Official Pokémon Sword and Shield speculation thread (Updated June 5th, 2019)

[Fairy Type Arceus]

Can someone link.me to the proof that the mega and z move thing was a mistranslation?

 

[Astro Pantherion]

Regarding the issue of the Galar Dex being locked off to any Pokémon not in said Dex:

I'm pretty much shocked as anyone else in the community regarding the Dex issue. Its dumb, and if its only because they wanted more dynamic expressions in the newest of games so they could use that dumb camping feature, its even worse. But on the other hand, this is something I expect from GF. But this has to be their biggest blunder not even I can overlook.

When even someone as prominent as Serebii expresses shock and says this is not good...and Twitter/Youtube is blowing up in reaction to this, its pretty clear that this is something no one wants, not even me.

And that alone is a surprise, because normally I just shrug my shoulders at GF cutting features and I just deal with it, which I have been doing since Gen 5, and I haven’t even played Black 2 and White 2. But cutting entire Pokémon from games is where I draw the line. Its unacceptable and goes against the entire idea of the franchise to begin with.

On the other hand, if people buy Sword and Shield and it happens to be their very first Pokémon game ever and who have never owned a previous gen game, its not that of a big deal. For those people, Sword and Shield is a brand new beginning altogether. You could say, its "Gen 1 reinmagined anew" for a brand new audience.

They can safely play the games and move on to newer gens afterwards and have no issue moving about their collection from Sword and Shield through Pokémon Home because they don't have one. But for people who have been around for a very long time and played previous gens from 1 to 7, that is not going to be the case anymore. Those people, a.k.a us, the oldies, are at GF's mercy when we use the Pokémon Home app, of which we likely have to pay for, which is even dumber with this current approach in Sword and Shield.

That said, the old guard of fans still have several options open for them:

1. Just not get the newer games at all and stay with your old critters, or quit entirely from the franchise.
2. Start anew with Sword and Shield moving forward to newer gens using Pokémon Home.
3. Don't move, and keep your old critters in their previous gen, and move on forward anew with Sword and Shield.
4. Move on with your old critters, knowing some will not be compatible with Sword and Shield until in the far future.

For me, the choice right now is between 1, 2 and 3. May go with Option 3 as the best option, as I still like Pokémon myself, and don't see myself quitting that easily despite this issue playing around everywhere. I may however opt not to get the games at or near release because of this blunder, and instead give priority to other interesting games coming this year, and I have seen plenty during this E3, especially for the Switch.

If there's anything that is positive regarding this issue is that I don't have to bother with Bank for now, as my pass has expired for a good while, and with this issue at hand, I see no reason to renew it in the near future. Even if it means that Bank may eventually get phased out for Home in the far future, I'm not going to put my large collection on Pokémon Home for a annual cost (or they likely get deleted) while GF takes their sweet time to update the roster from Gen 9 and onwards.

Its dumb and counter productive.

 

[swiftgallade46]

I just find it so odd that Pokémon whose slogan is “Gotta Catch ‘em All!” now has a game where you...can’t catch ‘em all.

At this point I’m really hoping that they release updates/patches to gradually bring in old Pokémon like they do with Go, but I wouldn’t hold my breath that they won’t just expand the Pokédex in the next games either.

That being said, I do hope people aren’t too hard on Masuda-San and co. It seemed very difficult for him to make this announcement, and if you rewatch the treehouse he seems pretty uncomfortable. There are constructive ways to get our wants and opinions across, so I hope no one is joining these Twitter and YouTube mobs with pitchforks and insults.

 

[Joker901]

I just find it so odd that Pokémon whose slogan is “Gotta Catch ‘em All!” now has a game where you...can’t catch ‘em all.

At this point I’m really hoping that they release updates/patches to gradually bring in old Pokémon like they do with Go, but I wouldn’t hold my breath that they won’t just expand the Pokédex in the next games either.

That being said, I do hope people aren’t too hard on Masuda-San and co. It seemed very difficult for him to make this announcement, and if you rewatch the treehouse he seems pretty uncomfortable. There are constructive ways to get our wants and opinions across, so I hope no one is joining these Twitter and YouTube mobs with pitchforks and insults.

Go on his twitter...people are just screaming that they made a bad decision.

