered throughout which have become some of my favorite designs in recent memory. A few examples that stand out from the early game are the aforementioned Pikachu clone, Pawmi, a new fire-type Charcadet, and the paradox Pokémon. Typically, I dislike many of the Pikachu clones because of how knock-off and basic they feel, but Pawmi and its subsequent evolutions are a nice mix of cute, cuddly, and yet a bit aggressive. Charcadet is another which is making its way up my list of favorite designs due to its chibi yet sharp and defined style. The new Paradox Pokémon are interesting and a neat way to spice up old designs without explicitly creating new regional forms or new evolutions. When it comes to the world at large however, things are a bit more mixed.
The Paldea region has its highlights. It has plenty of different zones to explore from beaches to forests, to rocky canyons and snowy mountains. Game Freak has done a solid job littering little items throughout to encourage going off the main road. I acquired anything from potions, to Pokéballs--whether that be standard, unique, or even high-level Pokéballs like the ultra ball--to various types of berries. TMs are one of the more lucrative benefits of exploring and can be found littered around the world.
TMs work a bit differently in this game. Pokémon has shifted how TMs work a few times over the years. Originally, they were one-time use items which could only be recycled if they were purchasable in the department store or as a casino reward, all others were one-time deals. Later on, TMs became of infinite use--if you have one, you can use it forever. Now, TMs are once again limited to one-time use, however, they are much more easily recycled. There is a vendor located at every Pokémon Center which allows you to take materials and convert them into TMs. Materials can most commonly be found laying around in the world or attained after catching or battling a wild Pokémon. You unlock more TMs to create by playing through the main campaign stories as well as by picking up new TMs out in the open-world. This new TM system encourages not only exploration but also effective use of the auto-battle system in order to efficiently get new materials to craft the TM you need.
The main problem with Paldea is in the landmarks and major locations. The cities, towns, and notable locations are severely lacking. Each time you enter a new city in a Pokémon game it should function as a grand new experience. Typically there should be at least one or two interesting side-bits or quests to check out for small towns, and in big cities there typically are numerous different attractions to sink time into. I can remember fondly back to the Poke-athalon, the Pokémon Contests, huge department stores, dress-up shops, unique poke-ball shops, casinos or game-stores, and loads of other fun attractions in previous games. Scarlet and Violet, however, seem heavily devoid of anything remotely close to interesting in their towns and cities. The only thing Scarlet and Violet rely upon to make their locations seem unique is in the Gym Challenges you must tackle before battling that town or cities’ gym leader. All of which are simplistic, easy, and brain-numbingly dull.
Story Worth Telling
The story in Pokémon games is rarely the main selling point. Get the gym badges, become champion, complete the Pokédex, and occasionally defeat an evil gang which is determined to destroy the world. The characters are typically simplistic too, the quirky professor, the evil bad guy, the hot-headed rival. It would be easy, in fact expected, for Pokémon Scarlet and Violet to follow this trend. However, I found myself pleasantly surprised by how emotional and resonant the storylines in this new adventure actually were.
The game features three main paths to complete before wrapping all of them up into the final act: Victory Road, Starfall Street, and Path of Legends. Victory Road is your standard path of tackling the 8 gyms scattered throughout Paldea before being able to challenge the Elite 4 and Champion. Starfall Street is where the “evil” team storyline is located. Evil is in quotation marks there as the actual malice has been slowly degrading in Pokémon's antagonist teams over the years and Scarlet and Violet are no exception. Path of Legends is the most unique inclusion in which you follow around with a pal, Arven, on a quest to discover and subdue the “Titan” Pokémon. These Titans are large, towering Pokémon which serve almost like mini-raid bosses. Each path can be completed in any order you so choose and all coalesce into a singular final act by the end of the game.
By far the highlight out of these is the Path of Legends. Taking down these massive titan Pokémon is occasionally a decent challenge, especially if you run into one under leveled. However, the real treat is in the story that begins to unfold with your companion during this questline, Arven. His storyline is easily the best in the game and genuinely brought me close to tears during the first few encounters. Victory Road is the typical Pokémon gym storyline with only slight deviations. Starfall Street is a decent storyline which relates to school-life and attempts to make a commentary on bullying, but the major twist surrounding this storyline is far too predictable to have the impact it was going for.
