There was a time a couple of years ago when it seemed like we got a couple of new Pokémon games every 12 months.
From Pokémon: Let’s Go, Pikachu! and Eevee! to Pokémon Legends: Arceus, The Pokémon Company churned out fun adventures of questionable quality faster than you could say Crabominable, to the point where fans and critics alike began to speculate whether or not Game Freak specifically needed to pump the brakes on its out-of-control Revaroom of production.
Then came Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, and despite some great tunes and a trio of halfway-decent stories, I’ve complained enough about the technical issues and bland open world for a lifetime. Now, after the two DLC packs have concluded – The Teal Mask and The Indigo Disk – we’ve got quite literally nothing on the horizon, yet I believe there’s absolutely no chance 2024 will wrap up without a new Pokémon game or two.
The obvious answer for this lack of information is that the next Pokémon games will make the jump to the Nintendo Switch’s still unannounced but oft-rumored successor, said to be out in late 2024. After all, what better way to start a new Nintendo generation than with their best-selling series? But it remains to be seen which kind of Pokémon game we’ll get. In order of, in my opinion, most to least likely, these are the candidates:
- A new mainline game (Generation X)
- Pokémon Black and White remakes
- A follow-up to Let’s Go, Pikachu! and Eevee!
- A Pokémon Legends sequel
- Something else entirely
An announcement of a Switch successor needing to precede the reveal of a new Pokémon title makes the most sense as to why we haven’t seen anything from Game Freak other than DLC in the last year, despite how prolific the developer usually is. The optimist in me speculates they’ve taken the time to get the next generation running well and looking sharp for new hardware because while Scarlet and Violet is visually passable on the Switch’s handheld screen at 720p, I can’t imagine how bad it’d look in the higher resolution the Switch 2 is rumored to support.
Speculation around a Pokémon Black and White remake has run as rampant as Rattata along Route 1 after plentiful references to the Unova region in The Indigo Disk DLC. Several characters, such as Lacey, claimed to be direct descendants of Black and White gym leaders. Furthermore, remixed tunes made up much of the DLC’s soundtrack. Whether developer ICLA – the studio behind Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl – is headlining Black and White remakes or Game Freak has Let’s Go, Minccino/Legends: Victini on the horizon, we’ll have to wait and see. Still, I expect we’ll revisit Unova soon.
Because of Let’s Go and Legends, we now know Game Freak likes to experiment with Pokémon games, so we may get something else entirely. I do think a Legends follow-up is less likely, given how recent the last one was. That said, it isn’t a stretch to assume we’ll find out sooner rather than later. We’ve gotten a Pokémon Presents video every February 27 for the last three years, and though the imminent announcement of a Switch successor may have thrown a Klinklang into that pattern, we’re also due for a full-on Nintendo Direct. A reveal of new Pokémon games in a regular Direct with a promise to reveal more in a later Pokémon Presents? It wouldn’t be the first time.
Personally, I’d like to see a well-made remake of Black and White to bring the Nintendo Switch’s impressive run to a close before getting a new Pokémon generation sometime in 2025 because I don’t have a lot of faith that Game Freak will get it right in time to launch with the next system. Regardless, this is an exciting time for Pokémon fans after a disappointing year. Game Freak may finally evolve Pokémon into a series that matches modern standards rather than continuing to flounder open-world designs like a beached Magikarp.
