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Pokemon Let's Go! Review
7 years ago
General
Basic info:
Pokemon Let's Go Pikachu and Eevee combines one of the most popular mobile phone games ever in Pokemon Go with the original gen 1 kanto Pokemon games. Gen 1 as in Yellow, not Red/Green/Blue. These two aspects are combined into a brand new 3D remake!
The plot follows the same storyline with the generation one games. You're a young trainer embarking on a journey to both help Professor Oak complete the Pokedex and challenge the gym leaders to claim the title of Pokemon League Champion, the strongest trainer in Kanto! The story functions the same, but there are a lot of parts that have either been changed or parts added to make it feel like a different adventure.
The biggest change to the story has to be that this is a different universe where you embark on your journey at the same time that Red and Blue did in the originals. However, Blue and Red completed their pokemon journey three years before the player's story takes place. So while the player and rival complete the main story quest Blue will come into the story every now and then to give the player help and advice. So cannon wise it takes place in an AU earlier but similar to Johto where Blue and Red function as mentors.
Gameplay wise the biggest addition was the new catching feature. Where instead of a battle you immediately start chucking poke balls at the pokemon like in Pokemon Go, or even the safari zone for another comparison. You can even connect the game to Pokemon Go and send the pokemon from your phone into the game and use them! This helps in obtaining the pokemon that are version specific or need trades to be obtained.
Once you hit Silph Co. the game lets you decide difficulty. You can battle every trainer you meet along the way and become massively over-leveled by the time you finish the game or you can avoid most trainers to increase the difficulty since you would be under-leveled. Up to you. (the road to Fuchsia City and Silph Co. are my examples of this.)[Also the highest level you will face in-game is 57. enter the elite 4 under or over leveled based on what difficulty you want.]
Best features:
1: By far the best feature is hearing these classic tunes orchestrated. The dramatic increase in quality highlighted by the string instruments brings back a huge sense of nostalgia.
2: Along with improved music, the graphics were completely redone. It feels very similar used to the style Gen 6 used. The characters are stubby but you can see detailed body parts, expressions, and you can change your wardrobe. The houses and environments were given a boost too making it seem more realistic. Better yet it makes the game feel like a brand new experience along with the cutscenes.
3: The catching feature greatly speeds up the game. Instead of random tall grass encounters the pokemon pop up randomly in 3D models so that players can scurry around them if they don't want to face them. As well as that, catching them gives you the same EXP boosts as you used to get KO'ing wild Pokemon, which makes the the game work similar to old times. All pokemon get EXP for the pokemon caught making it easier to level up weak pokemon and reduces the grinding aspect. This makes areas like the Pokemon Mansion actually explorable.
4: The subtle easter eggs and references to the original games and Johto were a nice touch. Made me laugh and reminisce.
5: You can challenge the gym leaders once a day after becoming champion like you could do in HG/SS.
6: Blue adds a mentor figure to the game. It's interesting seeing him act as more of a helpful hero being a former champion and all instead of the arrogant snob he was in the originals.
Biggest flaws:
1: The new rival looks like a deformed mutant facially and his personality is similar to the Gen 6 group where their personality is monotone and boring. At least the Gen 6 people had a characteristic that was beaten to the ground with them, this dude is just boring!
2: Biggest flaw by far is the catching feature. I said it sped the game up and was great in that area, but it is still greatly flawed. There is no consistency in catching pokemon which makes it infuriating. You can throw a great ball and have it break out in 3 with a great throw, then throw an excellent throw with a great ball and have it break out in 2 shakes! That makes no sense! Worst part is that since the pokemon can flee, getting EXP isn't guaranteed, so that sometimes you throw poke balls for 2 minutes and get nothing to show for it!
The motion controls are awful too. I recommend using either hand held mode or the poke ball, as using the joy cons to throw the poke balls is nearly impossible.
Pokeballs you can earn after defeating trainers which helps you sustain your supply for a while, but after you become champion you are going to need to buy them on your own, and with how expensive Ultra Balls are and how easy Pokemon break out of great and poke balls, it becomes an expensive hobby.
They also kept the glitch from Pokemon Go in where sometimes you can't get anymore than a few bumps before they break out. It can be with an ultra ball and an excellent, the game is going to let you catch pokemon only when it feels like it.
