Pokémon Best First Pokémon Game?

[Doo]

Hiii, so I’ve only played Pokémon Black/White on the DS as a child and I had no idea what I was doing, so I’m discounting that experience entirely. Pokemon seems like something I might enjoy, but there are just so many games i dont know where to start. Which one (on the switch) do people think would be best as an only Pokémon game?

 

[Mimi Cheems]

I really loved Sword and Shield. The week it came out, I had already had about 100 hours in it. I was unemployed, and out of school that year. I enjoyed it a ton! :>
It may not have the GREATEST story, but it's my favorite aside from all the ones you listed.

Let's Go Eevee/Pikachu may be great for you as well, since it's.. sort of a beginner Pokémon game..? At least in my experience with it ^^

 

[Suguri]

Let's Go Pikachu/Eevee. I heard they designed the game with new Pokémon players in mind. Haven't played much of it but customizing your partner Pokémon seems fun. You also catch Pokémon like in Pokémon GO, so there's that.

Now, the only other games I can think of are Scarlet and Violet because they're the current main Pokémon games at the moment. But be careful, because they developed the games at a time crunch so there's some...flaws, if you know what I mean. Unpopular opinion: ScarVio's my favorite. Great story, great characters, great Pokémon and all! And if you ever decide on getting ScarVio you absolutely should consider the DLC too... it's awesome! And Kieran's in it!

 

[Paperboy012305]

On the poll, Sword and Shield looks like a good game to start for beginners as most people complained how easy it was. Scarlet and Violet isn’t too off of the bar either yet I would consider the end game a little difficult.

The true easy Pokemon game would be X and Y, as the move sets and the amount of Pokemon each major trainer has is subpar that it is quite offensive to veteran Pokemon fans.

So in the end, you would choose between Sword/Shield or X/Y. And while both are cheaper options I’d go with X/Y if I were you. But if you don’t have a 3DS, then Sword/Shield it is.

So users here are suggesting the Let’s Go games, but that game has a different catching mechanic that you won’t find anywhere else in other mainline Pokemon games, so that’s one caveat I guess…

 

[Chris]

I feel Pokémon Legends Arceus is the most superior Pokémon experience.

 

[Midoriya]

Out of the choices listed I voted for Legends Arceus, but only because it's really fun with the catching mechanics and all. Not to mention it's based on my favorite region.

If you want a more traditional experience with gym leaders and all, I'd go for Scarlet/Violet. While they do have some bugs and glitches, the story in them was thoroughly enjoyable, at least moreso than Sword/Shield imo.

 

[Corrie]

I'd probably vote SwSh as it takes the typical Pokemon formula and modernizes it.
Pokemon Lets Go is good for newbie players so if you want something easier, that's the game for you.
Pokemon Legends takes a new spin on the Pokemon formula so if you want something different, that's the game for you.

 

[Rainy.Nights]

On Switch, Violet/Scarlet, they're the most relevant pokemon games right now, have a large dex to fill, and lots to do. It's also a lot easier to obtain various items used to build a good team compared to previous titles. SwSh would be second imo, it's not open world and more difficult to navigate with its map, but I like the gigantamax forms and dynamax adventures. PLA is an excellent game but I'm not sure if I would recommend it for a first game since it's such a departure from the main series in many ways (not a bad thing though). The quality is as good as SV if not better. I have a soft spot for Let's Go, but I wouldn't really recommend that for a first game either since it does some very different things, including a different stats system like the one in Pokemon Go, few normal battles, and a unique capture system that quickly becomes tiresome. It could be useful for introducing you to first gen pokemon and the yellow storyline though. All the games are worth playing overall. If you want to play a 3DS game, I'd recommend ORAS. They're more of a classic pokemon experience and have the biggest dex out of the 3DS games.

 

[daisyflowers]

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[Neb]

I’m late to this, but out of the games listed I’d say Sword and Shield.

Let’s Go Pikachu and Eevee and Legends Arceus have catching mechanics that aren’t in the rest of the mainline games and it’d be hard to switch over to those if you plan on playing more Pokémon games.

Scarlet and Violet are have much worse performance than the rest of the series and it might leave you a negative impression.

Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl are hard to recommend since, one, they’re very mediocre games, and two, they have a large difficulty spike at the end that even veteran players had a hard time with.

Sword and Shield meanwhile are mostly linear and easy enough to where a new player could safely learn the type chart, it has the main series’ catching mechanics, and are overall decently fun games even if they aren’t the prettiest or most well polished.

 

[Sheando]

I’m currently playing Pokemon Violet, and this is the most I’ve enjoyed a Pokemon game in years. It balances clarity with flexibility so that you have plenty of choices but don’t feel overwhelmed. Although I will say that I’ve noticed virtually no performance issues, and I think that’s just luck of the draw—my partner plays alongside me on his own copy and has reported a number of minor bugs.

