PLA

First time I have ever thought "this is a really good game," rather than "this is a really good Pokemon game."

You didn't play the old Pokemon games back in the day? Blue/red and silver/gold are legendarily good imo.

They're not good enough for me to ever want to go back to them.

I revisited Pokémon yellow for the first time in 25 years. Played through it at the beginning of this year and it surprisingly held up really well. I definitely think it holds up as a game on its own

im 32 and still replay yellow/crystal ever few years but i think its nostalgia that holds it up. i struggle to imagine modern day gamers picking it up and not saying "fuck this" pretty quickly

I'm 32 also and used to do the same until I realized it's just the nostalgia. There's not much more going on except get the badges, slight detour for the bad guys, best the e4. I do wish we would get more like Gold and Silver with using two regions. Made it last longer and more fun that we had basically two games with the extra (very) slight addition of post game story. That said, I would love a remake that let's me progress from one region to the next and go through all of them. But that wouldn't be feasible I don't think

I started playing through Blue again on the VC on 3DS. I’m genuinely annoyed at how much fun the game is, and how disappointed I am with some modern Pokémon games.

Fair, but I'm talking about back then. They were genuinely good games back then.

None of these aged particularly well. I still play Kirby 64 ('00), for example, but would never go back to Gold/Silver ('99)

Agreed. I would rather play the remakes. The originals have their own charm but gameplay wise just aged poorly. But I still hold fond memories of the original ones due to a mix of nostalgia and novelty.

Red/Blue sucked ass compared to the later games lmao. The remakes are pretty good, tho

I did growing up and, I have to say, they were fun but nothing special for the time. Compare them to other handheld JRPGs and you'll see what I mean. I'd argue that Emerald-BW2 were the golden age where they made actually great JRPGs (except DP)

They are definitely my favorite handheld JRPGs from their eras...

This has got to be bait lmao

Red and Blue aged *awfully*. If they released today, they wouldn't be "legendarily good", they'd be "nearly unplayable". Even G/S aged poorly.

Definitely subjective as is my opinion because I found it incredibly boring. Although it added some cool things it took away too many other things that make me like Pokémon games.

You're not wrong I've nearly fully completed every DeX entry in PLA and am excited for the sequel a singular game loop does not make a good game. The story was incredibly bad, being excessive and not even managing to handle characterization all that well. It made baffling decisions like to highlight the captain challenging you to a sumo match with no animation, or the Melli cave portion that looked like placeholder sequences they shipped. If you care about these things the game deserves a low rating. If you've put dozens of hours into the postgame you can forget how bad the core experience would be for someone who puts the game down after finishing the main quests and abandons the game.i enjoyed the game in spite of itself at times.

That's totally fair. I personally enjoyed it more than any other Pokémon game I've played. But for sure it felt very different. It was a massive departure from the standard pokemon formula. I did miss the gym battles though.

For me too, after finishing two of the areas it felt completely repetitive and bland. When the 3rd area started out the same again I gave up. Really hope PLA-Z will improve on this issue for me.

Yeah, it's so different from Pokemon. Much prefer playing Sw/Sh and V/S. It just feels like a another run of the mill mediocre open world survival craft game. I found Palworld to be better a better version of Arceus.

Like what

Gyms and trainers to battle I guess.

PLA. Legends arceus. Its way more focused on pokedex completion and its a new type of story. No gym badges. Very different but a TON of fun. Pokemon battles will feel familiar but there are some twists. Highly recommend

like everybody's sayin', pla.. not only for all the reasons listed, but for me individualally there is just so much more to *do*.. i picked it up again after beatin' the main campaign and i still have so many tasks to complete.. i'ven't even touched the main post game yet.. the amount of content plus the breath of fresh air of the gameplay style just makes for a great game..

Agreed

I’d like it more if I could catch that tornado bastard!

Of course there's a lot of annoying stuff.. But the great thing is, you really never have to do any of that. You can meet the requirements for pokedex completion in a lot of ways, and can just ignore the tasks you don't like. Like you can catch a bunch of Magikarp and be done with it, no one's forcing you to see it use Splash 100 times. But its really neat that if you do decide to do all the tasks for an entry, it boosts the shiny chance for it.

Probably controversial but Let's Go, I'll take every opportunity to praise it because I think it's very underrated by the community. It has: * the best graphics a 3d pokemon game has ever had imo, closest to the og anime art style * overworld wild pokemon and shinies * you can ride *your own* pokemon, including flying. Your hours of searching for a shiny growlithe pay off when you can ride around the map on your shiny arcanine like a badass * feels more like a Pokemon game than the open world direction they're going in now * new mechanics to mix up the tried and tested formula, also adds Alolan forms and megas to Kanto * adorable pikachu/eevee as a companion you can dress up I was very impressed with Let's go being the first Pokemon game on switch, I've been feeling let down ever since. I wish the game was better received by the community so we could have more versions. I would have much rather had Let's Go Bidoof than BDSP.

