Long more in-depth-like review from a 20 year Pokémon fan.Pokémon got back on track with this one. After a disappointing Generation 7 ,the Pokémon series really redeemed themselves here with Gen 8. Sword & Shield has so many fantastic features & additions that aren't too drastic so the game still feels similar but rejuvenated.They don't bore you with endless text & annoying "rivals" or friends like they have been doing in the past couple games. Instead you're left alone, for the most part.. to do your own thing & you're not waiting for cutscenes to end to get back to catching & battling 'mons. Not to say that there isn't any, it's just not drawn out like previous installments from the franchise.Regional forms return in this generation & have my approval.. for the most part. Over half the Alolan forms were just plain dumb.. with the only perfect one being the 9 tailed beasts Ice Form. Galarian forms are all pretty well designed, with the Queen of them all of course being Corsola. Ponyta is also really great, for those 2 reasons is why I chose Shield over Sword even though I planned on getting Sword up until realizing they would be exclusive to Shield. But I also feel like some forms are unnecessary.. such as Meowth & his evolvement, they could have easily been an entirely new Pokémon.. idk why they had to make it a regional form.. they have so many variations of Pikachu-like ‘mons, but they couldn’t do that with Meowth ? Whatever. Keep giving him regional forms I guess..GigantaMax/Raids a much better NEW addition to a generation instead of stupid mega evolutions & silly dance moves before Pokémon moves. This is something I can get behind. if they keep being innovative in this direction. I was on the fence about it at first especially after seeing a desert Pokémon turn into a giant cake... but the concept of it is pretty great. It's essentially a Boss Battle of sorts & the rewards are ridiculously plentiful. Too ridiculous if you ask me..With that last statement you may be wondering if the difficulty is dirt easy like the the past few games have been. Well sadly it's still not challenging or demanding like the first couple generations. I could do with battles being difficult, especially for the likes of Gym Leaders. Granted there was 1 Gym Leader I fell to, the Ice Queen Melony. But overall I didn't struggle much with battles & when someone drops your Pokémon all you have to do is set up camp & make some curry to heal everyone, which takes away some of the challenge of trekking through the wild. BUT I wouldn't say it's overly easy like Generation 6 & 7, those games I ran through & stomped everyone no problem. Wasn't this case here with Sun & Shield. I did change my team of 6 completely though through the adventure.YES the return of GYMS !!!… well sorta. They’re arenas now & you have to wear a football like jersey when battling, so you can’t show off your sweet new fit to the audience & opponents at the gym *sad face* but I like the idea of it being a public showing/big deal sorta thing. The roars of the crowd when a Pokémon faints & the intense music while battling with your giant Pokémon in the arena felt like something special, even if most of the fights weren’t that difficult. You basically become a regional celebrity as your make your way collecting the badges instead of just a silent no body hero going around & doing all this stuff for little to no recognition like in past games.NEW POKEMON: My favorite part of a new Pokémon game. Overall I liked a lot of the new Pokémon. think the dex was pretty strong for Gen 8. However None of them would make my top 10 list & even Sun & Moon had 2 ‘mons break my top 10. (Tsareena & Toucannon)I would put Dubwool in my top 20 though. Corsola has been my 2nd favorite Pokémon since I was young so her Galarian form just solidifies that position. More good than bad, that’s what i’ll say. Questionable Pokémon started showing up in Gen4, increased in 5, 6 was pretty safe, more silliness in 7 but seems to have gone down in 8. I think the dumbest Pokémon being Applin.. which is basically just an Apple with eyes.. really… what’s next ? A talking Orange.. The evolutionary stages are pretty interesting & make me not want to eat an apple again.The Environments: Gorgeous. Best looking Pokémon game to date, not just graphic wise. I’m talking design wise, from the snowy locals to the fairy forest , each town/city felt unique, not like a re-skin. Each one had personality & more life to than other gens. Still not perfected though, they could make it more lively like Skyrim villages. But this game has cities similar to Gen 6’s large Paris like location. On the other hand, the prettiest town in the game has nothing to see.. or do.. or really anyone to talk to. I love the mushrooms & the look of the place, but overall I was let down by how small it was. Then you get to the Dark City & it’s essentially just there to be a Gym.. I was excited to explore the ghetto, but nope.I feel like they ran out of space for the rest of the game due to the Wild Area. But that’s fine. The Wild Area is a BIG part of the game, i’m not just talking size wise. This is where you’ll likely spend half of your playtime if not more. Also it makes sense that all Pokemon from different levels are in one spot & not neatly places from weakest to strongest, more realistic. Weather conditions plays a huge part in this game on effecting who shows up or not, so be aware of that. You may never run into some Pokémon if you don’t know what weather condition they come out in.The Story, not much really there, pretty basic. & that’s okay ! because really.. who tf plays a Pokémon game for the story ? lol. Legendaries are pretty cool & the story revolves around them. This game is based in the UK I believe ? So a lot of Old Englishy references, pretty castle, medieval like Pokémon, beautiful PokéCenters. Really cool region, arguably the coolest so far.Customization, Outfits, Hair, Color Oh My !A lot of choices, after disappointing lack of choices from the 3 previous games, this is much similar to X & Y’s customization options. Sadly the best stuff you don’t get until the very end. However there are plenty of options before that point, I chawed my outfit several times through my journey & loved seeing my player card afterwards. Which is another really cool new feature. Making funny, sassy or badass poses to showcase your character. Very neat I hope they stick with this sort of representation.Other new things I can think of:1 Riding Bike on water, it was pretty annoying to have to hop off your bike or stop running to click on the water & select surf in older games, esp when you were checking every island you passed, stopped the game flow. This new feature you ride from land right onto water, love it. Fast travel is back, I missed HM’s at first when they ridded of them, but the new way of traversal makes the game much more fluid without them + not taking up a move slot is handy.2 Showing what an item is does/description when finding an item so you don’t have to go into your bag & read what it’s all about.3 Camping is cool how it gives you xp & improves friendship & restores health when you cook some curry. I wish there was more play options than just a wand & a ball. Additionally I miss being able to pet my ‘mons. But overall a step in the right direction, there’s actually meaning behind doing it rather than just a gimmick.NO MORE ANNOYING ROTEM ! Technically rotem is still your dex/phone thing. But he’s not buzzing around & talking to you like a child anymore, even with him taking over the PC at Pokécenters, they turned down the childish & annoying meter big time, big plus. Overall the game feels less babyish which is a godsend considering they’ve been getting more & more childish as time went on. I get that they’re targeting the new younger generation but a lot of their fans are adults. Probably 60% of the games buyers are older then 16.. They should cater to us more & this game feels like that.Final Score for Generation 8:Sword & Shield gets a 9/10 in my book.