Pokémon Sword & Pokémon Shield (2019, Switch)

[Dcubed]

I know that this isn't directly related, but this is the most active Pokemon related thread we currently have...

 

https://www.resetera.com/threads/the-space-world-1997-demo-for-pokemon-gold-has-leaked-online.45913/

 

The Spaceworld 1997 demo of Pokemon G/S has just leaked!!! TONS of differences and changes! Including a scrapped evolution of Pinsir and Ditto! (Of all Pokemon!) It's wild!  

[Ashley]

On 30/05/2018 at 6:53 AM, Ashley said:

You can make threads for both. We don't have to pay for each thread made 😉

[Julius]

58 minutes ago, Dcubed said:

I know that this isn't directly related, but this is the most active Pokemon related thread we currently have...

 

https://www.resetera.com/threads/the-space-world-1997-demo-for-pokemon-gold-has-leaked-online.45913/

 

The Spaceworld 1997 demo of Pokemon G/S has just leaked!!! TONS of differences and changes! Including a scrapped evolution of Pinsir and Ditto! (Of all Pokemon!) It's wild!  

Man, I love stuff like this.

And damn, that buff Noctowl looks ready to take names and eat bugs. 

[Glen-i]

Anyway, I'm glad we don't live in a world where Pokémon Gold/Silver doesn't have Totodile. Dodged a bullet there.

Edited May 31, 2018 by Glen-i

[Julius]

5 minutes ago, Glen-i said:

Think I prefer that design for Girafarig, especially given that it’s name is a palindrome  

Really interesting that the rest of Japan was going to serve as the backdrop for these games.

Also, I love how Kanto was just wedged into the bottom corner in what is assumed to be “a fit of madness”  

I really want a return to Asia, if not Japan specifically, at some point down the line for region inspiration. China and Korea specifically would be really interesting to see, and I think that the former makes a lot of sense seeing as we only started getting Chinese localisations with Gen VII; it would be a great way to push the franchise, and Nintendo as a whole, over there. 

I was reading about Satoshi Tajiri only the other day, about, for at least the twentieth time, how the franchise came to be. It got me thinking that I’d really love to see a biopic of Tajiri, and then it made me realise that it would be great if we were to get a series of professionally produced, decently budgeted biopics or documentaries on the people who had the largest effect on gaming.

One can wish I guess 

[Glen-i]

39 minutes ago, Julius Caesar said:

Think I prefer that design for Girafarig, especially given that it’s name is a palindrome  

Oh no, it's definitely cool. But there's no denying that back sprite could give kids nightmares.

[Julius]

Those further details being...

Quote

He reconfirmed that this game is due for release in the second half of 2019, will have better graphics than any prior Pokémon game, that it'll be completely new aimed at experienced fans, not like Pokémon Let's Go Pikachu & Let's Go Eevee and states that it will contain many brand new Pokémon.

Let the countdown begin.

~ 17 months to go  

[Hero-of-Time]

A couple of bits of minor info for the 2019 game have surfaced from an interview in Famitsu with Junichi Masuda

 

Quote

First up, a general comment from Masada on the upcoming project:

“As for the 2019 title, we’re working with the idea that everyone will be playing on their own Switch. It’ll have the same kind of feeling as the previous games on handheld systems.”

It seems Masuda was also asked if you’ll be able to transfer Pokemon from Pokemon: Let’s Go, Pikachu / Eevee. In response, he said:

“There have been times where you couldn’t bring Pokemon over from previous titles – I imagine that created some bad memories. I want to try and change that, if I can.”

Surely they will have to get Pokemon Box working in the 2019 game for those who have spent years building up their collections and team, right? 

[Glen-i]

2 hours ago, Hero-of-Time said:

A couple of bits of minor info for the 2019 game have surfaced from an interview in Famitsu with Junichi Masuda

 

Surely they will have to get Pokemon Box working in the 2019 game for those who have spent years building up their collections and team, right? 

