Pokémon Scarlet & Violet - The Teal Mask DLC Review - Is It Worth It? 

I’m not giving GameFreak any more money until they prove they can create a modern Pokémon game that doesn’t have these performance issues.

Having just beaten scarlet, while I did enjoy myself, I cannot look past the many flaws with this game. I played it a bit at launch, then only just recently picked it back up again and after all is said and done, I have no interest in the DLC. It’s a fun game marred with terrible performance which is so so sad cuz it has everything going for it.

They need to make another Arceus game. That was awesome!

there are literally more people selling things at the festival than buying things. Carmine tries to gaslight you into believing it is massive and exciting

I'm so glad I stopped at Sword and Shield. Been playing Pokemon since Blue Version on the Gameboy Color, but these days the company has gotten comfortable with lackluster installments. This looks awful.

Looks really good for a pre-alpha!

The Pokémon franchise needed a big shake up. Scarlet and violet attempted that but unfortunately, that shake up is still needed. The performance and visuals doesn’t help as it just overshadows the positives of the game. Level scaling or a difficulty setting of some sort would slightly help.

Ngl, I liked the base game and DLC, but I'd be lying if I said the game didn't need some major performance updates and its pretty crazy that after almost a year the only real updates pertain to a cloning glitch and the PC. Game Freak needs to take it's time on the series. It's so weird after we just got Legends Arceus last year, which could've been supported along side BDSP to give the SV team more time. Not sure if I'm going to get the next games. Pokémon deserves more time and care put in.

The base game plus the dlc comes up to about $95. Look at the game, it’s “quality”, then look back at that combined price. GAMEFREAK and the Pokémon company should be fucking ashamed yet they won’t because “it’s gonna sell anyway LOL.”

I feel like the performance is actually WORSE than it was with the DLC update, it's honestly disgusting how much the framerate tanks and the myriad of graphical glitches. That said, I did enjoy the DLC and the storyline, and the boss battles and trainer fights are good and challenging providing you go in not using your overleveled storyline pokemon.

I'd like to correct one thing: there is scaling. If you start the DLC after finishing the three main quests of the main game, wild Pokémon will start in the high 50s and trainers will be in the 60s/70s.

Well, I said I'd give Scarlet and Violet a shot when they fixed the performance issues. Looks like they haven't touched them. That's a non-sale from me.

Honestly, I found myself bored by the story, I liked Carmine but man, I found Kieran to be rather annoying. Honestly, all I cared about was having Vulpix back in the game again, and nothing else.

I wonder if Alex ever thinks he’s done the exact requisite amount of waffling 😝

They should fix frame rates and performance problems. I’d be more hype for that than a half baked dlc that looks and runs awful

First Pokemon games that have felt empty. Pokemon doesnt translate to open world well. Smaller, segmented areas would work better.

Short answer: no, the whole game is not worth even a consideration. The whole series has been in ruins since S&S, but Pokemon fans still swallow all this bs and buy their games in droves. Just what do they need to do before fans wake up? Charge money for each time the game is booted up?

I hope they do an expansion pass DLC complete edition like they did before. Cause 60 + 35 to nearly A HUNDRED DOLLARS is VERY VERY VERY steep for pokemon

Lmao I love that one of your Pokémon’s nickname is frame drops 😂

DLC2: Major Performance Patch How I wish. lol. I'm delusional to expect the devs will fix this game before announcing the next game. lol

In terms of scaling, I predicted that the Pokemon would be around level 60, so I decided to transfer some pokemon around that level from Sword/Arceus that counted towards the DLC's pokedex! Sort of an adventure with a new team. Plus, all of the stat buff items that are so plentiful in the world could go to them, I'm leveling up pokemon that aren't maxed out already, etc. I kind of made my own "new adventure" out of it. That all being said...lack of scaling is a colossal issue with the game that is rooted in the main campaign itself! The open world, plus the freedom to play as you please, should mean you can *actually* do the content however you please, not get one-shot by everything or one-shotting everything yourself, if you're not in the *one* correct place relevant to your level at the time.

I turned on Sword/Shield yesterday and realized how terrible the graphics are. I really didn't notice it when I played the first time. But the best looking game is still Let's Go

I would be more forgiving to Scarlet and Violet's performance issues if the gameplay, story and art design made up for it, but that didn't happen for me. As someone who really likes the direction they took with Black/White or Sun/Moon with story and characters, Scarlet/Violet feels extremely basic by comparison. And the fact that this game release in the same year and on the same console and Xenoblade Chronicles 3, well they simply need to do better.

