Don't Expect Pokemon on Switch to Be Like Breath of the Wild

When Nintendo announced at E3 2017 that a mainlinePokemongame would be coming to the Nintendo Switch, it generated a great deal of excitement. After all, the Nintendo Switch is capable of hosting a massive open world game likeThe Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, which seems like the perfect style of game for aPokemonadventure. However, before fans get too excited about an open worldPokemongame on the scale ofBreath of the Wild, they should take into consideration recent comments by Game Freak co-founder Junichi Masuda.

In a recent interview with Game Informer, Masuda was asked if aPokemongame would ever offer the level of player expression thatBreath of the Wilddelivers with its massive open world. At first, Masuda said, “I think anything is possible.” But his followup comments seem to strike down hope that themainlinePokemonRPGon the Switch will be anything likeBreath of the Wild.

“If we could find a way to make that kind of setting work with that gameplay and giving players a fun reason to go out and capture Pokemon, then there’s always a possibility. Well that maybe is something that the fans want, but from my perspective theZeldatype of game is more suited to having a sword and going out and fighting enemies. Not sure it’d be best suited for going out and catching Pokemon.”

So while Masuda is open to the possibility ofPokemonon the Switch having an open world-style of gameplay similar toBreath of the Wild, it doesn’t seem likely at this point in time. His comments indicate that the team at Game Freak hasn’t figured out a way to give players a “fun reason” to go out and capture Pokemon in aZelda-style game, and it seems more likely that the game world will be more like thePokemonRPGs that preceded it thanBreath of the Wild.

This isn’t the first time Masuda has attempted to lower fan expectations when it comes to the upcomingPokemonon the Nintendo Switch. In fact, he previously expressed hope thatfan expectations aren’t too highfor the RPG, which seems to suggest that Masuda isn’t confident that he will be able to deliver something that lives up to the hype.

Of course, the newPokemonRPG on the Nintendo Switch is still very early in development and a lot can change between now and its release. Details on the game are virtually nonexistent at the time of this writing, except that the game isexpected to launch in 2018 or later, so it’s hard to say what form it will eventually take.

Pokemonfor the Nintendo Switch has a wide release window of 2018 or later.