On this February 27, 2024, players celebrate Pokémon Day. 28 years ago, in 1996, the very first Green and Blue versions were released on Game Boy in Japan. For a few years now, the Pokémon Company and Game Freak have taken advantage of this anniversary to broadcast a Pokémon Presents. This equivalent of Nintendo Direct dedicated to the little pocket monsters is then an opportunity to discover the latest new features to come. Against all expectations, the live broadcast today managed to create a surprise in just a few minutes of broadcast. After a usual focus on mobile games and the announcement of a new virtual version of the collectible card game, the parent company of Pokémon has unveiled its next major title.
Pokémon Legends Z-A will continue the lineage launched by Pokémon Legends Arceus in 2022 by transporting us to the city of Illumis in the heart of the Kalos region. What promises to be a well-deserved sequel to the 3DS's X and Y games seems to have many surprises in store. It will be a question of participating in the development of the city where humans and Pokémon live in harmony: an urban expansion dangerous for the ecosystem of which Zygarde is the guardian? In the absence of gameplay images, it is difficult to get an idea of the experience to come. This announcement is nevertheless accompanied by excellent news: for the first time in the history of the franchise, Pokémon games will be absent from Nintendo consoles for two consecutive years.
A change of strategy that we were no longer expecting
By omitting the release of the DLCs for Pokémon Scarlet and Violet in 2023, no new title in the license – spin-off or main – was invited to Switch last year. The same observation for the year 2024 since Game Freak will publish the next game freshly announced in 2025. Has the Pokémon Company decided to take into account player feedback? Since the origin of the license, Pokémon games have followed a frantic pace of publication, tamed by the development of the brand image around this concept. Collectible cards, television series and other derivative products have accompanied the pocket monsters during their 28 years of existence.
This certainly effective marketing model began to show its weaknesses at the end of the 3DS generation and during the transition to the Switch. The transition from a pixel art style, minimalist and quick to develop to 3D universes in keeping with their time but more complex to set up was no longer compatible with the frenetic release schedule. As a result, Pokémon games have lost optimization, reaching the technical disaster of the Scarlet and Purple games. Putting quality before quantity unfortunately seemed impossible in the face of this well-established publishing model.
However, the launch of Pokémon Z-A in 2025 is a sign of change. This late release not only guarantees a longer development time than usual, but also predicts a launch of the 10th generation or remakes of Black and White in 2026. These titles will certainly benefit from the more powerful hardware of the next Nintendo console, while benefiting from more in-depth development. It seems that the early retirement of Ash and Pikachu in favor of an anime with more freedom in its story choices has given the Pokémon Company more leeway to establish a new release schedule. Will we see a revival of the franchise, freed from the chains of its derivative products? Only time will tell: see you in 2025.
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