The newly revealed Pokemon Winds and Pokemon Waves will set a new record for the monster-catching series, releasing after the longest wait between Pokemon generations. Announced at the Pokemon Presents presentation, Game Freak's tenth-generation Pokemon game won't arrive on Nintendo Switch 2 until 2027.
That'll be five years since Pokemon Scarlet and Violet landed on the Switch. Previously, the widest gap between generations was four years long.
All things considered, the mainline Pokemon games have been coming out at a fairly consistent pace. Three to five years between new entries isn't so bad compared to other major gaming franchises, many of which have been subject to longer development cycles. We're looking at you, Elder Scrolls and Grand Theft Auto.
At the same time, fans have lambasted the last couple of Pokemon generations, namely 2019's Sword and Shield and 2022's Scarlet and Violet, for their graphical quality and performance issues. It took a free Switch 2 update to give the latter a smooth frame rate and increased draw distance.
Pokemon Winds and Waves is another open-world title in the series, featuring "beautiful windswept islands and a vast ocean with glittering waves that ebb and flow," according to the game's official website. It's unclear exactly how expansive and ambitious the game's world will be, but the trailer hinted at underwater exploration. Expect fans to be scrutinizing each frame of every trailer that'll come out with a magnifying glass until the titles launch next year.
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That'll be five years since Pokemon Scarlet and Violet landed on the Switch. Previously, the widest gap between generations was four years long.
- Red/Green/Blue (1996) to Gold/Silver (1999): Three years
- Gold/Silver (1999) to Ruby/Sapphire (2002): Three years
- Ruby/Sapphire (2002) to Diamond/Pearl (2006): Four years
- Diamond/Pearl (2006) to Black/White (2010): Four years
- Black/White (2010) to X/Y (2013): Three years
- X/Y (2013) to Sun/Moon (2016): Three years
- Sun/Moon (2016) to Sword/Shield (2019): Three years
- Sword/Shield (2019) to Scarlet/Violet (2022): Three years
- Scarlet/Violet (2022) to Winds/Waves (2027): Five years
All things considered, the mainline Pokemon games have been coming out at a fairly consistent pace. Three to five years between new entries isn't so bad compared to other major gaming franchises, many of which have been subject to longer development cycles. We're looking at you, Elder Scrolls and Grand Theft Auto.
At the same time, fans have lambasted the last couple of Pokemon generations, namely 2019's Sword and Shield and 2022's Scarlet and Violet, for their graphical quality and performance issues. It took a free Switch 2 update to give the latter a smooth frame rate and increased draw distance.
Pokemon Winds and Waves is another open-world title in the series, featuring "beautiful windswept islands and a vast ocean with glittering waves that ebb and flow," according to the game's official website. It's unclear exactly how expansive and ambitious the game's world will be, but the trailer hinted at underwater exploration. Expect fans to be scrutinizing each frame of every trailer that'll come out with a magnifying glass until the titles launch next year.
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