3: Catch Combos are nearly impossible to get over 10 with facing pokemon with anything harder than a green circle. If the pokemon runs away it's game over and like I said earlier any pokemon that is yellow or harder good luck with anything less than an ultra ball. Considering you need to get into the 200s before you even have a chance of seeing a shiny, and good luck. It's infuriating! Plus the combo does not save if you turn the system off or catch a different species. (pro tip: you can run away from pokemon after throwing poke balls and it will still count as continuing the combo.)
4: Grinding was my biggest complaint of the original games, Kanto seemed very bare bones to me as it was the first one and just seemed like endless repetition. This game really helps make the game fun and exciting, but after the third badge the game becomes a huge grind session.
5: post game is very boring. Catching them all and battling Red are about the only things fun. Nintendo made it so that the main feature would be "master trainers." What this means is that new trainers appear and have level 75 pokemon, the fight will be a 1v1 of that pokemon. So for instance, it will be like a Caterpie going up against a level 75 perfect IV Caterpie. So that you now need to catch a perfect IV caterpie through a 100 catch combo then grind it up to level 75. Not sure how they thought that was a good idea.
6: Lag. Any area having more than 6 pokemon in it at one time will make the game run from 60 fps to 15 fps. Viridian Forest is the best example of this.
7: No daycare eggs which means you can't breed for IVs or get pre-evolved forms. Also no abilities.
8: The app is one way, meaning you can only send Pokemon from your phone to your switch, not the other way around. If the transfer messes up you have now also lost that pokemon forever.
Overall Impression:
Pokemon Lets Go combines a remade version of Pokemon Yellow with the mechanics of Pokemon Go. This game is targeted towards fans who grew up in Kanto and the new players riding the fad. For those people I would recommend buying this game if you already have a Switch. For those in the middle, Pokemon Sun and Moon or Pokemon OR/AS would be my recommendations. (Or, you know, SMASH)
This game is a solid remake of Gen 1, but the Go mechanics are flawed and really take away from the good things this game has, which is made more noticeable and infuriating when the game gets further on in and post game.
If I was to grade this I would give it a 6/10.
It held my attention throughout the duration and then lost me post game with the endless, impossible grind sessions. Good game, but other pokemon games are better. And with Smash Ultimate being out for a week this game is already long and forgotten.
Pokemon Let's Go Pikachu and Eevee combines one of the most popular mobile phone games ever in Pokemon Go with the original gen 1 kanto Pokemon games. Gen 1 as in Yellow, not Red/Green/Blue. These two aspects are combined into a brand new 3D remake!
The plot follows the same storyline with the generation one games. You're a young trainer embarking on a journey to both help Professor Oak complete the Pokedex and challenge the gym leaders to claim the title of Pokemon League Champion, the strongest trainer in Kanto! The story functions the same, but there are a lot of parts that have either been changed or parts added to make it feel like a different adventure.
The biggest change to the story has to be that this is a different universe where you embark on your journey at the same time that Red and Blue did in the originals. However, Blue and Red completed their pokemon journey three years before the player's story takes place. So while the player and rival complete the main story quest Blue will come into the story every now and then to give the player help and advice. So cannon wise it takes place in an AU earlier but similar to Johto where Blue and Red function as mentors.
Gameplay wise the biggest addition was the new catching feature. Where instead of a battle you immediately start chucking poke balls at the pokemon like in Pokemon Go, or even the safari zone for another comparison. You can even connect the game to Pokemon Go and send the pokemon from your phone into the game and use them! This helps in obtaining the pokemon that are version specific or need trades to be obtained.
Once you hit Silph Co. the game lets you decide difficulty. You can battle every trainer you meet along the way and become massively over-leveled by the time you finish the game or you can avoid most trainers to increase the difficulty since you would be under-leveled. Up to you. (the road to Fuchsia City and Silph Co. are my examples of this.)[Also the highest level you will face in-game is 57. enter the elite 4 under or over leveled based on what difficulty you want.]
Best features:
1: By far the best feature is hearing these classic tunes orchestrated. The dramatic increase in quality highlighted by the string instruments brings back a huge sense of nostalgia.
2: Along with improved music, the graphics were completely redone. It feels very similar used to the style Gen 6 used. The characters are stubby but you can see detailed body parts, expressions, and you can change your wardrobe. The houses and environments were given a boost too making it seem more realistic. Better yet it makes the game feel like a brand new experience along with the cutscenes.
