Pokemon Unite Review (Tencent in its repertoire)
Release Date - July 21, 2021 (Nintendo Switch), September 22, 2021 (Android/IOS)
Publisher(s) - The Pokemon Company
Developer(s) - TiMi Studio Group
Platform(s) - Nintendo Switch, Android, IOS
I wouldn't say I had high hopes for Pokemon UNITE. I rather liked the game, but things turned out a bit differently. Let me remind you that Pokemon UNITE is a game developed by The Pokemon Company with TiMi Studio Group (part of Tencent's gaming division). It's more modern and, more importantly, semi-mobile. This is because it was released simultaneously on Nintendo Switch and on Android and iOS mobile devices. Mobile MMORPGs, as we know, are a genre within a genre with its own rules and features, and contrary to expectations, Pokemon UNITE turned out to be much closer to mobile games than to a full-fledged Pokemon game from Nintendo.
To start things off, this is the game developed by the controversial company, Tencent, who developed MOBA games, make "games as a service", and focusing on microtransactions.
While a very subtle problem, this game suffers a poor grasp of source material, with Pokémon fighting with disadvantages, such as Electric types attacking Ground despite the latter type being immune to the former. The roster is filled with too many all-rounders and attackers, lessening supports and especially speedsters at best.The first post release Speedster (Dodrio), was released more than a year after the game was released.
Yes, really in a terrible way possible.Some Pokemon do not fit the roles properly, like Mimikyu, Blaziken, and Ceurledge being all-rounders than speedsters, Wigglytuff, Buzzwole, Metagross, and Tyranitar, being a supporter for the former and all-rounders for the latter two than defenders, and Greninja, Dragapult, and Miraidon being attackers rather than speedsters.
Fortunately, TiMi changed Galarian Rapidash's role from All-Rounder to a Speedster due to the backlash and its playstyle.
Quantity over Quality: Speaking of the roster, most of them are being based on the stats and playstyle, explaining the roster unbalanced rather than helping out other additions for some small roles, especially Speedsters.
Another quantity over quality is that the holowears are unbalanced, especially the blue tiered ones where they have movement and KO effects. Not to mention, speedsters do not have a lot of holowears unlike others, with the worst offender being Leafeon.
The game focuses on microtransactions to buy holowears (which are cosmetic outfits), gems, and boost energy tanks for items and boost emblems. To add salt onto the wound, some of them are way too overpriced. For example, some of them can cost more or the same amount as a game for the Nintendo Switch. Matchmaking is horrible throughout the game and there is no signs of balancing it because of the balance patches from Pokémon, resulting in having a chance of losing and relying on luck rather than skill.While events usually focus on unlocking Licenses before, such as a free Tsareena event on December 2021, it only include useless items like 2x Aeos Boost Cards and 2x Aeos Coins Cards, as well as frames, backgrounds, and stickers, used for UNITE snapshots, which are boring to unlock, except for the Legendaries' event where players can roll dice to unlock tokens, and Meowscarada's event where players can get up to 100 petals (making a total of 400 petals) after clearing missions.
Ranked Match is the worst mode due to the tedious gameplay, in which players often lose to the orange enemy team due to the latter's overpowered states.
Before Theia Sky Ruins was announced, Remoat Stadium was one of the worst stages due to the infamous Zapdos ability where players can automatically goal after defeating it. As Theia Sky Ruins was announced,
it was less like Remoat Stadium before the update pushed back to something for the former, with 3 Natus being removed at the top lane and there are 2 Sitrus Berries instead of one, resulting in players getting upset and angry because of its reject.
Quick Battles serve no purpose and do not grant anything but coins and tickets for daily missions, rather than adding them in Ranked so that it would be challenge.
Boss Rushes and Full-Fury Battles were only added in events rather than being permanent modesMany of the UNITE Licenses can be bought for 10000+ Aeos Coins, especially EX Licenses, where they have 15000 Aeos Coins in total just to grind for more, even though it only takes 2100 coins per week. players can only get 2100 Aeos Coins after battles, which is very bad because they wanted to buy for Licenses and Boost Emblem loadouts.
