Pokémon Scarlet & Violet Reviews
Pokémon Scarlet and Violet’s rough quality is unacceptable. I hope that Game Freak and Nintendo will work quickly to patch the performance after all this ruckus, but even if it somehow ends up running smoothly enough to not be headache-inducing, I doubt I will ever revisit this game.
Pokémon Scarlet and Violet make a strong case for the continued development of open-world Pokémon games, but its frankly unacceptable number of technical issues put a damper on the entire experience.
Pokémon Scarlet & Violet's high points are among the series's best, but its lows, spanning across both bugs and design choices, are too egregious to ignore.
Overall, Pokémon Crimson/Purple captivated me despite its many bugs and performance issues. The gameplay and its mechanics are simply successful in my eyes. I can overlook the many stutters and glitches. Only with the breeding, which is a central part of the game series for me, I haven't really warmed up yet. Although it's faster to get a good number of eggs and hatch them, you have to prepare the Pokémon you want to breed, which takes up an unnecessary amount of time and resources. Before, I could simply swap out the "target monster" to boost stats. Now, no eggs appear in the basket unless the Pokémon has been previously nurtured and leveled. Whether this is a bug I can't say, but I was still surprised. You can tell that the developer wanted to make an effort to tell the stories as nicely as possible and has also included many dialogues and events. However, some passages repeat themselves so often or always run identically, so that at some point you just click and hope that it will finally continue. It is also a pity that especially the top four were much too easy. In the first run, these are fixed in level, so you can "overlevel" them super easy. This also applies to the tournaments in the "post-game". All in all, the game still has many construction sites and shows once again that Nintendo urgently needs a new hardware generation to be able to display better graphics. If the in-house or flagship titles like Pokémon or Bayonetta look so bad, Nintendo should have noticed that. It also didn't matter whether a Switch or Switch OLED was used. Still, despite its negative criticisms, the game is the right approach to pick up fans like me. It's a lot of fun and has finally kept me glued to the Switch for a longer period of time, well beyond the test phase. Rarely in the past have I accumulated so many hours of play (60+) in such a short time.
Review in German | Read full review
Although Pokémon Scarlet and Violet have some, if not all, noticeable issues, it still manages to offer one of the best Pokémon experiences to date. Its deviation from its traditional roots has made the game even more enjoyable, offering a plethora of gameplay and a good amount of content. Both veteran and fresh fans of the game will love this game and it should be recommended to anyone who wants to try Scarlet and Violet.
While it is hard to figure out a balanced path in its open world, it will also bring hours and hours of fun to those who want to fully explore it. Despite adding some fresh ideas, the story isn’t memorable, but the great variety of Pokémon, the art, and the turn-based battle system will surely please fans and newcomers alike.
Although Pokemon Scarlet / Violet is at an unacceptable level in terms of technical performance, it is the most innovative game among the mainstream pokemon games with its new features and enjoyable open world and it is definitely a lot of fun to play.
Review in Turkish | Read full review
Moving to an open-world concept is a brilliant step forward for the Pokémon series, but currently, this release lacks the Nintendo quality that we expect from their published titles.
Pokémon Scarlet and Violet try to take the franchise in a new direction, but can feel empty and hollow as a result. The open world has bright spots, especially multiplayer, however a lack of care in its design leads to a game that's haphazard and lifeless.
Pokémon Scarlet & Violet leave us with the big question: "Why did everything go so wrong?"
Review in Greek | Read full review
In Pokémon Scarlet and Violet you can wander around in an open world for the first time, but unfortunately you sometimes run into areas with much too strong opponents. In addition, there is a lot to criticize about the game on a technical level and it feels like it was released while it was not yet finished. Too bad, because the game is also full of good innovations, nice new Pokémon and has no fewer than three main missions. Fortunately, the positives outweigh the negatives. All in all, it is a very entertaining game that is good for many hours of fun.
Review in Dutch | Read full review
Pokemon Scarlet and Violet are an ambitious attempt to take the Pokemon franchise open world, but they fail to live up to expectations.
Scarlet and Violet offer some great new ideas for the Pokémon franchise, ruined by a world that seems very rushed and unfinished.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Pokemon Scarlet and Violet just have some kind of glimmer that still makes it worthwhile enough to overlook the shortcomings.
Pokémon Scarlet is just a ton of fun. The gameplay is engaging, the battling is satisfying, and catching the 'Mons scattered throughout a vast open world is addicting. It's a shame the presentation doesn't hold up it's end of the bargain, BUT, if you can get past that like I did, I think Scarlet is a real gem.
Despite being the title with the most content and the one that I enjoyed the most in the entire series, unfortunately Pokémon Scarlet/Violet will always be remembered for its release full of bugs and with an unacceptable technical sloppiness for a game of such an important franchise. Without a doubt, it is a step forward in the series and the sense of discovery and fascination with a new world is something I haven't felt in years. I have no doubt that the foundation laid here will be the standard in future titles. However, as fun as it is, during gameplay you are constantly reminded that this game lacks care and was released earlier than it should have been.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
The definitive experience to enjoy the Pokémon franchise. At the level of exploration, story and freedom the saga takes a huge leap and of great importance for the future. Sadly, the performance tarnishes on numerous occasions the final result and the player experience, but it is still an installment in the franchise that will be remembered (and played) for many years to come.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
This game, like Pokemon Arceus, is arguably what many Pokemon fans have requested for years. If Nintendo can keep the positives while fixing the graphical issues, they could easily win Game of the Year in the near future. These two new games do a lot of things right with only a few issues to complain about in the long run. If you are a fan of the Pokemon franchise, we definitely recommend checking out Pokemon Violet and Scarlet.
With routine patches and dedicated bug fixes, Pokemon Scarlet and Violet could end up being a transcendent moment in franchise history. The ambition of its branching paths, the size of its open world, and the selection of different Pokemon available are all massive, signaling that Game Freak and The Pokemon Company wanted this to be a flagship moment for the series. Unfortunately, all of that ambition is marred by the technical trials left in its wake, creating some truly infuriating moments during a game where I should be adventuring with a smile on my face. The foundation of Pokemon Scarlet and Violet is strong, but there are too many technical shortcomings in the experience to truly call it great.
Whether it’s the new designs, the legendary Pokémon bikes, the new changes to the combat system, the Team Star and Titan Pokémon elements, or the multiplayer, there is a surprising amount of things to love about the new Pokémon games despite their technical flaws. That’s where the game’s biggest problems are: technical issues and downgrades from the previous Switch entries. The core of the game is still just as fun as ever. The game earns a 6/10 due to being a solid entry in the Pokémon series riddled with technical issues.