191: Pokémon Scarlet and Violet (with Kate & Emily - No Small Games)

Tales from the Backlog

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Modern Pokémon games are divisive, but rarely due to technical performance. Pokémon Scarlet and Violet (Game Freak, 2022) released in an embarrassing state, and are hoping for a comeback with their recent Switch 2 editions. So now that the bugs are squashed and the framerate is stable, what kind of game was lurking under all of those issues? Listen in to find out.

Guest info: Kate Hunter (she/any) and Emily Merritt (she/her)

• Check out the No Small Games podcast and website https://nosmallgames.com/
• Follow Kate on BlueSky https://bsky.app/profile/katerblossom.bsky.social
• Follow Emily on BlueSky https://bsky.app/profile/aspecificegg.bsky.social

TIMESTAMPS

• 0:00 Title Card
• 0:16 Intros
• 5:53 Our Personal Histories with Pokémon
• 12:52 Opening Thoughts About Pokémon Scarlet & Violet
• 21:44 World and Story Setup
• 36:07 Nonlinear Design
• 42:50 Is the Story Actually Good, or Are We Grading On a Curve?
• 54:25 Visuals/Presentation
• 1:01:37 Open World Design
• 1:17:28 New Quick Battle System
• 1:22:28 Combat, Team Building and Challenge?
• 1:41:08 Closing Thoughts and Recommendations
• 1:47:16 No Small Games
• 1:54:07 Spoiler Wall and Patron Thank-Yous
• 1:56:55 Spoiler Section- Our Teams, Area Zero, Ending
• 2:28:06 Spoiler Section- DLCs

Music used in the episode:

• Title Screen (Junichi Masuda, Go Ichinose)
• Home (Junichi Masuda)
• Poco Path (Junichi Masuda)
• Battle! (Trainer Battle) (Junichi Masuda)
• Area Zero (GAME FREAK)
• Pokémon Center (Junichi Masuda)
• Welcome to the Paldea Region! (Minako Adachi, Toby Fox)

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Cover art by Jack Allen- find him at https://linktr.ee/JackAllenCaricatures

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