After nearly two years of anticipation, Pokémon fans have finally gotten a look at what the first fully new title will be on the Nintendo Switch. Revealed in a brief and focused video presentation this morning, Pokémon Sword and Shield will be the eighth generation of the iconic series – complete with a new region to explore and new creatures to befriend.
True to form, that’s about all The Pokémon Company International had to show off in today’s presentation. The new Galar region (seemingly based on the United Kingdom) is rendered in lush detail, much more so than even the previous outing on the Switch, Let’s Go Pikachu and Eevee. Idyllic countryside is contrasted with long standing metropolitan cities, details that are reflected in the backgrounds of battle and wild encounters; which return in full to their traditional mechanics while looking more dynamic when attacks happen. TPCi also confirmed the return of gym battles after their absence in Sun and Moon.
The gameplay footage ends with a nod to European Football, suggesting a possibly new mechanic before transitioning to a fully animated sequence revealing the new starter Pokémon: Scorbunny, the bunny-like fire type; Sobble, a salamander-esque water type; and Grookey, a grass-type monkey design.
For now, that is all fans will really have to work with, but the wait won’t be too long – Pokémon Sword and Shield are planned for release near the end of 2019; presumably just in time for the holiday season.
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