Pokémon Sword

Pokemon Sword and Shield are the best games in the series, streamlining its most tedious traditions without losing any of the charm.

Pokemon Sword and Shield scale down the bloated elements of the series while improving what really matters, making for the best new generation in years.

Pok'mon Sword and Shield add some brilliant new creatures, but like their gargantuan Dynamax forms, the games feel like a hollow projection.

The surprise in Sword and Shield is that I’m still finding things that surprise me, even after putting in so many hours. It’s in how Game Freak has made a linear game feel so much less linear.

Gameplay tweaks and attention to detail make Pokemon Sword and Shield the most compelling Pokemon world to date.

The compelling formula of simultaneously building your collections of monsters and gym badges has proven timeless, but the new additions and enhancements show Pokémon isn't done evolving

Pokemon Sword & Shield is all too often a bit disappointing, and in some places actually feels a little unfinished, but it also fully provides that warm, fuzzy feeling that one expects from the series. Crucially, even through frustration, never once did I think about putting it down, which is to its credit. It comes recommended almost for the Galar setting and new Pokemon alone, but with a long list of caveats indeed.

Pokémon has always literally been give and take since the second generation. Some give more than others, and Sword and Shield has taken away quite a bit. But in the end, I was smiling on most of my journey throughout the Galar region, and 21 years later, I still have a desire to catch them all. "All of the Galar region" will do nicely for the time being, even if it feels more fleeting than past generations.

The magic of Pokémon is that it lets you tap into a sense of wonder that becomes more and more difficult to access as an adult. Sword and Shield do that more successfully than any Pokémon release has in years. It won’t be everything to everyone, and it will not make everyone happy. I’m not sure it needs to. It’s a portal to a new world.

Pokémon Sword and Shield succeed in bringing some new ideas to the table, but they’re also somewhat guilty of not pushing things far enough. What’s done right is done right, but what’s done wrong feels like it’s come from a decade-old design document.