Pokémon Masters: Week 1 in Review

The latest entry in the widely popular Pokémon franchise, Pokémon Masters, had its global launch on mobile devices on Thursday, August 29th. One week later, the newest offering from the juggernaut IP has already crossed the 10 million download mark, according to a release from the game’s developer and publisher, DeNA Co.

Responses to the game have been mixed, but it has undeniably made a splash, even if only measuring player interest, let alone the $26 million USD the game has earned in its first week. 2018’s Pokémon Quest reportedly took just shy of seven months to reach the same number of downloads, as noted by app analytics provider Sensor Tower.

Resources for new Pokémon Trainers interested in tackling Masters’ new Pokémon Master League, or PML, have been in high demand to match, especially with the advent of the Reach for the Top Event, the first highlight of the game’s official release.

On that note, any players seeking information about the game can consult some of our most highly demanded tools, guides, and resources available in the first week of the game’s launch!

The game has been fairly polarizing thus far, with some players praising its fairly high (for a gacha) roll percentages (7% rate to pull a natural 5* Sync Pair, per pull) and lack of stamina constraints, while others bemoan the relatively shallow depth of gameplay and the grind for in-game currency and upgrade materials.

Here are a few of the standout takes on the game a week in:

• Perhaps the most common complaint revolves around the low amount of premium currency given out in the game and the ensuing plight of F2P players, on top of other potentially predatory practices:

  •  “If I wasn't a Pokemon fan, I probably would've uninstalled this game already.”

  • “It is just as predatory as every other gacha, and that's not just because of the scarce freebies.”

  • “The moment I recognized that the special launch event summon was paid only I immediately got a bad vibe."

• Other issues players cite include the complete lack of changes from the game’s beta launch, despite player feedback, as well as subpar “endgame” content (with the caveat that the game has only been out for a week):

  • “So they saw people were rushing through the game and instead of adding more content they just increased the grind? I mean I’ll give the game a shot but not getting my hopes up.”

  • “What mostly bothers me is that end-game seems tailored for Co-op stages, instead of allowing you to single-player it.”

• However, the lack of a stamina or energy system present in many other mobile games has many players thankful as well:

  • “The no energy/stamina cost for playing is a big deal for me. I can decided [sic] if I want to go hard grinding or just a few rounds while on break.”

  • “Stamina systems suck, I want to play my game as much as I want.”

Conclusions

Overall, the community consensus seems to be that Masters has promise, but needs quite a few baseline changes and a lot of polish before it can truly be the ultimate Pokémon crossover experience it’s marketed as. Some staunch defenders of the game and DeNA insist that an uninspired launch shouldn’t set a precedent for player expectations; only time will prove them right or wrong.

What do you think of the game so far? Many communities have sprung up for players to swap notes and help each other, discuss the game, share their thoughts or just to hang out with other fans. Here are some of those communities to join if you want to get involved!

• GamePress’ Pokémon Masters Discord

• GamePress’ Community Page for Pokémon Masters

• Pokémon Masters Subreddit