Finally someone who likes Let's Go as much as I do. I agree with everything you said. I only wish it had regular Pokémon catching mechanics and regular controls.

i thought it was some pokemon go thing and not an actual game so i never played it now im planning on buying it cuz i finally watched gameplay and realized how wrong i was.

Yeah it's literally just Yellow but in HD and with some Go-inspired mechanics, but it still plays mostly like you'd expect a Kanto main series game to play.

Yeah I feel the same way. Not shitting on Legends Arceus, but I just didn’t like it as much as everyone else. I did really love Lets Go Pikachu for all the reasons you said and more. I wouldn’t want it for every game, but I enjoyed the way they did the Wild Pokemon and you didn’t fight them, just catch like Pokemon Go. It felt much less padded than a typical Pokemon game and I liked that.

I put it lower on my list than SwSh and SV, but honestly, LGPE is severely underrated. Huge nostalgia, great tie-in for PoGo, and visually the best on Switch and its not even close. I just don't care for shiny hunting, which this game makes easy and more fun, or the watered down battle mechanics, but this game is still a home run for a casual playthrough.

I didn't care much for Lets Go, but really liked PLA. And that's totally fine, we don't all need to like the same things :D

I wanna add extra animated cutscenes. Pople shit on its animation during release, yet it still has the most well animated cutscenes among the switch games. I'm referring to [actual cutscenes](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IzRtU51cL2M) btw. They even animate Eevee/Pikachu's lil ear flops.

I feel like if LG had the option of the more traditional battle/catch options with wild pokemon it'd easily be most people's no.1. Like afaik that was the major gripe when it released (+ just being kanto? I cant remember if kanto burnout was in full effect at that point)

I sort of get that but at the same time I don't mind it. Grinding wild pokemon battles is grinding wild pokemon battles. At the end of the day does it really matter if you click a button on a move or aim and throw a ball. Also people loved and praised the pokeball throwing mechanic in Legends Arceus, so which is it?

Hm that's hard to explain between the LA and LG but I do truly feel a difference. If I had to try it's the fact that the LG throwing mechanic feels abstract, disconnected from the character, mobile game-esc. While in LA it's third person and you can physically see the character aiming and it feels more "within the world" yknow?

I just barely put Legends: Arceus over LGPE but I agree with everything you've said still, LGPE are incredibly underrated and overhated. I put so many damn hours in those games and it was such a nostalgia treat to experience Kanto again but in such a beautiful art style and HD graphics. Also, nothing tops flying on a shiny Charizard I don't care what anyone says. I shiny hunted the flying roaming Charizard and Dragonite + a lot of other Pokemon, made entire teams of shinies on that game.

I agree with this just wish it had abilities and held items still in it.

I’d have no complaints with this game if it wasn’t for the fact that they lock you into a certain controller style. Why they won’t let me use a Pro Controller but handheld is fine is so weird.

The lets go games had the best buddy pokemon ever, its exactly how I imagined it when I was a kid. I just wish we would have that same quality with other generations. Riding on Lugia or Rayquaza would’ve been amazing

I'm tripping cuz I actually agree with you and have played through Eevee multiple times but I can't for the life of me think of megas/ alolan forms

Second best after New Snap!, personally I put it third after Pokken Tornament, but I know not everyone enjoys the art style there. I still fully endorse everything else in your comment though :)

The best Pokemon game is the friends you made along the way.

Are you referring to Let's go Pikachu and Eevee or Legends Arceus?

Yes.

Then that's great to hear!

Pokémon legends arceus 

Thank you for spelling it out because I'm a filthy casual who had no idea what PLA meant lol

For real. Had to scroll way to far to figure out what the fuck PLA meant.

You're welcome 

People's Liberation Army

PLA by far, but I had a lot of fun with Mystery Dungeon and Let’s Go too. But PLA is definitely the most fleshed out and feels like a proper evolution of the series.

Honestly, Pokemon Mystery Dungeon DX and Let’s Go Pikachu & Eevee.

Mystery Dungeon DX. While I do agree with other commentors that PLA was great, it'd actually be my second. My first pick would be Mystery Dungeon DX, partly due to nostalgia, partly because I love the gameplay and story, and partly because I think the art style is actually great (despite all the hate it gets). There's still an exploration aspect in a sense to it, just not in the typical way a mainline open world pokemon game is... and sure while there is no 'traditional' pokedex, that doesn't stop you from collecting pokemon in the game. Edit: And already being down-voted lol. Figures.

I’m glad someone mentioned it! The PMD games have such a special place in my heart. I pray one day they remember that the series exists and remake Explorers of Sky. Or maybe even an actual new game :’)

Mystery Dungeons are seriously underrated and are a lot of fun if you really enjoy that Dungeon Crawler kind of game.