Absolutely, contrary to forum room echo chambers, a lot of people actually like a lot of Pokémon from times after the 90's. And Game Freak would have to be absolutely idiotic to ignore that.

The sheer amount of customisation all of those Pokémon bring to team building is a massive selling point to the more competitive player. Remove that and that would put off a lot of people.

I truly believe the biggest reason why some people refuse to even acknowledge Pokémon games from the GBA games onward was because they weren't able to transfer their Pokemon from Gold/Silver to Ruby/Sapphire.

[Julius]

Been a while since I’ve popped into this thread...

Back in June, as part of Nintendo’s Earnings release, the release window for the game was refined to “Late 2019”. 

Elsewhere, just last month, Game Freak put out some job postings in an attempt to bolster their work force, seemingly in preparation for next year’s game, with long-term positions having starting dates of this month and additional roles of Planner and Motion Designer also available.

I’m really looking forward to learning about the games next year — hopefully earlier rather than later! — with some new Pokémon designs, and seeing if/how Game Freak will next progress the series with a larger step than they’ve been willing to take before. 

Edited September 13, 2018 by Julius Caesar

[Julius]

So, at the start of the month, some job listings turned up from The Pokémon Company International advertising numerous localisation roles, many of which specifically refer to the translation of in-game text and strategy guides. The advertised roles were added by the company’s London office, and, in their descriptions and lengths, seem to line up with the previously speculated late 2019 release.

Quote

• Localisation Specialist – Japanese to German
  One year fixed term contract.
  Localisation for computer games, in-game text, manuals, strategy guides, website.
• Localisation Associate
  One year fixed term contract.
  Supports / coordinate videogame localisation – includes working with translation teams, Q&A management, marketing, etc.
• Freelance Translator – Japanese to German
  Localisation for computer games, in-game text, manuals, strategy guides, website.
• Freelance Translator – Japanese to Spanish
  Localisation for computer games, in-game text, manuals, strategy guides, website.
• Freelance Translator – Japanese to French
  Localisation for computer games, in-game text, manuals, strategy guides, website.
• Freelance Translator – Japanese to Italian
  Localisation for computer games, in-game text, manuals, strategy guides, website.

 

Also, in their typically annual letter to Famitsu leading up to the new year, Game Freak thanked fans for a good 2018, and expressed their hopes of wanting to surprise them in 2019. 

[Ashley]

In fairness, I occasionally check the job listings for the Pokémon company and they are pretty regular occurrences. Whether that's because of expansion or high turn over I'm not sure.

[Sméagol]

4 minutes ago, Ashley said:

In fairness, I occasionally check the job listings for the Pokémon company and they are pretty regular occurrences.

You want to infiltrate the Pokémon company and turn Rick into a Pokémon, don't you?

[Glen-i]

Why isn't there a hamster Pokémon yet anyway?

Dedenne is the closest we've got, I guess. But that's more gerbil, really.

[Ashley]

4 hours ago, Sméagol said:

You want to infiltrate the Pokémon company and turn Rick into a Pokémon, don't you?

Rick exists as an entry beyond anything Pokémon could hope to achieve.

1 hour ago, Glen-i said:

Why isn't there a hamster Pokémon yet anyway?

Dedenne is the closest we've got, I guess. But that's more gerbil, really.

Tried to see if there was a cultural reason for this (maybe less familiar in Japan, or not an animal they like etc) but got distracted by this:

[Julius]

So, it seems that the not-so-infamous Chinese Riddler (cousin of the actually-infamous Chinese Riddler) from Gen VII has returned:

This is the one that revealed that core series Pokémon games for the 3DS (Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon), not game for the Switch, would be revealed in the days before E3 2017. Pretty sure they also revealed Team Rocket would be present in the game as Team Rainbow Rocket, too.

So, to be clear: not the one who put out a ton of great and surprisingly accurate riddles for fans to chomp on as we patiently waited for Sun and Moon back in 2016. 

