The initial premise of Pokémon Masters EX is exciting for fans of the main series Pokémon games. Players can team up with NPCs from eight different regions, including main characters, Gym Leaders, and Champions. They can then battle in modified turn-based, three-on-three matches in stories and events. However, the enjoyment of Pokémon Masters EX has been greatly reduced thanks to a reliance on premium currency purchases with microtransactions, and a lack of depth in the character stories that have been the main draw for the mobile game.
Pokémon Masters EX gameplay is driven by collecting Sync Pairs. These Pokémon-Character duos are ranked by a five-star system, with a lower star count marking a less powerful pair, and higher star counts being the desirable Sync Pairs for a player’s battle team. These pairs must be scouted using a random lottery system where, for the price of premium currency or special tickets, a number of pairs can be pulled from a pool of possibilities. However, the chance for a better Pokémon Masters EX Sync Pair is low, and it is possible to continuously receive the same Sync Pairs multiple times, which leaves players paying thousands in premium Gem currency for a very low chance at getting Sync Pairs that can be useful.
The premium currency trap in Pokémon Masters EX is particularly frustrating. While microtransactions are a staple of mobile games, Pokémon Masters EX gameplay is almost entirely driven by premium currency purchases. While it is possible to earn Gems in events and daily log-in bonuses, this “non-paid” premium currency is no better than in-game coins, with players unable to spend it on many of the game’s purchasable items. In order to purchase discounted Sync Pair Scouts, or to dip into the five-star guaranteed Sync Pair pool, players must use Paid Gems. To add to this, it can take a long time to save up enough non-paid currency to purchase basic scout tickets, making progression slow and frustrating for those unable or unwilling to dump real money into a Pokémon lottery system.
Pokémon Masters EX’s Legendary Events Punish Non-Paying Players
Pokémon Masters EX has several different modes. Players can play the Main Story mode without using stamina after complaints from users about the tedious progression impacting gameplay. However, the Legendary, Event, and Sync Pair Story modes will use stamina, limiting how far players can progress without spending money or waiting for stamina to slowly regenerate. Legendary and Event modes are particularly important, as they offer the items needed to level characters, and also often come with powerful Legendary Sync pairs. However, these events only possess limited story content and are made up primarily of battle challenges with high difficulty levels. Progressing through the content can be nearly impossible with low-level teams, negatively impacting those without high-level Sync Pairs.
While premium currency limitations are frustrating, the biggest disappointment in Pokémon Masters EX has been the lack of deeper story content for the NPCs used to draw Pokémon fans into playing. For those wanting to learn more about NPCs with limited backstories, or who were hoping to pair up with favorite characters for interesting narrative challenges, Pokémon Masters EX continuously falls short of these expectations. Surface-level stories and content focused on outfits and expensive power-ups make gameplay stale and repetitive, which has continued to be a big letdown for fans.
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