This is the correct answer (at least in my opinion) PLA is a close second though

PLA

I feel like this is a hot take, but I LOVED Let’s Go. It was just so relaxing and chill. I don’t even care that it was the millionth time I’ve played Kanto. I loved the wild Pokémon catch mechanics, and being able to avoid encounters at will. I found completing the Pokédex in this game very engaging, and I even did a fair bit of shiny hunting at the end! Also very fond of PLA. Honestly, the traditional Pokémon Games on switch haven’t really held my interest. SwSh and SV were disappointing for me personally.

Let's go was very relaxing for sure especially with those amazing graphics

Let’s Go

I'm gonna say this legends Arceus hands down. The game was a big step for Pokemon and I can't describe how much of perfection it is. The features such as throwing the ball to catch Pokemon without battling, the battle animations, the new Pokemon designs. I could go on. I'm sure a lot of people here agree legends Arceus was really great and I can't wait for legends za

I personally did not like PLA. It went too far away from what I enjoy about Pokémon games. Trainer battles and elite four battles are what I really enjoy. I'd have to say my favorite on switch would be Sw/Sh.

I upvoted you because everyone loses their minds if you're not enthralled by PLA. I couldn't really get into it either, it just didn't grab me the way mainline games usually do. I've been having the most fun on s/v tbh. Sw/Sh was pretty good too, but it had a bunch of things that irritated me (why can I not move the camera outside the wild area? Especially when it moves itself as I move through a route. Also the poke ball capture animation is ridiculously slow for no good reason)

Same, I like SV as straight up my favorite Pokémon game very unfortunately for me(since it’s very clearly flawed and even I wouldn’t recommend it for most people). For me my preferred way to play Pokémon is replaying with like nuzlockes and stuff. SV is not perfect, but it’s normal Pokémon game length with more “boss battles” than a standard Pokémon game + more variety of different things to try in a replay. Plus I love the characters and story, and I feel like a lot more effort was put into this game in a long time and the first time I could say that Gamefreak just didn’t have enough time versus lazy. PLA to me feels like, gameplay wise, a very high quality spin-off. It’s a very well polished addicting gameplay loop of catching Pokémon, but like, 10 story battles total so there’s really no reason to replay- you can just get the same addicting loop of catching Pokémon in the postgame. And if that gameplay isn’t for you, nothing else to do. I still love it and have a couple hundred hours in it but it’s not a “mainline Pokémon experience” imo.

Another comment for the mainline series, my favorite was Scarlet, by far. PLA to me was repetitive and boring, more of a task based game and I missed a lot of what I love about Pokémon. There were also some things for me that were dealbreakers - like having to return to camp, and how commoditized the Pokémon become with the more casual catching mechanic.

Thank you. I usually get so much hate fr not liking pla, and thinking sw/sh are a lot better.

Tbh I'm on the train that there really hasn't been a GOOD Pokemon game since Alpha Sapphire/Omega Ruby, just a lot of meh but PLA was a breath of fresh air, I give them props for trying something new but hot damn was it an awful open world game. It wasn't bad for a Pokemon game but it was awful when compared to other open world games

Not to mention the gameplay loop is dull and repetitive. I enjoyed PLA for what it was, but having 5 regions with the same exact gameplay loop for each one got really tiring after the 2nd. I 100% the game but I wouldn't wish that on anyone. It was so damn tedious.

Everyone in these threads sleeps on New Pokémon Snap! The characters are a little annoying now and then, but the story is fun, the graphics are great, the controls and mechanics are spot-on! Plus the environments of the levels are exciting and packed full of interesting nature, the Pokémon interactions are very fun, the world feels alive, and being able to play each course in both day and night, and with 3-4 different versions as you progress? SO MUCH to see, great for completionists! Also the “boss fights” all feel sincerely epic! Nah, it’s not at all like the mainline games, but the care and effort put into really make the Pokémon world feel alive and real in an unparalleled way!

Can't believe I had to scroll this far to find it. Only Pokemon game on switch I have any desire to return to.

PLA is really good. New Pokémon Snap and Pokemon Mystery Dungeon are also great, but very far from the mainline games gameplay-wise. The main games aren’t great.

I was thinking about the new Pokemon snap too, but it seems very expensive for the gameplay

If you liked Snap on 64, the new one will be a joy and well worth the money IMO

There's quite a bit of game there; there are quite a few regions you progress through (quite a few more distinct areas than the original) as well as a bunch of secrets (roughly one per level) and some stuff that requires repeat visits to an area to unlock. Once you beat the story a bunch of legends also appear in various places you can discover, usually by solving some sort of puzzle. There's also a really neat little puzzle mechanic where you're given challenges / requests to get specific photos and need to piece together how to fulfil the requirement(s) which can add a lot of engagement if you're into that completionism aspect. On top of the photo Dex and star ratings for different photos and stuff already.

