Pokemon became a household name in the '90s, and it's hardly lost its place in the years since. It's widely understood by fans at this point that the series is the biggest and most profitable gaming franchise of all time. With such great profits behind Pikachu, Eevee, and the large total of over a thousand creatures that make up the world of Pokemon, it's rather reasonable for those who have loyally supported the franchise over the last 25 years to expect great products to come out of it. However, for some, Pokemon Scarlet and Violet haven't lived up to these expectations at all.
Players may be enjoying their adventures in the Paldea region, but as they're exploring the brand-new open world Pokemon ScarletandViolet offer, numerous issues have lessened the experience. Many agree that the ninth generation of Pokemon could have waited just a little while longer as a result. While some believe this to be because of the technical problems, others believe that the overall presentation and balancing of the game could use more work, too, as Scarlet and Violet fail to live up to the game that came before. That game was Pokemon Legends: Arceus, which was the blueprint for the latest Pokemon games.
Pokemon Legends: Arceus' Balanced Battles
In Pokemon Legends: Arceus, battles felt just right. Not only were battles given an extra edge to them since many creatures in the wild could be rather strong in comparison to the ones that the player owned, but the scale between levels made getting the upper hand by five or even ten levels feel empowering. Once fans were allowed to use the Strong and Agile Styles on their Pokemon's moves, things felt even better, as the right move with the right Style behind it could change the tide of a battle dramatically, no matter the level difference.
However, Scarlet and Violet opt to not include Styles rather than find a way to replace it, and the game feels like something is missing as a result. The battles in the ninth generation Pokemon games feel as if they were made to feature a similar mechanic, but without one, even creatures ten levels higher deal the same amount of damage as a lowered level critter does when type differences aren't applied. Often times, moves need to be super effective, or an opposing creature will go down in four hits regardless of the level difference. This makes battling Pokemon into a chore at times.
Pokemon Scarlet and Violet's Visuals Have No Excuse
While Pokemon Scarlet and Violet suffer from technical issues, most of these problems are merely cosmetic, which is why many players are still enjoying their adventures in Paldea. Even still, the state of the open, empty, cartoonish world lacking proper textures with finicky lighting almost begs for more. Why the game was shipped in this state could be in part due to the fact that while Pokemon Legends: Arceus was presented similarly, fans who had issues with the Hisui region's graphics were able to let it slide in the end.
The difference between the two games, though, is that Legends: Arceus had a reason to be the way that it was in that it aimed to emulate the style of an old Japanese ink painting. This helped fans who weren't fond of the style justify the environment found in the game, from the clouds to the rather blandly textured mountains. It was easy to forgive for the fact that not only did Arceus run better, but it at the very least aimed to accomplish something. Pokemon Scarlet and Violet try very hard to make a bland world come alive, and instead it falls flat on its face.
Loyal fans may feel a bit of whiplash going from Pokemon Legends: Arceus, one of the highest rated games in franchise history, to Pokemon Scarlet and Violet. There are quite a lot of reasons why these games were received so differently by players, with the technical differences being the most baffling thing that sets them apart. Fans knew that Scarlet and Violet were using Legends: Arceus as their blueprint from the very first gameplay trailer for generation nine, yet it doesn't seem like the newer games have really learned anything from Arceus' success.
Unfortunately, it also seems unlikely that Game Freak will get to learn from Scarlet and Violet's mistakes. Even with the game's current low standing with players, it's still set new franchise sales records despite all of its issues. Sadly, this tells Game Freak and The Pokemon Company that the game was good enough to generate revenue and profits in the state it was shipped in, which means that future titles will likely be made at the same pace. Unfortunately, this leaves the future of Pokemon in a rather bleak place, as fans are left hoping that improvements will be made.
Pokemon Scarlet and Violet are available now on Nintendo Switch.
