REVIEW // Pokémon: Let's Go Eevee (Switch)
A new adventure with Pokémon awaits…
The Pokémon franchise is one of my favorite game series of all time. I have been playing these games since I was 11 years old, when Pokémon Red & Blue first came to the United States, and haven’t really missed an installment since then. The series has grown and changed over the years, but these changes have always built on each other. When I saw the changes announced for LGPE, I was initially really wary, but my nostalgia and love for Kanto eventually won out and I made a rare preorder. Not expecting much, I was pleasantly surprised to enjoy the experience, with a few caveats.
This review contains minor spoilers & screenshots!
Storyline
There’s not much to discuss here. The storyline is the classic tale from the original games, although the alternate starters and presence of Team Rocket make it closer to Pokémon Yellow than Green/Red/Blue. Other than that, the actual narrative really doesn’t deviate much - but that’s to be expected in a remake.
For those unfamiliar with the Pokémon series, or new to Kanto, the story is pretty straightforward - you travel around the world, collecting different species of creatures to battle with while you challenge gym leaders specializing in specific element types. On the way, you fight off a criminal organization known as Team Rocket, who are out to horde the power of Pokémon for themselves. It’s not a particularly novel or deep story, especially in 2019, but it’s satisfying and enjoyable for both young players or adults like me.
While the story itself may not have changed much, the presentation of the story is where LGPE really shines, especially for oldies like myself who played the original Gameboy titles growing up. Kanto is brought to life in a truly stunning way, with beautiful little details added to iconic locations. I think I audibly gasped out loud upon seeing some of my favorite places reimagined so beautifully - Vermilion City and the S.S. Anne really stand out, but Saffron City and Celedon City are close runner-ups for me. My absolute favorite visual changes were the gym designs, which have been redone in ways that truly capture the essence of their leaders. Erica’s grass-type gym was a particular favorite for me.
The addition of beautifully detailed cutscenes throughout the story are the final element that makes LGPE feel much more immersive. Seeing the interaction between Cubone and Marowak in Lavender Tower or the dramatic scene when encountering legendary Pokémon makes the story feel fresh despite sticking to the original plot. The fresh coat of paint is all the story needs - nostalgia will take care of the rest for most players!
Gameplay
Gameplay are where the vast majority of big changes took place for those who are used to the main Pokémon games. It’s clear that LGPE was intended to capitalize on the success of Pokémon Go, which captured the attention of many players who hadn’t picked up a main series game in years.
I think I actually shrieked when this Chansey appeared in Diglett’s Cave - definitely NOT what I was expecting!
The first and most stark change to the game is the method of encountering and capturing Pokémon. Instead of random encounters, wild Pokémon appear in the overworld, allowing far greater control over which monster you want to catch. I was hesitant about this at first, but I LOVED it. What a relief to be able to travel through caves without getting attacked every two steps or having to stock up on Repels to keep my sanity! Plus the different species moving around the different overworld locations added another level of vibrancy to the already gorgeous game. It just felt so cool to see Ekans slithering through the grass, and the excitement of seeing a rare species pop up suddenly felt even more pronounced than before. Of course, this method also makes shinies easier to see, which is helpful as well.
Not sure there’s anything cooler than zipping around Kanto on a Charizard.
Pokémon Sun & Moon were the first titles to replace HM moves, but it was a positive change and I’m glad they kept it here. HM moves originally functioned as a way to keep players from progressing too far without the necessary skill level, but they required you to keep the Pokémon who knew them in your party in order to use them. In LGPE, these moves have been replaced with Secret Techniques, which your partner Eevee/Pikachu can use to help you navigate Kanto. They can be used even without your partner in the party, which gives a lot more freedom when selecting your team. You can also travel with a Pokémon outside your team, which is so much fun - especially since you can ride some of the larger Pokémon, like Charizard.
Another welcome change was the elimination of the PC in favor of a Pokémon box that you carry in your bag. This was so useful - it was easy to switch out your party to train new catches or to adjust to trainers around you, and definitely reduced the amount EXP grinding needed when arriving at the next destination.
While I loved the real-time roaming Pokémon, the capture method (also borrowed from Pokémon Go) frankly stunk. The motion controls on the Joycons just aren’t precise enough for what the game demands, and catching the more “energetic” Pokémon that moved around the screen is incredibly frustrating. Capturing Pokémon also gets incredibly boring incredibly fast, as there’s really no significant way to increase success rates. It quickly turns into spamming Pokéballs until your target is caught.
The result of one of my training sessions - 30+ Vulpix to sort through.
