Pokémon Shuffle
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is a
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puzzle A puzzle is a game, Problem solving, problem, or toy that tests a person's ingenuity or knowledge. In a puzzle, the solver is expected to put pieces together (Disentanglement puzzle, or take them apart) in a logical way, in order to arrive at th ...
video game developed by
Genius Sonority is a Japanese video game development studio, whose staff consists of programmers who have previously worked on the ''Dragon Quest'' series of video games. History Genius Sonority was incorporated in June 2002 for the original purpose of developi ...
and published by
Nintendo is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational video game company headquartered in Kyoto, Japan. It develops video games and video game consoles. Nintendo was founded in 1889 as by craftsman Fusajiro Yamauchi and originally produce ...
and
The Pokémon Company The Pokémon Company (株式会社ポケモン, ''Kabushiki gaisha Pokemon'') is a Japanese company responsible for brand management, production, publishing, marketing, and licensing of the ''Pokémon'' franchise, which consists of video game s ...
for the
Nintendo 3DS The is a handheld game console produced by Nintendo. It was announced in March 2010 and unveiled at E3 2010 as the successor to the Nintendo DS. The system features backward compatibility with Nintendo DS video games. As an eighth-generatio ...
. The game, which is a spin-off of the ''
Pokémon (an abbreviation for in Japan) is a Japanese media franchise managed by The Pokémon Company, founded by Nintendo, Game Freak, and Creatures (company), Creatures, the owners of the trademark and copyright of the franchise. In terms of ...
'' series and is similar in gameplay to ''
Pokémon Battle Trozei , released as ''Pokémon Link: Battle!'' in Europe and Australia, is a ''Pokémon''-themed puzzle video game for the Nintendo 3DS and is the sequel to the 2005 Nintendo DS title ''Pokémon Trozei!''. It was released in the Nintendo eShop in Japan ...
'', was released worldwide on the
Nintendo eShop The Nintendo eShop is a digital distribution service powered by the Nintendo Network for the Wii U and Nintendo 3DS, and by a dedicated online infrastructure for the Nintendo Switch. Launched in June 2011 on the Nintendo 3DS, the eShop was en ...
on February 18, 2015. ''Pokémon Shuffle Mobile'', a version for Android and
iOS iOS (formerly iPhone OS) is a mobile operating system created and developed by Apple Inc. exclusively for its hardware. It is the operating system that powers many of the company's mobile devices, including the iPhone; the term also includes ...
devices, was released in August 2015.


Gameplay

''Pokémon Shuffle'', similar to ''
Pokémon Battle Trozei , released as ''Pokémon Link: Battle!'' in Europe and Australia, is a ''Pokémon''-themed puzzle video game for the Nintendo 3DS and is the sequel to the 2005 Nintendo DS title ''Pokémon Trozei!''. It was released in the Nintendo eShop in Japan ...
'', is a puzzle game in which players fight against various Pokémon by matching three or more of the same Pokémon from the Kanto, Johto, Hoenn, Sinnoh, Unova, Kalos and Alola regions on their bottom of their screen. Players accomplish this by swapping around Pokémon on the bottom of their screen. Players can take up to four support Pokémon with them, some of which can deal additional damage depending on their type (e.g. matching water-type Pokémon causes extra damage to fire-based opponents). Players progress through each stage by defeating the opposing Pokémon within a set number of moves, after which the player receives in-game coins and their Pokémon gain experience. Upon clearing a stage, players will have a chance to catch the Pokémon; the quicker the player defeats a Pokémon, the higher probability they have of catching it. If the player fails to catch it with their first Pokéball, they can spend coins to use Great Balls with a doubled chance of success, or retry the stage at a later date. Defeating Pokémon trainers earns Mega Stones, which allow certain Pokémon (if they have been successfully caught) to undergo Mega Evolution once a player has matched enough of them during a stage, granting bonus effects when matched. Players can also unlock Expert levels, which require the player to defeat a Pokémon within a time limit using unlimited moves. The game follows a
freemium Freemium, a portmanteau of the words "free" and "premium," is a pricing strategy by which a basic product or service is provided free of charge, but money (a premium) is charged for additional features, services, or virtual (online) or physical (o ...
format in which the player requires hearts to attempt each stage, with the player able to recover up to five hearts by waiting a certain amount of time. Players can also use coins to purchase power-ups, such as extra moves, prior to entering a stage. Extra hearts and coins can be purchased with jewels, which are either earned by defeating trainers or purchased using
Nintendo eShop The Nintendo eShop is a digital distribution service powered by the Nintendo Network for the Wii U and Nintendo 3DS, and by a dedicated online infrastructure for the Nintendo Switch. Launched in June 2011 on the Nintendo 3DS, the eShop was en ...
funds. The game supports internet connectivity which offers bonus items and special limited-time stages to those who check in, as well as
StreetPass SpotPass and StreetPass are communication systems first introduced in the Nintendo 3DS. SpotPass was later incorporated into the Nintendo 2DS, models of the New 3DS and New 2DS, and Wii U game consoles. SpotPass delivers content from the Internet ...
functionality.


