Today Nintendo lifted the veil on the first hour ofPokemon SwordandPokemon Shield, allowing various media outlets and content creators to share their experiences with the new games. Several new details aboutPokemon SwordandShieldhave been shared, including the name of the player’s starter town, Wedgehurst. But much has also been kept secret, including all of the new Pokemon players met. One really interesting new feature did get revealed, however. Players can now skipPokemon SwordandShield’s Pokemon-catching tutorial.
During GameSpot’s hands-on time withPokemon SwordandShield, it sounds like the feature was stumbled upon completely by accident. ExperiencedPokemonplayers may recall that each game features a brief conversation with an NPC that involves guidance on how to throw aPokeBall, how to catch a Pokemon. Given that there are a lot of Pokemon-catching veterans, this tutorial can be somewhat of a time-waster. Players can reportedly skip this tutorial now by, intuitively, displaying their familiarity with catching Pokemon.
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According to GameSpot’s description, after choosing their Pokemon they’re tasked with returning to their mother’s house. Mom will give the player some cash and PokeBalls before sending the player on their journey. Here’s where the clever skip comes into play. If the player doesn’t catch any Pokemon between Mom’s house and their destination, they’ll apparently be given the tutorial from NPCLeon, the Galar Champion. However, if the player does catch Pokemon during this trip, Leon will acknowledge the player’s familiarity with Pokemon-catching and skip the tutorial.
Compared to previousPokemongames, this introductory sequence inPokemon SwordandShieldis said to be rather quick. Due in part to intuitive tutorializing like the example provided, as well as what sounds like a surprisingly streamlined opening sequence, players are pushed into exploring and catching Pokemon as fast as ever.
It will interesting to see ifPokemon SwordandPokemon Shieldinclude further intuitive tutorial-skipping features beyond just for catching Pokemon.Pokemongames are typically filled with small tutorials teaching players how virtually every feature works, from howPokemon gymsare structured to how to buy new clothes. If players are able to skip these short tutorials just by showing familiarity with them, it should make for a much faster and enjoyable experience for veterans.
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