Hey it doesn't actually look _too_ bad as DLC content. Although given this is following up a 2022 Triple A game, that's $60, full of glitches and by most profitable IP in the world, I kind of expected a bit more or at least a more cohesive storyline the centered around the main game instead of just another new one. Although judging from the amount of people that are still hyped for every release the ip puts out to truly most smoothest of brains only making excuses for them, maybe that's just me at this point. Meanwhile, Sonic frontiers is there with actual meaningful updates to the game, many bug fixes and completely new story content that makes the overall plot better and the best part It's all free.

Xenoblade Chronicles 3 Future Redeemed is a DLC for the Nintendo Switch in 2023 that looks beautiful

I am 31 years old and have played every single Pokemon game upon release since i was 7...Violet was the first one that i truly didn't enjoy. This DLC will be the first Pokémon game i skip entirely. It makes me very sad to say so but as it stands i have no desire to play it 😔

me watching the release of the first part of the DLC: oh yeah, that thing just came out * starting a new file on my black 2 copy *

I finished this DLC on the day after it released. Finished the story, caught all the Pokémon and it doesn't hold a candle to Sword/Shields first DLC, The Isle of Armour. This left me wanting more, but once you've explored the map, it's kind of, eh. As opposed to The Aisle of Armour where I spent a few months going back to it and feeling like there was much more to actually do. I don't see me picking up the game again now until Part 2, but I hope it has more to it than Part 1. As much as I want it to be good, I don't see it being as good as The Crown Tundra. As for the framerate issues, I expected it to be better, but somehow it's worse. Just having the game load some grass makes it run at 10fps which is abysmal.

You'd think with the record profit GF and the Pokémon company make they would hire more people to make a better pokémon game

They honestly should’ve stopped making them after Black and White…

I had a good time with the dlc, i really like the small area has it's own pokedex. Scarlet has me so conflicted, it is so underwhelming in so many ways and some parts of the presentation is just unacceptable.... But i keep having a great time with it. And i haven't enjoyed a new pokemon game since gen 4 (haven't touched gen5 that being said)

This DLC is $35. Sea of Stars is $40.

The environments are so huge and empty its like a dead mmo. Maybe some of these problems could be explained if it was. But it's not. There's just no excuse for it to run and look this bad.

Carmine and Kieran have got to be two of the most horribly designed characters I’ve ever seen. Who on earth thought that hair was a good idea. It’s just really off putting to look at.

I figure it's going to be like SwSh DLC, part 1 is meh and then part 2 will be great with end game replayable content like the dynamax adventures. SO, as long as Indigo Disk has something akin to those I think the expansion pass will be worth it.

I didn’t give Game Freak a single penny ever since the Switch was released and this proves even further that it was a wise choice.

I haven’t had anywhere near as many performance issues on my OLED Switch, but it does kind of suck. Really hope Indigo Disk is far more expansive bc this is kind of sad

This has nothing to do with Gamefreak being “stuck in the past”, and more to do with Gamefreak being unable to make a competently made 3d console game. Most issues people have with this game were not present in older titles. The older games didn’t have: Embarrassing performance issues, scaling issues with dlc, embarrassing animations, bugs, bland towns, etc. The only exception would be weak-ass storylines, which Gamefreak rarely excels at even in the older games. Gen 5 is arguably the only gen with passable stories. Gamefreak is either incompetent, lazy, or simply starved for development time. But this in no way has to do with them being “stuck in the past”. Imo that’s giving them way too much credit.

After playing Cassette Beasts and Monster Sanctuary I realized all a monster collector game needs to entertain me is having plenty of critters to catch and dex entries to read, all else isn't important, and this game and now the Teal Mask does just that. Sure it'd be nice if the combat didn't ducked so much or that the exploration was actually rewarding but all three of these games have these same flaws. The only outlier here is performance (although CB also had some rough performance issues on certain areas and crashed on me more than SV), still disappointing, but not bad enough I want to drop the game cus it gives me nausea. ... I'd say it's a fine monster collecting game, and it's only disappointing when comparing it to other Nintendo games, who are landmarks of their respective genres, innovating and setting quality benchmarks for the whole industry. It's definitely annoying how GF is always hitting below it's weight class, but that doesn't mean the game is lesser because of that.

My opinion: have tried the dlc on my buddy his swit h and the story is good, but seriously, im happy just to beat tge original game. You could get it, only if you want to discover the deep secrets of area zero. But note: you can explire area zero and discover paradox pokemon without the dlc, so ill say that the dlc is kind of a waste. I am not paying 35 dollars just to uncover the secrets of area zero while i can watch it on youtube which just feels better than actually playing the dlc expansion.

Very a decent and honest review

It's so to see the franchise like this. But man, I really like playing this game online and the new Pokemon are nice 😭

Perrin is best part of this dlc

The performance is still ass. Billion dollar company moment.