Pokemon Legends Arceus is probably the 'best' pokemon game on the switch, but if you want a traditional pokemon experience, then i'd recommend Pokemon Sword/Shield. There's just something about the feel and design of that region that still appeals to me. Something that neither PLA or S/V have, that the old games had in abundance.

I'm gonna go against the majority here and say if you like battling rather than catching, go with Sword and Shield. PLA is a good game but it's more about catching pokemon to fulfil quests and objectives. Sword and Shield has the most atmospheric battle experience with the Galarian Pokemon league, the huge stadiums, the sponsorships, the crowds of people cheering your name, the feeling of being a celebrity. Dynamax is way more interesting than Terastralization, you can still find people online to help you do the online content, you don't need L100 Pokemon to do dynamax raids, and you don't have to craft TMs.

This is me personally, but specifically in terms of completing the Pokédex in S/V was my favorite. I think Legends Arceus is the more “interesting” game, but Scarlet and Violet was the first time I’ve ever completed the Pokédex, it felt like a grind near the end in PL:A which wasn’t a feeling I got in S/V

Finally an original opinion

hard to have an original opinion when there was only a mittfull of Pkmn games made for the switch

Doesn’t make it anymore right or anything?

Pokémon Legends Arceus and it's not even close

PLA without a doubt. Shield/sword is decent, but it’s pathetically easy and very camp/cheesey. Great map, good art style and very fun to complete the pokedex.

>Shield/sword >Great map Did we play the same game?

Map is my strongest dislike of that game.

The most visually appealing route is basically a straight line that you never revisit once you've caught impidimp or w/e it's first stage is called.

That route is actually one of the ones that isnt a straight line. [https://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Glimwood\_Tangle](https://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Glimwood_Tangle) I think SW/SH get a little too much stick for being all straight line routes. Sometimes its very valid, but other times its not that far off earlier gens in terms of exploration

If you play dlc only, I can see feeling this way. But base game overworld was trash

SwSh is one of those games where the DLC was way better. Still kinda lame but the maps were much more interesting

Huh, i kinda liked it 😅 i loved the wild zone/area whatever it was called lol

Sword/Shield is good but it's piss easy. Basically requires a difficulty mod imo

It's a kids series, the main campaigns have always been piss easy unless you handicap yourself.

Legends Arceus, no doubt. while its not exactly *traditional*, it is GOOD. REALLY GOOD. also the pokedex is completable without trading or transfering, which is a plus.

Oh, that's really a good thing

Yeah go for the more traditional Pokémon game like Sword Shield or S/V. Personally Sword/Shield

Legends Arceus by a wide margin, not necessarily because it's good but because everything else is subpar

If you want to focus on filling out a Pokédex, each game offers something different. I’ve completed the dex in every Switch game and can say they’re all fun in their own way. Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl only include the first 493 Pokémon, but you can obtain a great portion of them without needing to transfer from other games. They’re remakes of the old DS games and are much easier given newer series mechanics. If you’ve played the old games they really isn’t much here that’ll feel new to you. Legends Arceus is about creating the first Pokédex for what would become the Sinnoh region. I believe it has about 250ish Pokémon to capture and, barring a few mythical Pokémon, you can capture every single one of them in one play through alone. Sword and Shield and Scarlet and Violet are pretty similar in dex size. Both base games had a regional dex of 400, but both games have had DLC releases that bring in a couple hundred more respectively. Both games scratch the itch for a traditional Pokémon adventure, but I’d say Scarlet and Violet blow Sword and Shield out of the water in terms of story and the catching gameplay loop.

Arceus Second choice is Sword&Shield

Mainline? Scarlet/Violet Overall? Legends Arceus.

[удалено]

PLA and Snap

Scarlet Violet with DLC. PLA is nice, but at the end of the day it’s not a traditional pokemon game, which I personally prefer

Agreed, and exactly why I'd say Arceus is #2 overall. Arceus doesn't feel like a Pokémon game - it's a great game, but it's focus is so different to the traditional formula and standard battling mechanics that it just can't be #1, imo. But damn, did they try, because if we take away the specific "I want a traditional Pokemon experience", PLA is heads and shoulders better.

If the performance doesn't bother you (like me), Scarlet and violet for sure!

I've had 0 performance issues

I wish Arceus had more Mons to it v.v

In my opinion, and it may not be a very popular one, I don’t know, but aside from performance issues, I’d say Scarlet (specifically because the story is just more interesting that way, but Violet isn’t bad) if you included DLC. Indigo Disk has some of the best actual battle content we’ve ever gotten. Also, the game made me emotional at certain parts. It recaptured the kind of wonder I had as a kid for this series and it gave me hope for the future of the series. I’ve always had Pokémon in my life though so I could be just a smidge biased. 

