Pokémon Presents has just finished and it's safe to say that fans are now left desperately waiting. I wish I could embrace my inner Snorlax and just sleep until 2025 when we now know the next main game will be arriving, but that sadly isn't the case. We can however get excited about what was shown during the livestream.
I predicted before the show that we would see a new Pokémon Legends game, and that was the case, but no one would have seen this coming. The previous title, Pokémon Legends Arceus was a fresh new 3D spin on the formula that had players exploring a past version of the beloved Sinnoh region (from Pokémon Diamond and Pearl) known as Hsui. The new title, set for 2025, will be titled Pokemon Legends Z-A and will be set in the Kalos region, AKA, the world of Pokémon X and Y.
This is not exactly the setting we were expecting. X and Y were 3DS titles that were released in 2013 and are widely considered fine by fans, but many believe there were more deserving candidates. I'm remaining hopeful however, and the new title does answer a question many of us have wondered for a decade now, where is Pokémon Z?
Most Pokémon games have two initial editions (e.g. X and Y) and then a pseudo-deluxe edition that releases later that brings new elements and combines the other two titles. For example, Ruby and Sapphire were followed by Emerald while Diamond and Pearl were succeeded by Platinum, that never happened with X and Y. All we have to go on of the new title is a brief trailer but going by the name, expect the legendary Pokémon Zygarde to feature heavily.
The next question this raises is one of hardware. It's widely expected that the Nintendo Switch 2 will launch in March 2025. With this game given a blanket release date of sometime in 2025, surely Nintendo will wait for the new hardware. If so, what a way to launch, a 3D pokémon would be a fantastic way to show off a new console's extra oomph.
In other news, both Pokémon: Go and Pokémon: Unite received news of future updates but I was caught off guard by the third mobile-focused announcement. Pokémon Trading Card Game: Pocket. This is a streamlined, all-digital version of the uber-popular card game. With beautiful digital art, including immersive cards that you can almost literally dive into and explore, it's great to finally see a worthy online version of the card game. It will also receive several changes to the traditional rules of the TCG to have faster games more suited for mobile audiences. There's no release date beyond 2024, but colour us excited.
