Well, this presentation may not have been as juicy as the one last year; but there’s still plenty of interesting topics to discuss. Hello everyone, and here are my thoughts on this month’s “Pokémon Presents.” Let’s open it up and get to it.
The stream was presided over by Takao Utsonomiya and Tsunekazu Ishihara, the latter of which is joined by the cutest moving Pikachu I’ve seen in a long time. The first announcement was for the 2023 World Championships in Yokohama, Japan, along with the special artwork for it. The event will be the first held in the country, and will be live-streamed online for those unable to attend.
Next up is a premium collector product made alongside longtime partners Creatures and newcomers Nendo: the Pokémon Trading Card Game Classic. The set contains all 60 cards in the original base set inside a case that has damage markers, upgraded sleeves and a playfield. Though it’s not usable in tournament play, I’m quite interested in getting my hands on it as a collector’s item for the base set alone.
Though we still have details to be revealed around the 2023 anime and the in-development live-action event series; one pleasant surprise was the spinoff Pokémon Concierge. Taking place at the Pokémon Resort, it will feature Psyduck alongside a young woman acting as a concierge on the island. It will be a stop-motion series done by Dwarf Studio, and I’m quite interested to see it once it streams on Netflix in the near future.
Various spinoff titles also received updates: Pokémon UNITE has added Zacian to the roster. Pokémon Masters EX has introduced a host of new Sync Pairs and content to celebrate 3.5 years, currently in progress. Pokémon Cafe Remix also stealth dropped its newest update prior to the stream, its new event is on till March 16 (I picked Fuecoco and I’m working on clearing the objectives given, as well as claim the Chef Greninja skin). Pokémon Go also dropped an update, and it connects to other topics here.
One big surprise is that Pokémon Sleep not only hasn’t been shelved, but it’s actually coming out this summer. The Pokémon Go Plus + accessory (which I shall call the “Double Plus” to avoid confusion) will also release around the same time.
To start the updates surrounding Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, I shall mention V1.2 went live before the show did; which I’m currently enjoying. Pokémon Go and Pokémon Home integration are also on the way, including bonuses centered around Gimmighoul and Vivillon. Two new Paradox Pokémon are in new raid events, currently in progress. They are Walking Wave (Scarlet exclusive, resembling Suicune) and Iron Leaves (Violet exclusive, resembling Virizion), respectively.
The big reveal is that the long-rumored and leaked DLC expansion is real (especially as someone who doesn’t actively look at leaks or rumors)- it is called “The Hidden Treasure of Area Zero,” and will contain two chapters- The Teal Mask in the fall, and The Indigo Disk in the winter. The former takes place in the Kitakami region during a school trip; and centers around a new monster known as Ogerpon (I especially like the connections to the legend of Momotaro). The latter sees the player undertaking research at the Blueberry Academy, which involves the mysterious new monster Terapagos (both aspects that intrigue me). Though not quite a return to Unova or Kalos yet, I will definitely be opting in once I have release dates for both chapters. I'm actually glad these are coming out later than Isle of Armor/Crown Tundra did for Sword and Shield; and that priority is being given to fixing core issues first.
While it may not have been as big as last year’s presentation on “Pokémon Day” (surprised we haven’t gotten stealth drops of Pokémon Stadium 1 and 2 on N64 Online or Pokémon TCG on Game Boy Online), I still have plenty to look forward to. See you all in March, take care everyone.
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