It's worth noting that them being brought to tears is a mistranslation/exaggeration. Here's what their post actually days:

Quote

I never played a Pokémon game before. After watching the trailer, I could see that this would be different from the previous gens and it actually made me want to play it.

For those unaware, it was recently announced that Nintendo Treehouse Q&As would be taking place during this year's Pokémon Day celebrations, beginning on this upcoming Wednesday, which could be a hint of things to come. 

I was sceptical about us getting anything for the new games in the most recent Nintendo Direct, but if the reveal of these games is going to take place before Easter, Pokémon Day is without a doubt the most likely date for such a reveal. 

I guess we'll just have to wait and see, but hey, I'm always ready for some more Pokémon news 

Edited February 24, 2019 by Julius

[Glen-i]

I've never been so apprehensive about a new generation reveal...

I'm finding it hard to get excited because I'm terrified they'll double down on the direction of Let's Go.

Edited February 24, 2019 by Glen-i

[Julius]

10 hours ago, Glen-i said:

I've never been so apprehensive about a new generation reveal...

I'm finding it hard to get excited because I'm terrified they'll double down on the direction of Let's Go.

I find myself lost somewhere between excitement and apprehension, @Glen-i, and I really get how you feel.

Admittedly, I haven't played LGPE since I don't yet have a Switch, but I've had a strange relationship with the core Pokémon games ever since they transitioned to 3D graphics back with X&Y. I can't quite put my finger on it exactly, but it just really feels like they've been missing something since. 

Looking back, I find myself agreeing with you about the pandering to Kanto that we've had since that transition to 3D. These games sell ridiculously well no matter what, though, so what's with that? It feels like they've grown far too comfortable in their own bubble sometimes. 

Personally, I want to see some respect for the fans that I'm sure they're aware weren't fans of LGPE, like yourself @Glen-i. What I mean by that is if something like the capture mechanic from LGPE is going to make it's way over to these new games, have it be the non-default option, and bring back the traditional capture mechanics as the default option. 

Besides that, I want to see some ambition. The reason that I remain somewhat optimistic that Pokémon is going to evolve into something of a modern JRPG is that, during Masuda-san's and Ohmori-san's interview with Game Informer shortly after the E3 2017 announcement, they were aware of just how high fan expectations are for these games. It's the first time that I've noticed someone from Game Freak acknowledging fans expectations. 

Quote

We can definitely see that expectations are very high and right now the pressure is on to answer those expectations.

I feel like Sun & Moon was a step in the right direction from X&Y (with a better story, and Alolan Pokémon variants seem like a better direction to head than the power creep that Mega Evolutions were starting to bring), but since then we've had a third version in Ultra Sun & Ultra Moon (which slashed Sun & Moon's sales, when they were on target to become the second best-selling pair of Pokémon games) and a pseudo-remake in Let's Go Pikachu & Eevee, so it's hard to tell which direction they're heading in.

And, for the love of Arceus, I don't think that a fully controllable camera in a truly 3D environment is too much to ask for. It feels like we've been playing early PS1 games since X&Y, and what I mean by that is that despite having 3D models, the games (for the most part) have the exact same camera angle that they had in older games, making them still feel like 2D games. The closest that they've got to getting away from that, in my opinion, was with Lumiose City's camera, which followed you from behind and changed angles in alleyways, but that was over five years ago now. It's time to see that evolved. 

I'm glad that LGPE brought with it Pokémon in the overworld -- that's something I'd been hoping to see -- but right now, at least from what I've seen of it, it seems like it's a system being taken advantage of for shiny Pokémon in a similar way to Metal Slimes in the 3DS version of Dragon Quest VIII (with how frequently Pokémon load in to an area), so I hope that's something that the figure out going into these games. 