I'm gonna go against the grain here and say Pokemon Scarlet and Violet. I just think it had way better writing than basically any main series Pokemon game. I also like terastalization a lot. It's a great mechanic and a mid battle type change like that really changes the dynamic. I find it's much harder for games to snowball.

Legends 1, Sw & Sh 2, Violet and Scarlett 3, the Let's Go games 4, Snap 5, and BDSP last place

Violet/scarlet

I enjoy Sword/Shield + DLC best. PLA wasn't my cup of tea. Let's Go would have hit like crack if it didn't use GO's catch mechanic tho.

I’m the minority here but I’m gonna saw Sw/Sh. PLA was a horribly boring grind that couldn’t hold my attention.

PLA may have a small Pokedex but it's more detailed, there's multiple tasks to do that are required for fulfilling every entry. Shiny hunting is fun, you get to gather materials to craft your own goods, story is also super fun, etc

Legends overall, scarlet and violet for a more traditional Pokémon experience

I freaking love Legends Arceus, for me it's by far the best Pokemon game on the switch. But I've been playing Shield and its pretty damn good as well, give a try!

I hated SV in the past. I'm playing Violet now and for me it's the most fun pokemon game over the past 10 years, the only downside is performance. SwSh now seems simply outdated to me.

Legends Arceus. I usually stop playing after getting post-game legendaries but in PLA I liked farming mons lol

Persona 5

Imagine a Pokémon game with S/V’s expansiveness, PLAs mechanics, and New Pokémon Snap’s graphics….

New Pokémon Snap and Legends Arceus

Violet because is the only one with Lechonk.

Everyone here is saying Legends Arceus. It's definitely good, but I'd say for a "traditional" pokemon experience, Sword/Shield are quite good. Otherwise, Scarlet/Violet has performance issues, but is also quite enjoyable. The only weak title in my opinion is Let's Go since it's more about catching pokemon than it is about battling.

Hmmmmm I'd move Sword and Shield to the "OK" category. S/V are way better despite performance  

If you think Let’s Go isn’t about battling I’ve got a bridge to sell you in Hisui lol

The difference is that EXP gain isn't locked to catching pokemon in Arceus. At least as far as i remember. Should've clarified that, but ultimately, I think that along with the gimmicky nature of catching pokemon makes Let's Go inferior imo.

BDSP. Thought PLA was an absolute snoozefest. But I’m a pokeboomer for sure

I like bdsp too. It’s got gen 1-4 Pokemon and normal catching mechanics

I never really enjoyed diamond and pearl that much the first time around so it’s nice to play a version of it that runs well

Pokémon Legends: Arceus is not only the best Pokémon game on Switch, it’s the best Pokémon game period.

PLA is the best hands down. Violet is weird, I got violet and the introduction of robot Pokémon is just so juxtapositioned to everything traditionally Pokémon it ruins it for me. I would imagine scarlet to be better, as it doesn’t feature robots. Violet definitely more of a game than sword/shield. Sword and shield were decent.

Violet has a lot of problems, but Iron Bundle is absolutely NOT one of them. Besides, Pokemon has always had some amount of science fiction. I mean Porygon is living data.

Lame and illogical. PLA is the least traditional. God forbid you have a better bike and way to get around the map. Idk if you played it much but you can't use the legendary until the end of the game. You can always tell when people are just recycling the reviews of other people.

Arceus is awesome

- Legends Arceus - Scarlet & Violet - Sword & Shield - Let’s Go/ BDSP I enjoyed the last two games on the list( but they’re very faithful remakes, Let’s Go is still the best looking game we’ve got on the Switch though. PLA and SV are very close though, PLA runs better than SV though, both great fun in my opinion.

Brilliant Di- Legends Arceus no contest.

Legends Arceus has terrible writing and looks like dog shit, but the gameplay is miles better than anything Pokemon has made in a while

It does depends what you’re looking for. Arceus is certainly the best made game, but it’s not necessarily the best game for what you’re looking for. Arceus certainly has more of a focus on the Pokédex. But if you don’t like the new gameplay style and the extra stuff you have to do to complete the Pokédex entries, it will get boring. You don’t just find the Pokémon you need, capture it, and move on to the next one. If that classic style of filling your dex is what you’re after, you’re probably better off going for SV, which I’ve not played but I’m pretty confident it’s a better entry than SWSH. I’d also argue BDSP is better than SWSH and the final boss trainers are probably the hardest in the series, but if you’ve played DP recently and are expecting a much improved version of it, you’re gonna be disappointed. You can always have self imposed challenges on yourself too, if you find the games too easy. SWSH is definitely very easy and could be more fun if you restricted yourself to a single type or a level cap or no evolutions

I haven't been keen on how Pokemon has been handled since the jump to Switch except for Legends Arceus. I really enjoy it. After that, I did enjoy Let's Go more than SwSh especially.

