Pokémon Scarlet: The Hidden Treasure of Area Zero – The Teal Mask
Developer: Game Freak
Publisher: Nintendo
Platforms: Switch
Release Date: Available Now
Price: $34.99 – Available Here
Check out our FULL REVIEW of Pokemon Scarlet Here
Overview
Pokemon Scarlet and Violet made quite the impression on the Switch when it released last year. The normal thing that people had issues with (outside of performance) was without a doubt the amount of available Pokemon from launch. Its time for some DLC finally, and we are packing up and heading to Kitakami for The Teal Mask expansion, which looks to add a good amount of content. How does it fare? Let’s find out.
Content
On one end, there is a lot to like about The Teal Mask and what it has to offer. Players are awarded the opportunity (narrative wise) to visit Kitakami, a location that features new species, characters, and places to explore. On paper it is fine as this is the first of the “Area Zero” pack, and there definitely is a lot to do. This locale has new shops, interactions and more, as well as a lot of new lore featuring new legendary Pokemon. It should be fantastic, but there is something lacking where past content has been a bit richer in the past.
The story is there, but nothing really makes a lot of sense for Scarlet or Violet. Sure, its nice to see new characters – but the player is more or less teleported to this area, and shoved into a new adventure that doesn’t really feel like an adventure, instead more of a way to simply catch more Pokemon in general. Luckily, that is why I wanted the DLC anyway and what is offered is quite nice on that front. Over 100 past Pokemon are made available, with a good grouping from each region (and a few regional variants) becoming available. This was actually delightful to see as fans now can obtain a nice Poliwhirl, Swinub, and several other Pokemon, along with the trio of starters from Diamond and Pearl.
Sure, I kind of think they could have pushed a bit more in the species department for this release, but with more content on the way – it still was quite refreshing to simply find more of the old within this pack. Activities within The Teal Mask will also keep you busy, with a mini-game where you collect balloons in order to obtain berries, as well as the hefty side quest “Timeless Woods”, which allows the player to work together and hunt for a mysterious Pokemon. The overarching narrative involving the main three new legendary Pokemon is fine, if not a bit quiet or boring as a whole. Sure, I didn’t dislike what was there as it does act as the motivation for this pack, but outside of the added lore, it felt a bit disconnected from the actual region this all takes place in.
My actual issues with this DLC comes with the performance, which still has yet to be improved. This is no new IP and as mentioned in the original review, the less than stellar frame rate (trending usually lower than 30 FPS) and even crashing can add a headache to the overall adventure. To see Game Freak continue to resist on properly patching the overall game and still have the DLC have issues is disappointing. Sure, the game is still very playable and fun, but I feel this generation’s mainline games are plagued by problems that are going to cause a lot of distrust in the future. Adding more paid content without fixing such standard issues is baffling, so this may be something for you to chew on as you decide to return for more content overall.
Final Thoughts
The Teal Mask is a bit difficult to transcribe in most ways when it comes to thinking of how it adds overall value to the main game. The added Pokemon are great and the content is fine enough – even if the story needed a bit more substance. The lack of quality improvements all of this time later however make it simply not worth the price-tag, as this franchise really should not to continue to run in such a stuttery state. Those who want more will find it here, but without the polish and consistency that should be expected from one of gaming’s most loved namesakes.