Speaking of Dragon Quest, I feel like this is the time to say it: Pokémon needs to look at how they transitioned from their 2D games to Dragon Quest VIII, and have (at least in my eyes) perfected a modern "open world" JRPG with Dragon Quest XI. It's a linear open world with its utilisation of zones, but it is absolute perfection: it looks gorgeous, there's a sense of scale, and a real sense of adventure conveyed by the world as a result. I don't think that Game Freak is in a position to gun for a seamless open world with this upcoming pair of games, and I agree with everyone here that expecting that much is asking for disappointment. DQVIII and DQXI are, in my eyes, what they should be looking towards for inspiration of they make the leap into a fully realised 3D world, and I'm going to be sorely disappointed (and I'm sure I won't be the only one) if they don't take that plunge now. Because when would be a better time to do so? I'm curious what your stance is in this @Glen-i: do you want them to take that plunge, or are you okay with them continuing with what they've been doing to this point? 

I guess that sort of transitioned into my wishlist for these games...

Oh, and please: no more new gimmicks like Mega Evolutions and Z-Moves. Can we just get some more regional variants if we need to supplement the number of new Pokémon? And more in-depth character customisation. That too.

Edited February 24, 2019 by Julius

[Dcubed]

Agree with all of the above, except for the shade thrown to Mega Evolution.  I thought it was a brilliant new mechanic and definitely the best new thing that they did with the series since Gen 5!

 

I absolutely loved how it suddenly made "useless" Pokemon completely viable! It literally turned the game on its head and I absolutely loved it!  I'm take it or leave it on Z-Moves though.  It's basically just a Nuke Button... not really all that interesting really.

[Glen-i]

17 hours ago, Julius said:

I find myself lost somewhere between excitement and apprehension, @Glen-i, and I really get how you feel.

Admittedly, I haven't played LGPE since I don't yet have a Switch, but I've had a strange relationship with the core Pokémon games ever since they transitioned to 3D graphics back with X&Y. I can't quite put my finger on it exactly, but it just really feels like they've been missing something since. 

Looking back, I find myself agreeing with you about the pandering to Kanto that we've had since that transition to 3D. These games sell ridiculously well no matter what, though, so what's with that? It feels like they've grown far too comfortable in their own bubble sometimes.

Gonna split your quote into many sections so I don't overlook something.

I can't really speak for you, but for me, the thing that's been missing for me since Gen 5 has been the focus on what was new. Ever since Black/White sold the least amount of copies in Pokémon history (Not counting third versions, remakes, etc.), The Pokémon Company has been desperately trying to claw back the gamer who stopped playing Pokémon after 2000 or so. Even though most of them don't care anymore.

There's this image I once saw that I can't find for the life of me now. It shows the distribution of Pokémon based on their region. It's pretty balanced throughout (Except Gen 5, which had far more newer Pokémon catchable than the older ones). However, both Gen 6 and Gen 7 has more Gen 1 Pokémon than any others, even the newest Pokémon at the time. Sun and Moon was particularly bad as it had only around 20 Gen 1 Pokémon that can't be caught there. It certainly didn't help that most of the actual new Pokémon were very difficult to catch.

This has the effect of dampening the sense of discovery that a new region brings. Which is my biggest issue with Pokémon these days. I still have hopes of another Gen 5 scenario where no old Pokémon show up until you finish the main story and the spotlight is once again focused on what's new.

18 hours ago, Julius said:

Personally, I want to see some respect for the fans that I'm sure they're aware weren't fans of LGPE, like yourself @Glen-i. What I mean by that is if something like the capture mechanic from LGPE is going to make it's way over to these new games, have it be the non-default option, and bring back the traditional capture mechanics as the default option. 

I feel like Sun & Moon was a step in the right direction from X&Y (with a better story, and Alolan Pokémon variants seem like a better direction to head than the power creep that Mega Evolutions were starting to bring), but since then we've had a third version in Ultra Sun & Ultra Moon (which slashed Sun & Moon's sales, when they were on target to become the second best-selling pair of Pokémon games) and a pseudo-remake in Let's Go Pikachu & Eevee, so it's hard to tell which direction they're heading in.

