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Pokémon Sword and Shield (2019)

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Pokémon Sword[a] and Pokémon Shield[b] are 2019 role-playing video games developed by Game Freak and published by The Pokémon Company and Nintendo for the Nintendo Switch. They are the first installments in the eighth generation of the Pokémon video game series and the second in the series, following Pokémon: Let's Go, Pikachu! and Let's Go, Eevee!, released on a home game console. Originally teased at E3 2017 and announced in February 2019, Pokémon Sword and Shield were released in November 2019. The games received two downloadable content expansion packs through an expansion pass with The Isle of Armor, released in June 2020 and The Crown Tundra, released in October 2020. A physical bundle including both expansion packs with the base games was released in November 2020.

Sword and Shield's concept planning began immediately following the completion of Pokémon Sun and Moon in 2016, while full production began a year later in September 2017. Like previous installments, they chronicle the journey of a young Pokémon trainer aiming to become the Pokémon Champion, this time in the new Galar region, which is based on the United Kingdom. The main objective of the games is to dethrone the Pokémon League Champion, Leon, in a tournament that various other Gym Leaders and rivals also take part in, whilst dealing with Team Yell and a nefarious conspiracy within the League. Sword and Shield introduce 81 new Pokémon alongside 13 regional forms of pre-existing Pokémon; Dynamaxing, which increases the size of Pokémon under certain conditions; Gigantamaxing, which additionally changes the form of certain Pokémon; and the Wild Area, which is a large, open-world area with free camera movement that contains co-op raid battles. The two games also reintroduce features previously seen in Sun and Moon and Let's Go, Pikachu! and Let's Go, Eevee!, such as regional forms and roaming Pokémon depicted in the overworld.

When the decision to not include all pre-existing Pokémon from Sword and Shield and onward was announced, it was met with backlash from a segment of the fan community, resulting in a controversy known as "Dexit" (referencing the Pokédex) and calls for a boycott months ahead of their release. Despite this, Sword and Shield received generally positive reviews from critics. Particular praise was aimed at the creature design, new features, and the emphasis on simplicity, player freedom, and streamlined encounters, although some criticized the game's smaller Pokédex and a perceived lack of polish or depth. By December 2021, Sword and Shield had sold more than 23.90 million copies worldwide, becoming one of the fastest-selling games on the Nintendo Switch, and are currently the fifth-best-selling games on the Switch.

Max Raid Battles are a multiplayer feature that utilises the Dynamax Feature. In the Wild Area, you'll often find areas where a Dynamaxed Pokémon can be found. These are often denoted by a red beam of light coming from the den, but if it is one of the rarer Pokémon it'll have big purple light. This is due to each den pulling two different encounter possibilities: A common set and a rare set.

To defeat it, you have to play with up to 4 other players to battle it, with one player being able to Dynamax their own Pokémon. This can be done locally or online, but if three more players can't be found, Support Trainers will be added, controlled by NPCs.

The Pokémon you'll find in Max Raid Battles change every day naturally, with the same number of spawns you have carrying over to the next day until you clear them and the next set increases. You can also trigger max Raid Battles yourself using Wishing Piece items that you can purchase in the Wild Area and as stated before, by clearing out the existing raids. Each Den brings a Pokémon from a pool of two possible options, a common raid pool and a rare raid pool each time a raid is triggered there. The Pokémon's nature, stats, ability and if it's shiny are set when the beam appears, not randomised each time you battle.

Max Raid Battles have some limits. If 4 Pokémon are knocked out, or 10 turns pass, the match loses. As you progress through the game you'll see more higher level Raids and less lower level Raids

Dynamax is a brand new feature activated in the menu when you're in certain areas such as Stadiums, Max Raid Battles and online battles. To Dynamax, you need to get the special Dynamax Band item. When you do, you can Dynamax your Pokémon. This lasts only three turns and can be done once per battle.


Pokémon Sword and Shield’s The Crown Tundra expansion has added a lot of new content for players to enjoy, including a new way to experience Max Raid Battles with the Dynamax Adventures mode.

This new way to raid features tons of rare Pokémon that might be hard to obtain otherwise, including legendary Pokémon, starters from multiple regions, and Pokémon capable of Gigantamaxing. And the best part is all of them can be shiny.

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