There was a weird feeling around Pokémon: Let’s Go, Pikachu! and Pokémon: Let’s Go, Eevee! when they first dropped. They were seen as simplified, almost like side projects, a soft reboot aimed more at Pokémon GO players than longtime fans. At the time, it felt like a detour. Looking back now, it feels like the most complete vision Pokémon has had on the Switch, and that only becomes clearer the more you sit with what Let’s Go actually did. These games understood something that later entries completely lost sight of. They understood what Pokémon is supposed to feel like.
Kanto in Let’s Go is not just nostalgia bait, it is one of the most cohesive and polished worlds the series has ever had. Everything connects in a way that feels intentional. Routes are compact but meaningful, towns feel distinct, and there is no bloat or awkward empty space pretending to be scale. Compare that to something like Pokémon Sword and Shield or even parts of Pokémon Scarlet and Violet. Those games are bigger, sure, but they are also emptier and far less deliberate. Let’s Go keeps things tight, and that focus makes every step feel purposeful. Even visually, it stands out. Not because it pushes hardware limits, but because it commits to a clean, cohesive style with bright colours, smooth animations, and a level of polish that later Switch entries simply did not maintain. It feels like a finished game, which is something that should not feel rare, but somehow does.
The catching system was controversial at the time, removing wild battles in favour of a Pokémon GO-style mechanic. On paper, it sounded like a downgrade. In practice, it ended up being one of the smartest changes the series has made. Catching Pokémon became its own gameplay loop rather than a formality. You were not just weakening something and throwing a ball, you were actively engaged. Timing and movement mattered, and that created a rhythm that made filling out the Pokédex feel satisfying again. It also encouraged you to actually catch Pokémon instead of avoiding encounters, which completely shifts how you interact with the world. Later games reverted back to traditional systems without really evolving them. Pokémon Legends: Arceus came close with real-time catching, but even that lacked the clean, refined simplicity that Let’s Go nailed.
Following Pokémon is another area where Let’s Go quietly set the standard. This is a feature that should be baseline for the series, and yet no other Switch entry has handled it as well. It is not just about having a Pokémon trail behind you, it is about how they exist in the world. You can ride certain Pokémon, interact with them, and see them scaled properly in the environment. It gives your team personality and makes your journey feel personal. Other games either limit it, remove it, or treat it like a bonus feature. Let’s Go builds around it, and that difference matters. Pokémon works best when your connection to your team feels tangible, and Let’s Go fully commits to that idea.
This is also where the game gets unfairly dismissed. Yes, abilities and held items are gone, and battles are simplified, but the experience never feels shallow because of it. Instead, it feels clean. Everything that is there works, and there is no mechanical clutter dragging things down. Later games went in the opposite direction, stacking systems like Dynamax, Terastallization, open world structures, raids, and crafting without refining them into something cohesive. None of it feels as unified as what Let’s Go achieved by doing less. It turns out trimming the fat was exactly what the series needed.
What really stands out in retrospect is just how well Let’s Go holds together on a technical level. It runs smoothly, transitions are seamless, bugs are minimal, and the presentation is consistent from start to finish. It feels like a complete product. That should be the baseline, but it clearly has not been for the rest of the Switch era. When you look at the issues that plagued later titles, it becomes obvious how much Let’s Go got right. It is not about graphical fidelity or scale, it is about care, and Let’s Go feels cared for in a way the others often do not.
Pokémon Sword and Shield introduced a broader scope but struggled to execute on it, with the Wild Area feeling like a prototype that never evolved and a world that lacked cohesion. Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl played things too safe, sticking so closely to the originals that they failed to add anything meaningful. Pokémon Legends: Arceus experimented in genuinely interesting ways, but it also felt rough and visually inconsistent. Pokémon Scarlet and Violet aimed for full open world freedom, but technical issues and lack of polish held it back. Each of these games had ideas, but none of them felt as fully realised as Let’s Go.
That leads to the most frustrating part. The Let’s Go formula has so much room to grow, and it has been left behind. Johto is the obvious next step, a region built around atmosphere, day and night cycles, mythology, and a slower pace that would fit perfectly with this style of game. It is easy to imagine a refined catching system, expanded following Pokémon, and deeper bonding mechanics all wrapped in a beautifully stylised version of Johto. It feels like a layup, and yet it has never happened.
That is a shame, because Let’s Go was never just a novelty. It was a blueprint for a version of Pokémon that is focused, polished, and genuinely fun without relying on constant reinvention. When you strip everything back, Let’s Go Pikachu and Eevee succeed because they understand the core fantasy. Walking through a vibrant world, building a connection with your team, catching Pokémon in a way that feels engaging, and experiencing a journey that feels cohesive from start to finish. They do not try to be everything, they just try to be Pokémon, and they absolutely nail it. In a Switch era defined by ambition that often outpaced execution, Let’s Go stands out by doing the opposite. It keeps things simple, it keeps things polished, and because of that, it might still be the best Pokémon experience on the platform.