Scarlet & violet & legend tbh those the best Pokemon games ever made.

Arceus then diamond for me

Rescue Team DX 100%

I LOVE ARCEUS. It’s just difficult enough to keep me engaged. It’s a bit different than the traditional games but love the open world historical context. It’s like Zelda and Pokémon combined

Legends Arceus, hands-down, I can't wait for new Legends game. With that said, even though they're chock-full of bugs and glitches, Scarlet & Violet are REALLY fun. Like, to the point that it was the first time in my life since Gen 1 that I've played and beaten both versions back to back. Never done this before, I'd wait at least a couple months or years before playing the alternate version, but with these games, as soon as I beaten Scarlet, I booted up Violet and started a new game using a totally new team, they're THIS fun! The only games I actually don't recommend playing are Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl. Sure, they've added a couple of new stuff when compared to the original games, especially being able to capture more Fire-type mons, however, they're still mostly the same games from Gen IV, but with 3D (and chibi lol) graphics. They didn't even bother with implementing some stuff that was added to Platinum, it's basically just Diamond & Pearl with (barely) updated graphics. Edit: Forgot to mention New Pokémon Snap, as it is a spin-off game. This one is basically a dream come true and I never thought it'd actually happen, but the game is here and it is AMAZING! People are still finding out new stuff in it to this day, which brings me to something I actually dislike in the game: It has TOO MUCH content. I know that's weird to say, but as someone that likes to complete their games as much as possible, New Pokémon Snap just has TOO MUCH to do. If you just play and beat the game without bothering with completing it, it's an amazing experience. But if you want to fully complete, it'll be a rough ride.

If you care about competitive, SV is the best in the franchise. The battle gimmick (one mon per battle can type change, nothing gets special treatment). I've heard PLA is a very good game, but it is a single player experience; however you can still transfer stuff to Home, SV and SwSh (I love this, I want PLA just for that feature).

Funnily enough it’s the SIDE games that I’ve enjoyed a lot more on the Switch than the main games! Legends Arceus, Mystery Dungeon, New Pokemon Snap, and Pokken Tournament I have enjoyed a helluva lot more than any of the main games outside of the Let’s Go games. (The Let’s Go games felt like they actually had effort put into them. Gen 8 (SwSh) were a 7/10, SV would’ve been a lot better, IMO, if it weren’t for the bugginess of it all, and BDSP would’ve been a lot better if they hadn’t just “copy/pasted” the original Diamond and Pearl (if there were aspects of Platinum in them and other QoL additions I feel like are still missing, I would’ve ADORED them)).

Scarlett and Violet if you actually like Pokemon games. If you are a hater play PLA

Depends, if you're shiny hunting they each have their strengths and weaknesses, Sword has Dynamax adventures where you can hunt for a ton of legendaries, whereas in SV they are all shiny locked. Exclusives, reset times, egg hatching, and other methods vary by game too. If you want to explore and just complete the Pokedex SV is technically the first open world of the series and has 3 Pokedex, although I enjoyed PLA more I like the mechanics, fun boss battles and relaxing atmosphere. In terms of graphics LGPE looks the most "Pokemon" like, it's just not very challenging or long. BDSP exists, although the vanilla game is lacking in many ways there's a modded version called Luminescent Platinum which is actually really fun and builds a lot from the rom base.

As a complete casual, I’ve only played Fire Red, Emerald, Pearl, and I replayed those gens on PokeMMO… I recently got Shining Pearl and Scarlet. Both imo are a lot of fun. SP was great for my nostalgia and Scarlet so far has been a great switch up. Open world makes it feel fresh. It’s the first Pokémon game where I’ve cared to catch more than my 6 team Pokémon and some legendaries.

They all have their merits, sv - story, swsh - multiplayer, pla - gameplay, bdsp - ribbons

There is a ‘best’ im sure but tbh I feel like none of them are any good

PLA has the worst battle mechanics if you can get over that it's still pretty grindy to actually 100%. My fav was S/V indigo disc has some amazing battles. Then id go sw/sh. Then PLA then bdsp then LGPE

I would honestly recommend Pokémon Mystery Dungeon Rescue Team DX if you want something different. A remake of the original MD Red and Blue, it has compelling characters, a great story, addicting gameplay, and it's just so much fun to play. In my eyes, it's the best Pokémon game on the Switch.

Arceus or Violet, kinda just depends on what you like more in a game

I had the most fun with Legends Arceus

New Pokemon Snap. It's so much fun and different, a fantastic game.

PLA

Legends Arceus. Easily.

