I'm not super far into it, but I like the story thus far and I think it really cemented that these types of games work best where there is a structured, linear path to follow but allows for free roam. At least for me, anyway.
The thing I struggled with most in the original ScarVi was there was too much going on and no direction to take. They literally throw you to the wolves like "lol, here you go!" and while some people enjoy that, I super duper do not.
I know they were trying for a "mean rival" character but ffs can we stop with that shit??? It got old after Bede, and Bede was the perfect "mean rival" character.
Honestly I really liked Bede's stuff, you should ideally feel good about punching a mean rival in the face and want to hug them at the same time. They got that balance pretty well with Silver and Gladion too.
People complaining about the nice rivals are mean TBH, Hop and Nemona are some of the most interesting takes I've seen on the idea in a while. And legit even the XY gang could've been really cool if they'd been allowed to be actual characters instead of just allegories.
They just want a scapegoat to be mean back to. To use nasty slurs and be unjustifiably rude and mean to without catching fire because โoh but they started itโ.
I'd have killed to see Trevor rocking up post game with a full team of shinies because he finished his dex and got his shiny charm. Or Tierno inviting us to his premiere and telling us about how he's starting to get famous now, because it turned out his love of dancing made him a PERFECT entertainer in Contests and the regional equivalent of Pokestar Studios
Why in gods name would a game geared toward young children that promotes unity, partnership, and making cherished friends and longtime memories pander someone you constantly meet in your adventures being a dick that belittles and insults you?? Itโs fucking 2023 my dudes, that shit has stopped long ago.
I mean with Blue the implication was that him being an asshole and you ostensibly not being an asshole was why you kept winning when you met him, but yeah, we've, uh. We've done that.
Because they had ONE token character trait and that was their entire personality. It was so bland and boring and I wanted to throttle them every time they showed up.
I liked Hop a lot because he felt so relatable TBH. A genuinely gifted kid burdened/overshadowed with MASSIVE expectations, who struggled with failure, self-doubt, growing and experimenting as a person, and realizing maybe it's okay to not excel at what other people want him to do, his true interests lie elsewhere.
Exactly why I wanted more for them TBH. They represented different playstyles, and that was all they were ALLOWED to be. Give them more character depth and time to shine, let those styles come into their own.
Or if you abandon the allegories idea entirely, it could've easily just compressed the group into 2 characters TBH? Shayna-Tierno as your sweet friendly rival who loves all the fun features and gimmicks and just wants to have a good time, and Trevor-Calem/Serena as your serious rival who really loves the crunchy competitive stuff and keeps you on your toes.
I do agree that Hopโs growth relied very heavily on the PC character and you were kinda pushed into and forced to be the catalyst to his character arc but I still enjoyed him a lot. And I... hated team yell. ๐๐
I adored Marnie!!! Just loathed team yell. They served no purpose other than to be the roadblocks and โyou canโt do this yetโ obstacles. Take them out and the story barely changes.
I feel like Piers had a constant headache dealing with them, and yet was like "Man, if they manage to get Marnie to take the damn gym for me, this will all be worth it. Here's $500 to sort out your uniforms, makeup, and vuvuzelas, kids. Go harass someone else."
Yon and I share a lot of the same opinions so I won't repeat. But I will add that Marnie was also great because her brother is the best gym leader /shot
Infychu
: sheโs better than she was at the start but she still has these really mean, passive aggressive comments and traits that rub me the wrong way big time.
Constantly putting him down, lies to him for ????? reason, yells at and bosses him around, โRESPECT MAH AUTHORITAHโ, and does not take him seriously like, ever.
Especially re: Ogerpon. He is indeed obsessed with it and has this big โwoe is meโ moment when it prefers you (the PC) over him and the whole WINNER GETS TO TAKE IT AS THEIR PARTNER!!!!1 even when Ogerpon like... chose you.
No apologies except a forced one that derailed before it could actually happen, no effort to make things right with almost anyone, especially the baby bro, no change in shitty attitude except Yay Friendship Fixes Everything. Just "I guess I was being racist, LOL thanks for being nice about it."
Yeah, he started going off the rails. But it felt to me like he got pushed to the breaking point by getting fucked around with. A shitty look, but one that got laid on him.
Exactly, thatโs why I give him more leniency because he was jerked around so much and it just boiled over until he broke. It feels like he bottled up a LOT and it finally spilled over.
i also feel like there's something external that couuuld be playing a part?? like, we don't know, but Kieran directly influenced the Three coming back to life
Also I love how Kieran is the one driving the story, even if the siblings were meh to me. I canโt wait for the second dlc where Kieran goes off the rails
Oh yeah if you need exclusives from scarlet/violet I got them! Since thereโs three Pokรฉmon each in each game that you canโt get in the other (found this the hard way lmao)
Haha me neither thatโs why when friend told me where to find one mon I was like โIโve never seen it thereโ and so we compared notes and then looked online and yup one non Evo Pokรฉmon and one that evolves
It was mostly Leon's fault.And I dislike Leon far more out of the two.