Pokémon sword and shield in Test
It’s finally here: the infamous tall Grass is calling us back! What I got on the 15. November was desperately, and impatiently every dreary, foggy day counted. As with Pokémon, the sword and the shield celebrated the ever-popular Handheld series finally debut on the big TV Screen! Already before the publication of the new adventure in the Galar Region came, however, to the Outcry in the Community – because not all the existing Pokémon have the final game done. GameFreak has radically screened, and presented at the Pokémon of the old generations, only a Best-of. But is this really the prophesied “end of the PokémonFranchises”?! It’s time to find out exactly this!
An impressive Start for an even larger game world!
At the first Start of Pokémon sword and shield, you realize: Here, feel this time all they are a whole lot bigger than anything experienced so far! You will not start as usual in a relaxed, colorful surroundings with the respective Professor, but is directly catapulted into the action. The President of the Arena Challenge of the Pokémon League of the Galar Region welcomes us in a pompous ceremony in one of the gigantic Pokémon arenas. Remember that in the current part of huge football stadiums, jubelndes audience and rousing music including!
We start our new adventure this time, as a complete unknown neighbor around the corner, but as a good friend or good friend of a little brother from the reigning Champion of the Galar Region. Directly from said Champion Delion, we also get our first Pokémon, as well as a letter of recommendation for the Arena Challenge. So we start as a familiar face in the competition, be recognized by the NPCs in the Past and either cheered or counterparty booed!
Chimpep accompanied me on my journey through the Galar Region …
After we us for our first Pokémon decided to have it wrong with our great journey through the Galar–Region. This was inspired by the United Kingdom and has been provided with many lovely Details: Whether thousands of Wollys – the small, new sheep pokemon, which rolls through the area, the typical British houses of stone, or residents who just drink tea in the Afternoon. GameFreak has laid out in the Galar Region really into the stuff. I like them of all of the previous adventures is by far the best, and the graphics of the game can be – especially for Switch-conditions – really see!
The story in Pokémon sword and shield , however, only a minimal amount of paint: The villains this time are even more colorless than in the previous Parts; Team Yell don’t even have the goal of world domination to tear, but want us out of the Arena Challenge drive. They worship Mary, one of the rival inside the player, and want to do everything to help her. So you are a little more radical fan club – but not the real criminals that want to harm the world around us. Team Yell also unfortunately at no point in the history of a great challenge, but at least it is quite funny to watch, and brings a Lot of funny moments in the game.
A vibrant world with too little variety
The world of Pokémon, sword and shield really feels incredibly alive! GameFreak has the successful principle of Pokémon: Let’s Go: Pikachu and eevee and run the pokemon here free in the tall Grass and the world around and meet the players again and again in different ways. We can decide in the tall Grass itself, whether we want to sneak quietly over to go to a Pokémon out of the way, or through sprint or whistle to draw any attention to us and provoke a fight.
Quite the coincidence to have disappeared not the encounters but. From time to time, if we are careless, catch us in the high Grass hidden Pokémon, and have it out with our Team to create. This mix pleases me, really incredibly good; she takes virtually the Best of both systems, and the whole experience feels very consistent.
A Highlight is also the nature of the zone. The large area in the heart of the Galar Region provides a vast area, in which you can find the most diverse pokemon of all possible generations. Particularly exciting here is that not every Pokémon corresponds exactly to your Level, because of the small, timid Lvl 5 pokemon, the try in front of the player to run away, to large, more developed Pokémon in Lvl-60+ – there is something for everyone! The player has to decide which pokemon he can ask his Team already and would like to. Thus, the nature zone offers a ernomen replay value.
The nature zone is at the same time, but also in several sub-categories. In each area different, the weather changes, it snows, the sun burns from the sky. This not only changed the events in the battle – for example, fire enhanced attacks when the weather is Sunny and the water attacks are weakened, but it also changes the type of the Pokémon, which we can encounter.
