Topic: Pokemon Sword & Shield

@Heavyarms55 So you're banned for getting a hacked Pokémon?

I see the GTS is even worse than before.

Now you can't even use it to trade-evolve pokemon.

Ok ok, talking about the whole home app.

Big brain idea time.

Sooooo I own a switch and a switch lite, so far I've been just moving the save file between them. With Home, I could easily play the game again from 0 on the lite to get a second zamazenta (to trade for a zacian) and type null, move them to my main file via Home, and complete my living Galar dex once and for all.

As far as I understand you can’t really trade with yourself using the same profile, but with Home I can just have that installed on both systems and move the Pokémon back and forth that way.

@Eel I believe that would work. I dont imagine most people own both but in your unique situation you could just keep playing thru the game and get multiple eternatus and zamazenta.

@Octane No, it seems to have been fixed. At least for me. (I filled out a support ticket about about 6 hours later my account was unlocked) But from what I understand the hacked Pokemon broke the trade system, the mon is sent from the hacked game to a non hacked copy, the non-hacked copy doesn't know what to do with it and it gets caught in a loop of trying to do something and failing, locking you out.

They seem to have fixed it, at least for me. I can get in now and I released everything I got from that batch of the Wonder Box. I no longer trust the surprise trade or wonder trade features. Too many people have had the problem, I've seen dozens of people on reddit and Gamefaqs talking about getting hit. It's just not worth it. Until and unless Pokemon/GF makes an official statement about resolving this issue completely, I will not use the trade feature again. I don't even want to trade with people in discord servers anymore.

Thankfully, I've seen no reports of issues with battles or raids. But I'm telling everyone if they want to use surprise trade, or trading with strangers online, you're doing so at your own risk. If they are lying, and using a hacked copy of the game, you run the risk of getting locked out of online functions because someone sent you a hacked Pokemon with something about it that doesn't work in legitimate copies of the game.

If it happens in Sw/Sh itself, the problem doesn't lock you out of the entire game, but apparently persists if try to go online.

So somehow via Wonder Box I got a 6IV Togekiss.

With Hustle.

Into the breeding project with my Japanese 6IV Ditto you go. I want Serene Grace and a better nature

I notice everyone and their mother in the GTS wants a phione.

Is there some special reason for that...?

@Gravitron good! I'll try and see if it has any weird effects with the online element or something. Hopefully it doesn't.

So as I finish checking my raid dens for the night, (Got a Giga Machamp!) I fall over a random encounter that spawned on me.

Of course. It's a Koffing.

A light blue one.

Then it clicked...that's a shiny.

Then the fear sets in: at this level it knows both Memento and Explosion.

50% chance of losing it.

Thank God for Quick Balls

Shiny Koffing is a really nice one, congrats.

I took a break from breeding Milcery after my second shiny, now while I'm breeding Hatenna I keep getting all sorts of pokemon in nice balls I want to breed as well if only I could get the dang party hat already.

My only wild shiny is a Toxapex from someone else's raid, I wasn't paying attention and raid mon are already so red I didn't notice it was a shiny until I caught it.

I though I would just fly through a new file to get a new Zamazenta and stuff, but I somehow spent all weekend just going in circles around the wild area, absolutely destroying 1-star raids with a level 50 Pokemon from my other file, and catching milcery like I actually need them.

And no, no shinies.

it's so hard to get a Zacian on home all the stuff I have, it is saying you can not trade this

By the way, you guys should totally join Max raids online, people are using an exploit that pretty much guarantees you'll find a shiny, and just now I joined two of them.

One of them ran away unfortunately.

This late Slowpoke here finally beat the main-game (bought it at launch-day). It took me so much more effort than previous pokemon games. Need to get my opninion off my chest (though I understand much of it has already been said by so many).

Excluding previous mainline-Pokemon enteries: the game on its own is boring, unchallenging and critically repetitive. World feels unnatural (never felt more "on rails" than any other edition) and doesn't reward you when explored. Core teambuilding with RPG elements is greatly improved, so I take that as a big win.

Including the comparison with previous games: I absolutely loved Sun & Moon as a new take on the mainline Pokemon games. The world felt more natural and the story was worth playing and reading. I also much enjoyed X & Y which remained more traditional, but also with a better appeal to enjoying the main-game. Grew up with Pokemon games since Red & Blue and played them all. Sword & Shield end up at the bottom of the list (yes even Black & White were more satisfying to beat than this game).

I felt sympathy for GameFreak during the whole NationalDex discussion prior to launch of game. Now that I've played it, I would safely argue that Gamefreak should be taken off from the project. I think Sword & Shield is an insult to the mainline Pokemon games. Comparing to the quality of games launching on Switch: Pokemon Sword & Shield really falls behind big time.

Downloaded the Pokemon Mystery Dungeon demo yesterday. Keeping an eye on it to see if it will scratch my Pokemon-itch. Will not put my money down for the S&S DLC - much of the additional content shown should've been part of the main game to elevate its quality. Feels like a total rip-off.

Done belching. Thanks for reading!

@Bankaj I mean, I can't argue with pretty much any of that (other than throwing BW that low on the pile). Every now and then the world came to life (Route 6 and Stow-n-Side, Circhester, Hulbury). But for the most part it was too little too late. The routes haven't felt that incidental and lifeless since the first 2 gens. And those gens had places like Rock Tunnel, Route 25, Route 12, Cycling Road, Ruins of Alph, Whirl Islands, Ilex Forest, etc that were full of life, even if they did have a bunch of tiny and empty routes.

But y'know, with technical limitations no longer so strong, I'd expect the routes to feel more full of life. Glimwood Tangle, the two mines and Slumbering Weald at the least should have been far more open than they were. Not to mention how useless 'surf'ing was for exploration in this game compared to every previous one. I'd understand if they'd gone the route of the Johto games and made those areas optional but fleshed out for those who wanted them, but these felt pointless.

EDIT: Oh and I forgot the most important thing: There was little to no point in exploring the Wild Area other than catching Pokemon. No trainers, no well hidden items or paths, and nothing to discover outside of the Daycare Center.

@link3710 thanks for elaborating my experience with more concrete examples. I struggled with keeping my post within word count as it is.

I think the effect of this experience was enforced with the unnecessary "movement-parts" in between cutscenes. It became a thorn in my eye in every part of the story, the further you get in the game. Just make one cutscene out of it, I don't mind at all getting back in the game on a different places than where the scene started: as long as it makes sense and you get the chance to explore/collect what is offered in the area.

**edit for typos**

@link3710 Thank you. This is probably the best review of the game I have seen.

Anyone have any ideas on good Pokemon to transfer over from 3DS VC? I brought over a few but won't dedicate much time to find a bunch of good ones as I'm not planning on paying for Home past this month. Thanks

@Pichuka97 VC pokemon have their hidden abilities. As such, Kanto starters, Vulpix, Slowpoke, Onix, Tyrogue, Rhyhorn, Ditto, Eevee, Togepi and Natu all have interesting abilities you might want.

For those not yet in SS, Johto starters, Poliwag, Nidorans, Abra, Cubone, Tangela, Dratini, Swinub, and Pineco all are good choices, but no gurantee they'll be patched in later.

@link3710 @SonicMos thanks, good pointers. I will probably have to spend some time doing this on the weekend