Pokémon Home Review

Welcome home, Pokémon Home to be exact. This newest feature allows players to link up previous games and move Pokémon from one game to another. According to Nintendo, even Pokémon GO will be added to the compatible games in the future. Only problem is, it’s extremely limited.

Issues with Pokémon Home

When first downloading the mobile app and cloud service on my Switch, I was super excited to take my Pokémon from Pokémon GO and improve my Sword pokédex. Unfortunately, after reading disclaimers, I discovered that Pokémon GO linkage would be added “in the future”. How long, we don’t really know. That wasn’t the only disappointment. As it turns out, the only way to fully enjoy what little it has to offer, there is a Premium Plan that must be purchased to even find enjoyment on this service.

The app and service can be downloaded for free, but the Premium Plan costs $15 a year. This creates many setbacks such as, without purchasing a plan, only 30 Pokémon can be deposited onto the system at a time. That means that the National Pokédex they’ve created is meaningless. All the trades, pokédex capacity and friend groups are extremely limited without the plan, making it hard to do much of anything.

The other problem is that they released the mobile app too early. Without Pokémon GO being linked yet, there is not a lot the app is good for. It is impossible to link Pokémon games through the app and impossible to exchange BP. Not only was the app not necessary, they tried (and failed) to make it necessary. The app allows you to trade Pokémon and receive mystery gifts, but the cloud service doesn’t. What’s the point of that? To make you have to download both. Why couldn’t all this be put in just the cloud service, or just the app? Because they rushed a project that was not fully planned out, which explains why GO isn’t part of this shame party yet.

Another limiting thing (although this one makes sense), is the fact that only Pokémon in the Sword or Shield pokédex can be added to the game. This limitation is actually acceptable, because it would be a lot of work to add all the animations and things to make it compatible. Not to mention that Sword and Shield are already out and cannot be changed to fit Home. Ultimately, I don’t find this limitation as positive or negative, just something to keep in mind.

Benefits of Pokémon Home

Okay, it wasn’t all horrible. When you first log on, Home gives you a free Pokémon, and you can choose between our favorite original starters, Charmander, Squirtle and Bulbasaur. Then from there, you can deposit into Sword or Shield, or just let it chill in your box. And let’s face it, transferring Pokémon is still really cool.

When I added Bulbasaur to Sword, I got super excited. And yes, when Go is linked, I will be even more pleased. Its features are cool, as unorganized as they are. It can be really fun and link lots of people with new Pokémon but is only for intense Pokémon fans. If you have played several Pokémon games of the past, Home is for you. It was literally designed with you in mind. Linking your pokédex and playing with your favorites will always be fun.

Overall, I think that Home is a great idea, if you are going to use it often. If you plan on adding a few Pokémon from here or there, it is not worth the money. But if you use it often and have played several games previously, $15 is not too expensive. My verdict is…

Recommended

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Reviewed by McKenzie Anderson on the Nintendo Switch.