With the Nintendo Switch burning up the sales charts in its first couple of months after release, lots of early adopters have one question on their minds: When will we get a Pokémon game?
That game may be coming very soon. The pre-E3 rumor mill has been abuzz over Pokemon Stars, a rumored repackaging of the latest pair of Pokémon games, Pokemon Sun and Pokemon Moon, which launched on the Nintendo 3DS in 2016. Nintendo hasn’t confirmed the existence of Pokemon Stars, but there are a few reasons to think the game might exist and be on its way to the Nintendo Switch.
Is it an HD remake of Pokémon Sun and Moon… Or something more?
Rumors surrounding a Pokémon game for the Nintendo Switch date back to November, 2016. Eurogamer reported that Nintendo plans to port as-yet-unreleased Pokémon Sun and Moon for the Switch, codenamed “Pokémon Stars.” It’s not the first time two Pokémon games have later been followed by a third, updated version — it happened with Pokémon Yellow coming after Red and Blue, and Pokémon Platinum succeeding Pokémon Diamond and Pearl.
According to the report, Pokemon Stars would launch in 2017, featuring the same map as Sun and Moon, but with new, higher-resolution art assets. The game may also include new Pokémon that don’t appear in the first two games, with Pokémon being tradable between all three titles with the Pokémon Bank app. The story also noted shots from the Pokemon Sun and Moon announcement trailer, which show developers working on 3D models for Sun and Moon, which are far beyond the capabilities of the New Nintendo 3DS.
Pokémon and trainers may walk together
The next tidbit of information came from players digging through the code of their Pokemon games back in December, when they discovered cut features that some fans speculate are going to appear in Pokemon Stars.
As VG247 reported, dataminers discovered that Pokemon Sun and Moon contained early code that would have shown players’ Pokemon walking alongside their characters as they moved around the world. It’s a feature Pokémon players want, but either wasn’t completed in time for Sun and Moon, or was held back for a later version — namely, Stars.
Of course, this is hardly definitive, but it could potentially make sense if developer Game Freak was holding the feature back for the more powerful Switch version.
It may be announced at an upcoming Nintendo Direct
There’s yet more circumstantial evidence that might point toward a Stars announcement, this time gleaned from the way Nintendo handles its YouTube channel and Nintendo Direct announcements.
As Inverse reported, fans noticed that Nintendo pulled down the Pokémon Sun and Moon announcement trailer — the one with the aforementioned high-res assets — in May, 2017. Nintendo sometimes removes old videos when their context has changed to avoid confusing people. In this case, some believe the trailer was taken down to pave the way for an upcoming announcement. The theory, which came from fans, also notes that it’s not like Nintendo routinely pulls old Pokemon game announcement videos when they’re no longer relevant. Case in point: The announcement Nintendo Direct video for Pokemon X and Y is still up, dating back all the way to 2013.
Because of all that, fans think there might be a Pokemon Stars Nintendo Direct on its way this month — specifically around E3.
A GameStop leak
Another circumstantial hint at Pokemon Stars came from copy on the GameStop website that existed online for a short time. Shacknews reported that on the copy, which appeared on the retailer’s pre-launch Nintendo Switch hub listing in January, included multiple references to a Pokémon game for the Switch, as well as The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim.
While retail websites aren’t necessarily the most reliable sources for this kind of information, there’s at least one reason to believe it might possibly be a real bit of information: After GameStop leaked that Skyrim was on its way to Switch, an official announcement followed. The GameStop leak is one for two, so it seems possible.
Star-struck merchandise
One last potential item: The Japanese Pokémon Center store added a new line of Pokémon-related merchandise that seems Pokemon Stars related. As Polygonreported, a new line of toys based on Cosmog, the space-themed Pokémon seen in Sun and Moon, with the merchandise bearing the name “Look Upon the Stars.” Could it be a reference of things to come, or is it simply space-themed pun?
We’ll keep an eye out for more information about Pokemon Stars as E3 approaches and drop everything we discover right here, so stay tuned for updates.
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