Pokémon Moon - Nintendo 3DS

Great game. I spent over a hundred hours as of the release of the game in November. It took a lot of mechanics including moves attack power and leveling up ways and made them a little different. There are multiple ways to level your Pokemon, encounters are different as well, and it feels a little fresher. I had a lot of fun. A downside is how childish it can be. Dont get me wrong, I know the target audience is children but I personally grew up with the game and one day want to see something new. I cant wait to see what Nintendo comes up with next.

I started playing Pokemon when I first picked up Red and Blue as a kid. I played every game, but Black(2) and White(2), and I have to say, that Sun and Moon are by far the best in the series to me. People complain about the hand-holding in this generation but truthfully, as a long-time fan, I love it. I love the fact that the attack menus during battles show me exactly what attacks are effective without having to memorize all the type matchups. I love that I can see just how deduffed my Pokemon are, and from what, during battle. I love my Rotom-Dex telling me where to go, rather than putting the game down for a couple weeks then getting completely lost when I come back. The lack of gyms is fantastic; having trials throughout the journey feels incredibly natural. Theyre part of the flow as you travel across Alola. The story is actually interesting and involved, rather than an afterthought like in most of the previous games. Some of the Alolan Pokemon may seem odd at first, but they all have a certain charm that reels you in. Poke Pelagos islands are an interesting way to get money, evolution items, and beans to feed your Pokemon. The Festival Plaza is fun because its not just a trading hub, but minigames as well. Trainer customization is at an all-time high... I can go on and on about everything I love about this generation. The gist is, I feel like Sun and Moon are fantastic for both new players and old fans alike. You can play just to complete the story, or you can Wondertrade/battle online. You can head to the Battle Tree, or breed Pokemon and shiny hunt. If youre new to the series, this is where to start. Sun and Moon will get you up to speed on everything you need to know, so you can go back to the older generations and be a pro trainer. If youre an longtime player, these games get rid of a lot of headache that the previous ones had. Quality of life is much, much better.

I have not been a fan of any of the Pokémon games that came out after platinum but this one is really great. THE GOOD: The whole world is in a 3D view instead of a top down or mixed viewpoint. I think they did a really good job of implementing it because I hated it in xy. One of the things I hated about xy was all the new stupid Pokémon and the abscense of the original 150. However in this game the original Pokémon are abundant and I think they did a great job refreshing some of them with the aloa special looks. Having to complete challenges instead of gym matches is a refreshing mix up, and still decently challenging I never liked mega evolution. It just felt forced, and a little over powered. It really takes no place in this game and instead you get to use z powers which are a once per battle powerful attack of one specific type. I think this was a nice addition to the game, but still a little over powered THE BAD: I am playing on a new 3ds xl and have not had any issues but some of my friends with a regular 3ds xl have said that the game lags a bit in some of the bigger battles. Team skull is pretty cringey in the way they talk and try to act gangster. They dont really feel evil to me and just seem like a minor nuisance There are four islands and the entire first island is really just a giant tutorial All of the avatars are super feminine. As a guy I would prefer if I could make a guy that looked at least somewhat like a guy You dont really have a rival, your opponent chooses the starter weak to yours and is never really any trouble to defeat

