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Reviews Pokémon Scarlet & Violet | Review Thread

I think we will see a patch since Arceus got one. I doubt we'll see a Switch Dane patch because it won't be out until Gen 10 imo

Well, that's technically true, it'll be interesting to see what comes after this. A re-release with dlc included next year seems like a fair guess, and then perhaps they'll have outsourced another remake, probably of BW as the first title for the switch follow up the year after that? Since it'll surely be out in 2024
 
While I agree they should get a lot more time, please dont spread misinformation about dev cycle. For one this game was not dev in 2 years, that is insane. We don't know their pipeline, at best we know who is working on what based on the credits.

Not spreading misinformation. Here is a well researched video with estimated development times. 18-24 months is par the course for these games.

 
Well, that's technically true, it'll be interesting to see what comes after this. A re-release with dlc included next year seems like a fair guess, and then perhaps they'll have outsourced another remake, probably of BW as the first title for the switch follow up the year after that? Since it'll surely be out in 2024
Hmm I don't expect a rerelease since Sword and Shield didn't get one, right? Just a bundle at best?

Nothing says new hardware like an underwhelming ILCA remake haha
 
I captured these videos with visual glitches that bugged me. I didn't do it when the camera clipped through the ground during a battle and I could see the "underworld", but that one has been documented by others:

The shadow turning on and off as I clicked through the menu:



The shadow turning on and off as I just moved the camera:



Klefki appears for half a second before actually being sent by the trainer:

Jeez, that first one is distractingly bad (not that the others are good, mind). When this was first announced I was worried GF didn't have the resources to put out two polished Pokemon games in a single year, and this definitely looks like it needed some more time in the oven.

Sad thing is I'll still enjoy the game, but this definitely needs to be called out. Maybe with enough noise, GF will look to patch some of this. Kinda feel like GF need to slow their roll, commit to fewer big releases and more DLC to give their games legs while they have the proper time to work on the next big game.
 
Miraidon's eyes remind me of the age of digital robot pets and bring me so much joy, so ready to share an adventure with them :)
 
Anyway I'm happy that despite the whole review debacle we are able to discuss the topic in a civil and not toxic manner here. Famiboards really is a special community, it's probably the only place on the internet where you can discuss Nintendo without it diverting to the usual tired discourse.

I'm sure when the game comes out we will also be able to discuss the game itself and not be trapped in a neverending spiral of complaining about graphics and performance which is also something that used to bother me a lot. So thanks to everyone for that :)
<3
 
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Anyway I'm happy that despite the whole review debacle we are able to discuss the topic in a civil and not toxic manner here. Famiboards really is a special community, it's probably the only place on the internet where you can discuss Nintendo without it diverting to the usual tired discourse.

I'm sure when the game comes out we will also be able to discuss the game itself and not be trapped in a neverending spiral of complaining about graphics and performance which is also something that used to bother me a lot. So thanks to everyone for that :)
When is the Fami-Tournament arc (or Raids) date?
 
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Preloaded Scarlet on my OLED. Will I be able to hold off until I finish Ragnarok?











no
 
Yeah, I'd been thinking for a while that I'd be skipping this. Legends didn't really do all that much for me either, even if I appreciated the changes to the traditional formula. I really like the idea of open-world Pokemon and a Spain-inspired region, but with Legends leaving me a little flat (not that I disliked it, just didn't really make any impact on me), and with Sword/Shield especially disappointing me, I don't think there's much point in me spending time and money on this (not least when I've stockpiled stuff on my Switch and am planning to use my Series S more in the near future).

I'm sure it'll be an enormous hit, and I'm sure plenty of people will find a lot to enjoy. I'm still rooting for Game Freak to really pull things out the bag and deliver an excellent game that doesn't have this now familiar mix of technical short-comings and under-realised potential.
I agree with pretty much everything you said. It's crazy to me with gamefreak making literal truck loads of money off the pokemon IP, that their games have such bad performance issues most of the time.
 
I wouldnt call the video "well researched" when this year it was showed that Arceus dev started in fall 2018 and SV started in 2019, as SwSh were about to release that more the the 18-24 months stated.

https://www.nintendolife.com/news/2...d-development-before-sword-and-shields-launch
How much of that was preplanning and how much of that was active development? How did the pandemic effect what they could get done? Without any context to what "starting development" means this article and that tweet doesn't say much. What we do know is when they wrapped up development of their prior games which is what that video uses as a timeline. And that's important because we have a better sense of when full development came together rather than a vague statement saying "we started at this time."

Here is a video of Nintendo saying they started earnestly developing BotW in January 2013, nearly a year and few months after Skyward Sword dropped.




This contradicts what Anouma said when he said BotW started immediately after skyward sword.



There are preplanning and design phases for any game. This is par the course. Link between worlds three developers spent an entire year prototyping the game themselves until they got a full team assembled for active development.