The end of the game is just absolutely bonkers. The way this game wraps up its main storylines is in true JRPG fashion with wild, world-changing events and major twists which, admittedly are easy to see coming but are nevertheless insane to see unfold. On top of this, the actual challenge faced at the end of each storyline, including the final act, can be quite the challenge if you go in unprepared. The final few hours of this game is a force of non-stop climax after climax, boss after boss, and a major area with powerful Pokémon ready to ambush you at any moment. To be quite honest, it was thrilling.
Blending it All Together
When blending together every aspect of Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, both good and bad, you end up with a game that has incredible potential, strong foundations, but weak supporting pillars. The game runs poorly and likely will continue to do so even after the promised patches drop in February. The game includes fantastic quality of life improvements while removing features which had been present in the franchise from the very beginning. It boasts a fantastic array of new Pokémon to see and encounter in the open-world while dropping the ball on major destinations like towns and cities. It has a fantastic cast of characters and stories which do come together into a wild ending, but some storylines are clearly a cut above the rest. It is definitely a mixed bag on paper. And yet, it is just so compelling. Almost every moment I experienced in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet had me glued to my Switch. Exploring new areas to find new Pokémon I had not seen before, trying to figure new paths to get to an item I wanted, running around in “Let’s Go” mode with my Pokémon on auto-battle, it all came together to create a rough and yet incredible experience.
The simple moment-to-moment experience is hard to describe, but it legitimately makes you feel like a 10-year old kid setting off on a huge Pokémon adventure. The ability to freely explore anywhere, go challenge anything at any time even if you’re under leveled gives a sense of freedom and excitement that the rigid, linear structure of the previous games couldn’t accomplish. It has a lot of ugly spots that need to be straightened out if Game Freak follows this same formula in the next title. But, with this foundation, a bit of tweaking, and some added depth, Game Freak could certainly use Pokémon Scarlet and Violet as a strong template to make something truly incredible and special in the next go around. For now, Pokémon Scarlet and Violet is a solid adventure that I feel any Pokémon fan owes it to themselves to try out, rough edges and all.
Introduction
Pokémon has always been a comfort game. Beginning with the original Red and Blue games on the Gameboy when I was just a small child, all the way up to Pokémon Platinum on the Nintendo DS, Pokémon has always circled around my life. I’ve made and deepened friendships through it, as a kid I consumed countless hours of the anime and its corresponding films. Even in school, during “reading time,” you could find me reading one of the instruction manuals or one of those thick game guides for Pokémon Emerald if I was lucky enough to convince my parents to buy it for me. Yet, as I got older and began expanding my tastes, as I started seeing what other Japanese RPGs were doing in their franchises, this comfort franchise began to turn into discomfort. The flaws and problems inherent to this franchise had started to become something that could not be ignored or brushed away. As Pokémon Scarlet and Violet released I began to wonder if new Pokémon games can ever capture me the same way their older, sprite-based predecessors could.
To say the 3D era of Pokémon has been a mixed bag would be an understatement. Pokémon X and Y on the 3DS were nice novelties but lacked staying power. A similar experience can be found with Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire, remakes of the third generation (Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald) which I hold extremely dear. Then, Pokémon Sun and Moon released, games which were going to finally change the formula--no gyms, z-moves, a more mobile and explorable environment! Despite these exciting deviations from the traditional formula, these (along with their counterparts Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon) would be the first Pokémon games I never finished. Pokémon Sword and Shield fared no better. I actively disliked these, finding the open-zone exploration mechanic to be a singular bright spot with loads of potential in an otherwise basic game. Had my love for this franchise waned? Was Pokémon no longer the game franchise that I found so much comfort and nostalgia in? Had I moved on from it?