I’m in the minority, but I didn’t enjoy Arceus much. The world felt extremely sparse and the gameplay made me feel disconnected from my team. (It’s also more challenging in my opinion, so perhaps not the best entry point.) And as a new player, I think you should begin with a mainline game like Sword/Shield or Scarlet/Violet instead of a spinoff or variation on the typical formula.

 

[Zerous]

I think pokemon scarlet and violet would be a very good start for a traditional pokemon game. There's a lot to do, it's pretty easy to understand I personally enjoyed the story a lot more than swsh, and it fits the bill of a standard pokemon experience. It's also accessible as it's still being sold, and and shows you in game what types are effective/not effective against others, etc.

I also would recommend legends arceus, however I do think it's less suited to beginners due to the battle style being a little more difficult, and I feel like it kind of expects you to go in with prior pokemon experience. A lot of the nostalgia and references are also geared towards those who played the older pokemon games.

In terms of spin offs, I love the pokemon mystery dungeon series. Explorers are my favourites, and you can find copies of explorers of time/darkness for pretty cheap if you have a DS, but the switch has one as well! (I haven't played it yet though). PMD is more of a rouge-like RPG where you follow a story playing as a human turned into a pokemon, and I think they're very beginner friendly.

 

[Hyoon]

honestly, pokemon scarlet/violet is the most fun i've had with a pokemon game in a long time. yes, the graphics isn't all that great. the world looks empty at times and the graphics makes u question how this game is on a modern console but like... the core gameplay itself is very fun. being able to travel freely and take on gyms/challenges at your own pace is incredible breath of fresh air. as someone who's played basically every pokemon game, the traditional formula gets old rather quickly. the story and characters are also the best we've had in pokemon in a long while as well. i personally haven't had any issues with performance outside of some minor lagging so that hasn't been an issue for me. my only real gripe is that all the clothing option in sword/violet is downright ugly, the lack of actual buildings u can enter, and not enough flying landmarks.

as for pokemon sword/shield along with arceus, i guess i'm in the minority here that i did not enjoy either of them. pokemon sword/shield felt very lacking in terms of both story and exploration. the only good thing about sword/shield are the wild areas but that too gets stale because they all look the same and it's just one flat grassland. almost everything in sword/shield is improved upon in scarlet/violet imo that i wouldn't choose sword/shield to play. sword/shield has the best trainer customization (for the switch that is) but that's about it.

arceus is just kinda strange to me. the amount of pokemon u can catch is super limited, the story wasn't very interesting plus it's slow af, and the setting just kinda sucked. i didn't enjoy the exploration either. all the choices to approach a pokemon just felt too convoluted to me. i also didn't enjoy being attacked by a pokemon when u are just walking around. the pokedex/research tasks felt tedious and too repetitive. some of the systems are kinda weird like u have to manually go in and evolve ur pokemon or teach them moves after the fact. arceus's map is also the worst looking as it's very bland and dull lacking the usual colors of a regular pokemon game.

lets go eevee/pikachu is fine. i don't really remember much from it tbh but it was a novel experience and kinda fun but it definitely did not feel like a classic pokemon game. personally, i haven't played brilliant diamond/shining pearl but i really enjoyed the og pokemon diamond/pearl. the classic version still holds up today imo and it's still such a great game that i can only imagine that as long as the remake just enhances the graphics and gives some modern qol that it can't be a bad game.

if u are interested in picking up a 3ds pokemon game, i would recommend pokemon ultra sun/moon. i picked it up again and it actually was a really fun experience imo. it's like a perfect blend between pokemon scarlet/violet and the more traditional linear pokemon game. it does enough that it feels like a fresh experience but it's not too out there that it doesn't feel familiar. i would argue if u want to experience a classic and approachable pokemon game, ultra sun/moon is way better than sword/shield.

 

[SkyKnight03]

Pokemon follows a formula so most of them are easy to get into. But as a bit of devils advocate.

The only one I disagree with starting on are the newest entries (Scarlet/Violet). It's extremely easy to wander into the wrong area and get obliterated because the game doesn't scale levels. Or accidentally do something out of order and wonder why the levels have suddenly jumped. Had I been new to the franchise, it would have turned me away. (but that's also just me personally).

I'd actually consider backtracking to the previous switch games (Sword/Shield). They have the same beginner friendly intro, but the game stays on a linear course for most of it. They also don't have the same serious lag issues as Scarlet/Violet.

Overall, I don't think there's a wrong answer. You could pick up anything and it would make for a decent starting point since none of the games are overly difficult. Ultra Sun/Moon is a good starting point if you like story driven games. It puts a heavy emphasis on that.