Released on November 16, 2018, Pokémon: Let’s Go, Pikachu! and Let’s Go, Eevee! is the first main series game on Nintendo Switch. It is not yet the big eighth-generation adventure: it is a remake of Pokémon Yellow designed as a bridge between Pokémon GO and the main series. It is a game apart, very accessible, with its own charms and its limits.
Kanto, modern edition
Let’s Go retraces the adventure of Pokémon Yellow almost step by step. You set out from Pallet Town with a partner who refuses to go into its Poké Ball, take on the eight Gym Leaders of Kanto, Team Rocket and its agents Jessie and James, then the Elite Four. But your partner is not necessarily Pikachu: in Let’s Go, Eevee!, it is an Eevee that climbs onto your head. The region, entirely redrawn in 3D, keeps its 1996 layout with vivid colors, and the music rearranges the original themes.
The partner is the game’s great success. You can pet it, dress it up, change its hairstyle; it learns exclusive moves, such as Zippy Zap or Sizzly Slide, and performs the Secret Techniques that replace HMs. The bond that forms is stronger than in any other installment, and it serves the young or beginner audience the game is aimed at first and foremost.
A capture system inherited from Pokémon GO
This is the most divisive choice: you no longer battle wild Pokémon. You see them wandering around the map, approach them, then catch them by throwing Balls with a flick of the controller, using Berries to calm them, as in Pokémon GO. Catching the same Pokémon in a row increases the experience gained and the chances of meeting Shiny Pokémon. The system is smooth and enjoyable, but it removes some of the strategy: experience mostly comes from catches, and your team levels up without you really choosing your battles.
Trainer battles, for their part, remain classic. Mega Evolution is part of the game, and a few battles call for preparation: Sabrina, Giovanni, the Elite Four and the rival at the end of the game.
A game made to be shared
Let’s Go is the first main series game that can be played by two players on the same screen: a second player can pick up a Joy-Con at any time to help with catches and battles. The Poké Ball Plus, sold separately, works as a controller and contains Mew. Finally, the game connects to Pokémon GO: Kanto Pokémon caught on mobile can be transferred to the GO Park in Fuchsia City, and that is how you obtain Meltan and Melmetal.
Kanto revisited in detail
Beyond catching, many details modernize Kanto. Pokémon can follow you outside their Ball, and some serve as mounts. The Game Corner in Celadon City becomes an arcade. The GO Park in Fuchsia City replaces the Safari Zone. Gyms set entry conditions, such as having a Grass or Water Pokémon to challenge Brock, or fifty Pokémon in the Pokédex for Koga. The Pokémon Box Link, which can hold a thousand Pokémon, is accessible from the bag, with no need to go through a PC. Wild Pokémon even vary in size and weight. And Red, Blue and Green, the three historic heroes, appear together for the first time in a main series game.
The Alolan forms, introduced in Sun and Moon, are obtained by trading with characters in the game or from Pokémon GO, which adds a little variety to a deliberately limited Pokédex.
The limits
The simplification comes at a price. The Pokédex is limited to the 151 Kanto Pokémon, plus Meltan and Melmetal and the Alolan forms. There are no Abilities, no held items and no breeding: strategy is reduced. The difficulty is very low during the adventure, especially since Exp. Share is always on. Veterans will happily return to Kanto, but may find the content thin.
The post-game makes up for it in part: the Master Trainers, one for each Kanto species, offer demanding one-on-one battles, and Red awaits the best players at the foot of the Indigo Plateau, with a team at level 85.
Playing it today
Let’s Go is available on Nintendo Switch and playable on Nintendo Switch 2. The connection with Pokémon GO still works, as does the transfer to Pokémon HOME. It is a very good first Pokémon game for a child or a beginner, and a pleasant reread of Kanto for the nostalgic; fans of strategic depth will prefer Sword and Shield or Scarlet and Violet.
Our verdict
A successful gateway to the main series, warm and accessible, but too simplified to fully satisfy seasoned players.
What we like
- A beautifully modernized Kanto
- The Pikachu or Eevee partner, endearing and customizable
- Two-player play and the connection with Pokémon GO
- The Master Trainers and Red in the post-game
What we like less
- No battles against wild Pokémon
- No Abilities, held items or breeding
- A Pokédex limited to Kanto
- A very easy adventure
