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'Pokémon Sword' and 'Shield' arrive on Switch late 2019
Nintendo and Game Freak have been promising an honest-to-goodness Pokémon role-playing game for the Switch for years, and they're nearly ready to deliver. They've unveiled Pokémon Sword and Pokémon Shield, the first entries in the core RPG franchise for Nintendo's current console. The initial clips only provide so much detail, but they do suggest a change from the classic top-down perspective to a horizontal view. And of course, there's new material. You can expect a new region, Galar, as well as three new starter critters: Grookee (a grass character), Scorbunny (fire) and Sobble (water).
'Pokémon Go' gets a little bigger with 'Diamond' and 'Pearl' monsters
The Pokémon Company has announced that monsters from the Sinnoh region -- the Diamond and Pearl games -- are now available in Pokémon Go. Players will now be able to capture favorites like Turtwig, Chimchar and Piplup as they make their debut in the still-popular mobile AR game.
'Pokémon: Let's Go' will connect 'Pokémon Go' and Switch this fall
A new series of Pokémon games coming to the Switch this fall will link the "classic RPG experience" with 2016's augmented reality hit Pokémon Go. Pokémon: Let's Go Pikachu! and Pokémon: Let's Go Evee! will also support multiplayer, and there's a Poké Ball Plus accessory that works to throw Poké Balls in-game as a motion controller and works as a Pokémon Go Plus when you're away from home.
Niantic settles 'Pokémon Go' festival lawsuit for $1.5 million
Niantic has already refunded the ticket costs for attendees of 2017's disastrous Pokémon Go Fest, but it's now poised to pay more. The company is settling a class action lawsuit over the festival to the tune of $1.57 million, with an official settlement website due to appear by May 25th. The payout will cover hotel and transportation costs for the many attendees whose event was ruined by connectivity and logistical problems. Be sure to read the fine print if you were one of those affected, though -- you'll need evidence you were there.
'Detective Pikachu' game's US debut set for March 23rd
Ever since the Detective Pikachu game launched in Japan in early 2016, there's been a lingering question: when would it be available elsewhere, if it ever left Japanese shores? At last, there's a date. The Pokémon Company has announced that its 3DS sleuth title will reach the US and Europe on March 23rd, 2018 for $40. On top of that, there will be a $30 giant Detective Pikachu amiibo (nearly double the usual height at 5.35 inches tall) which unlocks videos that might provide clues.
Latest 'Pokémon' games include an ode to Nintendo's late president
Developers are still eager to show their gratitude to Nintendo's late Satoru Iwata. Gamers have learned that Pokémon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon include a clear, heartfelt tribute to the company's long-serving president. It requires that you have a creature carried over from Pokémon Silver (thankfully available in the eShop) and a trek to the Game Freak building in Heahea City, but it's worth the effort to read a short-but-sweet anecdote about one of Nintendo's most appreciated leaders.
Talk to Pikachu through your Amazon Echo or Google Home
Pikachu is virtually inescapable in the tech world, and that includes the smart speaker in your living room. The Pokémon Company has previewed Pikachu Talk, an app meant for Alexa- and Google Assistant-powered devices like the Amazon Echo and Google Home. The name says it all, really: you can hold conversations with the iconic yellow critter. We wouldn't expect deep discussions when Pikachu can only respond with variants of its name ("pika pika!" isn't exactly My Dinner With Andre material), but it's bound to be fun for at least a little while if you're a Pokémon fan.
Pokémon Go Fest's big flop shows Niantic needs to think bigger
This past weekend's Pokémon Go Fest felt like a bit of a flashback to 2016. Users were having connection problems and couldn't even sign into the game. People were angry, and refunds were doled out. But the truth is that game developer Niantic has spent the past year ironing out those issues, and the game has improved quite a bit. The festival in Chicago was intended as a love letter to those who stuck through it all and kept playing, while also giving the company a chance to unveil long-awaited Legendary Pokémon. Instead, it was a mess that showed the developer is still struggling with unexpected success.
'Pokémon Go' to get raid battles and simplified gyms
A year after Pokémon Go captivated the world with its location-based catch-athon, Niantic is making some changes. The biggest is raid battles, a concept that was teased in the very first trailer for the game. They'll launch "in the coming weeks" and take place at existing gyms, allowing groups of players to take on rare and powerful Pokémon together. At first, you'll see an egg and a countdown timer, as well as one to four boss icons which indicate the creature's difficulty. When the meter drops to zero, the Pokémon will appear and you'll have a limited time to catch it.
Mobile is helping The Pokémon Company make tons of money
It's not every year that a mobile game becomes a genuine global phenomenon -- but as I'm sure you all noticed, that's exactly what Pokémon Go was. For a good few months, Nintendo and Niantic transformed most of the world into wandering cellphone zombies, and now, The Pokémon Company is reaping the benefits. In the previous fiscal year, the house of Pikachu found itself in a bit of a slump, turning over a middling profit of just $5.6 million dollars. Now, a report spotted by analyst Serkan Toto reveals that this financial year The Pokémon Company's profits exceeded $143.3 million -- more than 26 times what it made the previous year.
