It’s Officially a New Era for the Nintendo Switch 2
While the Nintendo Switch 2 has been out for a relatively short time compared to its “current-gen” counterparts, it has developed an impressive array of accolades. The Nintendo Switch 2 has more bona fide exclusives than the PS5 or Xbox Series X, for one, and there are no signs that selection is slowing down. For example, many believed Pokemon Winds and Waves would be the big Nintendo holiday release, but with its 2027 release window, there have since been hints at a new Mario game instead.
Whatever happens this holiday, the Nintendo Switch 2 has already embarked on a brand new era: one that has defined every Nintendo Hardware reiteration since the Game Boy for many fans. Pokemon Legends: Z-A is a cross-gen game, which is like dipping your toe into the water, so Pokemon Pokopia is the first Nintendo Switch 2 exclusive Pokemon game. In other words, the Switch era of Pokemon games is over, and the Switch 2 era has begun in earnest now.
Hear Me Out: I Think Pokemon Winds and Waves Releasing in 2027 is Secretly a Good Thing for Switch 2 Owners
Pokemon Winds and Waves aren’t coming to the Switch 2 until 2027, but that might actually be a good thing for owners of the console.
The Nintendo Switch 2 Era is Off to a Strong Start
The Sun Has Set on the Switch 1 Era
It will likely be a few years before fans can truly look back on the Switch era and reflect on it in full, but some facts are hard to ignore. While none of the Pokemon games were bad, it seems that many of them launched to controversy as much as to positive response. Pokemon Sword and Shield kickstarted the first generation on Nintendo Switch, and while solid in their own rights, many fans were and are still upset about Dexit, or the removal of the National Pokedex, consisting of all Pokemon.
Since then, many fans have been counting what Pokemon were missing from Switch. Game Freak and The Pokemon Company seemed to deliberately omit Pokemon to stretch out the inclusion of all across the entire Switch 1 era and, essentially, two generations of Pokemon games.
Many Pokemon games on Nintendo Switch were subject to criticisms of graphics/visuals (trees in Legends: Arceus, buildings in Legends: Z-A), technical issues (as seen in Pokemon Scarlet and Violet), simplified difficulty across games (even though this goes back further), the exclusion of voice acting, and/or the introduction of DLC.
Pokemon Legends: Z-A is as much a Switch 1 game as it is a Switch 2 game, so it’s caught in the cross generation. Pokemon Pokopia is the first Pokemon game fully exclusive to the Nintendo Switch 2.
Who’s That Character?
Identify the silhouettes before time runs out.
Identify the silhouettes before time runs out.
Easy (7.5s)Medium (5.0s)Hard (2.5s)Permadeath (2.5s)
The Pokemon x Switch 2 Era Has Begun
If Pokemon Sword and Shield set the tone for the Nintendo Switch 1 games that followed, then Pokemon Pokopia is that north star right now. Of course, Pokemon Winds and Waves will likely define the Gen 10 series of mainline games, but the start of the Switch 2 era begins with Pokopia. And what a start.
Pokemon Pokopia has set review records for the franchise, launching to a Top Critic Average of 88 on aggregate site OpenCritic, with 94% of critics recommending it. I mean, it’s standing right alongside Resident Evil Requiem and Mewgenics, making it one of the best-reviewed games of the year so far. That may change, but for the start of Pokopia and the Switch 2 era, that’s impressive.
Pokemon Pokopia introduces some new regional variants like Peakychu that have been received well so far, while the initial reactions to Pokemon Winds and Waves and their starters are as positive, if not more so, than typical generations. Hopefully, they are not subject to the same visual and technical criticisms, but it remains to be seen how this new generation tackles challenges of difficulty, DLC, and voice acting, if it even does. Not only that, but there’s also the chance that new criticisms or challenges come up. The RAM crisis is likely a major concern for the future of Pokemon games, but still, a new era is here, a new generation is coming, and all of that is worth celebrating.
The Nintendo Switch 2 Makes Dexit a Thing of the Past
When Pokemon Sword and Shield were released, the National Pokedex was forever marred on the Switch 1. That’s not the case for the Switch 2 generation. Thanks to Pokemon Home and backward compatibility, everything from the Switch 1 is technically accessible on the Switch 2. In other words, while there might be event-specific Mythicals that are not obtainable, every regular Pokemon can be caught. Pokemon Legends: Z-A both heralded in the final Pokemon (like Patrat) for the Switch 1 generation and made sure they were present for the start of the Switch 2 generation.
The Switch 2 Era Has At Least 591 of 1025 Native Pokemon
However, I will say: counting what Pokemon are not on hardware is kind of fun. As such, it’s interesting to know what Pokemon are native to the Switch 2-only games. Excluding simple updates (Pokemon Scarlet and Violet) and backward compatibility (Pokemon Legends: Arceus), the only “official” Pokemon games on Switch 2 are Pokemon Pokopia and the Switch 2 version of Pokemon Legends: Z-A. Between the two, that brings the Nintendo Switch 2 total of Pokemon to 591. The Pokedex numbers add up to 644, but there are roughly 73 overlapping Pokemon between Legends: Z-A and Pokopia.
- Pokopia Pokedex: 300
- Lumiose Pokedex: 232
- Hyperspace Pokedex: 132
Yes, yes, yes, we can get into the trenches of Pokopia being a spin-off, of this or that, but it’s a fun number to see. When Pokemon Sword and Shield launched on the Switch 1, there were only 400 Pokemon for the new generation. Pokemon Home helped a lot, as well as DLC and later games, but the entire Pokedex was not native to Switch 1 until Legends: Z-A.
In terms of generation comparison, there’ll be a stark contrast between Pokemon Sword and Shield, and Pokemon Winds and Waves. Winds and Waves has a head start, but even then, Pokopia is close to Sword and Shield. Pokemon Legends: Z-A as a cross-gen game pushes it over.
Regardless of fun thought experiments, the Nintendo Switch 2 exclusive era of Pokemon is officially underway.
- Released
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March 5, 2026
- ESRB
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Everyone / Users Interact, In-Game Purchases
