New Pokémon Anime Announced!

Today during the Japanese broadcast of the latest episode of the Pokémon Sun and Moon anime a trailer teaser trailer was revealed for the upcoming new Pokémon anime series. The trailer confirms the promotional images that were leaked earlier this week were in fact real.

The new series will star Satoshi (Ash Ketchum) continuing his journey to become a Pokémon Master. In addition, the trailer also introduces a new boy named Gou whose partner is Scorebunny. Gou’s dream is to capture every Pokémon after having an encounter with Mew in his youth that inspired him.

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In a series first, the adventure is set to take place in the many regions all over the Pokémon world. It is unknown at this time if Satoshi will be challenging the Galar League. However, as the anime will feature the Galar region, it is likely he will.

This new anime is scheduled to air on November 17^th at 5:30PM JST to coincide with the release of the Pokémon Sword and Shield video games which release on November 15^th. As of yet there has been no announcement for the English dub of this series.

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Pokémon Press Conference and Pokémon Direct Announced

The Pokémon Company has announced that it is hosting a Pokémon Press Conference on May 28, 2019 at 6 p.m. PDT.  There is no word on how long the conference will last. The conference is stated to cover a number of topics of interest for Pokémon fans.

A similar event was held last year at the same time.  During that event Pokémon Let’s Go Pikachu and Eevee, and Pokémon Quest were revealed for the Nintendo Switch. It is notable that the press conference this year doesn’t mention video games specifically. This indicates that the information revealed at this conference may cover more aspects of the franchise than just the video games.

Nintendo and The Pokémon Company have also announced a Pokémon Sword and Shield Nintendo Direct. The Direct is scheduled for June 5, 2019 at 6 a.m. PTD. The Direct will be 15 roughly 15 minutes long and reveal a lot of new information on Pokémon Sword and Shield.

With this direct coming days before E3 2019 it is likely that Pokémon will not be a huge part of the Nintendo E3 Direct broadcast.  It is also possible that Pokémon Sword and Shield will be one of the games Nintendo will have a demo of on the E3 show floor.

New Trailer for Mewtwo Strikes Back: Evolution

Today on the Japanese program Oha Suta a new trailer for the Pokémon movie Mewtwo Strikes Back Evolution, the 22^nd Pokémon movie, and a scene-for-scene remake of the first Pokémon movie, Mewtwo Strikes Back. was revealed. The trailer gives us a first look at Mewtwo in the power-restraining armor that Giovanni uses. This trailer also gives a better look at the models for Ash Misty, and Brock. The movie website has updated to show these renders, and to confirm that the actors who voices Mewtwo and Mew in the original Mewtwo Strikes Back are reprising their roles.

The film’s art style has faced some criticism for the designs being more toy-like compared to the grittier, more monstrous, designs in Detective Pikachu, the American-produced movie based on the game of the same name. Responses to these critics have noted that the art style is loyal to the 2D anime style of the original movie.

Mewtwo Strikes Back Evolution releases July 12, 2019 in Japanese theatres. As of yet there is no release scheduled for outside of Japan; however, following previous movie releases it is likely the movie will release during this Winter in the North American markets.

Final Fantasy VII Launches for Switch on Nintendo eShop

Nintendo has announced today that Final Fantasy VII has been released on the Nintendo eShop for 15.99 USD. This marks the first time that Final Fantasy VII has ever been released on a Nintendo console. This is the same port that was released on PC, Playstation 4, and Xbox One. The game has a few features to make the game easier such as the ability to turn of random encounters, and a fast-forward button. These features are optional so players can still enjoy the game as intended.

Pokémon Sun/Moon/Ultra Sun/Ultra Moon – Special Battle Season 15 rules revealed

Time to get ready for battle, Pokemon trainers. The rules for Pokemon Ultra Sun/Ultra Moon Special Battle Season 15 are now available. Get the full scoop below.

