Image: The Pokemon Company
This week’s Pokemon Presents stream showed off a new Pokemon Legends game set in the Kalos region and a mobile Trading Card Game spin-off.
The Pokemon Company hosted a special Pokemon Day-themed Pokemon Presents stream today, announcing new games and future updates lined up for the franchise on mobile platforms and the Nintendo Switch. The biggest announcements included a brand-new mobile take on the Pokemon Trading Card Game and a Pokemon Legends game centered on the Kalos region from Pokemon X and Y.
Let’s break down those announcements.
Pokemon Legends: Z-A
The Pokemon Company has announced an all-new Pokemon Legends game from developer Game Freak, following up on the success of Pokemon Legends: Arceus. The new game is called Pokemon Legends Z-A, and will be set in Pokemon X and Y’s Kalos region. It’s due to launch on the Nintendo Switch next year, which could also mean that it’s headed for the Nintendo Switch 2 as well.
Pokemon Legends Z-A was announced with a rather mysterious CG-animated trailer, so it’s hard to say what the game is going to look like right now. All we know is that this is an “ambitious new entry to the Pokémon video game series,” set in Pokemon X and Y’s Paris-inspired Lumiose City. The trailer gives us a little hint that there are plans to redevelop Lumiose City into, “a place that belongs to both people and Pokémon.”
We will likely see Mega Evolutions return for Pokemon that never had them before, if the pattern of players getting different starter Pokemon in the Legends series holds. The trailer hints at a futuristic angle for Legends: Z-A, so we might be going into the future rather than the past for this one.
Pokemon Trading Card Game Pocket
The Pokemon Company also announced a new mobile game based on its physical Trading Card Game, called Pokemon Trading Card Game Pocket. This game captures everything card-collectors will remember loving about the Pokemon Trading Card Game - from opening packs to battling other players - in a virtual app. The game will launch on iOS and Android mobile devices sometime in 2024 as a ‘free-to-start’ app, but we expect those card packs to be pretty heavily monetised.
This is really just a digital version of the Pokemon Trading Card Game, down to collecting different Pokemon cards which now double as virtual collectibles. You can dive into card art now for a more immersive experience, and battle or trade with other players. New streamlined game battle rules will be introduced for the app, to make things quicker for mobile gamers.
Pokemon Go, Pokemon Cafe Remix, Pokemon Unite and more
In case you’re wondering what else you missed, here’s a quick recap: to celebrate Pokemon Day, Venasaur, Blastoise and Charizard are dropping into Pokemon Scarlet and Violet’s Tera Raid battles in a series of events running from February 28 to March 17. Pokemon Go is getting a crossover update with Pokemon Horizons: The Series, adding Captain Pikachu to the game - or more specifically, Captain Pikachu’s hat. Pokemon Sleep is getting Raikou while Pokemon Masters Ex adds Geeta and Glimmora. Pokemon Cafe Remix is also adding Gimmighoul, while Pokemon Unite adds Miraidon, Phalanx and Ceruledge.
Check out more details on the official Pokemon website here.