 

[Astro Pantherion]

I just find it so odd that Pokémon whose slogan is “Gotta Catch ‘em All!” now has a game where you...can’t catch ‘em all.

At this point I’m really hoping that they release updates/patches to gradually bring in old Pokémon like they do with Go, but I wouldn’t hold my breath that they won’t just expand the Pokédex in the next games either.

That being said, I do hope people aren’t too hard on Masuda-San and co. It seemed very difficult for him to make this announcement, and if you rewatch the treehouse he seems pretty uncomfortable. There are constructive ways to get our wants and opinions across, so I hope no one is joining these Twitter and YouTube mobs with pitchforks and insults.

Quoting the bolded, Serebii has this idea that GF will change their mind in regards to this issue through patches or what not, or have them available through Max Raid Battles. If that is the case, I'd be fine this, as its a good compromise. The data of the old Pokémon just has to be present to do so.

Go on his twitter...people are just screaming that they made a bad decision.

While I disagree with how the issue has pertained itself so far, I'm not a advocate for senseless bashing on a developer. Its a bad decision, but people don't need to go to the extreme of the whole thing. That too, is just counterproductive. That said, they, GF, have the ability to resolve this issue as painless as possible, so it remains to be seen if they can, or if they will be willing to do so.

 

[Fairy Type Arceus]

Quoting the bolded, Serebii has this idea that GF will change their mind in regards to this issue through patches or what not, or have them available through Max Raid Battles. If that is the case, I'd be fine this, as its a good compromise. The data of the old Pokémon just has to be present to do so.

I mean is the data of the new pokemon( basically everything after what they started with) already programmed into regular Go? Its the only other game with a similar situation.

 

[Astro Pantherion]

I mean is the data of the new pokemon( basically everything after what they started with) already programmed into regular Go? Its the only other game with a similar situation.

I wouldn't honestly know, as I have never played Pokémon Go at all.

 

[Fairy Type Arceus]

I wouldn't honestly know, as I have never played Pokémon Go at all.

I don't think the data is there, they could just update the games later with the pokemon lile they do in Go.

 

[swiftgallade46]

Quoting the bolded, Serebii has this idea that GF will change their mind in regards to this issue through patches or what not, or have them available through Max Raid Battles. If that is the case, I'd be fine this, as its a good compromise. The data of the old Pokémon just has to be present to do so.



While I disagree with how the issue has pertained itself so far, I'm not a advocate for senseless bashing on a developer. Its a bad decision, but people don't need to go to the extreme of the whole thing. That too, is just counterproductive. That said, they, GF, have the ability to resolve this issue as painless as possible, so it remains to be seen if they can, or if they will be willing to do so.

When you say “data of the old Pokémon” what are you referring to? I feel like if an old Pokemon’s data is already present it should probably just be in the game to begin with.

I would like patches very much but I’m still skeptical. Would they finally after years go back on their policy of not having major patches? Would they be able and willing to dedicate time and resources towards developing a new patch instead of the next game installment? I’m hoping the answer to both is yes but I guess we’ll have to wait and see. In the meantime, I’m not getting my hopes up.

 

[9tiefly]

I don't understand how some people still don't think it's a dumb move even if it doesn't affect them personally. Usually, these transfer features are only made available after we beat the game or a few months after its release, so in no way, shape or form do they condition one's use and enjoyment of the new, readily available pokémon.

Throughout the years, we've been encouraged to work hard for the Pokémon we love, no matter how dumb it may sound since it's just code or whatever. We've invested thousands of hours completing the pokédex, hoard battling for EVs and shinies, supertraining, chaining, dexnaving for exclusive moves, shiny-hunting, breeding for good IVs and eggmoves, Masuda-methoding for shinnies, and so on. And with each new game there are many ways to include your older Pokémon, too: new strategies and battle synergies, move tutors, updated base stats and movepools, new eggmoves... You can't really blame us for using features they've implemented themselves and told us to use.


EDIT: Also, if they really were planning on patching the game in the future, they could have said so straight away. I really don't expect they will though, unless they cave in to the backlash. The animations don't look any better, só I really don't get their excuse.

 

[IncineROAR]

I have immense displeasure about the announcement that you can only bring in Pokemon from previous generations that are in the Galar regional dex. That defeats the entire purpose of having the bank/home, and at this point I'll probably only utilize "home" to store Pokemon I've captured in SwSh to store them when I reset and start a new game.

