Earlier this year, a fan opened up aDarkness AblazePokemontrading card pack and found an out-of-place Chimchar. Marked as #12 of 25, the image of the fire-type starter brandished a Pikachu logo with its cheeks stylized as a “2” and “5,” similar to thePokemon20th anniversary logo. This would indicate that the promo is celebratingPokemon’s 25th anniversary in 2021 with all eight generations of starters—including Pikachu—to make up the 25 holo reprints as a McDonald’s promotion.
But this isn’t all thatthePokemonfranchisehas in store for its silver anniversary. Over the last few months, rumors and speculation of upcoming remasters and ports to the Switch have been circulating around the gaming community in addition to what’s already been announced for 2021, and some of the possible leaks look promising when taking a look at the bigger picture.
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Diamond & Pearl Remakes
Not only is itPokemon’s 25th anniversary next year, but it will also be Generation 8’s 15th anniversary. The Pokemon Company has gone back to its roots with remasters by starting with the first generation,FireRedandLeafGreenfor the Game Boy Advance, and its most recent remakes wereOmega RubyandAlpha Sapphirefor the 3DS, so it’s only natural thatDiamondandPearlremakes for the Switch would be next in line. Rumors state thatDiamondandPearlremakes will hit the Switch in November 2021, so it’ll be interesting to see if this is part of the anniversary plans.
New Pokemon Snap & Pokemon Unite
TwoPokemonfranchise games have already been confirmed as upcoming titles, and those areNew Pokemon Snapand the mobile gamePokemon Unite. The originalPokemonSnapwas one of the most beloved spinoffs of the franchise back in ‘99 when it first released for the Nintendo 64, and fans of the first will finally get to see a successor, hopefully sometime soon. First announced at “Pokemon Presents,” it looks likeNew Pokemon Snapwill feature similar mechanics to its predecessor, but will include Pokemon from all eight generations. A release date hasn’t yet been announced, which likely means it will come out sometime next year.
Pokemon Unite,on the other hand, many fans are far less excited for. The reveal forPokemon Uniteturned out to be themost disliked video on The Pokemon Company’s YouTube channel.Unitewill be a MOBA fighting game for mobile devices in addition to the Switch, basically combiningLeague of LegendswithPokemon. Though it will be “free to start” likeLeague, fans are mainly concerned aboutPokemon’s decision to team up with the controversial Chinese company Tencent for development. Again, there’s no official release date yet, but based on screenshots that have surfaced on social media, the game will likely be ready for a 2021 release.
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Pokemon Let’s Go Johto
Game Freak loves to surprise its fans, so some believe it’s possible that Generation 9 games will be announced in 2021. Though not impossible, this seems less likely becauseSwordandShieldstill have the DLC packCrown Tundrato be released later this year, and possibly even a third rumored DLC on the way as well, which would release in 2021 if it does exist. If it is indeed real,SwordandShield’s third DLCmay be tied to this anniversary, but anything more than that is unlikely.
More likely, the Johto regionmay receive a second round of remakes in the form ofPokemon Let’s Go 2.The reimagining of the Kanto region ended up selling nearly 11 million copies, so it would be a smart move for Nintendo to develop the Johto games in the same format. Also, the 25th anniversary is the year to gift silver, so perhaps Nintendo has plans to giftSilverto its fans in 2021.
Pokemon GO
Pokemon GOreleased on thePokemonfranchise’s 20th anniversary, so 2021 would also make itGO’s 5th anniversary. The mobile game will inevitably have big plans to celebrate the double anniversary, but what shape that will take will likely stay a mystery until next year. This year’s 4th anniversary celebration saw the specialFlying Pikachu and a Shiny versionof it, as well as Legendary Raids and many other events. Perhaps 2021Pokemon GOevents will include more Shiny Legendary Pokemon and Mythical Pokemon not yet seen in the game.
Pokemon SwordandShieldis out now for the Nintendo Switch.
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