The next generation of Pokémon has begun, with Pokémon Scarlet and Violet being recently announced for the Nintendo Switch. Set for a late 2022 release, this duo will comes three years after Pokémon Sword and Shield. While this has come as welcome news to many fans of the franchise, the small gap between entries could spell problems for the games’ overall quality and content.
Sword and Shield themselves have been criticized for being seeming rushed and lacking in polish. If Game Freak hasn’t spent the necessary development time on Scarlet and Violet, it’s possible the results will be the same. Add to this equation the fact that other big titles in the series have very recently been released, and it begins to feel as if Pokémon is doing too much, too soon.
The Pokémon Franchise Has Seen Better Days
Pokémon Sword and Shield came out in late 2019, thereafter receiving a number of DLC additions. Though the game was well received for the most part, many couldn’t help but feel that the game was lacking compared to previous entries. This was made worse by its lackluster graphics and other features, none of which made the game feel like the grand leap from handheld to console that it was for the series. On top of that, its attempts at being semi-open world were half-hearted at best, and those who had felt that Game Freak was stagnating as a developer were arguably justified.
Since then, there have been two major Pokémon releases: Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl and Pokémon Legends: Arceus. While the former was seen as a low-effort remake of perhaps the series’ best generation, the latter was a brand-new game tying into the Sinnoh region that overhauled several gameplay conventions. That title just recently came out to positive reviews, though some still felt it was rushed and barebones. Unfortunately, its hype surrounding it has now died down due to the next generation being announced.
Scarlet And Violet Already Seem Undercooked
Pokémon Legends Arceus is now yesterday’s news even though it’s barely out of the gate. Arceus and the Diamond and Pearl remakes weren’t just half-effort spin-offs, either. While older spin-offs such as Pokémon Trozei and even the Pokémon Mystery Dungeon series could be more easily ignored, these two games, especially Legends, are much bigger entries for the franchise. However, the introduction of Scarlet and Violet makes Arceus feel like a mere tech demo for how the next generation will likely play.
On top of this, the footage and imagery shown so far for Scarlet and Violet aren’t all that impressive. While they’re serviceable as far as Pokémon goes, the graphics and models still feel recycled and outdated for a multi-billion-dollar franchise that’s now on a modern home console. This speaks to the recurring criticism that these games are becoming increasingly rushed simply to fit the Holiday season for their mainline releases.
Game Freak would be able to curtail these fears for Scarlet and Violet by simply delaying the game until 2023. While this might keep the game from being a holiday hit, it would allow it to be a much better game by virtue of graphics being upgraded and more content being available at launch. This was a huge problem for Sword and Shield, which was most notably lacking in many of the previous generations’ Pokémon. If nothing else, a Spring 2023 delay would provide for more development time while also being in the same release window as the original Diamond and Pearl.
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