Nintendo’s popular pocket monsters return to the Switch with Pokémon Crimson and Crimson. There are some changes between gathering and fighting. Not all of it was well received by the fans.
With “Pokémon Crimson” and “Pokémon Crimson”, the game series about the legendary pocket monsters is now in its ninth generation. Time for a change, thought Nintendo and developer GameFreak – and bring a breath of fresh air to the traditional series.
Open world, technical problems at the beginning
The new parts also remain true to the well-known game principle. As a young, inexperienced trainer, you go out into the wide world, collect and train your Pokémon and compete with them in the wild or against other trainers in turn-based battles. What is new is the so-called tera crystallization, with which Pokémon can be temporarily transformed into a glittering, significantly stronger tera type.
For the first time in an offshoot of the main Pokémon series, the world is freely traversable. The appearance of the Paldea region, which is based on Spain and Portugal, is more reminiscent of modern “The Legend of Zelda” parts. But that also opens up new possibilities – like sending Pokémon into the wild, where they can go into battle on their own.
Video game critics had a mixed reception of the major changes. While the switch to the open-world principle has often been praised, the games can rarely really take advantage of the new freedoms. In addition, the picture was clouded by outdated graphics or gross technical errors. Only later patches were able to fix this in part.
Fans still get their money’s worth
Even if everything is far from perfect, we do it too “Crimson” and “Purple” a lot of fun – not least because little has changed in the almost infinite potential for addiction. Pokémon fans who enjoy collecting, training and fighting can confidently throw themselves into the new parts.
In addition to exclusive Pokémon, the editions mainly have cosmetic differences: While “Crimson” is based on the past, “Crimson” is aimed more at players who are enthusiastic about the future. One example is the visuals of the Pokémon: while you fly as a dragon in Crimson, it’s a futuristic airplane-like creature in Crimson.
Pokémon Crimson and Pokémon Crimson are only available on Nintendo Switch. The price: around 60 euros.