The Link between worlds team would not fully expand until a full team until late 2012.

A company can say they "started development" at any time but that's meaningless without full details. In the same way we can infer that Nintendo has been planning "new hardware" since the Switch launched. Doesn't mean they were printing SoC's out in 2017.

"Three years" of development factoring in time to preplan and concept out a game isn't enough time to make modern games regardless. Especially one with the scope and size of Pokemon.
 
I just can't see Nintendo riding with this switch for 2-2.5 more years. There needs to be a revision/successor next year imo.

When I say there NEEDS to be that may just be me being too hopeful. But that's where I'm at.
I think they'll switch it up within the next 2.5 years too, but I can definitely see them riding it thru the next year, since we already have software that we know will be supported through it and since recent reports often hit the key on the fact that "we are manufacturing less Switches than we could be selling".
 
Not spreading misinformation. Here is a well researched video with estimated development times. 18-24 months is par the course for these games.


Yes, an official interview for ORAS said it had a one-year dev time for another example. In the official guide. Because the director was the planning director for XY so they decided to not start development until XY was released.
 
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How much of that was preplanning and how much of that was active development? How did the pandemic effect what they could get done? Without any context to what "starting development" means this article and that tweet doesn't say much. What we do know is when they wrapped up development of their prior games which is what that video uses as a timeline. And that's important because we have a better sense of when full development came together rather than a vague statement saying "we started at this time."

Here is a video of Nintendo saying they started earnestly developing BotW in January 2013, nearly a year and few months after Skyward Sword dropped.




This contradicts what Anouma said when he said BotW started immediately after skyward sword.



There are preplanning and design phases for any game. This is par the course. Link between worlds three developers spent an entire year prototyping the game themselves until they got a full team assembled for active development.



The Link between worlds team would not fully expand until a full team until late 2012.

A company can say they "started development" at any time but that's meaningless without full details. In the same way we can infer that Nintendo has been planning "new hardware" since the Switch launched. Doesn't mean they were printing SoC's out in 2017.

"Three years" of development factoring in time to preplan and concept out a game isn't enough time to make modern games regardless. Especially one with the scope and size of Pokemon.

You just backed up my original point. We have no idea how some teams define dev cycles. For example in GF case, they have to work with Creatures for the models, did Creatures finish those before even the start of pre-production? Is incorporating the models to the skeleton of the game the more time consuming work? We don't know.

Sometimes prototyping sticks on the firsts attempts, others it takes a while (look at Bayo 3). I do simulation for research/work and in my case writing the code is not part "dev", debugging and getting to do what I want is what's consider (not a 1-1 example).

In the end of course they need more time or at least expand to where they can have 2 teams that don't need to be amassed from the split of the other. But saying it takes 2 years to make does not tell the whole story.
 
Yeap, the game seems like a safe pokemon game, which is good enough for me, but gamefreak is really dropping the ball here. They need new hardware I guess, but no excuse tbh. Arzeus was the minimum I was waiting in terms of performance.
 
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more reviews

Washington Post (no score):
One thing Game Freak does have working for it is that people want to play this game. People want open-world Pokémon. Game Freak may be struggling to get there, but it’s been really cool to be able to see it getting closer with each new generation.

Eurogamer.pt (no score, review in Portuguese):
The game world is excessively empty, not only because of the lack of density of vegetation and other elements, but for the lack of activities. Cities contrast a bit with this, expressing life, with happy NPCs walking back and away, and lots of shops to enter, where you can buy clothes and accessories for your character. Outside the cities, you'll only find huge beams of light on the horizon, symbolizing the crystals where you can participate in Tera Raid Battles (which are virtually identical to the Max Raid Battles of the previous game). Pokémon Scarlet and Violet had a lot to gain if they had been postponed.

TierraGamer (8/10, review in Spanish):
Pokemon Scarlet is that product that many fans requested, with a vast open world to explore, an adventure without ties, and an exploration full of surprises. The game achieves everything I just mentioned, and there is no doubt about that. The main issue is that the game makes a lot of technical sacrifices to achieve everything the fans asked for. The result is a title that performs poorly at times that may not matter but happens many times. The gameplay is entertaining, solid, and deep, but it's all wrapped up in a broken package.

Meristation (8/10, review in Spanish):
Pokémon Scarlet and Violet is the biggest leap the franchise has made since its arrival to 3D, but there is a real need for the series, an urgency even, to tackle the technical performance.

