Pokemon Champions is the "typical Pokemon" that quality complaints begin with

The Pokemon Company hasn't had the best reputation lately when it comes to game quality. Pokemon Sword and Shield had their critics, but anger really grew over the quality of Scarlet and Violet, with bugs and performance issues leading to the game's launch. Even Pokemon Legends: ZA wasn't immune to criticism, with textures on some buildings drawing the ire of fans.

While Koei Tecmo-developed Pokemon Pokopia bucked the trend when it launched last month, it looks like we're back at square one when Pokemon's new competitive title, Champions, came under immediate fire for its frame rate and graphical style.

Pokemon Champions has only been out for hours, and while there's still plenty of excitement for the game, many early conversations have been dominated by disappointed players.

On the original Nintendo Switch, players are reporting that the game is locking at 30 frames per second, but they have suggested that “it feels very bad,” and reports suggest that the game is running at 720p. The Switch 2 version improves the visuals, but still keeps the game locked at 30 FPS. For comparison, Pokemon Legends: ZA, a game that does a lot more than Champions, got a solid 60. Naturally, the players are not happy.

“The frame rate, even on Switch 2, is pretty terrible. It's capped at 30 with obvious frame pacing issues, and animations are stuttering for no reason. So far the game feels really clunky from a technical perspective. A big downgrade from SV and ZA, which locked at 60 during battles on Switch 2,” said RedKNARSP. “So common Pokemon,” thought SirDanOfCamelot in response.

The frame rate, even on the Switch 2, is so terrible.

These conversations have spanned several sub-reddits, and complaints have also appeared on other social platforms such as Twitter.

Are you having problems with Pokemon champions?

It's not all bad news though. Pokemon Scarlet and Violet finally got a big glow-up on the Nintendo Switch 2, and with plans to support champions “basically forever,” there's a big chance things will turn around. It's not ideal for players eager to jump into the launch.