– Season 15 will run from April 2nd through June 17th, 2019
– This Season runs on Sun & Moon and Ultra Sun & Ultra Moon
– Rankings for the games are separate from one another
– Only allows Pokémon that can only have the move Metronome across all generations
– this rule excludes Mewtwo, Dusclops and Dusknoir)
– Single battle format
– Pokémon Restrictions: Only Clefairy, Clefable, Mankey, Primeape, Poliwhirl, Poliwrath, Abra, Kadabra, Alakazam, Machop, Machoke, Machamp, Geodude, Graveler, Golem, Gengar, Drowzee, Hypno, Hitmonlee, Hitmonchan, Chansey, Mr. Mime, Jynx, Electabuzz, Magmar, Snorlax, Mew, Cleffa, Togepi, Togetic, Politoed, Aipom, Snubbull, Granbull, Teddiursa, Ursaring, Smeargle, Smoochum, Miltank, Blissey, Celebi, Ludicolo, Makuhita, Hariyama, Sableye, Meditite, Medicham, Plusle, Minun, Volbeat, Illumise, Spinda, Kecleon, Banette, Jirachi, Ambipom, Happiny, Munchlax, Electivire, Magmortar, Togekiss.
– Attack Restrictions: Metronome only
– Item Restrictions: No Mega Stones
– all Pokemon are set to Level 50
– if they are above that, and you choose 1 Pokémon out of your 6, and you can’t have two Pokémon holding the same hold item
– battles have a 10 minute duration, with turns getting a 60 second timer
– Pokemon transferred through Poke Bank are allowed

Wayforward Announces Shantae 5 for PC, Consoles, and Apple devices.

Today on Twitter developer Warforward revealed that Shantae 5 is coming to PC, Playstation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and to Apple devices via their recently announced Apple Arcade service. Wayforward’s tweet reads:

Today we're thrilled to announce Shantae 5! You're invited to join Shantae in a brand-new adventure later this year on PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, PC… AND the newly announced Apple Arcade! Stay tuned for more details! Learn more about Apple Arcade at https://t.co/KwXqXtb2ft pic.twitter.com/SFc1iOswHT

— WayForward (@WayForward) March 25, 2019

The series stars Shantae, a half-genie that uses her hair to attack and can use her magic to change into various transformations to aid in her adventure. The metroidvainia title has gained a cult following since its first appearance on Game Boy Color. Before this game the most recent Shante release was 2016’s Half-Genie Hero which was crowdfunded through Kickstarter, and achieved over $800,000 in funding. As of yet there are no details known about the game outside of the platforms and the fact that the game is due out sometime later this year.

Pokémon Sword and Shield Versions Revealed

Nintendo just held Pokémon Direct today, and the 7-minute broadcast revealed lots of new information. The long-awaited main Pokemon games for Nintendo Switch were finally revealed as Pokémon Sword Version and Pokémon Shield Version this is the first time in the series that the games have been named after man-made objects. Thematically it fits the industrialized, almost steampunk aesthetic within the games. Traditionally the game logos incorporate design elements from the Legendary Pokémon in the games, so the Sword and Shield emblems on these game logos could point to  the story-central Legendary Pokemon being based on knights, and or wolves.

The game play trailer reveals several details, it shows the player entering a random wild Pokémon battle, this confirms the return of random encounters and wild Pokémon battles. It can be assumed that the rest of the core mechanics, natures, abilities, held items, will be returning as well. The models for the Pokemon and the attacks appear to be updated from the previous games. The trailer also shows a Pokémon Gym, and Ohmori, the director of the games, confirmed that there is a gym quest in the games. There is a shot of the player in a uniform resembling a soccer uniform as he walks into a stadium, this indicates that perhaps the Pokémon League will be treated more like a professional sport, I.E., Soccer, in these games.

The three starter Pokemon were also revealed, the Grass-Type Chimpanzee Pokémon: Grookey, The Fire-Type Rabbit Pokémon: Scorbunny, and the Water-Type Lizard Pokémon: Sobble. These were the only new Pokemon introduced in the trailer.

The games take place in the Galar Region, which is very industrialized, having lots of gears and large machinery.  The region appears to be based on the England as indicated by the climate and European-inspired architecture, this is something that many fans had speculated.

The games were reconfirmed for a late 2019 release date. No specific date was given, but following the typical release dates of previous games, it is likely the games will see release sometime in October or November.

Pokémon Sword Logo

Pokémon Shield Logo

Grookey

Scorbunny

Sobble

Route 1 and Hometown

Trainer Battle

Mincino VS Pikachu

Galar Region