Some of the individual areas was, however, unfortunately, in spite of everything amazingly monotonous. If you are in a tuft of grass, six of Wingul looks, it has the feeling of one or two other Pokémon of past generations would have the game is really well done – because it has a pokemon game made, you can be pretty sure of it sooner or later in the natural zone to be found. So alive the world feels, to the absence of feel a huge selection of pokemon yet. Each player will thus have to, unfortunately, be missed on one or the other favorites of his previous Teams. The downfall of Pokémon this is, however, is not.
I want to be the best of All – time for the Arena Challenge!
The typical Pokémon League in Pokémon sword and shield re-adjusted. GameFreak has decided to finally put back on the typical eight gym leader and has a fixed predetermined order. In order to return the game to the well-known principle, which with Pokémon sun and moon at the time of the island-challenges heavily modified it was. For the first time, there is also a difference in the respective editions, because each Edition has its own two gym leaders that don’t exist in the other branch. So you need to be the courageous hero in Pokémon sword in the fourth Arena Saida set, a trainer of the type battle, the heroes in Pokémon shield , however, Nio and his Geistpokémon.
The arenas themselves have also received some new tricks. Before we can make the arena’s Manager, contrary to, it is no longer enough, therefore, to not only defeat some trainers of the same type, we now need to master each Arena challenge. Here, GameFreak has thought of some really funny tasks. In the first Arena, for example, we have roles to suit the type of Plant – a whole herd of Wollys across the Arena. Only when all the Wollys arrive in the target area, we may challenge the gym leader out. In other arenas, we need to avoid, for example, with a case, the detector holes in the ground, answering trivia questions, or even ourselves through a giant pinball machine catapult. This new cut really appealed to me incredibly well. Each Arena feels very new, and the challenges usually bring really a lot of fun with it.
If we have managed the challenge itself, it goes for us in the great Arena itself. And here everything is huge, enormous, and full of atmosphere! As at the beginning of the game, each arena will take place the fight in a huge stadium. The mood, which receives the player time and Time again, is huge, and GameFreak really succeeded incredibly well – because in Galar, the spectators flock to the stadiums to follow the fights live. We hear cheering, see how the audience roots for us, and at the same time the fights are also broadcast on huge screens on live TV – what you see in the Arena directly, and what is dynamic and bold, the camera lead of the game in the arenas yet.
Although the music fits the game really well to the surroundings and the players pleasantly in the Background cheering, she managed the developers in the arenas is by far the best. You know in every fight from the first second: Now is the game! The Soundtrack merges here seamlessly with the choirs of the audience, and creates a tense atmosphere that motivates the players, in the fight really started, and to give everything. Hats off to Gamefreak! This feeling was the music for me, in combination with the great environment, so far, otherwise really only in the challenges against the Top 4 of Pokémon X and Y, or also in the fight with Champ Cynthia in Pokémon diamond and pearl get. These moments of Arena Challenges, so the list is definitely on my personal Hit!
You have fought through the Galar Region and all eight medals, but he is still the fight against Champion Delion in the Plan. Prior to this set, unfortunately, not a Top 4 in our way – this addiction in Pokémon sword and shield in vain. I think it is very a pity, I found it in previous Parts but always very challenging to have four strong Trainer, like the Champion in a single run defeat.
This leads us to a generally difficult topic of the current title: the difficulty of the game itself. For me he has really good fit, because even though I the PokémonFranchise incredibly fond of, I am Far from omniscient lexicon, containing all the types of Pokémon, knows it by heart and all the values of the individual pocket monster respects. Accordingly, I had a lot of fun with it, me on one or the other Arena a long time with the teeth auszubeißen. Washed veterans of the Franchises will be here, however, in vain for a real challenge and probably any opponent without the slightest Problem rolling over. This is quite a pity here would like it also for a true Pokémon-professionals a decent Challenge to give may.
Everything is bigger – the Pokémon
As I was the first announcement trailer for Pokémon sword and shield had seen, I was in a Feature really very skeptical: the Dynamax, what even by Gigadynamax is extended. Our Pokémon can turn on the Dynamax mode for a maximum of three rounds in abnormally large versions of your self, and get a large Portion of HP and Power. The normal attacks are replaced by Giga attacks, and a handful of Pokémon also changed their appearance, what is referred to in the game as Gigadynamax. My first impression was really positive: Huge pokemon, forever, long animations, exaggerated fights, and then EVEN BIGGER? Is it a must?