In my opinion at this point, Legends Arceus, Sword & Shield and PMD Rescue Team DX are the top Pokémon games for the switch

I actually had the game drop to 0 Frames more often in the DLc to the point I thought the game crashed

I like it but I don't at the same time. It weird because it the addictive Pokémon gameplay at the core is why I keep playing. And hunting shinies but I say I don't just because if how rushed it feels. When you compare it to Tears if the Kingdom or even Breath of the wild that was made for WII U. It is basic. They need to spend longer for the next generation. I doubt they will because they must be still making million upon million and yeah. I admit. I'm part of the problem. I bought the game and the dlc.

I don't really play video games myself, so I can't say much about the game's mechanics, but having watched the game play on RU-vid, I do find the story behind it enjoyable. Ogerpon's story greatly resembles Shrek (an ogre who encounters prejudice from the majority of the people around him just because he looks a little different). The only real problem I had with it was the ending (particularly concerning Keiran). I just hope Keiran will be able to reconcile with the Player character and Carmine at the end of the next DLC.

If only the graphics would work properly, pokemon has so much potential. I'm just hoping for a properly optimized black and white rerun, still number one in my heart.

ok so in other words I should just get the mario kart dlc instead

I think it was really fun but rather short for a 15 dollar dlc.

I learned from SW/SH (I did like the game), didn't even finish that dlc. I won't be buying dlc for pokemon again even if it is good, I just don't like DLC. I'd rather they take that time for the next game.

That score is genuinely genereous

Kieran is hardcore villain origin story vibes

I think I'm going to give the DLC content a miss. Scarlet & Violet was alright, I just didn't like how it leaned towards having to play online to get certain exclusives and buffs etc... I barely enjoyed The Crown Tundra DLC too. Unfortunately, Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl wasn't particularly good either (aside from the nostalgic effect) and I gave Legends Arceus a miss as well. I'm hoping Gen 10 will bring me back to this franchise (whenever that comes out, likely whenever we get a Switch 2 or successor to the Switch). Whilst I understand that they're making these games easier in a way to play for all ages, I feel like they're not understanding that a lot of people are able to adapt and learn to pick up a more difficult pace to a game more so than they probably would have in the past - Zelda being a prime example imo. I've found fan made Rom hacks more enjoyable to play of late, especially with the "old school" 2D and pixel style feel from Gen I to IV, but that's just a personal preference in art style and feel I suppose.

My concern with this DLC was, "did the performance issues got fixed for the dlc at the very least" sadly after watching this video they didn't. I will be skipping this expansion since it's unacceptable to have this kind of frame rate with a big pokemon title like this one. I played Scarlet a lot and even shiny hunted a full box of shiny pokemon after I didn't have anything else to do in the game. I put a lot of time and love into these games and I only wish Game Freak would do the same.

When S&V released i played for around 12-15 hours, i was still in the early game and i think i left off near a gym west of the academy. Now i didn't stop bc i had issues, besides some slow down here and there. I stopped bc i was playing a different game and wanted to finish that. But as time went on i started to see all the reviews and sure its a 50-50 but i haven't been sure if i even want to go back to it. I did enjoy the few hours i did play, but I didn't enjoy it as much as i enjoyed the 1st hour playing Legends Arceus.

I think one of the biggest downfalls with the new games, besides the difficulty, is a bad villain. There is no level of "threat' in the game that drives you to want to train a good team to progress and defeat the villain. Part of the fun of being a Pokemon Trainer is being a Hero. Also the pokemon sprites look like they are all molded from clay and lack any depth of texture that makes them look like different species of "animals". Making me care about them less.

I hope part 2 is better

Despite the performance issues these and Arceus have been by far my favorite pokemon games, and Ive been playing since the first red/blue. I have noticed Violet runs a lot worse than Scarlet though. I wonder if the future tech pokemon are part of that difference

Still enjoy Legends Arceus and nothing is going to change that. Pokescam won't catch me again

0:23 lol they named a pokemon after what you will see when not looking directly at the floor

The base game isn’t worth it let alone the dlc 🤭

I don't understand how the review can be so scathing, then end with 6/10 "Not Bad" If this isn't a 1 or 2 out of 10, what is? For the most profitable franchise of all time, this is unacceptable.

“Hey folks this is Kelani” is all I hear when his voice started

Why is the frame rate story so different for everyone? I see the problems people are having, yet I never have these problems myself.

THIS IS WHAT I PAID $40 for ?????

Ya probably gonna skip on this dlc. I really though scarlet and violet was gonna be the big comeback for pokemon but even the dlc doesnt help it. I guess the hacks will always be the peak of pokemon (sacred gold, crystal clear, blaze black 1, blaze black 2 redux, perfect platinum, pokemon prism, etc.)

