Nintendo recently offered up more than 30 minutes of information on upcoming Switch games in one of its Nintendo Direct presentations, but the company isn’t done quite yet. On February 27, a second Nintendo Direct will be shown that focuses exclusively on Pokémon, and it could be our first look at the Gen 8 game for Switch.
The presentation will take place at 9 a.m. ET, and will last for roughly seven minutes. Nintendo didn’t clarify precisely what will take place, but referred to the event as a “Pokémon Direct.”
The timing of proper Pokémon role-playing game announcement would make sense, as the Pokémon Twitter account previously revealed that the game would be arriving in the second half of 2019.
With #PokemonQuest and #PokemonLetsGo, there are so many new ways to explore the world of Pokémon! Trainers can look forward to even more with an all-new core series Pokémon RPG title in development for the second half of 2019! pic.twitter.com/d5uiIpenMI
— Pokémon (@Pokemon) May 30, 2018
A core Pokémon game would certainly flesh out a 2019 Switch lineup that is looking a little skimpier than past years. Fire Emblem: Three Houses is out in July and Astral Chain and Bayonetta will both arrive this year, but none of those games have the brand recognition of Pokémon.
After the success of the more casual Let’s Go games, players are eager for a full-fledged Pokémon role-playing experience. Let’s Go was also limited to the Kanto region and, for the most part, the original monsters featured in Pokémon Yellow. This will likely not be the case with the new game, which should explore a new region and include a number of all-new Pokémon to catch. The increased power of the Switch should also make them more vibrant than ever.
The Pokémon Switch game won’t be the only Pokémon title releasing this year, however. The film Pokémon: Detective Pikachu will release May 10, and blends live-action footage with CG Pokémon characters. The titular monster is voiced by Ryan Reynolds — the actor has gotten seriously into his character, joking in a video that he “lived at his height” and attempted to lose nearly 200 pounds to better represent the tiny electric mouse. He’s still not Danny DeVito, but that’s a pretty good effort for portraying a Pokémon.
The last full Pokémon role-playing games were Sun and Moon, released for the 3DS back in 2016. The following year, they were updated as Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon for the same systems, and included different stories.
