One of the most popular Pokemon challenges among the community will be impossible to complete in 2027. Pokemon recently announced that the Pokemon Bank on the Nintendo 3DS is shutting down on February 26, 2027, meaning players will no longer be able to transfer critters from their 3DS to their Nintendo Switch. As a result, creating a living Pokedex in Pokemon Home will no longer be possible.
The Pokemon community is known for developing challenges to supplement the relatively easy difficulty of the mainline games. Nuzlocke runs, where a Pokemon that faints is considered dead and must be released, or shiny hunts, where the odds of finding a shiny Pokemon are incredibly low, are among the most popular. However, creating a living Pokedex consisting of one of every species of Pokemon all in a single location is arguably the greatest challenge trainers can complete, and it’s about to become unachievable after Pokemon Bank shuts down.
Pokemon Bank Shutting Down in 2027 Makes a Living Dex Impossible
After over a decade of service, the Pokemon Bank is officially shutting down in February 2027. While this controversial move is just the latest example of a digital-only game or service shutting down, it hides an even more disappointing side effect. Without the Pokemon Bank, it would be impossible for players to have a complete living dex on the Nintendo Switch via Pokemon Home because of an unusual bug with the Gen 3 Pokemon Spinda.
Rearrange the covers into the correct US release order.
Rearrange the covers into the correct US release order.
Easy (5)Medium (7)Hard (10)
Currently, Spinda can’t be transferred into Pokemon Home from Pokemon GO or Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl. This is due to complications with how Spinda’s markings are generated in these modern titles compared to the older games. As a result, only Spinda from the Pokemon Bank can be transferred into Home. Without Pokemon Bank, there is currently no other way to get a Spinda in Pokemon Home.
Spinda is still available on the Switch since it can be found in Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl on Route 227 as a Swarm Pokemon after getting the National Dex. However, since it can’t leave BDSP, a living dex on the Switch will remain fractured between Home and these Gen 4 remakes until Spinda is made available in another Switch game. And with the franchise moving on from Switch releases when Pokemon Winds and Waves launch as Switch 2 exclusives, Switch 1 owners may end up being locked out of a full living dex indefinitely.
The good news is that Pokemon may be releasing a solution to this option before the end of the year. Recently, Pokemon Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald were leaked for the Switch, which would give players a way to get Spinda in the original Gen 3 games and transfer it to Home without needing Pokemon Bank. This leak is unconfirmed, but with Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen already on the Switch and getting Home support in October, it seems more and more likely that the rest of the Gen 3 games will make their way onto the Switch sooner rather than later.