All hands are on deck right now at Game Freak headquarters.
Best known for its contribution to the Pokémon phenomenon by way of the franchise’s core RPG titles, the studio’s latest instalment, Sword and Shield, are due out in less than a month. Not only that, but this will be the first time in the series’ history that it won’t be available on a dedicated handheld console. Indeed, Trainers eager to explore the Galar region in November will need to, if they haven’t already, pick up a Nintendo Switch to participate. A migration that, so far, appears to have worked wonders in allowing Game Freak to experiment with new features that more powerful hardware makes possible.
But of course, many Pokéfans have already had a taste of what’s in-store, thanks to last year’s Let’s Go! spinoffs. The pair, which marketed themselves as loyal reimaginings of the original Red & Blue, took several liberties with the core ingredients that usually go into brewing a mainline Pokémon title, an experiment that paid off by attracting a whole new generation to partake in the Gotta Catch ‘Em All craze.
Despite their apparent success, however, Game Freak seemingly has no intention of providing sequels. Not anytime soon, at least. Speaking to Eurogamer in a recent interview, Sword and Shield lead producer Junichi Masuda revealed as such.
So, at the moment there’s no particular plans, but if the fans really like it then definitely keep those voices coming out to the Pokémon Company and Nintendo, and make sure we hear them! [Laughs] We wanna hear those comments!
For fans who preferred the more casual-friendly nature of Let’s Go!, Masuda’s comments will no doubt be disheartening, but it’s worth noting that the industry veteran doesn’t outright say they won’t return sometime in the future. In fact, Masuda heavily implies that their decision will at least partially rest on player interest and encourages players to voice their support.
We’ll have to wait and see what happens on that front, though, as Pokémon Sword and Shield are clearly the chief concern right now. For all the latest on the Generation 8 games, see here.
