{"id":1067236,"date":"2022-10-21T09:00:31","date_gmt":"2022-10-21T13:00:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.prime-wow.com\/?p=1067236"},"modified":"2022-10-21T09:00:31","modified_gmt":"2022-10-21T13:00:31","slug":"pokemon-scarlet-and-violet-hands-on-monster-catching-remixed","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.prime-wow.com\/?p=1067236","title":{"rendered":"Pok\u00e9mon Scarlet and Violet hands-on: Monster catching remixed"},"content":{"rendered":"

Over the course of Pok\u00e9mon\u2019s first eight generations, the number of catchable monsters is nearing 1,000. And yet in that same time, the basic formula for the series\u2019 gameplay has largely stayed the same (aside from some small tweaks or offshoots like Legends: Arceus<\/em>). But after getting the chance to preview Pok\u00e9mon Scarlet<\/em> ahead of its official release in November, it feels like GameFreak has remixed a ton of longstanding tropes in a way that brings a new spark to its next release.<\/p>\n

Starting off with the Paldea region (which draws inspiration from the real-world Iberian peninsula), Pok\u00e9mon Scarlet<\/em> and Violet <\/em>expands on previous games (most notably Legends Arceus<\/em> and the Wild Area in Sword<\/em> and Shield<\/em>) by offering a fully open-world design. This means there\u2019s no set path when it comes to taking down gyms, which gives you much more freedom to choose where you want to go and in what order. On top of that, to help traverse the world, you get access to the game\u2019s legendary Pok\u00e9mon (either Koraidon or Miraidon, depending on which version of the game you choose) very early on, instead of having to wait until endgame to catch them like in previous titles.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"Unlike
Unlike previous titles, Pok\u00e9mon Scarlet<\/em> and Violet<\/em> feature a full open-world design.<\/figcaption>
Nintendo<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

Even the gyms themselves have gotten an update, with the trials that you need to pass in order to battle Brassius<\/a> (the leader of the Artazon gym) taking place around town instead in a single room or building. The impact of this is that the world of Pok\u00e9mon Scarlet<\/em> and Violet <\/em>just feels more vibrant and lived in, which adds a new dimension to how you experience the game.<\/p>\n

Of course, there\u2019s much more to Pok\u00e9mon than just gym battles, as riding your legendary Pok\u00e9mon lets you literally run, jump and fly across the landscape. As you explore Paldea, you\u2019ll encounter wild monsters roaming the region, which you can choose to battle or avoid as you see fit, though you\u2019ll run into some random battles as well. There are even rare Titan Pok\u00e9mon that you need to battle multiple times to best as you try to complete your Path of Legends, which is a separate story branch from your gym battles and run-ins with Team Star. And while you\u2019re out exploring the world, if you don\u2019t feel like directing combat yourself, you can bring out your lead Pok\u00e9mon to find items or auto-battle other nearby monsters (with the fight taking place off-screen).<\/p>\n

\"Mela
Mela is one of the bosses in Team Star and the head of its fire crew, the Schedar Squad.<\/figcaption>
Nintendo<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

Scarlet and Violet\u2019s <\/em>open-world design also means there are more places to run into Team Star (this generation\u2019s Team Rocket equivalent). During one event, I had to break my way into a barricaded compound while using the new auto-battle system to take down 30 different monsters before my team ran out of HP. After that, I had to battle one of Team Star\u2019s leaders while she rode a huge vehicle, which had a massive health bar to match. Meanwhile, standard combat still consists of turn-based battles with each monster having access to four different moves. And when it comes to catching wild Pok\u00e9mon, your best bet is still to whittle down their health with attacks and status ailments before tossing a Pok\u00e9ball at them. There\u2019s no need to aim your throw like in Legends: Arceus<\/em>.<\/p>\n

\"When
When your Pok\u00e9mon terastallizes, they turn all crystalline and get a crown that corresponds to their tera type.<\/figcaption>
Nintendo<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

But for Scarlet<\/em> and Violet<\/em> Gamefreak has added a new twist called Terastallizing, which allows a Pok\u00e9mon to change their normal type to its hidden Tera Type. Take for example Tyranitar, which is normally a rock\/dark type but changes to ghost type when Terastallized. This unlocks new ways to punish your enemy\u2019s weaknesses while also giving you access to the new Tera Blast TM so you can take full advantage of your Pok\u00e9mon\u2019s more powerful altered state.<\/p>\n