Here are my alternatives that I'll be okay with:
-post-game allows for capturing Pokemon not native to Galar
-Diamond/Pearl remakes come at some point in the future and supplement the missing mon
-GF releases a future patch that will allow Pokemon from older generations to be moved into the Galar game

Really, I'm hoping the third item is what happens, I'm not really one to do the post-game adventure stuff, well because the post-game always sucks and I'm really not banking on SwSh to be any better than Sun/Moon (notice I say Sun/Moon, UltraSun/UltraMoon are a level above SM and I don't think SwSh will meet the USUM level).

I will honestly say I am excited for the wild area based on yesterday's Treehouse gameplay, but all this innovation usually comes at a cost. I don't miss having to use HM's to move through obstacles, but I do miss using them in battle. I never had too much issue with Strength, Surf, or Fly as HM's because at least those moves were useable in battle. Now Surf is a TM you can only get in post-game SM/USUM along with Waterfall. I have no idea what happened with Fly or Strength, I didn't exactly go looking for those two moves in SM/USUM and I'm too lazy to look at bulbapedia at the moment. So with all of these new features, what else is GF going to cut because well, they do that? The Pokemon Home / Galar regional dex thing is one. I'm sure other subtle things that players enjoy will end up going by the wayside.

Also, if someone already subscribes to the Nintendo Online thing for the Switch, they better not have to pay an annual fee to use the stupid app.

 

[PkmnTrainerV]

I have immense displeasure about the announcement that you can only bring in Pokemon from previous generations that are in the Galar regional dex. That defeats the entire purpose of having the bank/home, and at this point I'll probably only utilize "home" to store Pokemon I've captured in SwSh to store them when I reset and start a new game.

Here are my alternatives that I'll be okay with:
-post-game allows for capturing Pokemon not native to Galar
-Diamond/Pearl remakes come at some point in the future and supplement the missing mon
-GF releases a future patch that will allow Pokemon from older generations to be moved into the Galar game

Really, I'm hoping the third item is what happens, I'm not really one to do the post-game adventure stuff, well because the post-game always sucks and I'm really not banking on SwSh to be any better than Sun/Moon (notice I say Sun/Moon, UltraSun/UltraMoon are a level above SM and I don't think SwSh will meet the USUM level).

I will honestly say I am excited for the wild area based on yesterday's Treehouse gameplay, but all this innovation usually comes at a cost. I don't miss having to use HM's to move through obstacles, but I do miss using them in battle. I never had too much issue with Strength, Surf, or Fly as HM's because at least those moves were useable in battle. Now Surf is a TM you can only get in post-game SM/USUM along with Waterfall. I have no idea what happened with Fly or Strength, I didn't exactly go looking for those two moves in SM/USUM and I'm too lazy to look at bulbapedia at the moment. So with all of these new features, what else is GF going to cut because well, they do that? The Pokemon Home / Galar regional dex thing is one. I'm sure other subtle things that players enjoy will end up going by the wayside.

Fly is a TM now and Strength is Machamp’s signature move.

 

[Joker901]

Fly is a TM now and Strength is Machamp’s signature move.

And surf is a bike...

 

[TheElderKing]

I have immense displeasure about the announcement that you can only bring in Pokemon from previous generations that are in the Galar regional dex. That defeats the entire purpose of having the bank/home, and at this point I'll probably only utilize "home" to store Pokemon I've captured in SwSh to store them when I reset and start a new game.

Here are my alternatives that I'll be okay with:
-post-game allows for capturing Pokemon not native to Galar
-Diamond/Pearl remakes come at some point in the future and supplement the missing mon
-GF releases a future patch that will allow Pokemon from older generations to be moved into the Galar game

Really, I'm hoping the third item is what happens, I'm not really one to do the post-game adventure stuff, well because the post-game always sucks and I'm really not banking on SwSh to be any better than Sun/Moon (notice I say Sun/Moon, UltraSun/UltraMoon are a level above SM and I don't think SwSh will meet the USUM level).

