At last year"s E3, Nintendo used its presentation video to announce that a Pokémon game was in development for the Switch. As the company noted, this was a game for the main series of the franchise, and not a spin-off.
Today, in a surprise press conference, The Pokémon Company has finally unveiled the next generation of the franchise, which is coming later this year to the Nintendo Switch, as well as a new title for mobile devices and Nintendo"s hybrid console.
First, Pokémon Quest is a new spin-off game in the franchise. It"s coming to both the Nintendo Switch and mobile devices as a digital download, and it features Pokémon from the first generation of the franchise, now with cube-like appearance. It"s a free-to-start game, which means that you can download it for free, but after certain point purchases are necessary to continue playing.
Pokémon Quest takes place in Tumblecube Island, and the player can have a team of up to 3 Pokémon to explore the island, gather treasure and recruit new members. Items called Power Stones allow players to choose the characteristics they want their Pokémon to have.
Perhaps the most awaited announcement of the event, Pokémon Let"s Go! Eevee and Pokémon Let"s Go! Pikachu seem to be a mix of elements from the main series of the franchise and Pokémon Go for mobile devices. According to the company, the games are based on Pokémon Yellow, originally released for the GameBoy Color.
The games can be played with just one Joy-Con controller and include support for two-player local cooperative multiplayer. A new Poké Ball-shaped controller/accessory called Poké Ball Plus is also being released. In addition to being able to control the game using the accessory, Pokémon from the game can be sent into the device, allowing players to carry a desired Pokémon with them.
Pokémon Let"s Go! Eevee and Pokémon Let"s Go! Pikachu can also communicate directly with Pokémon Go, allowing for captured Pokémon from the mobile game to be sent to the Switch games. Presents can also be sent from the Switch games to Pokémon Go. You can check out all the new features in the trailer below.
Interestingly enough, The Pokémon Company says that more games in the core series are set to be released in 2019, though no names were given. These games should introduce the eighth generation of the franchise, and the first since Pokémon Sun and Moon were released on the Nintendo 3DS in 2016.
Rumors about the upcoming Pokémon games had been swirling around the internet as of late, and the announcement seems to confirm a lot of what had been speculated. It"s likely that we"ll see more information at this year"s E3 presentation from Nintendo.
Source: Serebii | Image credit: Pokémon (Twitter)