Alternatively, for people who like more cooperative fights, there are four-player Tera raid battles that allow you to team up with friends to catch Pok\u00e9mon with rare Tera types. And unlike traditional combat, there\u2019s no turn order to follow. You can spam moves to your heart\u2019s content and if you get knocked out, you can cheer on your fellow trainers while you wait to be automatically revived. As someone who has long thought Pok\u00e9mon\u2019s core combat system has needed an update, raid battles are a lot of fun as a break from the main story, even if they do feel a little button mashy.<\/p>\n

\"Bellibolt
Bellibolt is one of the new electric-type Pok\u00e9mon in the Paldea region.<\/figcaption>
Nintendo<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

And these are just some of the bigger changes. Gamefreak has tweaked a lot of other mechanics in a way that makes the whole franchise feel fresh again. So let me list a bunch here rapid-fire style. Instead of the standard eight gym badges to collect, now there are 18. Character customization is way deeper and can be changed at any time from the standard menu screen. Also, other trainers won\u2019t initiate a battle on sight as they have in the past, you actually have to walk up and engage them on purpose. There\u2019s even a new auto-heal feature that uses potions from your inventory to recover HP after battle, which saves you time sifting through menus over and over again. And what could have the biggest impact on Pok\u00e9mon battles in Scarlet<\/em> and Violet<\/em> is that now you can now craft your own TMs.<\/p>\n

\"In
In raid battles, you can fight together with up to four friends to take down terastallized Pok\u00e9mon.<\/figcaption>
Nintendo<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

So while I only had a little more than an hour to play Pok\u00e9mon Scarlet<\/em> during my preview, I\u2019m really happy to see Gamefreak mess around with its traditional format. The world is big and beautiful, there are now three main storylines that you can complete as you choose and there are a lot of other remixes and quality-of-life changes that make the series feel like it\u2019s gotten a reno and a fresh coat of paint. And we haven\u2019t even talked about all the new Pok\u00e9mon yet.<\/p>\n

I normally always go with the plant-type starter, but this time around I already know I\u2019m choosing Fuecoco<\/a>. There\u2019s something about his goofy toothy grin I just can\u2019t ignore. Then there\u2019s Lechonk<\/a>, which is a masterful play on words, and one of your rival\u2019s main Pok\u00e9mon Pawni<\/a> is so cute and fluffy that I almost can\u2019t handle it.<\/a><\/p>\n

\"In
In Pok\u00e9mon Scarlet and Violet, you can ride your legendary Pok\u00e9mon to quickly traverse the Paldea region.<\/figcaption>
Nintendo<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

Honestly, I can\u2019t remember the last time I was this excited for a new mainline Pok\u00e9mon game. My only small concern is that I did notice a bit of frame-rate choppiness in some areas, which could indicate that Scarlet<\/em> and Violet\u2019s<\/em> new open-world design is really taxing the Switch\u2019s horsepower. However, since my time with the game was in a development build created for this preview and not a full retail version, it\u2019s difficult to say if we should expect similar performance upon release. Regardless, I can\u2019t wait to play more when Pok\u00e9mon Scarlet<\/em> and Violet<\/em> officially go on sale for the Nintendo Switch on November 18th.<\/p>\n


\n
\nSource: Engadget – Pok\u00e9mon Scarlet and Violet hands-on: Monster catching remixed<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Over the course of Pok\u00e9mon\u2019s first eight generations, the number of catchable monsters is nearing 1,000. And yet in that same time, the basic formula for the series\u2019 gameplay has largely stayed the same (aside from some small tweaks or … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[99,110],"tags":[98],"class_list":["post-1067236","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-engadget","category-unfiltered-rss","tag-engadget"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.prime-wow.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1067236","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.prime-wow.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.prime-wow.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.prime-wow.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.prime-wow.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1067236"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.prime-wow.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1067236\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.prime-wow.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1067236"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.prime-wow.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1067236"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.prime-wow.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1067236"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}