And, for the love of Arceus, I don't think that a fully controllable camera in a truly 3D environment is too much to ask for. It feels like we've been playing early PS1 games since X&Y, and what I mean by that is that despite having 3D models, the games (for the most part) have the exact same camera angle that they had in older games, making them still feel like 2D games. The closest that they've got to getting away from that, in my opinion, was with Lumiose City's camera, which followed you from behind and changed angles in alleyways, but that was over five years ago now. It's time to see that evolved. 

I'm glad that LGPE brought with it Pokémon in the overworld -- that's something I'd been hoping to see -- but right now, at least from what I've seen of it, it seems like it's a system being taken advantage of for shiny Pokémon in a similar way to Metal Slimes in the 3DS version of Dragon Quest VIII (with how frequently Pokémon load in to an area), so I hope that's something that the figure out going into these games.

For all the things LGPE gets wrong (and it gets a hell of a lot wrong) It does have some good ideas that I wouldn't mind seeing make the jump to the core series.

I like your suggestion of GO style capturing being a toggable option, it's a best of both worlds solution that shouldn't be too hard to implement.

I'm not too sure I can agree with you on wild Pokémon appearing in the overworld though. Call me old-fashioned, but random encounters still manage to have an element of surprise for me. When that transition begins, who knows what could show up? And a shiny Pokémon appearing on the overworld doesn't quite have the same shock of finding one appear randomly when that silhouette reveals itself.

I get that people get annoyed by random encounters, but I've always liked them. So it's probably more a "me" preference.

Pokémon following you on the overworld is always a good thing though.

@Dcubed and I constantly joke about how a Pokémon game tends to look like a previous Generation Golden Sun game (Diamond/Pearl looks like the GBA games while X/Y looks more like Dark Dawn on the DS) Of course, there's no Golden Sun game on the 3DS, so maybe Dragon Quest 8 would be what they aim for. I'd be fine with that. DQ8 is a cool game. And a reasonable bar to aim for Pokémon these days. Certainly more reasonable than those clamouring for BotW, but with Pokémon. That's just loony!

18 hours ago, Julius said:

Speaking of Dragon Quest, I feel like this is the time to say it: Pokémon needs to look at how they transitioned from their 2D games to Dragon Quest VIII, and have (at least in my eyes) perfected a modern "open world" JRPG with Dragon Quest XI. It's a linear open world with its utilisation of zones, but it is absolute perfection: it looks gorgeous, there's a sense of scale, and a real sense of adventure conveyed by the world as a result. I don't think that Game Freak is in a position to gun for a seamless open world with this upcoming pair of games, and I agree with everyone here that expecting that much is asking for disappointment. DQVIII and DQXI are, in my eyes, what they should be looking towards for inspiration of they make the leap into a fully realised 3D world, and I'm going to be sorely disappointed (and I'm sure I won't be the only one) if they don't take that plunge now. Because when would be a better time to do so? I'm curious what your stance is in this @Glen-i: do you want them to take that plunge, or are you okay with them continuing with what they've been doing to this point? 

I guess that sort of transitioned into my wishlist for these games...

Oh, and please: no more new gimmicks like Mega Evolutions and Z-Moves. Can we just get some more regional variants if we need to supplement the number of new Pokémon? And more in-depth character customisation. That too.

I can't really say how much from DQXI I'd like to see Pokémon take inspiration from because I haven't played it yet. (Waiting for the Switch version and I'm staying mostly blind until then) So this is gonna be more of a general thing as to how "open-world" I'd like the series to get.

It's no secret here that I really dislike games that put the "open world" concept as the focus of a game. Because having such a massive open world that the player can go anywhere they want from the get-go will always force a compromise somewhere else. And yes, BotW is a prime example of what I don't want in Pokémon. There's such a thing as too big and if I get bored exploring that world, that's a big negative.

That said, I do like some exploration in games. Black/White hit a nice balance for the time in that the progression was quite linear, but people who explored each route would find plenty of caves and forests that were completely optional.