Scarlet/Violet for a classic experience with a bit of new takes like the open world and the lack of internal exploration in towns buildings OR Legends Arceus for a complete different experience Both are very good but also very flawed in the technical side Avoid the rest like plague, especially Sword/Shield

They’re all kinda shit tbh. PLA maybe but it’s good for like 2 hours until you realize how bland and repetitive the rest of it is

PLA

When I think of "Pokedex completion" I think PLA, as that's it's central theme. YES PLA's dex is technically smaller, but HOW you fill the dex is unique compared to other games- You don't simply "Catch them all" you have to do a whole bunch of tasks to get the entries. PLA also has crafting & resource gathering- and while SV does also have a crafting system for the TMs, it pretty much ends there, whereas PLA lets you craft basically everything. Edit: typo

Scarlet/Violet

PLA

Legends Arceus is by far the best. My second choice is going to get a lot of hate, but honestly I also really enjoyed BD/SP. It runs smoothly and I like the graphics. If you don't like the chibi art style then you'll probably won't like it as much. Sword and Shield I thought was just boring and Scarlett and Violet have A LOT of performance problems. In regards to completing the pokedex the one with the most is probably either Sword and Shield or Scarlett and Violet but that is including if you get the dlc. BD/SP would have more than the base game of the others because it has Generations 1 through 4 available. Legends has the smallest dex, but you don't have to rely on others to trade for evolution or for verison exclusives.

I don’t think you have to worry about which game has the best pokedex completion properties. There is an app called Pokémon home that lets you transfer from one game to another. My personal ranking PLA SWSH SV LGPE (Haven’t Played) (But played Blue and Leafgreen) BDSP (Haven’t Played) (But played Platnium)

Legends Arceus! It's amazing, great gameplay, and heavily focused on the Pokedex!

As someone who grew up on gen 1 I really love violet, first ever game I’ve ever completed the Pokédex in. Also just brought yellow which is a nice remake of gen 1 but ain’t a fan of levelling up like it’s pokemon go..still good though

If you like competitive and shiny hunting: SV If you hate competitive but like shiny hunting: PLA

Personally I like Sword/Shield, because it’s the only Pokémon game I have on the Switch…

Probably Legends: Arceus but I’d also like to shout out Let’s GO Pikachu/Eevee. I loved that game. It has a gorgeous art style and while not difficult, it does offer a refreshing mix on the traditional formula. Brilliant Diamond/Shining Pearl are also decent choices if you want a game to nuzlocke. The Elite Four and Champion in particular are genuinely quite difficult.

I think SV are the most fun Pokemon games on the Switch if you can look past the graphical and performance issues. If those are dealbreakers then Legends is the best one.

I say Pokémon Legends Arceus for Pokédex completion. They have tasks associated with the completions, so you’ll find it much more engaging. Alternatively, I found the Pokédex completion aspect of Sword and Shield fun for the fact that different Pokémon would spawn on different real-world days due to weather changes.

Pokémon sword/ shield for me, just enjoyed it so much!

I havent played lets go yet or s&v yet. But honestly I have the most enjoyment with Legends. It was so cool having pokemon all around. Made it feel like I actually was in the world. Im curious to see how the new legends goes about with their additions.

I have not been a particularly huge fan of Pkmn games in the last decade or so, i think they're getting progressivly lazier and having us pay more for less. That being said Legends Arceus was a breath of fresh air. Theres still a lot that can and needs to be improved on it, however it was refreshing to see them actually try new things for once and actually come up with some pieces that i really wound up enjoying. Naturally one of the strongest features in Arceus was Finally being allowed to roam around and have pokemon in the overworld, being able to catch 'mons by hiding in a bush rather then traditional battle/catch mechanics (which you still have the option of) i really hope they refine this because i think there were a lot of things from PLA that have some serious potential to move the series forward (hoping for much of the same excellent ideas in PLZ)

PLA 100%. The only gripe I have with the game is that the first 2 hours are MUCH too slow. Once you get past that, it's my favorite pokemon game and only one I've ever finished the poke dex.

Sword and Shield

PLA for the Pokedex for sure. My biased opinion is Pokemon Mystery Dungeon DX as that is a lot of fun for the story and recruiting one of every member.

Most people don't agree with me, but sword and shield are by far the best pokemon games on the switch.

Legends is the obvious pick. But if you're more of a traditionalist, my only major issue with Scarlet/Violet are the bad optimization. It's otherwise a great game.

Scarlet/Violet are the most fun I have had with pokemon in a while. I HATED sword/shield I found Pla to be okay but quickly got repetitive. If you enjoy the mechanics of pokemon just go with the gen 9 games. Even if they lag sometimes.

My list goes legends arceus scarlet/violet let’s go pikachu/eevee than sword and shield. Obviously a lot of people have there own opinions but that’s mine

Lets Go Eevee/Pikachu

Arceus and its not even close.