Then, came Pokémon Legends: Arceus. A semi-open world Pokémon game focused entirely around exploration and capturing Pokémon. Set in an ancient Sinnoh region--my favorite region of all time--and with a style that seemed to greatly deviate from anything we had seen Pokémon do before, I couldn’t help but find myself excited by its release. But, I was trepidatious. I had a similar feeling with Pokémon Sun and Moon and yet those flopped for me. How would this be any different? Would I be proven once again that Pokémon is too formulaic, too by-the-numbers, too simplistic for my tastes? Despite the fears, Arceus became an incredible experience. Exploring the open-zone areas was rewarding, the graphical style--while in need of major polishing--was unique and interesting, the moment-to-moment gameplay and goals were addicting. I actually, for once in my life, considered completing the Pokédex. It had its flaws, no doubt: performance issues plagued the game, graphical limitations made everything seem a bit washed out at all times, and some of the zones seemed to have more care put into them than others. But, overall the experience rekindled an enjoyment for Pokémon that I was unsure I had anymore. Thus, when Pokémon Scarlet and Violet were introduced as expanding upon the open-zone idea of Arceus and turning it into a true open-world experience, filled with trainers, gym challenges, evil team battles, and more, I once again found myself incredibly excited. Pokémon Legends: Arceus had just shown me the potential this franchise still had left. The only question remaining was: could they achieve the same level of innovation twice?
The Cufant in the Room
Pokémon Scarlet and Violet have major issues which should be addressed right off the top. The most obvious being in its performance and bugs. The game, quite frankly, runs like a bicycle in mud. It almost never can hit a consistent FPS and quite often feels like it is running at the 15-20 FPS range at best. At its worst it can feel like 5. Texture and character model pop-in is insanely noticeable as well with the player seemingly needing to be within 5 feet of a character or Pokémon before the game decides to render them into the world. The textures on trees, rocks, buildings, and all around you look ripped straight out of an average PlayStation 2 game, sometimes worse. There are quite often bugs as well which can shatter immersion. Pokémon randomly appear inside your body as you unpause the game, Pokémon being thrown into walls which they cannot escape, Pokéballs disappearing inside floors… and that’s the tip of the iceberg. It is honestly a shame and embarrassment that The Pokémon Company and Nintendo even allowed this clearly unfinished, unpolished game to hit shelves. It is one thing to talk about Bethesda’s glitch woes when playing a game like Skyrim or Fallout on release, those are massive titles that attempt to have at least a good level of graphical fidelity, depth, and complexity. Pokémon Scarlet and Violet find themselves on a different level. These games needed at least 3-6 more months in the oven before they were hot, fresh, and ready to go. Thankfully, outside of one crash, my experience with Pokémon Violet’s bugs and glitches were exclusively visual in nature, though I have seen horror stories from others online.
New and Missing Features
I would also be remiss if I did not point out the several features which Game Freak ripped out of this game that were as natural to Pokémon as trees to a forest. Having no Set mode, a mode which prevents the game from asking if you want to switch your Pokémon out after knocking out your opponent’s, is one which baffles the mind. Set/Switch mode had been a mainstay of Pokémon games since the very beginning only to be suddenly removed. Individualism and player choice has also been somewhat reduced as your ability to customize your player character is severely limited. The only things about your character you can really change are small things like your choice of hat, your socks, and gloves. But the school uniform stays on. Oh, and absolutely no way can female characters dare have skirts or dresses, not in this family friendly Pokémon game (despite characters having dresses in this game already and previous female leads having skirts and dresses already). A more minor but still aggravating change which has stuck from the recent titles is a perpetual EXP share which cannot be turned off. If, for any reason, you do not wish a Pokémon to receive EXP, you are required to place it in your box, it cannot be in your party or else it will continue gaining experience no matter what. Removing features present in previous games is not a new thing to Pokémon, but not features so basic and inherent to the game itself such as Set/Switch mode.
To their credit, there is one new feature in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet that I had been advocating more games include--especially turn-based JRPGs--auto-battling. Back in the mid-1990s a little game studio called Ape had already figured this mechanic out with a Super Nintendo game called Earthbound. In it, after you had become strong enough or had defeated the boss of a certain area, any smaller enemies you encounter would automatically be defeated and grant you the proper amount of EXP and rewards. This allowed for two things: it allowed for traversal to become a lot easier after you had already completed an area, and it allowed for easier grinding. At long last, a traditional Pokémon game includes auto-battling in a way which makes sense and is useful for grinding. Granted, Pokémon Legends: Arceus had a similar feature, but I think Pokémon Scarlet and Violet improved upon it and I couldn’t be happier about its inclusion. The only gripe I can find with this new auto-battle system is that each Pokémon has a different speed with which they walk around with you which can slow your progress. Some pokemon even specifically need to walk with you using this feature--called the “Let’s Go” mechanic--in order to evolve. In one instance, Pawmo, the Pikachu equivalent in this game, needs to walk around with you for over 1000 steps before it will evolve into its final form, Pawmot. But the little guy is so small and waddles so slow that you have to slow down your exploration or else he will fall too far behind and just fly back into his Pokéball.
