There’s a lot of information circulating on the internet about Pokémon Winds and Waves. Much of it is coming from leaks that are unconfirmed, so it might be hard to determine what’s real, what’s fake, and what’s purely speculatory. Well, we’re here to break down what we actually know for sure and separate it from the information that might be true.
A new, open-world region based on Southeast Asia
We don’t know the name of Winds and Waves‘ new region, but we saw a fair bit of it in the announcement trailer. This open world appears to be based on Southeast Asia, with some obvious Philippines influence, as well as what appears to be hints of Indonesia and Malaysia. Each Pokémon region has been based on real-world locations, such as the Kalos region in Pokémon X, Y, and Legends: Z-A being an homage to France, and the Unova region in Black and White referencing the United States. Typically these parallels aren’t just geographic, and the Pokémon region shares some cultural touchstones with its real-world inspiration, so we’ll see how that comes through in the final games.
You can travel through the world above and under water
Pokémon has been experimenting with open-world design in recent years, with games like Legends: Arceus and Scarlet/Violet feeling kind of like beta tests for the structure. Winds and Waves, meanwhile, are cranking things up a notch. They will allow players to explore the world both above and below water, with the reveal trailer showcasing a bit of underwater diving. Here you’ll find Pokémon you won’t find on the surface, similar to the diving mechanic in Ruby and Sapphire, but you’ll have a lot more to look at here than you did back on the GBA.
The differences between versions
Pokémon has always tried to make both versions of its typically paired RPGs distinct from one another. Historically this has often come through in the form of some monsters only being available in one game or the other, incentivizing players to link up with friends and trade. In recent years, with games like Sword/Shield and Scarlet/Violet, the differences have become more noticeable, with each game in a pair featuring different characters, locations, outfits, and boss fights. Winds and Waves will likely include similar distinctions, but so far, all we know is that players will have different starting outfits depending on which game they’re playing. Winds players will have a white cowboy hat and white backpack, while Waves protagonists will don a blue cap and bag. The outfits have different logos on them, as well, and it’s unclear if this might be a symbol for a different institution or group. Scarlet and Violet had players attending one of two schools depending on which game they played, which informed the color scheme of their uniforms. Hopefully Winds and Waves isn’t as restrictive on the fashion as those games were, as Legends: Z-A had some of the best fits the series has ever had.
The starters
Thus far, we only know three of the new monsters that will debut in Winds and Waves, and those are the starters. Like previous games, they are grass, fire, and water type Pokémon that players will choose between at the start of their journey, which will help illustrate the series’ elemental affinities and weaknesses to new players. They are:
- Browt, the grass-type bird
- Pombon, the fire-type dog
- Gecqua, the water-type gecko
Who else is in the game?
Beyond the starters, we’ve seen a handful of Pokémon in the first trailer, but they’re all from previous generations. The full list as of this writing is:
- Pikachu
- Gloom
- Tropius
- Wailmer
- Wailord
- Nymble
- Tailow
- Tangela
- Oddish
- Ledyba
- Ledian
- Slugma
- Sizzlipede
- Wingull
- Krabby
- Sandygast
- Corsola
- Mareanie
- Toxapex
- Tympole
- Carnivine
- Duskull
- Lumineon
- Tynamo
- Frillish
Pikachus who serve looks
You can catch a Pikachu to add to your team, but Winds and Waves will also include two of the little yellow mice as part of the story: Mr. Windychu and Ms. Wavychu. This pair of rodents are dressed up like your aunt and uncle on a beach vacation, and have names that seem to correspond to one of the games. It’s unclear if they will both appear in both RPGs or if they’ll be sequestered to their respective games.
No Switch 1, sadly
Winds and Waves will be the first Pokémon RPGs to launch exclusively on the Switch 2. Given the noticeable technical jump from Scarlet and Violet, it’s pretty obvious why. Game Freak notoriously struggled to get its games running properly on the original Switch, which made it kind of jarring to play games Scarlet and Violet on the Switch 2 and see them running at a stable 60fps. Anyway, if you haven’t upgraded yet, you might want to do it before Winds and Waves launch (or the price suddenly rises).
What about all the unconfirmed leaks and rumors?
There are a lot of unconfirmed information floating around about Winds and Waves, such as possible Pokédex numbers, new evolutions for old friends, and even the possible nature of the battle gimmick that will shake up the series’ turn-based battles. Some information is based on the massive Game Freak Teraleak, while other bits and pieces have come from leakers in the community claiming to have access to an early, unfinished build of the game. For now, we’ve gathered up some of the highlights here if you want to look, but take it all with a grain of salt.
When are they coming out?
Pokémon Winds and Waves will launch in 2027.