3: The catching feature greatly speeds up the game. Instead of random tall grass encounters the pokemon pop up randomly in 3D models so that players can scurry around them if they don't want to face them. As well as that, catching them gives you the same EXP boosts as you used to get KO'ing wild Pokemon, which makes the the game work similar to old times. All pokemon get EXP for the pokemon caught making it easier to level up weak pokemon and reduces the grinding aspect. This makes areas like the Pokemon Mansion actually explorable.
4: The subtle easter eggs and references to the original games and Johto were a nice touch. Made me laugh and reminisce.
5: You can challenge the gym leaders once a day after becoming champion like you could do in HG/SS.
6: Blue adds a mentor figure to the game. It's interesting seeing him act as more of a helpful hero being a former champion and all instead of the arrogant snob he was in the originals.
Biggest flaws:
1: The new rival looks like a deformed mutant facially and his personality is similar to the Gen 6 group where their personality is monotone and boring. At least the Gen 6 people had a characteristic that was beaten to the ground with them, this dude is just boring!
2: Biggest flaw by far is the catching feature. I said it sped the game up and was great in that area, but it is still greatly flawed. There is no consistency in catching pokemon which makes it infuriating. You can throw a great ball and have it break out in 3 with a great throw, then throw an excellent throw with a great ball and have it break out in 2 shakes! That makes no sense! Worst part is that since the pokemon can flee, getting EXP isn't guaranteed, so that sometimes you throw poke balls for 2 minutes and get nothing to show for it!
The motion controls are awful too. I recommend using either hand held mode or the poke ball, as using the joy cons to throw the poke balls is nearly impossible.
Pokeballs you can earn after defeating trainers which helps you sustain your supply for a while, but after you become champion you are going to need to buy them on your own, and with how expensive Ultra Balls are and how easy Pokemon break out of great and poke balls, it becomes an expensive hobby.
They also kept the glitch from Pokemon Go in where sometimes you can't get anymore than a few bumps before they break out. It can be with an ultra ball and an excellent, the game is going to let you catch pokemon only when it feels like it.
3: Catch Combos are nearly impossible to get over 10 with facing pokemon with anything harder than a green circle. If the pokemon runs away it's game over and like I said earlier any pokemon that is yellow or harder good luck with anything less than an ultra ball. Considering you need to get into the 200s before you even have a chance of seeing a shiny, and good luck. It's infuriating! Plus the combo does not save if you turn the system off or catch a different species. (pro tip: you can run away from pokemon after throwing poke balls and it will still count as continuing the combo.)
4: Grinding was my biggest complaint of the original games, Kanto seemed very bare bones to me as it was the first one and just seemed like endless repetition. This game really helps make the game fun and exciting, but after the third badge the game becomes a huge grind session.
5: post game is very boring. Catching them all and battling Red are about the only things fun. Nintendo made it so that the main feature would be "master trainers." What this means is that new trainers appear and have level 75 pokemon, the fight will be a 1v1 of that pokemon. So for instance, it will be like a Caterpie going up against a level 75 perfect IV Caterpie. So that you now need to catch a perfect IV caterpie through a 100 catch combo then grind it up to level 75. Not sure how they thought that was a good idea.
6: Lag. Any area having more than 6 pokemon in it at one time will make the game run from 60 fps to 15 fps. Viridian Forest is the best example of this.
7: No daycare eggs which means you can't breed for IVs or get pre-evolved forms. Also no abilities.
8: The app is one way, meaning you can only send Pokemon from your phone to your switch, not the other way around. If the transfer messes up you have now also lost that pokemon forever.
Overall Impression:
Pokemon Lets Go combines a remade version of Pokemon Yellow with the mechanics of Pokemon Go. This game is targeted towards fans who grew up in Kanto and the new players riding the fad. For those people I would recommend buying this game if you already have a Switch. For those in the middle, Pokemon Sun and Moon or Pokemon OR/AS would be my recommendations. (Or, you know, SMASH)
This game is a solid remake of Gen 1, but the Go mechanics are flawed and really take away from the good things this game has, which is made more noticeable and infuriating when the game gets further on in and post game.
If I was to grade this I would give it a 6/10.
It held my attention throughout the duration and then lost me post game with the endless, impossible grind sessions. Good game, but other pokemon games are better. And with Smash Ultimate being out for a week this game is already long and forgotten.
