‘Pokemon Let’s Go! Pikachu’ and ‘Let’s Go! Eevee’ Officially Revealed for the Nintendo Switch!
Your next Pokemon journey awaits you in the Kanto region on November 16th, 2018!
The Pokemon Company just announced at a special press conference in Tokyo that its first core titles for the Nintendo Switch will be Pokemon Let’s Go! Pikachu and Pokemon Let’s Go! Eevee. This matches the Switch rumors that were circulating across the web over the past month.
Both games will be inspired by Pokemon Yellow and will feature the original 151 Pokemon plus some from Alola. As expected, there will be Pokemon GO integration: you can send Pokemon you’ve captured from Pokemon GO into the Switch games via a “GO Park” area.
A Poke Ball Plus accessory will be released in stores on November 16th, allowing you to download your Pokemon from the games into the accessory and take them with you in the real world (like the Pokewalker). There will be benefits for your Pokemon if you take them with you, though they haven’t been revealed yet.
As the rumors previously stated, the Switch games will feature Pokemon GO-style capturing where you can use your Joy-Con to throw a Poke Ball at wild Pokemon.
The games will also feature local two-player mode where you can jump into another player’s game.
Like in Yellow and HeartGold & SoulSilver, following Pokemon will finally return!
The Pokemon Company also announced they are working on more core series games that will release for the Switch in 2019! These 2019 titles will be in the style of previous games like X, Y, Sun, and Moon (presumably they mean the games will be a new generation with new Pokemon). Pokemon explicitly stated Let’s Go will be marketed at a casual audience.
Update: TPCi has confirmed the Pokemon referenced at the end of the Let’s Go trailer below is a new, never-before-seen Pokemon.
Update #2: To reemphasize, Let’s Go will be marketed at a casual audience. New core titles will release in 2019 (presumably a new generation with new Pokemon). Pokemon probably decided to make a Kanto game to lure in general fans so they’d buy a Switch. Then they’ll have them hooked for 2019 and beyond.
Update #3: The games will allow for multiple save files, so there’s now little need to buy multiple versions. Version exclusives will still exist between the two, however.
Update #4: Your partner Pokemon doesn’t go back in its Poke Ball when it’s not battling. Instead, it rests on your shoulder or your head, and occasionally wanders around to help you out.
(This post is being updated as Pokemon makes its announcements live, so be sure to keep refreshing for the latest information!)