Pokémon Pokopia first impressions: Colorful, whimsical fun 

Fans of Pokémon games and life sims are in for a treat with Pokémon Pokopia. The upcoming title places players in the wobbly, purple shoes of a helpful Ditto, tasking them with restoring a desolate land into a thriving home for all manner of Pocket Monsters.

During my time at the Pokémon European Championships 2026, I had the opportunity to dip into a demo for Pokémon Pokopia, getting roughly 20 minutes of gameplay. Here’s The Escapist’s first impressions of Pokémon Pokopia on the Nintendo Switch 2. 

The Escapist recaps

• Pokémon Pokopia is an upcoming cozy life simulation game, developed by Game Freak and Koei Tecmo’s Omega Force and published by The Pokémon Company and Nintendo. 
• In Pokémon Pokopia, you play as a Ditto masquerading as a human, with the aim of restoring life to a currently barren stretch of land. Once habitats are restored, you’ll get to meet new Pokémon, including fan favorites like Bulbasaur and Scyther. 
• Meeting a new Pokémon can teach the playable Ditto character a new move – like Cut or Vine Whip – that can help you navigate the world and tackle obstacles.
• Pokopia’s core gameplay revolves around building and customizing homes for Pokémon, while also focusing on exploration and expanding Ditto’s moveset.
• Based on my time with the game, Pokémon Pokopia is going to be an absolute delight for fans of games like Animal Crossing: New Horizons. 

A charming and vibrant world

Pokémon Pokopia is an upcoming title that promises to blend the coziness of games like Animal Crossing: New Horizons with the charm of the Pokémon series. Based on my time with the game at EUIC 2026, I’m happy to confirm – it’s looking like an absolute gem.

I got to check out 20 minutes or so of the upcoming Nintendo Switch 2 title, dropping into an existing save file towards the beginning of the game. 

To start, my “human” player character was on a mission to restore the nearby area by watering dry grass. Instead of using a watering can or hose, they simply used Water Gun, spewing globs of water onto the nearby foliage. Mildly unsettling, but efficient – and environmentally friendly, too. 

Other moves became available as the demo progressed, being introduced as I befriended new Pokémon by discovering different habitats. Meeting Scyther allowed me to use Cut, for example, which let me slice up wooden logs and get lumber. 

Getting lumber (and other building materials) opened up a new section of the game – crafting. You can craft decorations, trinkets, and toys in Pokémon Pokopia, with the option to decorate the overworld and Pokémon houses. 

Pokémon will request certain items from you, too; they may ask for a toy in their home or something to help them feel cozier. Fulfilling these requests will help with progression and open up even more options while exploring the game. 

Chatting to the Pokémon in Pokopia was one of the highlights of the demo. As you’re playing as a Ditto person, not a human person, you can speak with Pokémon and learn more about them – how they’re feeling, what they want, and how they feel about other Pokémon in the world. It was charming and made the experience even more whimsical. 

Low-stress but engaging gameplay

Something that felt apparent from my time with Pokopia is that it’ll offer a soothing, meditative style of play.

There were missions and specific tasks to complete in the demo – collect two sticks, water a patch of grass – but the world still felt open, and exploring felt just as worthwhile. There weren’t too many story details shown off in the demo, but the interactions with Professor Tangrowth were adorable. 

Traversing the world felt especially rewarding, as the Ditto main character can turn into a “Lapras” and “Dragonite” to surf and fly around with ease. Seeing Ditto’s face plastered on top of a Lapras will never not be delightful, but it looked especially cute here. 

Character creator geeks will be happy to know that there’s a comprehensive character creation process in Pokopia, too. It’s not quite as vast as something like Nioh 3, of course, but the game has a plethora of cute hairstyles, outfit options, and visual tweaks to help your pile of purple goo feel like you. 

Performance-wise, Pokémon Pokopia looked great and ran smoothly during my time with it. There weren’t any noticeable quirks or visual issues, movement felt smooth, and the menus were intuitive as well.

If you’re a fan of cozy games and you’ve spent some time with the Pokémon franchise, chances are that Pokémon Pokopia is already on your radar. Based on this short but sweet demo, Pokémon Pokopia looks like it might steal the show in the cozy gaming world, offering a simple but immersive style of play and a delightful aesthetic. 

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