Pokémon Scarlet and Violet Are a Wonderful Mess

This game taught me 2 valuable lessons: 1) Just because it’s fun, it’s doesn’t mean it’s not trash. 2) Just because it’s trash, it’s doesn’t mean it’s not fun.

It`s weird that they don`t scale the gyms based on how many badges you have because that is canonically how it is supposed to work. That`s why Pokemon Emerald featured leaders with multiple teams and they actually showcase this exact thing with Brock in the Pokemon Origins anime. It`s clearly been on their minds for years now so why do they not implement it here where it would be perfect?

Performance aside, my biggest issue was the lack of interiors. It makes the world feel like it’s just a diorama to me. I’m in a playground with fake houses everywhere

After playing Tears of the Kingdom it makes me depressed knowing how we have a truly well done and prepared game versus a rushed and disastrous release with Scarlet and Violet... truly a shame

1:16:20 When Rika asked me which gym leader I had the hardest time with I answered Larry and when he showed up I thought it was because I chose him and I was very impressed lol

In the Pokémon origins anime they explain that gym leaders have different teams based on how strong they’re opponent is, so the fact that the game doesn’t have teams for gym leaders based on your level was surprising for me considering it’s open world

1:14:00 - One of the other fun things about Nemona that's kind of understated (you sort of have to see her post-game events in order to get this part) is that she herself is a really invested Pokémon-battling enthusiast surrounded by, for want of a less weighted description, utterly unenthusiastic casuals. She's that one kid at the arcade who really mastered Street Fighter but can't find anyone else who's willing to master it on her level, so she has to constantly hold herself back to have any fun fighting with other people, and even then they find her exhausting and don't often want to try their skills against her. The reason she becomes so invested in the player's progression as a Trainer is because she sees the same potential and the same spark in them, so she really wants them to reach a point where she can go all-out for a change.

The terrible performance, draw distance. etc. is so weird now after Tears of the Kingdom’s release. Like it released only 6-7 months after and runs smoothly with a couple of framedrops when things get busy. The lighting is fantastic and you can literally go from being +1000 on the y-axis to -1000 without any loading screens. When Scarlet and Violet runs well it still runs worse then when TOTK runs bad

Arven's story hit me really hard because my cat was sick at the time, and we were incredibly close. Sadly, she didn't make it. If there were magic sandwiches that could've healed her, you bet I would've traveled the world searching for those herbs.

Scarlet/Violet is probably one of the clearest arguments for Pokémon's generation cycle shifting from 3-4 years to 5-6 years. So much potential and fun is undercut by a development cycle that needs and extra year or two. Just imagine a new Pokémon generation as a once-per-console occurence. Imagine how little they'd have to consider cutting in terms of features and content if they had more time. How much more polished could things be if they spread their releases out and let their already dense spinoff content have more time in the spotlight? It's frustrating to see these games almost held hostage by the constant need to churn out new content for the anime and merchandise.

Not having a shine/sparkle on Shiny Pokemon is basically a screw you to colorblind people. Thank you for bringing that up. A game in 2023 shouldn't be less accessible than Pokemon games that came out in 2000.

My biggest gripe was the lack of gym scaling. I accidentally did the final gym third. It was a really fun and challenging fight. After that I steamrolled the last 5 gyms.

This game broke my brain. Never before have I had such an incredible amount of fun with a game I was so embarrassed to be playing. To be clear, I love this game to pieces, it's honestly one of my favorite games on Switch and I have no regrets whatsoever about buying it, but... man, this is a WEIRD game to feel that way about...

One of my fondest memories of S/V quite literally happened within the first 5 minutes of gameplay. I wondered to myself "Could I break the game somehow, in ANY WAY, in the starting room?" And the very first thing that happened was me being able to manipulate the camera in such a way that I could easily see outside into the void where the player's house is loaded in. And it was repeatable. And that was when I realized I was in for Masuda's wild ride.

Could you imagine a Pokemon game with the creativity and polish of Botw or Totk? Would be insane

Based on what I've heard about Japanese game development in general, I would not be surprised at all if the L:A and S/V teams didn't talk to each other at all during development, or completely ignored what other games where doing

There definitely needs to be a 5-10 second immunity after leaving a battle, that was my biggest gripe!

Arven's story with his Mabosstiff didn't just "hit close to home" for me; it crashed through my roof. I lost one of my 2 dogs to lymphoma in Oct of 2020. Spent all of my savings before maxing out all of my cards with the medical bills to keep her alive & comfortable. The part that just sent me over the edge in that scene was that his Pokémon is a Mabosstiff. Ma[ bos ]stiff. My Luna was a Mastiff. Never thought a Pokémon game would turn me into a blithering sobbing mess in my 30s (or ever) but here we are! I've never been more invested in the well being of a fictional creature. Not like it was a surprise (no way Pokémon would go THAT dark) but I was so weight off my shoulders relieved that Arven had a better outcome than me. PLA is my #1 game in the franchise & I've been playing since Blue Version but S/V is probably my #2 or #3. [Oh & my pfp is my pug, Tenma; he's doing great he was diagnosed with a nasal tumor that turned into a brain tumor. He passed in his sleep Aug 5th 2023. He would've been 12 in October... Yeah, I'm not OK. Updating this comment as if anyone will see it or care like some weirdo.]

The Area Zero music REALLY sells it on its eeriness. A clear example of the power of music. Because the visuals don’t do a lot (except being overexposed).

9:42 the sad thing is that Disney actually DOES release Marvel movies with unfinished effects and green screen issues. The difference is that Marvel movies suffer at the box office for their poor quality, while Scarlet and Violet seem entirely unaffected. Other companies do this same thing, but they don’t get away with it like Pokémon has.