Going back to Pokemon X & Y for the first time since 2014, I honestly didn't know what to expect. I remember when I first played these games, I thought that they were awesome; the next big step towards the complete modernization of Pokemon. Over time, hindsight has given me the benefit of understanding that just because a model is in 3D, doesn't mean that the game is revolutionary.
Pokemon X & Y did a lot right. The additions to the core gameplay are, frankly, awesome. The new Fairy type helps balance out the type chart and gives an added challenge to a Dragon aficionado such as myself. Mega Evolution is a neat mechanic that feels like the natural evolution of the Pokemon formula, and in hindsight is much more fun to use when compared with Z-Moves or Dynamax. The route design is neat, with lots of little mazes that help the player get lost if they are looking for as many extra items as possible (much better than I remember!). The difficulty of the game is actually pretty high if you don't use the EXP Share, but the fact that it is added allows you to level up an expanded party without some Pokemon lagging behind (I rotated about 12 different party members in and out throughout most of the playthrough). And, the music in this game was also far better than I remember; the Gym battle theme in particular was a nice surprise.
However, as someone who is a fan of the much more realized stories of Generations 5 and 7, the story in Pokemon X & Y remains a complete letdown. None of the characters seem to be dynamic at all, and a lot of the narrative is boring and unrealized. It feels like the characters around you are nothing more than tools used to direct the player in the right direction. The game sets up a lowkey romance arc with Shauna near the beginning, but doesn't expand on it at all. Your rival often talks about their aspirations to get stronger in order to beat you, but your interactions feel so bland that it's hard to get behind the "neighborly bond" they so often bring up. And, Team Flare is an incredibly underwhelming group of antagonists when compared to the likes of Teams Galactic or Plasma, with a leader whose vision for the world has potential that the game again does not explore. And, since so much of the story centers around the "rarity" of Mega Evolution, it inhibits the mechanic from being actually used in battle by the majority of your opponents, which is a major disappointment.
The theme that the game's story leaves much more to be desired remains common throughout the rest of the game. For example, some of the environments can be enhanced with the 3D effects, but not all. In a similar vein, some of the trainers in the game appear in battle as fully realized 3D models, but this is a noticeable minority. The choices of who gets to be a 3D model is questionable as well; how come Team Flare Grunts are 3D models with animations, but not Gym Leaders or Elite Four members? There are also several areas that are blocked off in the game (like the other parts of the power plant) that the player never gets to explore, even in the postgame. Whether or not these changes were at somepoint planned in updates, or perhaps a "Pokemon Z," we shall never know, but what it does is leave behind an experience that is simply unfinished.
Pokemon X & Y are not bad games. However, they pale in comparison to other, better realized, more complete games in the series. These games are often labelled as the worst in the series by many, but I think that is a bit too harsh; these games are not as poor as the broken Generation 1 games, or act as complete letdowns like Ultra Sun & Moon. However, these entries do, in my opinion, fall in the latter half of the Pokemon series as a whole. I enjoyed my time with Pokemon X & Y, but I'm glad that it took me so long to return to Kalos, and I don't expect to do so again anytime soon. 5.5/10
Pokemon X & Y did a lot right. The additions to the core gameplay are, frankly, awesome. The new Fairy type helps balance out the type chart and gives an added challenge to a Dragon aficionado such as myself. Mega Evolution is a neat mechanic that feels like the natural evolution of the Pokemon formula, and in hindsight is much more fun to use when compared with Z-Moves or Dynamax. The route design is neat, with lots of little mazes that help the player get lost if they are looking for as many extra items as possible (much better than I remember!). The difficulty of the game is actually pretty high if you don't use the EXP Share, but the fact that it is added allows you to level up an expanded party without some Pokemon lagging behind (I rotated about 12 different party members in and out throughout most of the playthrough). And, the music in this game was also far better than I remember; the Gym battle theme in particular was a nice surprise.
However, as someone who is a fan of the much more realized stories of Generations 5 and 7, the story in Pokemon X & Y remains a complete letdown. None of the characters seem to be dynamic at all, and a lot of the narrative is boring and unrealized. It feels like the characters around you are nothing more than tools used to direct the player in the right direction. The game sets up a lowkey romance arc with Shauna near the beginning, but doesn't expand on it at all. Your rival often talks about their aspirations to get stronger in order to beat you, but your interactions feel so bland that it's hard to get behind the "neighborly bond" they so often bring up. And, Team Flare is an incredibly underwhelming group of antagonists when compared to the likes of Teams Galactic or Plasma, with a leader whose vision for the world has potential that the game again does not explore. And, since so much of the story centers around the "rarity" of Mega Evolution, it inhibits the mechanic from being actually used in battle by the majority of your opponents, which is a major disappointment.
The theme that the game's story leaves much more to be desired remains common throughout the rest of the game. For example, some of the environments can be enhanced with the 3D effects, but not all. In a similar vein, some of the trainers in the game appear in battle as fully realized 3D models, but this is a noticeable minority. The choices of who gets to be a 3D model is questionable as well; how come Team Flare Grunts are 3D models with animations, but not Gym Leaders or Elite Four members? There are also several areas that are blocked off in the game (like the other parts of the power plant) that the player never gets to explore, even in the postgame. Whether or not these changes were at somepoint planned in updates, or perhaps a "Pokemon Z," we shall never know, but what it does is leave behind an experience that is simply unfinished.
Pokemon X & Y are not bad games. However, they pale in comparison to other, better realized, more complete games in the series. These games are often labelled as the worst in the series by many, but I think that is a bit too harsh; these games are not as poor as the broken Generation 1 games, or act as complete letdowns like Ultra Sun & Moon. However, these entries do, in my opinion, fall in the latter half of the Pokemon series as a whole. I enjoyed my time with Pokemon X & Y, but I'm glad that it took me so long to return to Kalos, and I don't expect to do so again anytime soon. 5.5/10
2 Comments
Thank you!
Lickiwrath
2 years ago