But I was of Pokémon sword and shield really positively surprised. Contrary to my expectation, to the Dynamax Feature not in every fight to use – such as, for example, the Mega-evolution from Pokémon X and Y, but really only in arena battles, or in the case of the common skirmishes (Raids) with other players in the natural zone. And I have to say, in these scenarios it feels really good and especially powerful; in the atmosphere of the huge arenas, the Feature fits in surprisingly well.
To match the upbeat music and the cheers of the spectators, you will feel as a player, really strong, if one is to be Gortrom – the final development of the plant-starter – as a gigantic Version of Himself with gigantic drums in the fight and then attacks you can apply the image, are completely huge and exaggerated. Plant-type Pokémon, for example, giant mushrooms sprout out of the ground, or shoot with huge spores on the opponent, which explode like bombs, and the entire ground breaking.
But it is not only well-Known in the Galar Region!
The Galar Region comes not only with warmed-up game principles, but also has all New: The Pokémon Ami Feature of the previous parts have been replaced such as by the Pokémon Camp. The player can hit it anytime in the outdoors can be a tent or the tent of another player or NPCs to visit. Within these Camps, the Pokémon play with each other as well as with private coaches. So the bond of friendship once again to consolidate its own Pokémon – which can also bring in the fight benefits! In the Camp we are allowed to investigate for the first time, the art of cooking and help us with the preparation of Pokémon curries to let off steam. For this purpose, a colorful selection of recipes is available to be collected.
Also, the game character is again fully customize – whether it’s eye color, hairstyle, Make-up, or a new, bold Outfit. In each city, the Boutique has to offer other clothes, and the player more than enough options to create the character of his dreams – or just the most authentic, personal Image.
In addition, received Pokémon sword and shield are also a few convenience Upgrades: for the First time, the player can now at any time in its complete Pokémon Box access, whether in the Pokémon Center or in the free world. The Team must therefore – as long as it is not to be adjusted in a Arena any time you want. Also, the previously optional EP-parter was, as in Pokémon: Let’s Go Pikachu and eevee, as an integral part built into the game. The entire Team gets XP, when a Pokémon is caught or an opponent is defeated.
CONCLUSION
Pokémon sword and shield makes me incredibly a lot of fun – much more than I actually expected! I find myself running to promise my friend that I’m going to help in five minutes when cooking … Okay, ten. Of a fight. Oh, there’s the front of the next Arena but is already! The well-known principle of Pokémon just works in the sword and shield is still really good.
Although the Story this time, even for a spinoff of the Pokémonseries rather weak, failed, and the absence of the entire Pokédex, a feel can belong to the offshoot in my eyes is still the Strongest in the series. The Galar Region is incredibly beautiful, and each area is significantly different from all previously Seen – and also the graphics and the Soundtrack are convincing all along the line. The Dynamax Feature power – contrary to my initial expectations – it’s really fun and fits great in the atmosphere of the massive Arena-Challenge-stages. The difficulty has been recognised for veterans, but unfortunately, really easy.
The playing time of the branch was in Fan-circles, Often criticized, however, for a Pokémonspin-off is very difficult to assess: Are veterans in just under eight hours through the campaign, sprinted, I was, after nearly twelve hours, still not at the fifth order arrived, because I really want each corner to inspect had to. For me personally, had Pokémon sword and shield a reasonable and very pleasant range.
All in all, I’m from Pokémon sword and shield really very convinced. I am looking forward a lot to my Pokédex to complete, after the completion of the Arena Challenge as possible to the ideal Outfit for my character to pay (especially because the dresses are really VERY expensive), and the last of the Curry-recipe of the Galar-making Region!
What Pokémon sword and shield? The latest adventure of the Pokémon series, with over 81 new Pokémon, as well as the new Dynamax FeaturePlatforms: Nintendo Switch
Tested: Switch-Version
Developer / Publisher: Game Freak / Nintendo
Release: 15. November 2019
Link: Official Website
