>>56132433I think they're solid, easy enough on the eyes for the top-down style of play of the overworld, especially the dynamic seasonal tilesets.
Mostly I think the animated in-battle sprites and the few cutscenes they added are the stand-outs for me. I never said it was the peak of pixel art in gaming or anything, but it has its charm. If you disagree then that's just a matter of opinion.
It is true that gen 4 and 5 use a mixture of 3D models with 2D sprites to create a sort of hybrid environment though, so referring to them as "purely" 2D would be disingenuous I admit. Sometimes I forget about that, but I guess that means it's working.
Like I touched on earlier though, childhood nostalgia will paint bias in the eye of the beholder like rose tinted glasses, that goes for most people here too. Everything here should be taken with a grain of salt.