But I feel like that layout won't do these days. For me, the perfect balance between open-world and focused progression would be something like Xenoblade Chronicles 1 and 2. The areas in those games are pretty big (but not too big) and have plenty of things to discover, but you couldn't actually progress to a later area until you finished with the plot related stuff in the place you were currently in.

Gym badges would be a great excuse to deny the player access to later areas because those places could be deemed "too dangerous" for rookie trainers. Makes more sense than a Tauros blocking your way just because it's grumpy.

But realistically, that probably won't happen in the Switch's lifetime unless Game Freak get some help from another company (Monolith Soft helping with the world building is a great idea and I want it to happen yesterday), so I'd settle for something along the lines of DQ8.

I'm gonna have to agree with @Dcubed on the Mega Evolutions though. The concept is great. But I found the execution flawed because they gave half of them to Pokémon that were already pretty powerful. (Which is definitely what caused the perceived power creep, the likes of Mewtwo, Garchomp and Rayquaza didn't need them)

Mega Evolution made Beedrill and Pidgeot actually viable in a fight, and I want more of that. Weaker Pokémon getting new life breathed into them.

But yeah, there's my counter long post.

[Julius]

On 2/25/2019 at 8:21 AM, Glen-i said:

I can't really speak for you, but for me, the thing that's been missing for me since Gen 5 has been the focus on what was new. Ever since Black/White sold the least amount of copies in Pokémon history (Not counting third versions, remakes, etc.), The Pokémon Company has been desperately trying to claw back the gamer who stopped playing Pokémon after 2000 or so. Even though most of them don't care anymore.

There's this image I once saw that I can't find for the life of me now. It shows the distribution of Pokémon based on their region. It's pretty balanced throughout (Except Gen 5, which had far more newer Pokémon catchable than the older ones). However, both Gen 6 and Gen 7 has more Gen 1 Pokémon than any others, even the newest Pokémon at the time. Sun and Moon was particularly bad as it had only around 20 Gen 1 Pokémon that can't be caught there. It certainly didn't help that most of the actual new Pokémon were very difficult to catch.

This has the effect of dampening the sense of discovery that a new region brings. Which is my biggest issue with Pokémon these days. I still have hopes of another Gen 5 scenario where no old Pokémon show up until you finish the main story and the spotlight is once again focused on what's new.

Yeah, I think you're completely right about the lack of focus on what's new (Pokémon, characters, the plot, et al) in the games being one of those things that's been missing for me. 

I'm not even sure if Black/White's sales should factor into it too much, though, considering that their sales aren't actually that far behind some of the other introductory pairs of games for a new generation. I can completely understand why we haven't had a sequel since Black 2/White 2, though...

I'm not quite sure how it resulted in them trying to bring older fans back with perhaps too much of a focus on Kanto, though, seeing as Diamond/Pearl are the only introductory pair for a new generation to really outperform their peers, but alas, that's where we're at  thing is, I can kind of understand it with Alola as Sun/Moon were for the 20th Anniversary of the franchise, and I thought that there was a pretty decent mix of Pokémon from earlier generations in those games. People will buy Pokémon games regardless, and I'm sure they know that, so it always surprises me when they're not a bit more ambitious than they normally come across as being. 

Quote

For all the things LGPE gets wrong (and it gets a hell of a lot wrong) It does have some good ideas that I wouldn't mind seeing make the jump to the core series.

I like your suggestion of GO style capturing being a toggable option, it's a best of both worlds solution that shouldn't be too hard to implement.

I'm not too sure I can agree with you on wild Pokémon appearing in the overworld though. Call me old-fashioned, but random encounters still manage to have an element of surprise for me. When that transition begins, who knows what could show up? And a shiny Pokémon appearing on the overworld doesn't quite have the same shock of finding one appear randomly when that silhouette reveals itself.

I get that people get annoyed by random encounters, but I've always liked them. So it's probably more a "me" preference.

Pokémon following you on the overworld is always a good thing though.

