Pokemon For Nintendo Switch: Everything We Know

Pokemon Let's Go, Eevee and Let's Go, Pikachu might have only just recently launched, but Nintendo Switch owners have another Pokemon game to look forward to in the coming months. The currently untitled "core RPG" for Switch is scheduled to launch next year, but what else do we know about it? Read on to find out.

What Is Pokemon For Switch?

The new Pokemon game for Nintendo Switch was announced at E3 2017. Tsunekazu Ishihara, president and CEO of The Pokemon Company, appeared during Nintendo's presentation to tease the game. He called it "a core RPG Pokemon title" developed by Game Freak for Nintendo Switch, saying it might not release for over a year. Game Freak has developed all the main Pokemon RPGs; the spinoff games are made by other studios.

When Will Pokemon For Switch Launch?

The Pokemon Company has confirmed that the core Pokemon RPG for Nintendo Switch is set to come out in the latter half of 2019. The announcement came alongside the reveals of Let's Go Pikachu, Let's Go Eevee, and Pokemon Quest, all of which have now been released.

What Happens To My Old Pokemon?

Asked whether Game Freak was looking at allowing Pokemon to move between Let's Go and the next core entry, Pokemon director Junichi Masuda assures that the development team is working to make that possible.

"We're definitely always thinking of that kind of forward-moving functionality, especially since we've introduced [Pokemon transfer service] Pokemon Bank," Masuda told GameSpot. "Now, up to Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon, you're able to store your Pokemon, and we know they're very important to everyone. I mean, obviously, people would be very sad if they couldn't use their Pokemon in a future game. So, it does get complicated when you talk about the details and we're still figuring it out, but we do have plans to find ways to let players use their Pokemon in the next game."

Will It Signal A New Generation?

Neither The Pokemon Company nor Game Freak have stated whether the new Pokemon game will be a brand-new entry--or entries--in the series, signaling the start of generation eight, or if it will simply be a remake or "upper version" of a previous game. However, since Let's Go Eevee and Let's Go Pikachu are themselves remakes of sorts of Pokemon Yellow, and the previous games, Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon for 3DS, are upper versions of Sun and Moon, it would be a surprise if the upcoming RPG was not a totally new game. With any luck, that means we'll get to explore a new region with all-new creatures in less than a year! Roll on 2019.