When it was announced in September 2025, Pokemon Pokopia appeared to be the franchise's cozy-game answer to Animal Crossing and Minecraft. But after the recently released extended trailer for the game, fans have pointed out intriguing and dark links to some of the previous titles in the franchise.
It's almost unsettling that one of the first things seen in the extended trailer is a devastated Pokemon Center and a generation-one Pokedex. As noted on Reddit (via Eurogamer), one of the fan theories suggests that Pokopia is set on Cinnabar Island from the Kanto region, which was originally featured in Pokemon Blue, Red, and Yellow. As depicted in Pokemon Gold, Silver, and Crystal, Cinnabar Island was devastated by a volcano eruption that left a Pokemon Center as one of the last remaining structures, much like the one glimpsed in Pokopia's trailer.
Professor Tangrowth--a character introduced in the trailer--mentions that he hasn't seen humans in a long time, but the island has other evidence that people once lived there including roads and other buildings. The strange Pokemon variations introduced in the trailer--like the stark-white Pikachu known as Peakychu--may have been created at Cinnabar Island's Pokemon Mansion. Perhaps not coincidentally, Pokemon Mansion was the place where Ditto could be found in the original Pokemon games.
Pokopia puts players in control of a Ditto that assumes human form and utilizes borrowed powers from other Pokemon to transform the landscape into a sanctuary free of human conflict. There don't appear to be any battles or a larger story in the game. But if it is set in a post-volcano explosion Cinnabar Island, it would be fitting if the land were healed by masterless Pokemon who weren't forced to fight each other.
Pokemon Pokopia will hit Switch 2 on March 5, 2026. In the meantime, fans of the franchise can immerse themselves in Pokemon Legends: Z-A. That game has introduced a new way for Pokemon to battle, but it may need some work before it can become a competitive esport.
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It's almost unsettling that one of the first things seen in the extended trailer is a devastated Pokemon Center and a generation-one Pokedex. As noted on Reddit (via Eurogamer), one of the fan theories suggests that Pokopia is set on Cinnabar Island from the Kanto region, which was originally featured in Pokemon Blue, Red, and Yellow. As depicted in Pokemon Gold, Silver, and Crystal, Cinnabar Island was devastated by a volcano eruption that left a Pokemon Center as one of the last remaining structures, much like the one glimpsed in Pokopia's trailer.
Professor Tangrowth--a character introduced in the trailer--mentions that he hasn't seen humans in a long time, but the island has other evidence that people once lived there including roads and other buildings. The strange Pokemon variations introduced in the trailer--like the stark-white Pikachu known as Peakychu--may have been created at Cinnabar Island's Pokemon Mansion. Perhaps not coincidentally, Pokemon Mansion was the place where Ditto could be found in the original Pokemon games.
Pokopia puts players in control of a Ditto that assumes human form and utilizes borrowed powers from other Pokemon to transform the landscape into a sanctuary free of human conflict. There don't appear to be any battles or a larger story in the game. But if it is set in a post-volcano explosion Cinnabar Island, it would be fitting if the land were healed by masterless Pokemon who weren't forced to fight each other.
Pokemon Pokopia will hit Switch 2 on March 5, 2026. In the meantime, fans of the franchise can immerse themselves in Pokemon Legends: Z-A. That game has introduced a new way for Pokemon to battle, but it may need some work before it can become a competitive esport.
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