Pokémon Company caught almost 6,000 'Sun' and 'Moon' cheaters
Cheating in online games is awful because it creates an uneven playing field against those who do play by the rules and those who do not. The Pokémon Company (TPC) noticed some irregularities in Pokémon Sun and Moon online matches and has laid the law down for 5,954 folks using modified save files, according to a translated post from the Company.
'Pokémon Duel' brings Pikachu and friends to iOS, Android today
Pokémon Go has a new friend on mobile today: Pokémon Duel is available now, for free, on Android and iOS devices, courtesy of The Pokémon Company International. Pokémon Duel is a strategy title that plays more like a board game than a traditional Pokémon experience. Players build a party of six Pokémon and move them across a playing field dotted with spaces where the creatures can attack, flank or block their opponents' adorable armies. The first player to reach the enemy's goal wins.
New 'Pokémon Go' creatures include a limited edition Pikachu
Niantic promised more creatures in Pokémon Go on December 12th, and it's delivering... with an interesting twist. It's not only adding "several" new critters from the Pokémon Gold and Silver games (such as Pichu and Togepi), but also releasing a limited edition holiday Pikachu. The Santa cap-wearing creature is available "all over the world," but only until December 29th at 1PM Eastern. If you don't find one by then, you're out of luck.
Starbucks locations are now 'Pokémon Go' Gyms or Pokéstops
We knew a Starbucks collaboration with Pokémon Go was on the way, but now it's official. Niantic, the developer of the massively popular augmented reality game, revealed today that around 7,800 Starbucks coffee shops in the US have been turned into Gyms or Pokéstops. Aside from this, since these are sponsored locations after all, trainers can also pick up a special Pokémon Go Frappuccino drink. And, just like you can do at Sprint stores now, you'll have access to a charging station too.
Sprint stores are PokéStops and Gyms for 'Pokémon Go'
As rumored, Niantic is bringing brand partnerships to its hit augmented reality game, Pokémon Go. The software developer has announced that Sprint will have the first sponsored locations in the US, with more than 10,500 stores expected to be turned into PokéStops and Gyms. It's worth nothing this doesn't only include Sprint's namesake shops, but also those from Boost Mobile and RadioShack -- which are owned by the carrier. These spaces will feature in-store charging stations too, in case your smartphone can't keep up with all your quests.
'Pokémon Go' may get 100 new Pokémon this week (updated)
Pokémon Go is about to get bigger, according to a handful of Starbucks employee guides that found their way online early this week. The images have not been verified by Niantic, the Pokémon Company or Starbucks, but Reddit sleuths claim that verified Starbucks employees have vouched for their veracity. "The world of Pokémon Go is about to expand with new Pokémon and a new Starbucks beverage!" the "Barista need-to-know" guide says. The flyers indicate that Pokémon Go's second generation will kick off on Thursday, December 8th.
New 'Pokémon Go' creature throws unpredictability into your game
That didn't take long. Mere days after leaks hinted that Pokémon Go would get more monsters, Niantic and The Pokémon Company have rolled Ditto into the game. The critter is a shape-shifter that won't reveal its true form until you capture it -- in other words, the only reliable way to capture a Ditto is to keep playing until you find one at random. In the Gym, it'll assume the looks and abilities of the first creature it sees and stay that way throughout other battles.
A 'Pokémon' glitch could corrupt your 'Sun' and 'Moon' saves (update)
Enjoying Pokémon Sun and/or Moon? You aren't alone. But as a heads up, for now, it looks like you shouldn't save in the post-game Battle Tree location or pretty much any Pokémon Center in the game, according to Polygon. Folks online are saying that doing so can corrupt your save file, and that means all the work you've done to evolve Litten into an Incineroar will be for naught. We've reached out to The Pokémon Company about a fix for this and will update this post should more information arrive. In the meantime, you'll just have to break the habit of saving after you've healed your party members at a Pokémon Center.
The Pokémon Go Plus bracelet is great for grinding
My Pokémon Go survival kit keeps growing. It started simply enough, with just my iPhone 6 Plus happily running Pokémon Go, but it quickly became apparent that I would need backup battery power in order to comfortably catch digital monsters for extended periods of time. After all, this is a game that takes players away from their outlets and into the great wilds of the real world, so I shoved a portable power pack and cable into my purse. I happen to live in Arizona, so I soon added an icy water bottle to the mix. Now, with the launch of Pokémon Go Plus, my kit also includes a lanyard bracelet, a plastic vibrating teardrop painted like a Poké Ball and a tiny screwdriver. I'm starting to suspect Ash Ketchum was hiding more than hair under his iconic hat.
'Pokémon Go' update warns you not to catch and drive
You probably know that it's unwise to play Pokémon Go while you're behind the wheel, but Niantic and The Pokémon Company aren't taking any chances. They're trotting out an update to the mobile game (on both Android and iOS) that tells you not to catch creatures while driving. You have to tap an "I'm a passenger" button if you want to keep playing while moving at high speed. The game can't check to see that you're being honest, of course, but this will at least serve as a reminder that irresponsible gameplay can have serious consequences.