Pokemon Moon is the first Pokemon game that ever took me more than a week to beat. And no, its not because Pokemon Moon is difficult. The reason it took me over a month to beat Pokemon Moon is because it is boring. I could barely play over an hour of it at a time. My excitement was quickly dashed after starting up the game for the first time. Thirty minutes of cutscenes later, and I still wasnt on my pokemon journey. People seem to love bashing the Gen VI games but if theres one thing those games did correctly, it was the short introductions. Pokemon XY barely had a tutorial section; I was catching Pokemon only ten minutes after popping in the cartridge. And I understand that tutorials are essential. Ive been playing Pokemon since Gen I so I know how to play the games. Someone just entering the Pokemon series might find the tutorials useful. However, we arent talking about a massive open world rpg. Its Pokemon, guys. Just demonstrate to the player how a basic battle works and how to catch wild Pokemon. Pokemon Gold and Silver did that in under ten minutes so can anyone tell me why 16 years later in Gen VII it takes over half an hour? The very least they could have done was to make the cutscenes skippable. You think its just the introduction, right? Nope. The game is cluttered with them. I swear I spent more time reading through all those cutscenes than I did exploring the various Islands. Not that there is much to explore, however. Pokemon Sun / Moon are not the games you were promised. 1) Exploration Although no Pokemon game is really non-linear, never before have I truly felt confined to a corridor than I have been in Moon (or FFXIII, take your pick). The novelty of having multiple islands to explore quickly dissipates as you realize that almost all of the routes feel exactly the same. Much of this can be attributed to the lack of the variety of Pokemon. A lot of the same Pokemon will keep sprouting up across all of the islands, taking away any uniqueness or sense of discovery. However, the routes themselves just arent particularly interesting. Most of them look the same, with the few trainers littered throughout being the only way to distinguish one route from the next. 2) Festival Plaza I cant even begin to guess why this exists. What was wrong with the PSS from Gen VI? Why did they replace that with this? Festival Plaza is one great big mess, a convoluted manner in which to connect players that totally breaks any immersion and fun because of how obnoxious and tedious it is. 3) Trials and their Captains After hearing about the decision to remove the classic Gym Battle system, many people were excited to find out what the trials of Sun and Moon would be. I myself was quite intrigued as I wondered what they implemented. Trials and their Captains were meant to spice things up, offering a new way of growing stronger as opposed to the previously established Gyms. However, different isnt always better. Instead of gym puzzles, gym trainers, and gym leaders, Gen VII offers a tedious activity coupled with a battle against a Wild (though powered-up) Pokemon. After the first two trials, it becomes clear that the concept was not properly hashed out. Most of the trials end up feeling just like gym battles anyway (Looking at you, Acerola >_>) so its a lackluster experience. 4) Rivals A lot of people wish for a classic Rival, akin to Blue or Silver. Someone cold, rude, derisive, and powerful with maybe a superiority complex sprinkled on top. After the lackluster comedic Rivals of Gen IV and Gen VI, most people felt tired of the lack of competition. Seriously...does anyone remember Barry? Or the XY Trio? They were among the most useless of characters in their games and pathetically weak as well. However, I guess there are people out there who appreciated them, though how anyone can like a character like Tierno is beyond my capacity of understanding. So in a spineless attempt to please both crowds, they included two Rivals in Sun and Moon. Hau, the happy-go-lucky native who barges into the story whenever he feels like it, is the goofy comedy relief Rival who never poses any threat to you or your ambitions. This is clearly outlined in the first hour of the game, when Hau, your RIVAL, does the opposite of all other Rivals in Pokemon games, and selects the Pokemon with a weakness to yours. Throughout the game, he is obnoxiously cheerful and never changes or develops as a character. He is just as useless by the end of the game as he is in the beginning and youll groan out loud every time he appears on screen. On the other hand, we have Gladion. Unlike Hau, he is an aloof and calculating individual who believes in individual strength. I really dont have anything bad to say about Gladion. Hes obviously a throwback to Silver, the Rival from Gen II, but theres nothing inherently wrong about that. Out of all the characters in this game, Gladion is written the best and his character actually experiences credible development throughout the game. Not to mention, his battle theme is INCREDIBLE! 5) Lillie Ugh...I cannot stand this character. Lillie, the little coward who cant do a single thing on her own, tags along with you for most of your journey through Alola. This wouldnt be an issue except that Lillie is one of the most aggravating and pointless characters of all time. Sun and Moon spend a lot of time (and a million cutscenes) trying to get you to love and adore her, as if shes the most precious, delicate flower in the world. However, after hearing Lillie tell me for the third time that she didnt enjoy watching Pokemon get hurt, I just couldnt find it in myself to care. Lillie is meant to be written as a selfless heroine trapped behind insecurities and trauma. However, the game doesnt do a good job of presenting her that way. Cutscenes of yelling Nebby! Get in the bag! and I wish I were more like you! are not nearly enough to build a character. Show, dont tell! Instead of telling us about how brave Lillie is or having all of the characters in the game compliment and praise her on her (non-existent) growth, show us that shes becoming more mature, more responsible, more courageous. When the climax of Lillies growth and transformation finally arrives, it just feels so forced and contrived. At no point was I ever convinced Lillie had developed one bit as a character. 6) Your Character (Protagonist: Sun and Moon) Protagonist Sun and Moon have absolutely no soul. With giant, wide open eyes, permanent smiles on their face, and strangely robotic walk cycles, Sun and Moon look and act like zombies. Compared to these two, Red is a rambunctious extrovert. Sun and Moon have no character. Most of this is Lillies fault. So much of the story is centered on her that it leaves little room for Sun and Moon to properly develop. You spend more time fulfilling favors for her, listening to her drone on and on about this or that, or saving her from another disaster than you do learning anything about yourself. 7) Team Skull While I have grown to love them, I can understand why some people dont care much for Team Skull. As an antagonistic group, Team Skull is laughably pathetic. When compared to Team Rocket, Team Aqua / Magma, Team Plasma, the rapping punk goons fall flat on their face. However, while I disliked them in the beginning, I am rather fond of them now. Their music is cool and the dialogue from their members are witty and funny. Its also incredibly hard to dislike their leader, Guzma. I think Team Skull is fine. Just dont take them too seriously and youll be okay. Overview Its not the worst game ever. Even a (relatively) bad Pokemon game is still better than 70% of games out there. Anyone who gives this game a 1/10 is a liar. However, I really must advise caution for long time Pokemon fans. Sun and Moon are not the games you think they are and you will most likely be disappointed by many of the unwelcome changes to the Pokemon formula. It is certainly different but change is not inherently good. Some things, like Ride Pokemon, are very good. No longer is there a need for HM Slaves. However, many other things are bad. With the repetitive nature of the game, annoying unskippable cutscenes, hit-or-miss music, boring / tedious trials, super linear gameplay, and so many plot convenieces, this is the worst Pokemon generation so far.