@Dcubed and I constantly joke about how a Pokémon game tends to look like a previous Generation Golden Sun game (Diamond/Pearl looks like the GBA games while X/Y looks more like Dark Dawn on the DS) Of course, there's no Golden Sun game on the 3DS, so maybe Dragon Quest 8 would be what they aim for. I'd be fine with that. DQ8 is a cool game. And a reasonable bar to aim for Pokémon these days. Certainly more reasonable than those clamouring for BotW, but with Pokémon. That's just loony!

I don't see them taking a step backwards by reverting back to random encounters, to be honest. I grew up on the Pokémon games, and so I'll always be content with random encounters (I think that's why I'm happy to try out older JRPGs where I can), but I do feel that Pokémon appearing in the overworld is a great quality of life improvement, in that it respects the player's time and effort a little bit more than random encounters. For instance, you talked about newer Pokémon not being as common as some of their older peers in their own regions, which is something that has irked me for a while too, and I think that's where an overworld presence could help in spotlighting the new Pokémon -- "Zubat, Zubat...wait, who's that Pokémon?!" 

I'm a fan of options, though, and that seems like something that could easily be turned into a toggle too, since Pokémon have been fixed to certain routes at certain encounter rates in previous games for random encounters. I'd imagine that the spawn rates in the Let's Go games were based on similar numbers, so yeah, it should definitely remain an option in my eyes for those that want it  100% with you on the shiny Pokémon, though -- I've never encountered a wild shiny Pokémon out in the wild before, and so seeing how Let's Go handled it was...kind of odd to me, and it seems less special now that everyone and their Lillipup has ten shiny Pokémon in those games.

Quote

I can't really say how much from DQXI I'd like to see Pokémon take inspiration from because I haven't played it yet. (Waiting for the Switch version and I'm staying mostly blind until then) So this is gonna be more of a general thing as to how "open-world" I'd like the series to get.

It's no secret here that I really dislike games that put the "open world" concept as the focus of a game. Because having such a massive open world that the player can go anywhere they want from the get-go will always force a compromise somewhere else. And yes, BotW is a prime example of what I don't want in Pokémon. There's such a thing as too big and if I get bored exploring that world, that's a big negative.

That said, I do like some exploration in games. Black/White hit a nice balance for the time in that the progression was quite linear, but people who explored each route would find plenty of caves and forests that were completely optional.

But I feel like that layout won't do these days. For me, the perfect balance between open-world and focused progression would be something like Xenoblade Chronicles 1 and 2. The areas in those games are pretty big (but not too big) and have plenty of things to discover, but you couldn't actually progress to a later area until you finished with the plot related stuff in the place you were currently in.

Gym badges would be a great excuse to deny the player access to later areas because those places could be deemed "too dangerous" for rookie trainers. Makes more sense than a Tauros blocking your way just because it's grumpy.

But realistically, that probably won't happen in the Switch's lifetime unless Game Freak get some help from another company (Monolith Soft helping with the world building is a great idea and I want it to happen yesterday), so I'd settle for something along the lines of DQ8.

From how you've described it, DQXI seems very similar to Xenoblade Chronicles 1 and 2 in that regard (though the "open" areas aren't quite as large), so I have a feeling that you'll love it.

I've yet to play BotW, so I can't comment on that game in particular, but I've tried my hand at a few of the critically acclaimed open world games from this generation like Horizon Zero Dawn, and I don't think that games that are too open for me are quite my cup of tea -- at least not in the way that they're often promoted. I really enjoyed Horizon Zero Dawn, but after about ten hours, I found myself only following the story path of the game from one point to another, because I would normally feel lost when it came to the story by the time that I got to the next point on the map to continue on with it.

You mentioned using badges to lock certain areas off until you've progressed so far into the game, and it surprises me that Game Freak haven't done that too much, seeing as badge gates felt like such a thing in some of the earlier games. I too am tired of the power cutting out and grumpy Tauros blocking your path...