Another feature that should be given credit is the move re-learning feature. In previous games, if you wanted a Pokémon to relearn a move you would need to find a specific NPC designated as the “move relearner” and go through a few text boxes before being allowed to do so. Now, all of this is located directly in the menu and is easily accessible at all times which not only makes this process more convenient but also allows your Pokémon team an added level of flexibility for different scenarios. Need a designated “catcher”? Just change one of your grass types to have moves that help you catch other Pokémon. Need that same Pokémon to shift into an offensive move-set? Just use the menu to re-learn its more powerful moves before it goes into battle. It’s all quick, easy, and very convenient. As much as I may gripe about some of these legacy features being removed, the quality of life changes in this game do help even out the loss.
Terastralization will get a brief mention here as, though it is a neat mechanic in concept and is certain to shake-up how competitive Pokémon is played, I did not find myself overly fond of it. It was pretty and could have had potential to be a game changing mechanic that shifted the tide of battle at the right time, but I often forgot its existence until a Gym leader or Elite Four member used it on me.
An Alluring Adventure or a Dull Disappointing Drag?
Since this is Pokémon's first true attempt at an entirely open-world adventure, there are two things it has to do right: the new Pokémon need to be well-designed, and the world needs to have enough character and rewards to encourage exploration. To the first point, Pokémon Scarlet and Violet succeed in the best way since Pokémon Black and White. The designs of the new Pokémon are fun, interesting, and tow a line between modern Pokémon design philosophy and classic style. While I am not a huge fan of the new starter Pokémon, there are some genuinely incredible designs littered throughout which have become some of my favorite designs in recent memory. A few examples that stand out from the early game are the aforementioned Pikachu clone, Pawmi, a new fire-type Charcadet, and the paradox Pokémon. Typically, I dislike many of the Pikachu clones because of how knock-off and basic they feel, but Pawmi and its subsequent evolutions are a nice mix of cute, cuddly, and yet a bit aggressive. Charcadet is another which is making its way up my list of favorite designs due to its chibi yet sharp and defined style. The new Paradox Pokémon are interesting and a neat way to spice up old designs without explicitly creating new regional forms or new evolutions. When it comes to the world at large however, things are a bit more mixed.
The Paldea region has its highlights. It has plenty of different zones to explore from beaches to forests, to rocky canyons and snowy mountains. Game Freak has done a solid job littering little items throughout to encourage going off the main road. I acquired anything from potions, to Pokéballs--whether that be standard, unique, or even high-level Pokéballs like the ultra ball--to various types of berries. TMs are one of the more lucrative benefits of exploring and can be found littered around the world.
TMs work a bit differently in this game. Pokémon has shifted how TMs work a few times over the years. Originally, they were one-time use items which could only be recycled if they were purchasable in the department store or as a casino reward, all others were one-time deals. Later on, TMs became of infinite use--if you have one, you can use it forever. Now, TMs are once again limited to one-time use, however, they are much more easily recycled. There is a vendor located at every Pokémon Center which allows you to take materials and convert them into TMs. Materials can most commonly be found laying around in the world or attained after catching or battling a wild Pokémon. You unlock more TMs to create by playing through the main campaign stories as well as by picking up new TMs out in the open-world. This new TM system encourages not only exploration but also effective use of the auto-battle system in order to efficiently get new materials to craft the TM you need.
