It wasn’t just the world though; Pokemon battles were now in full 3D with a moving camera, as they were in the days of games like
Pokemon Stadium or
Pokemon Colosseum. Seeing a moving creature during battle (and in 3D if you turned the slider up on your 3DS) was an absolute revelation at the time. Finally, the mainline
Pokemon games felt like I was there.
The next biggest change is, of course, the addition of the new Fairy typing. I remember crying heresy like so many of you when a new type was announced to be added for the first time in four generations; about 30 minutes into playing