'Pokémon Ultra Sun' and 'Ultra Moon' will be series' last 3DS games

By Gabe Gurwin Published October 23, 2017

The Nintendo 3DS helped to revolutionize the Pokémon role-playing experience, introducing 3D environments and more detailed battles with Pokémon X and Y, and subsequent games built on that formula to both critical and fan acclaim. But as the Nintendo Switch continues to pick up steam, it appears that developer Game Freak is leaving the 3DS behind.

In an interview with IGN, Game Freak director Shigeru Ohmori revealed that his team had pushed the 3DS “to its absolute limits” with the upcoming games Pokémon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon, and that they were treating the games as “the culmination of our work with the 3DS system.”

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The two games, which release in November, are enhanced versions of last year’s Pokémon Sun and Pokémon Moon. The games ditched the series’ traditional Pokémon gyms in favor of challenges scattered around the island paradise of Alola. Those games appeared to have been taxing the 3DS hardware already, as the 3D effect was disabled almost completely — a Pokémon Snap-like minigame did still include 3D.

Nintendo and Game Freak previously confirmed that a full-fledged Pokémon role-playing game was in development for the Switch, though we have been given almost no other information on it. It will be a “main” Pokémon adventure, and the first to hit a home console. Previously, you could battle Pokémon from you Game Boy cartridges in the Nintendo 64 game Pokémon Stadium, though the game didn’t feature a full story mode itself.

For those who can’t wait to play a Pokémon game on Nintendo Switch, you can pick up Pokkén Tournament DX right now. The game, which is a remastered version of a Wii U release from 2015, is a real-time 3D fighting games featuring classic creatures like Lucario and Pikachu. We liked the Switch version more than the Wii U original, but found its split-screen multiplayer — one of its main draws — to be all but useless due to a poor framerate.

Pokémon Ultra Sun and Pokémon Ultra Moon comes to 3DS systems on November 17. The games come with new “Z-Moves” for both Solgaleo and Lunala, along with the sport “Mantine Surf,” new locations, and the “Alola Photo Club.”

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Gabe Gurwin has been playing games since 1997, beginning with the N64 and the Super Nintendo. He began his journalism career…

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