Im 24, and at the beginning there was a lot of hand-holding, which I hated. As the game progressed that went away, but be prepared for the first hour or two of game play to be clicking A. I got Sun for me and Moon for my boyfriend. We play together and it is a really fun game to enjoy with others. There are some Pokemon like Rockruff that evolve into something different depending on the game you have, so it is a good idea to plan out with a friend to each buy a different game so you can collect them all. Some additions to the game that I like: Easier maneuvering on the pokemon PC. You can now deposit, withdrawal, and move pokemon at the same time. The ability to ride different Pokemon. I also really like how it shows all the evolutions that you have, or dont have when you catch any Pokemon. Some additions I dont like: There is no 3D, which I think is ridiculous. I heard it was because they made it for other systems too, but I think that is unacceptable because I have a 3DS, so you better make it 3D capable.They also made it pretty immature and seemly for a very young audience, and at times things seem too easy, but luckily catching Pokemon seems to be more difficult as the game goes on. I am halfway through the game, but overall I love it, and would recommend it.

One of the best main series Pokemon games Ive ever played! I like how much love they put into the storyline and characters this rime around, and the new Pokemon are very good. They really stepped up their game since X and Y. There are also so many things you can do. Like side quests for extra money, looking for creatures for the Zygarde Cube, taking photos of Pokemon, and Poke Pelago. Some of the bigger changes, like the Trials instead of Gym Battles, and removal of HMs really lends to the culture of Alola, and the progression of Pokemon as a game. Z-Moves are a better addition than the Mega Evolutions and are incoporrated into the story and gameplay pretty well. Z-Moves also scale with the Pokemons stats. Customization has improved, too. My only greviances are that there should be more Alola Pokemon (because they are so good) and there are performance issues during battles that are not 1v1. But if you can get past that, then you are going to enjoy all that the Alola Region has to offer you.

If you love Pokemon you have to get this. I havent beaten it yet but this one sure does knock it out of the park. The cut-scenes alone are enough to sell the game The whole world is lively and full of Pokemon to interact with. Not only that you can ride Pokemon all over the towns and maps! Theres a lot to be excited about this game especially now that everything is build from the ground up on this one. No more mini characters and full sized characters that was really bothering me the last games. If you love Pokemon you will definitely love this one, Its the same game we knew to grow and love 20+ years ago!

The game came in a sealed package and works fine luckily, but it was the UAE World Edition when I specifically bought the US version

The ones that left a negative review probably didnt even know the big changes Pokemon Sun and Moon were going to make, so dont listen to them! This game is so fun to play, I played it for the whole day and never got bored. Although, I really bought this game because I thought Mega Evolutions were still there, and I wanted to build a Mega Audino team (Didnt have ORAS). They didnt state that there were no longer Mega Evolutions, but they did state other changes. Wish there was still Mega evolutions! Otherwise, this game is awesome! Still looking for an audino ;)

Pros: -Moons game clock is 12 hours apart from Sun, its night time in game if you play in the daylight -Totem Pokemon will keep calling for backup, learn to prioritize -No more grid movement, you get to move in a fluid 360 degrees -Lunala, and other version exclusives only exist in Moon -No more need for HM slaves! Cons: -Theres no more 3D, its only present in a small mini game -The battle A.I. flubs sometimes Overall Opinion: This is one of the best installments of Pokemon so far, there are many changes and new features that feel sleek and easy to play around with. If youre considering buying it, stop considering and do it already! You wont regret it.