Puzzle Piece Licenses are very pointless because they were not seen in other events.While there are popular Pokémon in the roster, like Lucario, Blaziken, Meowscarada, and Greninja, others like the Kanto Eeveelutions (Vaporeon, Jolteon, and Flareon), Weavile, Sceptile, and a decent amount of Unova Pokemon aren't in the game yet. There are also some missed oppurtunities to add Pokemon.Greedent was a very questionable Pokémon for the Halloween 2021 event, and it would have bee a ghost-type or a dark-type Pokémon, like Mismagius, Mandibuzz, Scrafty, or even Dusknoir. Similarly, Tsareena is questionable for the Christmas 2021 event, and it would have been an ice-type like Weavile, Vanilluxe, or Glalie. To promote Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl, they could've added a Sinnohan Pokemon (e.g a Sinnoh starter, Luxray, Staraptor, Weavile, Toxicroak, Porygon-Z), but they instead added Decidueye, an Alolan Pokemon. Although this could be seen as stealthily promoting Legends Arceus (another Sinnoh game that was coming soon at the time) as Decidueye is in the game, it still isn't likely the case and if it was, it's still not promoting BDSP.A Hisuian Pokemon (e.g a Hisuian starter, Kleavor, Sneasler) or at least Sinnohan Pokemon could've been added to celebrate the release of Pokemon Legends Arceus, but Trevenant and Aegislash are the 2 Pokemon released at a similar time to that game and they are both Kalosian Pokemon.
When the 2022 World Championships were happening, a Galarian Pokemon (e.g Rillaboom, Inteleon, Obstagoon, Alcremie) could've been released to celebrate it. Roserade could've been released too as one was the official mascot for the event complete with clothes. These clothes could've been added as special Holowear for Roserade. Instead, Tyranitar and Buzzwole were released. Tyranitar and Buzzwole are not Galarian Pokemon or a Roserade. It gets even worse when the Roserade (alongside lots of Galarian Pokemon) were seen on Twitter posts, YouTube videos, and even an in-game event.However, Inteleon was released later on July 4, 2023 instead.
They could've had all of the Eeveelutions for the Eevee Festival, but only 5 of them were present (except Jolteon, Vaporeon, and Flareon). You might say "They didn't have time to add in the other Eeveelutions as coding and delevoping new Pokemons takes time", but this could've easily been prevented by adding the Eeveelutions earlier, having more people work on the Pokemon or delaying the event.When the 1st anniversary of Pokemon Scarlet and Violet came out, Meowscarada was added on December instead, it could have been November 18 or 19 to reflect the release date instead. This is too late for a release like this when it comes to a commemoration.
This also could be a way to promote the WCS 2023 event as a Sprigatito (Meowscarada's pre-evolution) was one of the mascots alongside the other Paldea starters and a Pikachu, which also makes it way too late as the event happened in August 2023, 4 months before the Meowscarada release.However, if they are doing this to maintain the legacy of Worlds 2023 (which is much more likely to be the case considering the fact that Meowscarada was shown off at Worlds 2023), then it's not an issue because they aren't promoting the now over event itself but rather keeping its legacy alive and showing us that the mascot still remains as it is considered a seperate entity from the event and thus can be reused for other things that aren't promoting its event (like literally any other mascot for any other event, Pokemon event or not).
To celebrate the Year of the Snake, Galarian Rapidash will be added in the game, which is a horse. If the devs add Serperior, Steelix, Seviper, Arbok, or Dudunsparce, none of this would have happened.
The most infamous one is that it lacks a poll to add new and fan-favorite Pokemon being added in the game, which would be a potential to make quality of life better rather than quantity.
There are missed opportunities in events as well:
While the 1st year feature events and decent amount of rewards (Holowears, snapshot decorations, outfits), starting from the 2nd year onwards, they can grant nothing but Item Enhancers, Aeos Tickets, Aeos Coins, Energy Tanks, and generic and boring frames and backgrounds during events. Events based on Battle Pass should have featured unique events like the 1st year Battle Passes and Elegant Style event, but the recent events focuses on generic missions, which are boring to play with.
Pokemon Unite Unfortunately, it didn't live up to expectations. A number of cool and fresh solutions, beloved characters from both other games in the series and anime, beautiful graphics with cool models, and the ability to play this game on a smartphone weren't enough to even come close to the game, even though it's far from its current form. Tencent's utterly disregardful and unprincipled attitude toward users, a terrible interface, tasteless copying of everything and everyone, weak PvP, an annoying desire to get into your pocket, and the inability to properly play this game with friends discourage any desire to ever play this game again.
Pokémon © GAME FREAK Inc./Creatures Inc./The Pokémon Company/Nintendo Co., Ltd.
Pokémon Unite © TiMi Studio Group/Tencent Games/Tencent Interactive Entertainment Group/Tencent Holdings Ltd./GAME FREAK Inc./Creatures Inc./The Pokémon Company/Nintendo Co., Ltd.
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