Seems like the only universal positive to many people is the trainer customization... who would have thought :P
I started a temporary save on my friends spare copy of shield... Unfortunately my preconceived assumptions of what the game would be like are coming true, meaning that it is a poor game.
Regardless of subjective opinions on game-play, I can say the following issue objectively:
-Graphical fidelity/assets/performance are remarkably poor, especially when compared to equally marketed and budgeted switch games like Breath of the Wild and Mario Odyssey. It performed like a resolution-upscaled 3DS game, and even still framerate is sluggish, and hardly breaks 25fps in quiet areas, and pop-in is horrendous.
-Why no touch screen capability?
Subjectively:
-Wild area is a neat concept, but seems incomplete; after a few hours the excitement, seeing the same few Pokemon got old fast.
-Although I have yet to get to the point in the game where i would like to see some of the older 'mons (endgame), the absence of Pokemon whose assets are already complete, and freely available on the internet is extremely frustrating. It reminds me of recent AAA games on other platforms that have been released in the past few years who put pre-existing content behind paywalls, or included in future paid DLC, and makes me apprehensive that GF will take similar steps.
Regardless of your opinion of the cuts, the threat of Pokemon forcing this monetization policy on the consumer is extremely problematic, and on a base level, extremely scummy. ADDING content and putting it behind a secondary payment is one thing, but REMOVING content only to repachage it for sale is pathetic.
Even if my assumption is incorrect, and the removed Pokemon will remain so, i have to ask; Why?
The assets exist, and those used in game have clearly not been overhauled.
Space is certainly not an issue, and if somehow it is, the GF code-writers are extremely incompetent for not being able write a simple compression algorithm.
For those who don't care about Pokemon being missing... that's fine, but they don't need to be completely redacted from the game itself for you to not play with them. if you don't like the older Pokemon being in the game, just don't use them. Removing them adds nothing of value to the game, and only serves to limit the enjoyment and player agency.
Otherwise the story/characters seems to be about on par with expectations... meaning that it is certainly not going to be winning any writers guild awards.
The railroading is worse than ever before, somehow surpassing even gen 7.
Gyms are kinda cool, and they fit in interestingly well with the world.
The region itself is interesting to explore.
Conclusion: The game itself seems to have the same polish and thoughtful design as an internal test build. It has some neat ideas needing more work to truly shine, and others that need to be cut altogether. I get the feeling that internal development was chaotic, and the game itself is only half baked (so to speak)
Of course, to those enjoying it... Fantastic, but I think it is important as a fan-base to hold such an acclaimed series to an equally high standard.
Even my favorite games of all time have flaws, and I am more than happy to point them out along with my praise.
