Lets Go Pikachu - Eevee Tips

Lets Go Pikachu is an action-adventure challenge game where players are immersed in a fantastical, anime-inspired Pokémon world.  They play as an extraordinary Pokémon trainer, embarking on an adventurous journey with a group of enthusiastic companions to complete the Pokémon Pokedex. Lets Go Pikachu presents players with exquisite and vivid graphics, allowing them to participate in all aspects of Pokémon capture, training, and battles, enabling them to showcase their exceptional skills in the arena and become renowned Pokémon masters.

Wonderful Gameplay of Lets Go Pikachu

Players can initially choose Pikachu or Eevee as their partner, who will visibly accompany the trainer, riding on their shoulder in the wild. The game retains the core gameplay of the Pokémon series: catching, training, and battling. However, traditional wild Pokémon battles have been removed. Catching Pokémon is designed as a motion-controlled mini-game, while battles only occur between trainers and legendary Pokémon. The original storyline is preserved, including challenging gym leaders, fighting Team Rocket, and ultimately defeating the Elite Four. Compared to other titles, the battle mechanics are simplified, with held items and abilities completely removed.

The game's visual style continues the familiar anime style for Pokémon fans, showcasing vivid character models and detailed environments of the Kanto region. The inclusion of Mega Evolutions and Alolan forms enriches the Pokémon selection while retaining the nostalgic feel of the original. Additionally, the game adds two mythical Pokémon—Meltan and Melmetal—further expanding the Pokémon roster.

Engaging Features of Lets Go Pikachu

Understand your type matchups!

For veteran Pokémon players, this should be common knowledge, but for newcomers, understanding the type matchups between Pokémon is crucial. For example, Fire-type attacks are super effective against Grass-type Pokémon, but are weak against Water-type Pokémon. These are called type matchups.

If a Pokémon is attacked by a move that it is weak against—a "super effective" move—that move will deal double damage. Conversely, if a Pokémon is resistant to a move, that move will only deal half damage. Especially in tougher battles like Gym battles, using Pokémon that have a type advantage against your opponent or can reduce the damage of their moves will make winning much easier. Therefore, understanding type matchups is crucial.

Even if you've played the original Game Boy Pokémon games to death, some new types have been introduced over the years, so you'll need to learn these new battle combinations as well.

Catch 'Em All!

We know it's easy to favor certain Pokémon—focusing only on catching the ones you plan to train, or the ones that look cool or cute, etc. However, as the famous slogan goes, you should try to catch all Pokémon, every new Pokémon you encounter.

Firstly, the number of Pokémon available in the early stages of the game is limited, so you shouldn't be too picky. Therefore, you should catch as many Pokémon as possible to strengthen your team and prepare for challenging Gym Leaders like Brock and Misty.

Secondly, since there are no wild Pokémon battles, catching Pokémon is one of the main ways to gain experience points and strengthen your Pokémon. In fact, if you're good at catching Pokémon, it's often more efficient than battling other Pokémon trainers.

Thirdly, catching a certain number of Pokémon or specific types of Pokémon (e.g., X types) will earn you generous rewards. This includes the three starter Pokémon from the Kanto region! Moreover, you can't even enter the Fuchsia City Gym unless you've caught more than 50 different Pokémon.

Once you've built your team and collected over 50 different Pokémon, the motivation to catch new Pokémon might decrease, but since you've come this far, why not continue? If you can catch all 150 non-mythical Pokémon, you'll receive a beautiful certificate and a coveted Shiny Charm.

Pros and Cons of Let's Go Pikachu

Pros

Enhanced graphics and visual effects with an animation style faithful to the original

Includes the original 151 Pokémon

Innovative motion control system and optional Poké Ball Plus accessory

Cons

Motion-based controls may limit accessibility.

Simplified Battle Mechanics

Excellent Characteristics of Let's Go Pikachu

This is a massive game, much bigger than you might initially think, and it caters to both single-player and multiplayer needs. When you connect with friends in the game, you can battle them or trade Pokémon to complete your Pokédex, just like you can import your Pokédex from Pokémon GO into this game.

However, the truly brilliant part is the local co-op mode. Its join system is absolutely the best I've seen in a Switch game; you simply pick up a spare Joy-Con and shake it to join. Another player will drop in from the sky, and you can start playing together. If you get tired of playing together, simply shake the Joy-Con again, and the second player will disappear.

Final Thoughts

If you haven't experienced the adventures of these games yet, now is the perfect time to discover their charm. The free demo allows you to explore Viridian Forest, catch wild Pokémon, and battle trainers with a randomly selected partner—either Pikachu or Eevee.