[Review] Pokemon Sword and Shield expansion pass part 2 — The Crown Tundra

Bundle up and stash away plenty of Ultra Balls, because Pokemon Sword and Pokemon Shield are whisking us away to the Crown Tundra. The second of two expansion passes for the Nintendo Switch titles opens the way to a brand new area on the southern tip of the Galar region, where there is just as much mythology ready to be uncovered as there is snowfall.

The Path is yours to choose

Much like the titular Isle of Armor from this past summer’s expansion pass for Sword and Shield, the Crown Tundra adds a sprawling map that players can explore to catch Pokemon and acquire items. It functions the same as the Wild Area from the base games, where the camera is free-range rather than fixed, wild Pokemon roam about in the open, and numerous Max Raid Battle Dens offer the chance to engage in Dynamax Battles against monstrous-sized Pokemon. Also, like in the Isle of Armor, you can have one of the Pokemon in your party follow behind you while you march across the map.

After a short introduction that asks you to participate in a handful of Pokemon battles and gives you the chance to meet some of the new characters who will eventually be prominent during your ventures, the Crown Tundra channels its inner Breath of the Wild to become a very open-ended experience.

For one reason or another, Legendary Pokemon flock to the Crown Tundra. Nearly every Legendary and Mythical Pokemon resides somewhere in the wintry region, with several being at the center of the expansion pass’s narrative. The Crown Tundra‘s four primary quests task you with searching for various sets of Legendary Pokemon, and you can complete these in nearly any order you want. You can even alternate making progress between them, working your way through one mission for a bit before setting it aside and moving on to another. Given that these quests reward you with the opportunity to catch several Legendaries, the nonlinearity is especially welcome if you’re eager to add certain Pokemon to your party as soon as possible.

The most important of these quests is the story surrounding Calyrex, the mascot Pokemon for The Crown Tundra. Calyrex is the guardian of the wintry realm, watching over the land since ancient times, but his connection to the humans has waned throughout the ages. By discovering the many myths and secrets to the Crown Tundra, players will be able to restore the High King Pokemon to his former glory. There is a good deal of compelling world-building to Calyrex’s and the Crown Tundra’s backstory, but the most amusing parts of this mission are the conversations with Calyrex, who is intelligent enough to understand the human language. By using the very jolly explorer, Peony, as a mediator, Calyrex will chat it up with you like he was any ordinary NPC, and every instance of it is grin-inducing.

Legendaries everywhere you look

Peony (who also happens to be a former gym leader in Galar) will have more control over himself as he guides you on some of the other quests in the Crown Tundra. With a little help from him, you can find the Regis from Generation III, as well as the three new Galarian variants on the Legendary Birds — Articuno, Zapdos, and Moltres. Actually capturing these iconic Pokemon is a little more of a process than just whittling down their HP and throwing a Poke Ball. You’ll have to solve riddles before encountering the Regis, while the Legendary Birds must be chased across the map. It’s actually quite fun to deduce Articuno’s illusions, or to pursue Moltres as it soars about the Isle of Armor and Zapdos as it races throughout the Wild Area. Make sure your bicycle is fully upgraded, because you’re going to need that top speed.

Sonia from Wedgehurst also makes the trip, with her research dedicated to finding the foursome Swords of Justice from Pokemon Black and Pokemon White (Cobalion, Virizion, Terrakion, and Keldeo), who you’ll only encounter by locating several sets of tracks for the respective Pokemon.

Should you want to add any more Legendaries to your Pokedex, you’ll need to make a few trips to the Max Lair for the Dynamax Adventures. Crown Tundra introduces a new twist on the Max Raids by sending you into labyrinthine dens, where you’ll have to fight your way through a gauntlet of Dynamaxed Pokemon before encountering the Legendary that waits for you at the end (and also happens to be Dynamaxed). You can’t use any of your own Pokemon, however. Instead, you’ll have to choose from a limited group of Pokemon provided by the head researcher at the Max Lair, with opportunities to swap along the way.

Dynamax Adventures certainly turned out more challenging by restricting who you can use, but playing through them will make you wish that developer Game Freak had been able to find a way to maintain that challenge while allowing you to battle with the Pokemon you’ve trained. The personalized element of raising the Pokemon you like best is so much of the series’ charm, and it’s lost within the Dynamax Adventures. Their difficulty will sometimes border on infuriating, should you play with NPC trainers instead of friends. Don’t be surprised when you have the Legendary Pokemon you’re after down to a sliver of health, and instead of using any damage-based attack to finish it off, the computer-controlled character has its Pokemon use Light Screen for the umpteenth time.

Many more battles await

Once you’ve taken care of the Legendary business in the Crown Tundra, a brand new challenge opens up further north in the city of Wyndon. Former champion Leon will call you and the rest of Galar’s very best trainers together to take part in a single-elimination, multi-battle tournament known as the Galarian Star Tournament, a tournament where you get to choose your partner to square off against the other tag teams. Just like the Champion Cup from the base game, you can participate in the Galarian Star Tournament as many times as you want, and the more times you complete it, the more that the roster of tag-team partners expands. At first, you’ll be paired with your good buddy, Hop, but you’ll eventually get the option to partner with any of the Gym Leaders and other elite trainers.

You’ll need some pretty strong Pokemon in the Galarian Star Tournament (probably level 80 as the bare minimum), so don’t be stingy with those EXP Candies to level up your Pokemon, and be sure to diversify their move types to avoid poor matchups. Ironically, even though you’ll be paired with one of Galar’s best trainers, you can’t always trust your partner to be stalwart in battle. Sometimes, they’re just plain useless. Expect to be stuck fending off the opposing team in a 2-on-1 disadvantage on occasion.

If you’re looking for further challenges, or just to make use of some of the 100+ Pokemon that were brought back with The Crown Tundra expansion, you might want to look to a mode that the Isle of Armor introduced. The plentiful Pokemon that were added are especially welcome for Restricted Sparring, which, as we noted in our review for the Isle of Armor, seemed like it had some accessibility issues at the time. Earlier this year, very few players had likely trained three elite Pokemon of each type, especially given that the Pokedex was around just 400 Pokemon before the DLC started rolling out. This originally would have made many of Restricted Sparring’s trials impossible feats for most players, but with more than 200 Pokemon being added with the Isle of Armor and Crown Tundra, the potential for finding multiple, suitable Pokemon of various types has increased dramatically.

There are actual options, now, for rarer types such as Ghost, Ice, Fairy, etc. beyond a paltry list of candidates. Restricted Sparring is easily the most difficult mode in Sword and Shield, and completing one of the trials is immensely satisfying. With a much broader selection at hand for players, and especially so many mighty Legendaries being added, there’s no better time to put together a formidable trio of Dragon Pokemon, Steel Pokemon, or any type you’re most interested in battling with.

The expansion passes for Sword and Shield always seemed as though they were meant to replace a potential third title like Pokemon Emerald Version, Pokemon Platinum Version, or a set of sequels like Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon. While the Isle of Armor was an enjoyable but modest bit of DLC, the Crown Tundra is a substantial update that brings a significant amount of content to the table and a fascinating new area to explore. Now that a bundle pack containing both the base game for Sword and Shield plus the expansion passes is out, the Crown Tundra may very well be the last major addition to the Galar region. Should that be the case, Pokemon Sword and Pokemon Shield are definitely going out on a high note after already giving fans a very entertaining experience on the Nintendo Switch.

Score: 8.0/10