Pokemon Winds and Waves Are Poised to Be the Biggest Open-World Games Yet

Pokemon Day pulled back the curtain on the upcoming Gen 10 games, Pokemon Winds and Waves, and gave fans their look at the trio of starters: Browt, Pombon, and Gecqua. It also showed off some impressive graphics and a beautiful world to explore, seemingly flying in the face of criticisms levied against Pokemon Legends: Arceus, as well as Pokemon Scarlet and Violet. Because Pokemon Winds and Waves are releasing in 2027, it’s likely fans won’t hear more about them until this summer at the earliest or this fall (assuming it’s an early 2027 release).

Of course, most fans are aware that several key details about the Gen 10 games leaked online ahead of then, and while a lot has yet to be confirmed, a handful of leaked Pokemon Winds and Waves features were seemingly teased in the trailer. The most obvious leak justified by the trailer is the region. The fact that it was inspired by Southeast Asia was first-made apparent by the Teraleak, but with all the key details about the region comes another serious implication: there will be huge open-world games.

Game Freak has already confirmed that Pokemon Winds and Waves are open-world games, but it’s the scale that requires attention. After all, the franchise has had a rocky relationship with open-world games.

How the Open-World Design of Pokemon Games Has Evolved

The earliest Pokemon games were very linear. Yes, there is a degree of revisiting areas after clearing roadblocks a la thirsty guards in Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen (and Red & Blue before that), but they were structured and remained so as the world itself grew bigger with later generations. Maps got bigger, but it really wasn’t until the late 2010s that the franchise began experimenting with more open-world elements. Pokemon Sword and Shield‘s introduction of Wild Areas is a prime example of this.

Who’s That Character?

Identify the silhouettes before time runs out.

Who’s That Character?

Identify the silhouettes before time runs out.

Easy (7.5s)Medium (5.0s)Hard (2.5s)Permadeath (2.5s)

The problem is that fan demand precedes this. Fans have long wanted an official, multi-region Pokemon game a la Pokemon Gold and Silver, but with even more. Scope issues aside, this was also compounded by demands for a fully open-world Pokemon game. Alongside the issue of Dexit, the fact that Pokemon Sword and Shield were not open-world games upset many fans because it seemed they did not utilize the full power of the Switch.

Then came 2022. Pokemon Legends: Arceus was released in January 2022, followed by Pokemon Scarlet and Violet later that year. Pokemon Legends: Arceus felt revolutionary with its approach, establishing a new subseries of mainline games that later evolved with Pokemon Legends: Z-A (and is leaked to continue with Pokemon Legends: Galar).

2022 Was a Defining Year for What an Open-World Pokemon Game Could Be

Whether or not Pokemon Legends: Arceus is an open-world game boils down to how you define it. If an open-world game is predicated on the ability to go anywhere and do anything after an opening sequence (think Skyrim), then it’s not—it can be better defined as an “open zone” or “open area” game with a hub. But if it’s more of a gut feeling, a general sense of the world’s scale, or the expansion of exploration, then sure.

Regardless, Pokemon Legends: Arceus was well received for its construction of the Hisui region, the expansion of exploration, the non-linear approach to the main story and quests, the overworld Pokemon encounters, the expansion of Pokemon behavior, and the environmental dynamics of each zone. In short, Pokemon Legends: Arceus had a cohesive world design with interconnected, explorable areas that give large amounts of freedom—whether in the traditional open-world sense or not. Meanwhile, Pokemon Sword and Shield had a Wild Area that was a simple segment of an otherwise completely structured and linear game. That’s not a bad thing, but in terms of open-world hopes and desires, Pokemon Legends: Arceus delivered.

Pokemon Legends: Z-A is more recent, and while it adopts several winning factors of Pokemon Legends: Arceus, its scale feels much more restrained. While some fans were upset about the repeat buildings and others weren’t, it likely did not contribute to the same sense of freedom that Pokemon Legends: Arceus had.

pokemon-winds-waves-environments-game-rant

Pokemon Scarlet and Violet were the first new main generation of games to have a full open world, and while they adopted a lot of the formula that made Pokemon Legends: Arceus, they felt less cohesive. They also suffered the worst from a technical standpoint, so despite the fan demand preceding it, there may be more apprehension about a true open-world Pokemon game. To some, what matters most is depth compared to scale, and it’s unclear yet how Pokemon Winds and Waves will fall on the latter. However, it’s clearly set to have the most expansive scale yet.

Pokemon Winds and Waves’ Massive Scale is Already Clear

Fans need look no further than the Pokemon Winds and Waves trailer to see how expansive it looks. As a tropical region, players will have a plethora of islands to explore and lots of water to cross. On top of that, it seems Pokemon Winds and Waves brings back Dive, meaning fans will be able to go under the ocean. It’s not a stretch, then, to think there might be something to Winds and the air, suggesting that perhaps Fly is being treated like Dive. That’s not confirmed at all and could be regulated to DLC for Pokemon Winds and Waves, but the obvious extension possibly above and definitely below expands the scale.

Each area may feel different in scale, but there is still some suggestion that Pokemon Winds and Waves could include procedural generation for some areas. That expands the playable scale considerably and, if done right, could be great for replayability, but it remains to be seen how that works out. Still, when looking at the areas mentioned in recent, reliable leaks, it’s hard to imagine these games as anything but explosive in scale.

Pokemon Winds and Waves’ Leaked Region Layout

According to leaks of Pokemon Winds and Waves‘ region, it could feature the following:

18 Individual Islands with distinct biomes, POIs, towns, buildings, Research Labs, ruins, story components, etc. That means 18 areas to explore, plus sea travel between.
9 ocean areas (perhaps even more expansive with procedural generation)
10 Deep Sea areas (perhaps even more expansive with procedural generation)
A Legendary Temple in each game.

As leaks, fans should take this information with a grain of salt. However, it’s worth noting that most leakers have reported areas, regions, and POIs being added instead of removed. Anything could change between now and Pokemon Winds and Waves‘ release in 2027, but it seems scale is the focus. Hopefully, the depth matches the hype behind the return of Dive, but what’s already clear is how expansive these open-world games are aiming to be.