Pokémon games have been getting more and more simple over time. Eurogamer highlighted this perfectly – there are zero dungeons in these games, and no route more complicated than viridian forest, a literal tutorial area from the earlier games. The new features like Dy amax battles are fine, but only that. It feels like they've just forgotten half the game. The story is brief, the Pokedex is brief, the areas are small and linear, the endgame is a joke… Honestly I wish I had never bought this, we vote with our wallets and I won't be buying any future pokémon games unless they lose the mobile-game-esque simplicity – or at least make it optional.

Solid and definitely has an audience. There could be some hard-to-ignore faults, but the experience is fun.

Pokémon Sword and Pokémon Shield are the newest additions to the main series of Pokémon role-playing video games.

I kinda liked it but i would have wanted the map to be different like the alola region with different islands. similar to that but more creative.

The resurgence in popularity of Pokémon that was orchestrated with the release of Pokémon Go back in July 2016 cannot be overstated, as it is still being played daily by millions around the globe even today, in late 2019.

Pokemon Sword and Shield is an excellent entry in Game Freak's iconic franchise, pushing the series forward in some exciting ways while never forgetting the roots that made it so loved in the first place. While it underwhelms in its visuals and under-baked use of new ideas, the act of exploring Galar and catching creatures remains as delightfully compelling as it's ever been – and that's what really matters in the end.

Galar is a vast and inviting world; Combat remains as charmingly addictive as ever; So many new Pokemon to encounter across the new region; Innovates on the formula is some great ways;

Visually underwhelming in places; Some of its new ideas feel a bit underutilised;

Pokémon Sword & Shield deliver a new generation of creatures to capture throughout a consistently enjoyable adventure.

Pokémon Sword is the best Pokémon game in many ways. With a necessary streamlining and major leaps in presentation, Game Freak has developed a title that impresses in all the right ways.

I'm not sure why everyone keeps complaining about this game. I got it yesterday to see what all the fuss was about, and couldn't put it down! I'm loving everything about it so far. I'm 25 years old, and have been a huge fan of Pokemon since the Gameboy Color.

Despite lots of the hate online, I bought it to see for myself if any of the issues actually affected the classic Pokemon experience that comes with each game, and I have to say – It's good! The good parts of X & Y have come through into this game. The style of art creates a nice, chill atmosphere where needed, but in the wild, things are much more interesting and present different challenges. I definitely suggest fans give it a go and see for themselves (any legitimate issues are overhyped imo).