I will honestly say I am excited for the wild area based on yesterday's Treehouse gameplay, but all this innovation usually comes at a cost. I don't miss having to use HM's to move through obstacles, but I do miss using them in battle. I never had too much issue with Strength, Surf, or Fly as HM's because at least those moves were useable in battle. Now Surf is a TM you can only get in post-game SM/USUM along with Waterfall. I have no idea what happened with Fly or Strength, I didn't exactly go looking for those two moves in SM/USUM and I'm too lazy to look at bulbapedia at the moment. So with all of these new features, what else is GF going to cut because well, they do that? The Pokemon Home / Galar regional dex thing is one. I'm sure other subtle things that players enjoy will end up going by the wayside.

We don’t know how TMs distribution will work in SwSh.
While it didn’t happen with the former HMs, some of my favorites TMs were available post game in games sometimes, so I’m not too bothered if some of the former HMs aren’t available before post game.

 

[TheElderKing]

And surf is a bike...

There wasn’t much choice, to be honest. I didn’t mind it (except the outfits which are at still back in SwSh), but the Pokéride had mixed reviews, and the system in LGPE was the dumbest of all. I prefer the surfing bike to it, though I don’t think it’s the perfect choice.

Also, the HM system was ridicolous when Pokémon that were clearly not big enough to transport you by Fly or Surf were able.
The idea solution would be having a Pokéride system while also having your own Pokémon that are fit enough for the task to carry you around, or in water, or flying, but I doubt that it’d ever happen.

 

[Astro Pantherion]

When you say “data of the old Pokémon” what are you referring to? I feel like if an old Pokemon’s data is already present it should probably just be in the game to begin with.

I would like patches very much but I’m still skeptical. Would they finally after years go back on their policy of not having major patches? Would they be able and willing to dedicate time and resources towards developing a new patch instead of the next game installment? I’m hoping the answer to both is yes but I guess we’ll have to wait and see. In the meantime, I’m not getting my hopes up.

I'm referring to the idea that for a Pokémon to be recognized in a game, the data of said Pokémon has to be present/programmed within the game. So for a example, lets say Tyranitar was not in the data of Sword and Shield (it is, but this is a example), you couldn't transfer a Tyranitar to said game, no matter if said data was in previous games.

This is the issue people have at the moment with the Sword and Shield Galar Dex. From what I can take of the issue, Sword and Shield doesn't have data of Pokemon not present/used in the Galar Dex, thus locking them out from having the ability to be transferred to Sword and Shield. This could be potentially fixed by updating the game with patches, adding said data to the games (updated that is), thus allowing transfer of said Mons. Adding Max Raid Battles as Serebii suggested using updates with new updated data of old Pokémon also works.

 

[hanecco]

The news about some Pokemon's data not being in the game... ouch.

 

[Poke Dragon]

I just hope they don't exempt legendaries, Ultra Beasts and mythicals from this, maybe those Pokemon would also be fitting for more difficult raid battles. One thing that can be done to balance it out so that people can't get multiples of one legendary without trading is to make it so that it won't appear for players who already caught it. For an example, let's say there's a Dynamaxed Groudon that can be fought, only players who don't have a Groudon registered in their PokeDex can catch that Groudon.

 

[Joker901]

There wasn’t much choice, to be honest. I didn’t mind it (except the outfits which are at still back in SwSh), but the Pokéride had mixed reviews, and the system in LGPE was the dumbest of all. I prefer the surfing bike to it, though I don’t think it’s the perfect choice.

Also, the HM system was ridicolous when Pokémon that were clearly not big enough to transport you by Fly or Surf were able.
The idea solution would be having a Pokéride system while also having your own Pokémon that are fit enough for the task to carry you around, or in water, or flying, but I doubt that it’d ever happen.

That's not only the ideal solution, it's also the most logical one, because that's how it should work in the pokemon world.

 

[Shrapnel Stars]

That's pretty rough if even their data isn't in the game, because in every single main series Pokemon game that exists (outside of LGPE), all old Pokemon have been coded into the game. (And all old items, for some unfathomable reason. The Red Chain will do zero for you in Gen 6, so why not scrub it?) If a Pokemon "wasn't available" in that gen, it simply meant that they weren't placed in some grass or something. Doing that kept compatibility issues down. This time, they seem to have invented a compatibility issue wholesale.

EDIT: I want to believe that they ran out of time to put the others in, and wanted to avoid crunch, but I don't know when they started development on these games, or why they bothered to give walking animations to every single Pokemon in Gen 7 if they weren't going to be uploaded in SwSh.