IGN Brasil (7.5/10, review in Portuguese):
Pokémon Scarlet & Violet are excellent games, and, if it weren't for the technical problems, they would surpass the feats of Legends: Arceus, which started a necessary evolution in the classic Nintendo franchise. The game features a beautiful open world full of Pokémon, so you never feel like you're exploring something empty. The Pokémon campaigns finally showed an interesting maturity, which seems to want to keep up with the audience that has so much prestige to the series since 1995, without losing the children's audience that still drives purchases. However, most of Scarlet & Violet's potential is wasted simply by avoidable technical issues such as a lack of graphical and performance polish. A game of this relevance within a franchise of this magnitude cannot succumb to repeating these mistakes and not improving, especially in light of the criticism that the latest title has had.
 
more reviews

Washington Post (no score):


Eurogamer.pt (no score, review in Portuguese):


TierraGamer (8/10, review in Spanish):


Meristation (8/10, review in Spanish):


IGN Brasil (7.5/10, review in Portuguese):
I actually can't recall the last time technical performance featured so heavily in the reviews of a major blockbuster release. It's amazing how consistent the complaints are. I'm actually surprised.

What's frustrating is that these problems existed way back to the 3ds era, and everyone was like "Maybe game freak needs two teams so each team can take longer per game, or to outsource some stuff, in order to better balance their schedule."

And game freak was like... "Hmmm, yes... if we do that... we can release 3 games in 12 months!" And each team is just as rushed as ever. It's like a bottomless well of greed with this franchise at the moment.
 
Is this the lowest metacritic score of ANY mainline Pokemon game?
It's the lowest for a brand new gen.
Pokémon Emerald (76) and Pokémon BDSP (73) are lower. The score of the former is especially funny because Emerald is one of the best games in the series and a big fan favorite.
 
I actually can't recall the last time technical performance featured so heavily in the reviews of a major blockbuster release. It's amazing how consistent the complaints are. I'm actually surprised.
Did you not see Gotham Knights reviews? Or Cyberpunk? GTA Trilogy (even if they are old)? Its not uncommon. For the franchise its more recent, cause even Arceus did not get as many performance complains, mostly visuals.
 
Did you not see Gotham Knights reviews? Or Cyberpunk? GTA Trilogy (even if they are old)? Its not uncommon. For the franchise its more recent, cause even Arceus did not get as many performance complains, mostly visuals.
I didn't even know there was a game called Gotham Knights.

Cyberpunk is the answer - well done, that was the one I was trying to think of. That game got slaughtered. I still haven't played it.
 
I didn't even know there was a game called Gotham Knights.

Cyberpunk is the answer - well done, that was the one I was trying to think of. That game got slaughtered. I still haven't played it.
I havent touch CP but apparently its way better now. There are still some issues, mostly due to design, but at least you dont fall of the face of the game lol
 
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It's the lowest for a brand new gen.
Pokémon Emerald (76) and Pokémon BDSP (73) are lower. The score of the former is especially funny because Emerald is one of the best games in the series and a big fan favorite.
Gotta agree that Emerald being lower is pretty funny :D
 
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Honestly, I'm at the point where I don't see the games going higher than 80 MC (if even that) while they keep this dumbass 3 year cycle. All the sales in the world won't alleviate the fact that the series is being crushed by its own weight. The code of the games are falling apart at the seams, and even the next most significant pillar - the anime - has an uncertain future. I'm not even saying "the games will bomb commercially and everyone claps," I'm saying that by gen 10 it will get to a point where the people actually making Pokemon content won't have the time to make it bootable/watchable
 
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They should have just stuck with the routes like in older pokemon games. It doesn't need to be open world. Hopefully they go back to the old design for the next games.
 
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When was the last time Pokemon was nominated for any GOTY awards?
You know, I can't honestly think of  any time a Pokémon game was nominated for a GOTY award. The games always sold well, but they were never the cream of the crop critically.

Of course, in recent years it definitely feels like things have gotten worse, and these games have not gotten the time to fully cook. Very sad.
 
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Almost dreading the Digital Foundry video, cause holy shit that's going to be a fucking bloodbath
I don’t usually watch Digital Foundry videos but I think I’ll tune into that one I know it’s going to be entertaining to watch ( for me atleast )
 
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Awful. I finally will follow up and not be buying this. Just embarrassing, GF. They're going to make boatloads of money but I don't know how they ever feel proud of these products on Switch. It is not, not Switch hardware issues as we can see. So tired of this.
 
Sassy Imran is here to stay

I mean, I think it's equally important to realize that caring about bad performance/visuals isn't necessarily a "better preference" either

People can and already have been asses in either direction, but it's fine to feel either way personally. Though I do believe, even as someone with one of the highest technical tolerances you'll find on a forum like this, that there's nothing wrong with pushing for better performance to accommodate everyone, as long as you're not being an ass to people who legitimately don't care
 
Scarlet and Violet's resolution is unnecessarily native. If they implement dynamic resolution, it'll solve plethora of problems. Many past bad performing Switch games got such patches, like Saints Row The Third and worked like charm.
 


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