A Pokemon game for the Nintendo Switch is something that has been on many gamers’ wish lists pretty much since the console launched last spring. it also makes sense, because it’s one of the biggest franchises Nintendo has, and one …
A Pokemon game for the Nintendo Switch is something that has been on many gamers’ wish lists pretty much since the console launched last spring. it also makes sense, because it’s one of the biggest franchises Nintendo has, and one of the few that hasn’t shown up there yet. But while intensifying rumors hinting at a Pokemon Switch title finally being announced are exciting enough, it’s the prospect of it being connected in some way to Pokemon GO that really has us excited here at Gamezebo.
There’s reason to think that might be the case, so let’s go over the latest rumors and see why it could actually be happening.
VG247 brings word of two web domains that were recently registered by CSC Corporate Domains, which has done similar work for Nintendo in the past, including registering Pokemon Sun and Moon.
The interesting part is exactly what these domains were: Pokemon Let’s Go Pikachu and Pokemon Let’s Go Eevee. Just the inclusion of the word ‘Go’ in those potential titles hints strongly at a link to Pokemon GO. It’s certainly the first thing that comes to mind upon hearing them.
Emily Rogers is a well-connected video games industry veteran who used to break news before moving to the game creation side. On her personal blog this week, she speculates heavily that the Pokemon Switch games (because it does sound like there might be two versions, as is often the case with new Pokemon titles) and Pokemon GO will be linked somehow, not just because of their names but due to what could be learned from the widespread success of Pokemon GO.
This all leads to a much bigger question: What lessons should Game Freak and Nintendo learn from Pokémon Go’s success? How could Switch benefit from Pokémon Go’s success, and how could Pokémon Go benefit from Switch’s success?
Rogers also says the new Pokemon games will be revealed before the end of May.
The idea of console and mobile games working together isn’t a new one, but it’s something that video game developers have cooled off on over the past few years as they focus on making the experiences on each platform the best they can be rather than intertwining them. Still, the Nintendo Switch offers a unique facet that other consoles don’t, which is that it, too, can be played on the go (pun sort of intended) and thus be taken to the same places a phone or tablet could — and it even has a touchscreen.
That’s not to suggest that the Pokemon Switch titles will ask gamers to pick up their consoles to catch Pokemon, but it is an acknowledgement that the new games can have similar mechanics to Pokemon GO without stretching all that far. On top of that, there are things that the Switch is more suited for that mobile devices are not, meaning that some of the aspects of Pokemon GO that mobile gamers have long requested could come to life on console instead.
Imagine being able to square off with other players’ teams of Pokemon after you’ve caught them in the wild in Pokemon GO. Or being able to join in a raid from your own house in some capacity if you’re unable to make it to the location in person. The possibilities are pretty much limitless, and they’re definitely more intriguing if the rumors of the Nintendo Switch games and Pokemon GO being connected come to pass.
If the information about a reveal before the end of May turns out to be correct, we should get a taste of whether this is the direction Nintendo is going within the next few weeks. And with E3 right around the corner in June, we should know for sure before Pokemon GO turns two later this summer.
