The last full Nintendo Direct was way back in September, which showcased new Smash DLC characters – the King of Fighters, Terry Bogard, and the newest dynamic duo to hit Smash, Banjo & Kazooie – and revealed the long deserved HD remake of Xenoblade Chronicles! Pokémon Sword & Shield released a few months later in November and were met with a somewhat mixed reception from fans due to the lack of a National Dex, meaning the total number of Pokémon was limited from the staggering 890 to 400: Pokémon fans were, of course, disappointed that certain favourites had been omitted.
However, as many may have suspected might be the case, it seems there is a chance for this to be remedied somewhat through the new Expansion Passes showcased in this Pokémon Direct. Whether or not this will please fans entirely or not is debatable, but the January Pokémon Direct certainly left a lot for us Pokémon Trainers to look forward to with more updates for the main game on the horizon. Now all we need to know is when we’ll be able to have our favourite partner Pokémon follow us around outside of the confines of their Pokéballs and which Pokémon make the best curries….? Combusken and Bonsweet curry, anyone?
Pokémon Mystery Dungeon DX
Originally released as Pokémon Mystery Dungeon Red Rescue Team and Blue Rescue Team on the Gameboy Advance in 2006, Pokémon Mystery Dungeon Rescue Team DX will be coming to the Switch as a full blown remake of the Pokémon themed dungeon crawler! For those who have yet to dive into the series, it’s a spinoff that let’s you play as Pokémon rather than as a trainer, gathering other Pokémon to join your team – the Rescue Team – who will join you as you explore randomly generated dungeon levels with a village that serves a hub world, complete with shops and mini-games.
This version of the GBA classic updates the game to bring the sprite based world of Mystery Dungeon to the third-dimension and introduces Mega Evolution to the mix. Whether a new entry is in the works remains to be seen, but hopefully this will evolve the original base game with new updates. Thankfully if you’ve never tried any of the Mystery Dungeon games, a demo was made available to download right after the event!
Pokémon Sword and Shield Expansion Pass
During the Direct, Game Freak showcased new DLC packages that will add new areas to the Galar Region to explore, as well as some new and old Pokémon, with new Gigantamax forms to take on! Further to this, depending on which version of the game you have, your expansion pass may offer some differentiating content – largely, which Pokémon appear in which version.
In the past, while Pokémon games have typically released as pairs with different Pokémon appearing in each version, a third version that combined elements of the duo has often been released – such as Pokémon Emerald or Platinum. “The Isle of Armour” and “Crown Tundra” will replace the need to do this, making use of DLC passes instead. While there may be some mixed opinions about the idea of paying for more Pokémon, they offer whole new areas to explore with new stories and characters, as well as brand new Legendaries!
In the base games, while the Wild Area graphics certainly left a lot to be desired and felt somewhat empty, it was and still is undeniably a lot of fun to roam around in thanks to the wild Pokémon appearing on the map! The new Isle of Armour and Crown Tundra are partly interesting because they look like they may expand on the idea of the Wild Area with new environments to explore.
‘Isle of Armour’
Isle of Armour will be set on an island off the coast of the Galar region, with varying locations and Pokémon from past games. The big feature highlighted was the Dojo where you will train under Mustard, and will introduce the Poison-type trainer Klara as a rival in Sword, or Avery the Psychic-type trainer in Shield.
Kubfu – a new Fighting-type, if its name didn’t give that away – was also shown off as the new Legendary with ties to the new story. Interestingly, depending on whether you’re a Sword or Shield player will determine which typing its evolution will take. More reason to trade, or cave in and buy both versions perhaps…?
‘Crown Tundra’
Looking a little like the Hebra region of the Breath of the Wild map, Crown Tundra is set in a snow-swept area with haunting ruins and a new Mystic Pokémon, Calarex, with emphasis placed on exploring caves and hunting Legendary Pokémon. It seems there’s also a greater emphasis on Legendaries in this pass than Isle of Armour and will feature new Legendaries and what look like new Regi forms…
Pokémon gun confirmed…
Not much to say about this, but the three Galar starters final evolutions are to be given brand-new Gigantamax forms, which just so happens to include a gun wielding Inteleon. Because of course…
Naturally, fans have started to make their own “edits” to the new Gigantamax Inteleon as well.