Even worse, the only way to effectively level up your team is by catching the same species repeatedly, creating a “catch combo”. This was SO BORING. The amount of EXP given from trainer battles is way too small to effectively level up your Pokémon, making it necessary to spend significant amounts of time just spamming Pokéballs at the same species repeatedly. Catch combos do Pokémon with better stats as well as increase the chance of seeing a shiny, and you can send off your extras to Professor Oak for research, but the whole process makes the grind that’s always been present in Pokémon games totally mindless. Definitely the worst aspect of this game.
Aside from the horrible EXP situation, I also felt myself really missing so many of the battle elements introduced in the core series. While there are a truly overwhelming number of Pokémon now, having only 150-ish felt really limited. I was able to mostly complete the Pokédex with only 50 hours of gameplay. The only competitive elements still present are IVs/EVs (and the natures that effect them). Removing abilities and items makes battling feel incredibly shallow, even as someone who doesn’t play competitively.
The lack of breeding Pokémon and the incredibly simplistic online options make trading even for Pokédex completion a total hassle. I cannot understand the logic behind not allowing people to trade/battle with their Switch friend list - ALL online interactions require both players to input a short code. If the intention was to keep younger players safer, it’s a complete backfire, as in order to trade you have to have direct contact with another player outside the game. A GTS or Wondertrade feature, present since Diamond & Pearl came out in 2007, would eliminate that.
Folks who haven’t played a Pokémon game recently probably won’t miss any of these changes, and may even appreciate the return to a more simple formula. However, if you’ve spend anytime with Gen IV or above of the main series, LGPE will feel a little empty despite all its nostalgic beauty. It’s also extremely easy due to an overpowered partner Pokémon and no way to adjust difficulty.
Postgame, Events & Pokémon Go Connectivity
Team Rocket basically sums up Pokémon Go connectivity in a single sentence.
Pokémon games never really come with DLC, but there are always postgame challenges to explore and events to track down. However, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that in such a stripped-down game, these are a little lackluster as well. In fact, there’s really nothing at all to do after you become Pokémon Champion, aside from the last few Pokédex entries and challenges called Master Trainers. The Master Trainers each focus on one of the 153 species available in LGPE. The idea is to challenge them to a one-on-one battle with their chosen species. However, this is incredibly tedious! Their Pokémon are all level 65 or higher, and unless you’ve been hanging on to one of each species as you evolve your team and work on your Dex, you’re going to need to go back and track down extras of every single one, since you can’t breed your existing Pokémon. THEN you need use the horribly boring catch combo method of training to get them all to 70+. I basically took one look at these challenges and decided I wouldn’t even touch them until a Pokébank update comes out and I can import in teams from my 3DS games.
The events roster has been frustrating and disappointing for most people as well. There’s been only one official event announced so far, a partnership with Target only available to US players requiring a physical trip to the store to access. I understand the purpose of these partner-specific events, but there’s really no excuse to not have additional events that can be accessed via Wifi, so that players in other countries or who are unable to travel to a physical store are able to get rare event Pokémon too.
Additionally, Mew is so far only available by purchasing the Pokéball Plus controller. Button functionality is limited, and I found myself switching back to Joycons or handheld mode in order to be able to access all functions easily. It does have some neat little features, like making the sound of the Pokémon that’s been captured, and it’s surprisingly fun to be able to “throw” a Pokéball. Ultimately it’s an expensive peripheral that really doesn’t add much if you’re not a Pokémon Go player, and gating Mew behind a physical device is kind of infuriating.
The much-touted Pokémon Go connectivity is also kind of a mess. The connection is extremely finicky, requiring people to jump through hoops to transfer Pokémon into LGPE. A quick search turns up dozens of threads and posts on Reddit and other forums asking for help, and the posted solutions often describe unpairing all Bluetooth devices and resetting devices multiple times. Even worse, updates to the Go app can break connectivity. This wouldn’t be a huge issue, except two new species of Pokémon are also gated behind the app. I was finally able to transfer over a Meltan into my game, but haven’t yet gotten a Melmetal because evolution requires a significant investment of time into collecting Meltan candies in Pokémon Go. Not only does this mean a smartphone & significant use of data are REQUIRED to fully complete the Pokédex, the functionality is clunky and frustrating to use. If the game wasn’t going to provide alternative methods to obtaining these Pokémon, it should have been a priority to create a foolproof method to connect these services.
Rating
My Eevee and I before taking on the Pokémon League.
Despite the simplistic gameplay changes, the lackluster postgame, and the worst gatekeeping of events & rare Pokémon the series has seen in a while, I still found this game to be surprisingly enjoyable! The experience of exploring Kanto in a new light, the joy of seeing favorite Pokémon roaming through the grass alongside you, the beautifully redesigned cities & gyms - these all make the game truly special for someone who played the originals. It’s more than enough to give this game an overall positive rating, though it likely won’t be one I’ll revisit like I have other titles in the series.
