Pokémon Shield and Sword are undoubtedly the most anticipated titles by fans of monsters, because for the first time on Nintendo Switch we will experience an unprecedented adventure and not a remake of the first game released for Nintendo GameBoy twenty years ago now.
Both titles, in addition to the adventure and unpublished Pokémon, do not present big news both in terms of gameplay and graphics.
During E3 2019 we had the opportunity to try a demo of the title firsthand, where we had the opportunity to face each other with Blue, a new unpublished Gym Leader and present for the first time on Pokémon Shield and Sword.
As usual, before we can fight against a gym leader, we will have to defeat a certain number of enemies, usually three, that will block our path. Besides them there will also be gods Gym Mission, puzzles to be solved in order to progress within the gym. This was a feature already present in the other titles, but it was not always used, while on Pokémon Shield and Sword for each gym we will have a puzzle to solve.
The puzzle in the Azzurra gym is extremely simple, we have to divert water flows that will descend from above by means of pipes of different colors. Each color will have various buttons and to go and press them we will have to face the enemies inside the gym.
Once we have defeated all the enemies that we find and once the riddle has been solved, we can go and challenge the gym leader. Before the fight it will be possible to restore the health of our team.
Arrived in the presence of Azzurra, we will find ourselves in the middle of an immense stadium, with a warm audience behind us that will cheer us on.
During the fight with the gym boss it will be possible to use the real novelty of these two new Pokémon titles, that is Dynamax. It is a new form of Pokémon where we will be able to use it only once within the battle and for three turns. Once enabled, our little monster will take on mammoth dimensions. Not only will they increase the size, but also the stats and life points. The attacks will be different, but we don't know if they will be the same throughout the course of the adventure or if they can be modified. Once the three turns are over, our Pokémon will return to normal size.
At the level of fights we have no big news, Dynamax form separately. Team that wins does not change, in fact the fighting formula has remained the same. We have up to a maximum of four attacks available, which we can change through the use of HM and MT, or by acquiring them again as our Pokémon's level progresses. We find the classic backpack, which we can use in combat both to select the potions in order to heal and recharge the PP of our little monster, or use to select the PokéBall to be thrown to the wild Pokémon to be captured.
On a technical level, Pokémon Shield and Sword do not differ from what we saw last year on Pokémon: Let's Go Pikachu !. The graphics are pleasant to see and have textures of a good level and superior to those of the chapter released last fall. The camera in this new chapter is much closer to our character and in our opinion it helps to immerse ourselves more in the world of Pokémon. Even in the clashes it has been revised, offering dynamic shots in order to better frame our Pokémon during the animations of the attacks.
In terms of fluidity, the game has a very stable frame rate, even if there were some drops during the slightly more elaborate animations of the attacks.
Pokémon Shield and Sword for Nintendo Switch will certainly be a valid title, but one that brings few innovations both on a technical and gameplay level. The Dynamx mode is certainly a very appreciable addition, but that is not enough to modernize the game mechanics that now know a little stale.
Pokémon Shield and Sword will be available for Nintendo Switch on November 15th.
