Pokemon Sword/Shield: Initial Thoughts

One of the most anticipated highlights of the gaming year has finally come around!

Pokemon Sword and Shield were released on Friday and fans got their hands on the new generation of the Pokemon franchise at last.

Rocked by early rumours of a condensed Pokedex which sparked outrage the game received a more than favourable reception. Fans are loving it and we can confirm that it's one of our favourites too.It even spawned a new meme. Pokemon chasing people has definitely become the meme that 2019 needed.

The Galar region is gorgeous and while the graphics aren't the best we've ever seen, it doesn't bother us. The gameplay feels good, the new regions to explore are exciting and interesting. We've got the juxtaposition between giant industrial cities and tranquil, picturesque countryside. It's the perfect Pokemon style version of the UK. Complete with Team Yell who are basically everything we all hate about football hooliganism. We love how a lot of the names feel quite British too! Take Hulbury for example. It's a mix of Hull and plenty of towns that end in Bury. The only thing I will say about this town is that the only correct way to pronounce it is 'Ull-Bree.

The story seems interesting; so far we have the mystery of Gigantamax which happens only in the Galar region and the appearance early on of the legendary Pokemon Zacian or Zamazenta depending which game you're playing. We've met the elusive (and kind of hot) Chairman Rose who we think might be hiding something.

Both new and older Pokemon are a joy to see in this new game. The newer Pokemon are great additions and feel at home. Especially Nickit which, as a fox, is typically British and one of our new favourites. we can't help but love Yamper, the Corgi too! And as for the starters...it was almost impossible to pick. Luckily, we didn't have to. Markus played and kept starting new games, traded the starter, restarted, traded the starter, etc. It took a couple of hours but investing this time at the beginning is worthwhile to have a run with all three starters. Cheeky, I know but we just loved them all too much!

The only criticism so far is that the Wild Area isn't really that big and so far there seem to just be too many of the same Pokemon around there. However, the raid battles are fun and a good way to practice getting your head around Gigantamax battles. We assume as we progress more Pokemon will take residence in this area and we'll be able to catch more for our team. At least with lots of the same creatures in the same place, it'll make shiny hunting easier at a later date.

Having not got too far through the game (I've only faced the first gym) I still have a lot to see of Galar and I'm absolutely thrilled to progress further and see more of this diverse region. Time to get back to it! We'll be back with more later.