I think there's quite a lot to criticize with Scarlet/Violet but calling it a cashgrab isn't fair at all imo, because they're really trying to shake things up. There's a lot of passion in the game, the character designs are very nice and I think it's a lot better written than previous entries. The generation gimmick is really interesting, much better than Dynamax.

Many systems that were core to Pokemon games since forever have been overhauled or abolished entirely, they implemented a lot of good things from Legends Arceus like being able to remember old moves whenever and how the open world works. The game's structure is completely different than any main series game before.

Scarlet/Violet is the most innovation and deviation from the formula that a main series Pokemon game has ever seen by a wide margin. Not everything worked out, but I think it's a good sign that Gamefreak is actually trying to reinvent the series and not just phoning in a new generation every few years.

Yeah, in terms of performance and graphics it sucks and is a straight downgrade of Sword/Shield, but I don't know how anyone can look at this game and think it's a lazy cashgrab.