Summary
Highlights
The creator expresses frustration with Nintendo and The Pokémon Company for consistently releasing subpar Pokémon games, treating their fanbase as 'stupid.' The latest release, Pokémon Legends ZA, is presented as a prime example, causing widespread disappointment among gamers, despite some initial backlash against the creator's early criticisms.
The video highlights the significant discrepancy between high Metacritic and Open Critic scores given by professional game journalists and the overwhelmingly negative user reviews. The creator suggests that many critics may have financial incentives to give positive reviews, while actual players are clearly dissatisfied with the game's quality, evidenced by average user scores in the low 40s.
The game's visual quality is heavily criticized, with examples showing two-dimensional painted textures for buildings, flat walls, and poorly rendered environments. The creator compares these graphics to games from 20 years ago, highlighting the unoptimized nature and the lack of effort in the game's aesthetic and technical execution.
A significant complaint is the game's small map size, with users reporting the ability to traverse the entire map in less than seven minutes. This is unfavorably compared to open-world games from a decade ago, further reinforcing the perception of a rushed and underdeveloped product.
The video discusses information from former Nintendo employees suggesting that Pokémon Legends ZA only needed to sell 200,000 units to break even due to its minimal development cost. This points to a strategy of 'min-maxing profits' by investing little and still charging premium prices, including a $70 base game and $30 day-one DLC, making it a $100 game. The creator contrasts this with free-to-play games like Genshin Impact, which offer superior quality and content.
The creator criticizes a segment of the Pokémon fanbase for blindly accepting and defending the game's poor quality, likening it to eating 'dookie' and claiming it's good. He argues that these 'slop consumers' enable the company's behavior and that many Pokémon fans seem isolated from broader gaming industry standards, failing to recognize what constitutes a high-quality game in the current era.
The video addresses the common defense from some fans that the game is 'fun,' regardless of its technical flaws. The creator argues that 'fun' and 'quality' are not mutually exclusive and that consumers should demand both, especially from the highest-grossing media franchise globally. He asserts that true Pokémon fans should advocate for better quality, not blindly accept mediocrity.
Early sales data from the UK indicates that Pokémon Legends ZA's launch sales were 40% lower than its predecessor, Pokémon Legends Arceus, despite a larger install base for the Switch. While digital sales data is not fully available, the significant drop in physical sales suggests that consumers might be starting to 'vote with their wallets' and that dissatisfaction with the series' quality is growing.
The video concludes by reiterating that while personal enjoyment of the game is valid, fans should not gaslight the broader gaming community or defend objectively poor quality. The creator implores consumers to demand better from a franchise with immense resources, suggesting that only a collective refusal to buy substandard games will motivate Nintendo and The Pokémon Company to produce games worthy of their fanbase.