Quote

I'm gonna have to agree with @Dcubed on the Mega Evolutions though. The concept is great. But I found the execution flawed because they gave half of them to Pokémon that were already pretty powerful. (Which is definitely what caused the perceived power creep, the likes of Mewtwo, Garchomp and Rayquaza didn't need them)

Mega Evolution made Beedrill and Pidgeot actually viable in a fight, and I want more of that. Weaker Pokémon getting new life breathed into them.

 

On 2/25/2019 at 1:27 AM, Dcubed said:

Agree with all of the above, except for the shade thrown to Mega Evolution.  I thought it was a brilliant new mechanic and definitely the best new thing that they did with the series since Gen 5!

 

I absolutely loved how it suddenly made "useless" Pokemon completely viable! It literally turned the game on its head and I absolutely loved it!  I'm take it or leave it on Z-Moves though.  It's basically just a Nuke Button... not really all that interesting really.

Guys, I swear I didn't actually mean to throw any shade at Mega Evolutions!  

Its probably the way that I phrased it, but I'm actually a big fan of Mega Evolutions (for the love of Arceus, Game Freak, give me Flygonite and Dragoniteite already); my problem is with how they were so quick to drop them after Gen VI, give us Alolan forms and Z-Moves, and then...potentially drop those too in favour of another new gimmick that will be thrown to the wayside by the start of next generation. I see them dropping Ultra Beasts for now too, but maybe they'll come back for the Diamond/Pearl remakes? 

For me, they should keep Mega Evolutions, regional forms (if Pokémon from a region other than Kanto are actually going to get them this time), and maybe start giving evolutions to some older Pokémon that don't seem like prime candidates for Mega Evolutions (i.e. Dunsparce) -- it's probably the easiest way to bring up the number of new Pokémon that we'll be getting, and I hope that we're closer to 100 this time around.

Drop Z-Moves. I'm with you @Dcubed, it doesn't feel like anything too special. 

And I forgot to mention an orchestral score in my last post so...I'd like that too.  

[Julius]

Pokémon Sword and Pokémon Shield! 

Set in the Galar region. Absolutely looks like it was inspired by Great Britain!

Grass-type starter: the chimp Pokémon, Grookey; Fire-type starter: the rabbit Pokémon, Scorbunny; Water-type starter: the water lizard Pokémon, Scobble.

Quote

Pokémon Sword and Pokémon Shield will be set in Galar, an expansive region with many environments—idyllic countryside, contemporary cities, thick forests, and craggy, snow-covered mountains. The people and Pokémon live together in this region, and they’ve worked together to develop the industries here.

You’ll visit the various Gyms in the Galar region, aiming for the enviable and admirable title of Champion!

Looks like capture mechanics are as they were prior to Let's Go, and what's more, it seems like random encounters are back! I imagine @Glen-i is happy right now  

Releasing simultaneously worldwide in Late 2019.

Edited February 27, 2019 by Julius

[Shorty]

13 minutes ago, Julius said:

Pokémon Sword and Pokémon Shield! 

Set in the Galar region. 

Looks like capture mechanics are as they were prior to Let's Go, and what's more, it seems like random encounters are back!

Releasing simultaneously worldwide in Late 2019.

Surely nobody was expecting Let's Go to be anything that derailed the direction of the core games?

I didn't play Sun/Moon, but what do people think of the scale we've seen of playable environments? Does it seem like a step up/towards a fuller-scale RPG, or does it hint at being limited to a familiar degree

[Ike]

Just now, Shorty said:

Surely nobody was expecting Let's Go to be anything that derailed the direction of the core games?

You'd be surprised at how many people seemed to think that.

[ArtMediocre]

It will be interesting to see if the first core home console Pokemon can compete with the handheld versions saleswise. By seeing Let's go hitting the same mark as the later core games, I'd expect it to be at the same level at least, but I hope the game can get Pokemon back to similar sales figures as Diamond & Pearl. 

The game sure looks interesting though, and I'm excited to see what new changes the Switch can bring to the game.