Pokemon SwordandPokemon Shieldhave received plenty of post-launch content with its two expansions,The Isle of ArmorandThe Crown Tundra. Hundreds more Pokemon and a couple new areas have been added, as well as story additions that build up the history of the Galar region. Multiple new legendary Pokemon, as well as nearly all of the old legendaries, were implemented. Even a new endgame doubles tournament and a second system for raiding Dynamax boss Pokemon came withThe Crown Tundra. Fans havelucked out like few others with thisPokemon SwordandShieldexpansion pass, but it’s starting to look like that’s all they’ll get.
SinceThe Crown Tundralaunched on October 22nd,Pokemon SwordandPokemon Shieldsupport has largely ceased. There are still new raids and giveaways coming out for it, but it looks like no new content is waiting in the wings.Pokemonis one of Game Freak and Nintendo’s biggest franchises, and its 25th anniversary is coming up on February 27th. DespiteSwordandShield’s fairly recent content drops, there are several reasons to suspect that no more news is coming forSwordandShield, and The Pokemon Company will be moving on to other things.
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Room To Evolve
Pokemon SwordandShieldsold extremely well, but it had its own controversies before launch. Game Freak producer Junichi Masuda noted that there were now over 800 Pokemon species in the series, and the Switch’s hardware made it easier for them all to be expressive. However, the developer had to balance importing as many Pokemon as possible and updating them while still hitting development deadlines. Balancing and rebalancing the enormousPokemonroster was also cited as a time-consuming priority. Game Freak had previously mentioned that ithoped expectations weren’t “too high” for the series' Switch debut, which may have been foreshadowing the issues to come.
However, as more footage came out for the games, fans started to wonder if the approach really was quantity over quality.Pokemon only had a couple battle animationsspread out across all their potential moves, and some attacks simply saw Pokemon jerking back and forth to simulate movement. Several models seemed like almost exact copies of those used in the 3DS gamesSunandMoon, and on top of everything else, fans just couldn’t help but feel underwhelmed at the rough appearance of the Galar region at large. A new entry could help the Pokemon Company appease fans with targeted responses toSwordandShield’s main complaints, and as such, it could be that the next gen is in the works, not expansions for this one.
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Remake Rumor Relay
Indeed, development on the nextPokemongames may be the precise reasonSwordandShieldwill not be seeing any more content updates, but it may not even have to be the next gen in full. Plenty of rumors have been swirling around regardingPokemon DiamondandPearlremakes. Quite a few fans considerDiamondandPearlto be the best games in the series, and ever since the third generation ofPokemongames got remakes back in 2014, fans have been wondering when the fourth generation would get its shot. If recent hearsay is to be believed, that time may be this year.
There are plenty of rumors suggesting that the remakes, and their announcement, are just around the corner. Atweet from Junichi Masudaat the end of 2020 raised suspicions among sharp-eyed fans. The tweet in question had a picture showing a group of plush Psyducks, remindingDiamondandPearlfans of the time the player is blocked by several Psyduck experiencing a collective headache.
There was also a leaked merchandise listing fromPokemonleaker Centro Pokemon LEAKS. The main point of interest was the fact thatDiamondandPearl’s three starters make an appearance. A number of other Pokemon introduced in the fourth generation were featured among the merchandise, namely Riolu, Lucario, Leafeon, Glaceon, Munchlax, and Pachirisu. The timing of these lines up suspiciously well withPokemon’s anniversary at the end of February.
Of course, these remakes would be counted as the same eighth generation asPokemon SwordandShield, and would thus retain a lot of the mechanics and concepts introduced in it. Dynamaxing and Gigantamaxing could return with new Gigantamax forms in tow, much like Mega Evolutions in previous generations.Mount Coronet could even be turned into a Wild Area, being a recurring location that fills much of the map and houses many different kinds of Pokemon. It would mark the first vertically-oriented Wild Area, and could have indoor and outdoor segments. The possibilities are thrilling, and there is likely not much waiting time left before these rumors are confirmed or rendered moot.
Pokemon SwordandPokemon Shieldhad a good run, but their time looks to be over. WithPokemon’s 25th anniversary just around the cornerand the last content drop being months ago, chances for moreSwordandShieldDLC are looking thin. Despite that, the future forPokemonis looking brighter than ever on Nintendo Switch, and fans are waiting with bated breath to see what’s coming next.
Pokemon SwordandPokemon Shieldare available now on Nintendo Switch.
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