10 Features Pokémon Sword & Shield Desperately Needs

A randomiser might be a little far fetched, especially on a first playthrough, but there are other things which can be done to ensure trainers have the opportunity for unique teams.

While it is technically possible to visit some of the later gyms in a variable order, the levels of their Pokémon dictates that you can’t get too far ahead of yourself. With this comes a fairly set route, and with that means many ‘mons are unavailable to you until late stage, despite the fact they would have crushed the opposition earlier.

This is not a new problem either. In Kanto, unless you chose Charmander you’d be lucky to have a Fire Pokémon by the time you reached the Grass gym, as most were tucked away on Cinnabar, where the seventh gym was.

Visiting gyms in variable orders would work if the Pokémon of the leader were levelled appropriate to your badges. Taking them on with seven badges makes them much stronger than with just four, for example.

This system would not only allow you to travel around the map to build the best team, but would also introduce tactical progression. Which gyms do you take out early and which do you let grow? That'd be down to you to figure out.