The main problem with Paldea is in the landmarks and major locations. The cities, towns, and notable locations are severely lacking. Each time you enter a new city in a Pokémon game it should function as a grand new experience. Typically there should be at least one or two interesting side-bits or quests to check out for small towns, and in big cities there typically are numerous different attractions to sink time into. I can remember fondly back to the Poke-athalon, the Pokémon Contests, huge department stores, dress-up shops, unique poke-ball shops, casinos or game-stores, and loads of other fun attractions in previous games. Scarlet and Violet, however, seem heavily devoid of anything remotely close to interesting in their towns and cities. The only thing Scarlet and Violet rely upon to make their locations seem unique is in the Gym Challenges you must tackle before battling that town or cities’ gym leader. All of which are simplistic, easy, and brain-numbingly dull.
Story Worth Telling
The story in Pokémon games is rarely the main selling point. Get the gym badges, become champion, complete the Pokédex, and occasionally defeat an evil gang which is determined to destroy the world. The characters are typically simplistic too, the quirky professor, the evil bad guy, the hot-headed rival. It would be easy, in fact expected, for Pokémon Scarlet and Violet to follow this trend. However, I found myself pleasantly surprised by how emotional and resonant the storylines in this new adventure actually were.
The game features three main paths to complete before wrapping all of them up into the final act: Victory Road, Starfall Street, and Path of Legends. Victory Road is your standard path of tackling the 8 gyms scattered throughout Paldea before being able to challenge the Elite 4 and Champion. Starfall Street is where the “evil” team storyline is located. Evil is in quotation marks there as the actual malice has been slowly degrading in Pokémon's antagonist teams over the years and Scarlet and Violet are no exception. Path of Legends is the most unique inclusion in which you follow around with a pal, Arven, on a quest to discover and subdue the “Titan” Pokémon. These Titans are large, towering Pokémon which serve almost like mini-raid bosses. Each path can be completed in any order you so choose and all coalesce into a singular final act by the end of the game.
By far the highlight out of these is the Path of Legends. Taking down these massive titan Pokémon is occasionally a decent challenge, especially if you run into one under leveled. However, the real treat is in the story that begins to unfold with your companion during this questline, Arven. His storyline is easily the best in the game and genuinely brought me close to tears during the first few encounters. Victory Road is the typical Pokémon gym storyline with only slight deviations. Starfall Street is a decent storyline which relates to school-life and attempts to make a commentary on bullying, but the major twist surrounding this storyline is far too predictable to have the impact it was going for.
The end of the game is just absolutely bonkers. The way this game wraps up its main storylines is in true JRPG fashion with wild, world-changing events and major twists which, admittedly are easy to see coming but are nevertheless insane to see unfold. On top of this, the actual challenge faced at the end of each storyline, including the final act, can be quite the challenge if you go in unprepared. The final few hours of this game is a force of non-stop climax after climax, boss after boss, and a major area with powerful Pokémon ready to ambush you at any moment. To be quite honest, it was thrilling.
Blending it All Together
When blending together every aspect of Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, both good and bad, you end up with a game that has incredible potential, strong foundations, but weak supporting pillars. The game runs poorly and likely will continue to do so even after the promised patches drop in February. The game includes fantastic quality of life improvements while removing features which had been present in the franchise from the very beginning. It boasts a fantastic array of new Pokémon to see and encounter in the open-world while dropping the ball on major destinations like towns and cities. It has a fantastic cast of characters and stories which do come together into a wild ending, but some storylines are clearly a cut above the rest. It is definitely a mixed bag on paper. And yet, it is just so compelling. Almost every moment I experienced in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet had me glued to my Switch. Exploring new areas to find new Pokémon I had not seen before, trying to figure new paths to get to an item I wanted, running around in “Let’s Go” mode with my Pokémon on auto-battle, it all came together to create a rough and yet incredible experience.
The simple moment-to-moment experience is hard to describe, but it legitimately makes you feel like a 10-year old kid setting off on a huge Pokémon adventure. The ability to freely explore anywhere, go challenge anything at any time even if you’re under leveled gives a sense of freedom and excitement that the rigid, linear structure of the previous games couldn’t accomplish. It has a lot of ugly spots that need to be straightened out if Game Freak follows this same formula in the next title. But, with this foundation, a bit of tweaking, and some added depth, Game Freak could certainly use Pokémon Scarlet and Violet as a strong template to make something truly incredible and special in the next go around. For now, Pokémon Scarlet and Violet is a solid adventure that I feel any Pokémon fan owes it to themselves to try out, rough edges and all.