I honestly stopped caring about the story In pokemon games after ORAS right now I Just want to be let loose and catch pokemon, level them up, explore new areas and not bother with missions and trying to get attached to characters

Oh my god, “Framederops” 😂 7:13

Do you have more clothing options 😅

If I change the region to Japan and buy the Dlc can I still play it with English language?

Ive been saying for years that they need to bring back Pokémon Battle Stadium. Then they can just make Pokémon Battle Stadium Ultimate the central hub for traditional pokemon battling and allows them to focus on just the battling and commentary, i feel like that could be a great title if they do it right. Then they can relax and make plenty of time to tell a story with a new title. I feel like packing everything into a massive modern game is to extreme, just build a competitive hub and make your money.

6:50 Framederops

Even the base game isn't worth $15 solely on its horrible performance, lack of optimizations, ugly as hell unfinished alpha-build looking graphics, and objectively inferior gameplay to its way superior and more fun to play predecessor Legends Arceus alone. What makes you think the DLC is even worth the same price?

Difficulty increase and shiny restructuring would make Pokémon games much more satisfying to buy And play!

It would be so amazing to see this game and DLC running in decent quality with crisp textures... and not like 💩!

I haven't finished it yet but I like it so far.

Pokemon HOME makes completing the game and the Dex trivial. I had to make my own fun, but with mainline Pokemon, it feels like the Switch generation got screwed with GameFreak bosses looking to pivot to mobile phones and haphazardly put together something for a mainline console.

Almost $100 for the most laggy pokemon game ever. Makes black and white look amazing

Yeah in a year of Baldurs Gate 3, Zelda TOTK, Cyberpunk Phantom Liberty, Spider-Man 2, Lords of the Fallen and much more I’m not gonna waste my time with a half baked Pokémon DLC. Gamefreak is so ridiculously lazy and all the awesome games this year show.

I would agree, no interesting dialogue and lack of exploration at the beginning was such a buzz kill. I will always be entertained by gaining new Pokémon. For the price of the DLC, it’s not worth it to me.

Game's fun. Hella fun even, but the performance issues simply cannot be ignored no matter what. Love the story in this DLC and Ogerpon is a treasure, but the bugs and frame issues somehow got even worse. I would legitimately rather Indigo Disk gets delayed to next year and this entire year be spent fixing the game itself.

The fact that I gave that man ONE MILLION DOLLARS and he rebuilt the SAME STATUES OF THE EVIL POKEMON TO PERPETUATE THE LIE OF THE VILLAGE makes me angry

Am I the only one that hates the designs of the four legendaries? I enjoyed the story throughout the DLC, but I wasn’t excited about eventually catching the legendaries because they all look like a kindergartner drew them. They’ll forever rot in my box and level 70.

I just wonder where all the money Pokemon earns goes. Obviously it’s not back into the games.

Isle of Armor at least had a bunch of competitive additions which sold me but Teal Mask just looks like nothing

If you play VGC, yes, because it’s basically holding future meta games ransom. Otherwise it’s pretty lame.

The only dlc that was worth it was sword and shield the best Pokémon game ever made I played that game everyday for hours and when they announced the release of Pokémon scarlet and violet I was so excited to get it and I got scarlet and I have barely played it and I think we need a new Pokémon game like sword and shield ❤

I didn’t want to. I held off but then a long work trip came about and I gave the DLC a go…. I really shouldn’t have… it feels so incomplete.

Is this the first dlc for this game or??

The little details for the people and Pokémon, as well as the environments, are bogged down by the performance now more than ever. I just want a solid 30fps is that too much to ask

you didn't even mention the SELFIE STICK??

The answer is: No.

The reason im watching this cause im trying to decide between tears if the kingdom and the entire DLC

Am I the only one who thinks Scarlet and Violet are uglier than Sword and Shield? I think SwSh had a somewhat distinct art style and were a little more vibrant/colorful. Of course, they were not pretty games, but I think S/V are downright UGLY. A big reason for this is that S/V seem to be going for a more "realistic" look in their open world, which just doesn't work due in part to the Switch's capabilities but also more likely due to the developers' lack of dedication to each game compared to other big name developers. There are plenty of open world games on Switch that, despite not looking beautiful, at least don't look anywhere near this bad. I love Pokemon and definitely bought the DLC because I enjoy shiny hunting and competitive battling, but I can not deny that Scarlet and Violet (and by extension this DLC) are true disappointments.

Yeah, I don't think I'm gonna bother with this DLC. I wasn't at all impressed with the main game, the trailers haven't been compelling, and this review isn't exactly doing anything to change my impression. Honestly I think I'm done with the mainline games in general. Legends: Arceus was nice though, wouldn't mind another Legends game.

The festival itself is literally one of the main things they used in marketing. Looks so underwhelming and empty.

No it's not.. can't even get most of the gen 1 pokemon on pokemon violet, i'm not giving them another penny

The DLC was good but not much more than that