Release

On January 14, 2015, ''Pokémon Shuffle'' was announced by Nintendo as a free-to-play game for the
Nintendo 3DS The is a handheld game console produced by Nintendo. It was announced in March 2010 and unveiled at E3 2010 as the successor to the Nintendo DS. The system features backward compatibility with Nintendo DS video games. As an eighth-generatio ...
. The game was developed by Japanese studio
Genius Sonority is a Japanese video game development studio, whose staff consists of programmers who have previously worked on the ''Dragon Quest'' series of video games. History Genius Sonority was incorporated in June 2002 for the original purpose of developi ...
. The title was released on February 18, 2015, via download through the
Nintendo eShop The Nintendo eShop is a digital distribution service powered by the Nintendo Network for the Wii U and Nintendo 3DS, and by a dedicated online infrastructure for the Nintendo Switch. Launched in June 2011 on the Nintendo 3DS, the eShop was en ...
. In June 2015, a mobile version of the game was announced for Android and
iOS iOS (formerly iPhone OS) is a mobile operating system created and developed by Apple Inc. exclusively for its hardware. It is the operating system that powers many of the company's mobile devices, including the iPhone; the term also includes ...
. It released in Japan on August 24, 2015, and other territories on August 31, 2015. Post-release, the game has been supported with updates adding new stages and obtainable Pokémon. In July 2018, the last Pokémon, Marshadow, was released. Genius Sonority has no plans to add more content.


Reception

''Pokémon Shuffle'' received mixed reviews from the media, scoring 56/100 on
Metacritic Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...
. Chris Carter from ''
Destructoid ''Destructoid'' is a website that was founded as a video game-focused blog in March 2006 by Yanier Gonzalez, a Cuban-American cartoonist and author. Enthusiast Gaming acquired the website in 2017, and sold it to Gamurs Group in 2022. History ' ...
'' was critical of the game, rating it 3.5/10. In particular he criticized the Hearts system, which requires 30 minutes for a single heart to regenerate. He also criticized the
microtransaction Microtransactions, often abbreviated as mtx, are a business model where users can purchase virtual goods with micropayments. Microtransactions are often used in free-to-play games to provide a revenue source for the developers. While microtransact ...
s, saying, "Anything truly enjoyable about the game is ruined by the microtransactions." Jacob Whritenour of ''Hardcore Gamer'' gave the game a more mixed review, scoring it a 3.5 out of 5 and saying "It’s fun and challenging enough to keep Pokémon and puzzle fans entertained," while also criticizing the microtransactions. Morgan Sleeper of ''
Nintendo Life Gamer Network Limited (formerly Eurogamer Network Limited) is a British mass media company based in Brighton. Founded in 1999 by Rupert and Nick Loman, it owns brands—primarily editorial websites—relating to video game journalism and other ...
'' was relatively praising of the game, stating it as "a fantastic match-three puzzle game marred by an uncharacteristically sleazy suite of microtransactions", explaining that "they're simply not worth buying". He did, however, praise the strategy element of the game. , ''Pokémon Shuffle'' has been downloaded 6.5 million times.


Notes


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Pokemon Shuffle 2015 video games Android (operating system) games IOS games Nintendo 3DS eShop games Nintendo Network games Free-to-play video games Single-player video games Video games developed in Japan Video games scored by Tsukasa Tawada
Shuffle Shuffling is a procedure used to randomize a deck of playing cards to provide an element of chance in card games. Shuffling is often followed by a cut, to help ensure that the shuffler has not manipulated the outcome. __TOC__ Techniques Overha ...
Tile-matching video games