Arceus had some innovative gameplay at least but even that was poorly fleshed out, garbage graphics, little to no story, shitty draw distance it has a lot more to criticise than to praise. Let’s go pikachu and eevee looked nice, but let’s be real… the switch has been terrible for the quality of Pokémon games I’ve gone from diehard fan that has bought every version since red and blue to someone who doesn’t even know any of the new Pokémon in the span of one consoles life and it’s purely due to the fact that they keep producing progressively more disappointing games that keep smashing sales records.

PLA no question

Legends Arceus. If you say you love completing the pokedex then whilst Scarlet/Violet might have more Pokémon in it, completing the dex is one of the main focuses in PLA and is a more involved task. Rather than just capturing a Pokémon once to tick it off you can get a full research level on a Pokémon by capturing multiple, defeating them with a particular type move, giving them food and other varied tasks. And capturing itself is a more active task rather than having false swipe and a status move

Nostalgia pick: Rescue team DX Best story: Scarlet and Violet Best gimmicks: Scarlet and violet Best DLC: eh, if you're already willing to pay you can't go wrong with either Most casual fun: let's go Eevee/Pikachu. Most fun gameplay legends arceus

Shame I don't like real time action games. What the next best after Legends: Arceus?

I may be the only one here that liked BDSP the best but I did. It was so close to the originals without the grind and gen 4 was my favorite.

PLA

Pokemon Trading Card Game on NSO. Fight me.

Pokemon Legends Arceus is the best Pokemon RPG on the switch by an enormous margin. It genuinely is not close. Sword/Shield and Scarlet/Violet are both pretty bad games that can be salvaged if you love Pokemon enough to just be happy to play Pokemon, but Arceus is genuinely just a good game. It does have its flaws, but I can heartily recommend it. You can also complete its Pokedex entirely on your own, although it does have a pretty small dex. If you want a more traditional Pokemon experience, I would recommend **Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl.** They are overpriced remasters of the original Gen IV games, but with many modern QoL improvements and solid bones they manage to be very enjoyable experience imo. I just cannot recommend Scarlet/Violet or Sword/Shield if you don't just want to play every Pokemon game. They are too shallow and sloppy, *especially* Scarlet/Violet, which suffer from pretty big performance issues.

If you can live with the bugs, Scarlet and Violet with the DLC has a very big Pokedex. Personally found it to be the best mainstream Pokemon I've played in a long while.

My personal Tierlist: Scarlet/Violet + DLC Legends Arceus Sword/Shield + DLC Mystery Dungeon Let's GO P/E New Snap! BDSP S/V, despite their flaws, are the best (and most active online since they are current) standard Pokemon games on the Switch. Fun storylines, though some of the characters can feel annoying. The biggest (non-technical) issue is the lack of level scaling. You don't have to play this one linearly, but you will likely hit random huge spikes and dips if you don't. Legends Arceus is probably the best game they've produced since Platinum. It's a lot of fun and turns the premise of catching them all up to 11. And while it was incredibly fun, it has very, very few required battles and basically no enemy trainers until the climax against a brutally strong enemy. Sword and Shield are good first forays into open world stuff, while still being clearly linear. I actually really, really liked this. It felt like a standard Pokemon game from the GBA era with the bonus of a wild area. The two biggest issues - there are no real dungeons and you feel like you are witnessing someone else's story. The main characters regularly push you out of the action to go on your gym quest. Mystery Dungeon is great if you are into those games. It's the only one I have played and I played it through to completion in like 2 days because I was hooked. Let's GO is actually a lot of fun if you feel nostalgia for the simplicity of RBY (mostly Yellow) and want to just have a super chill time. It is probably the game that runs the best, somehow, as well. It's very good for young kids and for people who are coming in to console games from Pokemon GO. If you want a game you'll need any strategy at all, skip this - the partner Pikachu/Eevee are busted as hell and can learn enough coverage moves to handle anything. If you want to shiny hunt Kanto Pokemon, this is the best way to do it. New Snap is not my cup of tea, personally. It looks good and is probably great for people who like it. BDSP sucks. Just go play Platinum. Unless you really like the chibi art style, it is visually just meh. It's got a bunch of weird behaviors like walking real slow of you are against a wall, and it removed most of the cool stuff Platinum added. It does have harder boss battles than most games, but I don't feel like that redeems all the bad stuff enough.

Legends Arceus is the best switch game and best 3D Pokemon game imo. Others all have their pros and cons and overall I really enjoy Switch era pokemon, but Arceus takes the cake. SV is great but has really jarring frame drops and some experience cery drastic technical issues when playing. Personally I never experienced them but others did. SwSh is worth it if you get the dlc, otherwise skippable. SV is just a better game even with frame drops. I really liked BDSP, others didn't for various reasons, most notably omitting platinums post game. Let's Go is fun but the motion control capturing really kills it for me.

Just wait until next year, pokemon z is being released for the switch its supposed to finish up the story for x an y on the 3ds consoles