How design affects gaming in two generations of Pokémon

The author, a longtime Pokémon fan and game designer, analyzes the user interface and design choices in Pokémon Sword/Shield (SwSh) and Pokémon Scarlet/Violet (SV). Their fondness for the franchise began with Pokémon Red, shaping their perspective. The Pokémon fanbase is known for its passionate, sometimes critical, responses to new game releases. This analysis focuses on gameplay design, comparing SwSh and SV's menus, maps, Pokémon storage, and Pokédex. SwSh implemented numerous quality-of-life (QoL) improvements, streamlining gameplay, while SV aimed for sweeping changes but fell short in execution. The author found SwSh's interface far more intuitive and easier to navigate than SV's. SV's heavy reliance on button mapping, compared to SwSh's menu-driven approach, increased complexity and memorization demands. The author points out specific examples, like item usage, where SV's design was significantly less efficient than SwSh's. Both games improved map functionality, but SV offered more detailed information and the ability to fast travel directly from the map. The author concludes that SwSh's design prioritized user-friendliness and ease of access, contrasting with SV's more complex and less intuitive systems.