It was better than I expected (I played after the patch), but it was still mostly just Pokémon. The new open world premise didn't feel like it reached its full potential, especially when the game claims you can go anywhere, but nothing in the game actually scales so it's just semi-linear if anything (unless you like exploits lol).

Story was alright. There's definitely a charm, and the character and Pokémon designs are great. I thought the characters were likeable enough, but I don't think they'll stick with me.

Music was pretty good, actually. Cool they got Toby Fox to compose again. There was some real stand-out tracks, too. Probably my favourite part of the game.

Pokémon gameplay still leaves much to be desired for me. It's so slow compared to other turn-based RPGs and the strategy in singleplayer boils down to hit super-effective move, become crystal, end. It works, I guess.

The open world itself didn't do much for me. It's mostly just grassy plains and generic weather biomes. The geometry reminded me of baby's first Unity structure. Just felt bland.

I'm not the biggest fan of Pokémon, so I definitely don't have any bias clouding my eyes like I would with other things. There was cool things in this game, and I appreciate them, but this series still feels so lackluster compared to the amount of money it earns. You'd think Game Freak could afford to oil their money-making machine but the end products always feel rushed or half-baked in some areas. It's not a bad game, but it didn't do much for me. Pokémon fans will play it no matter what. As long as I keep getting gifted these, I'll play them too.