Pokemon Sword and Shield made a big splash when it released on Nintendo Switch, quickly setting records and selling well over 10 million copies to date. The franchise has a long history of releasing a third “definitive” edition after the first two, but Sword and Shield do away with that tradition.
Instead, Sword and Shield are getting a hefty Expansion Pass that adds on new areas, clothing, Pokemon, and more. It’s the first time in the franchise’s long history that a game has received proper DLC.
Both this and Sword and Shield’s new online features mark a shift for the Pokemon series, one that’s even more iterative than before, and can keep a stream of Pokemon content on the horizon.
Pokemon Can Move Past the Traditional Third Game
The third game has become a quintessential part of fan’s expectations for Pokemon, ever since the release of Pokemon Yellow on Game Boy Color. Even with Pokemon Sword and Shield fans joked about a potential “Pokemon Gun.” Yet, the third game idea feels tired and it’s become increasingly difficult to justify the price of a brand new game for an upgraded version. This was abundantly clear in Ultra Sun and Moon, which only added on a handful of new Pokemon and story elements.
Thus enters Sword and Shield’s expansion pass, a way of adding new content that feels diverse and exciting to Pokemon fans, and bridges the gap between releases. The pass comes with two expansions that’ll add on massive new areas to explore, and bring over a hundred returning Pokemon. Sword and Shield’s cut Pokedex was a huge controversy leading up to release, but the Expansion Pass lets Game Freak address the issue with more development time.
At the same time, it brings content to fans in a much timelier fashion. Instead of waiting 1-2 years for a new version, Game Freak can provide multiple new stories and areas in the same amount of time, all while providing patches and updates to improve issues with Sword and Shield. There’s really no need for Game Freak to ever go back to the old way of doing things, as they can keep Pokemon much more relevant by providing incremental updates, rather than a mainline game every few years.
Pokemon Games Can Improve and Evolve Faster Than Ever
Perhaps the best part of Pokemon releasing DLC is that it allows Game Freak to experiment and try new things. The Expansion Pass adds on entirely new sections of the world, where Game Freak could prototype new systems or ideas, ahead of development for the next game.
For example, the Island of Armor expansion will add on a special type of battle known as Restricted Sparring, where players are limited to a number of Pokemon types and have to battle under set conditions. This is, obviously, a small example, but could lead to more possibilities.
Because Game Freak has to spend less dev time on these expansions, they’re free to be more creative and try design decisions they may not have been able to in full production. Of course, there’s also the option to iterate and make Sword and Shield even better, expanding on the Gigantamax system and Max Raids, or adding in all those Pokemon that didn’t make the cut on the first go-round. This will also be a good way to introduce brand new Pokemon like the mysterious Legendary Game Freak has teased. Shifting from definitive third versions of their games to DLC is a change that benefits both Game Freak and Pokemon fans, and there’s no way the series is going back now.
Pokemon Sword and Shield are available on Nintendo Switch.
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