Along with the update itself, Nintendo has also announced the Pokémon Pokopia Expansion Pass, which will bring with it even more content, like new towns. One of the towns released through the Expansion Pass is Bubbly Basin – an entirely underwater town where players can find new furniture, outfits, and friends. The Expansion Pass will be available through the Nintendo eShop later today.

Late 2026 will see more new features added to Pokémon Pokopia as part of the expansion pass, with a third set of content slated for release in 2027.

As for the free update, it will give players the ability to expand their towns into new underwater frontiers, and in the process, further enhance their friendships with water-based Pokémon. The new underwater regions can be accessed through the use of a new move, Dive, and along with exploration, players will also be able to build entire structures underwater.

Pokémon Pokopia was released on Nintendo Switch 2 earlier this year, and has gone on to become a major hit, selling more than 2.2 million copies in just the first four days of its release. Since then, several reports have noted that the game has led to an increase in Nintendo Switch 2 hardware sales, and even Koei Tecmo raised its profit forecasts for FY 2026 thanks to its work on Pokémon Pokopia.

“The world of Beast of Reincarnation is being consumed by a force called the Blight,” explains Furushima. “This Blight parasitizes all living things – plants and animals alike – and transforms them into beings known as the Malefact – the Corrupted.”

“The source of this Blight is a being known as the ‘Beast of Reincarnation’. Emma, the protagonist, and her canine companion, Koo, who is also a Malefact himself, journey together to defeat the Beast of Reincarnation.”

Furushima goes on to explain that, thanks to the Blight, humanity is now living in a world filled with the ruins of a civilization that has fallen. To deal with this, humans have built colonies deep within the mountains, all while the world around them continues to be consumed by the Blight.

As for the protagonist, Emma, he talks about how she has the ability to wield the “power of plants” due to her being afflicted with the Blight as well. This, however, has led to her not having memories or emotions. Since she doesn’t have these feelings, the people in the colonies now fear her. However, Emma is able to make use of these powers to fight off the Blight.

“The story, combat, art, sound, technology, and the incredible performances of our voice cast – everything has culminated into this singular experience,” Furushima says. “Our protagonist, Emma, lives her life devoid of her past memories and emotions. Desperate to understand what ’emotions’ truly are, Emma encounters Coo, a companion who should naturally be her enemy, and together, they embark on a journey. By leveraging Emma and Koo’s synergy, we successfully combined the strategic depth of commanding Coo’s techniques with the thrilling real-time action of Emma’s sword abilities. What awaits at journey’s end? I sincerely hope you will experience the conclusion for yourself.”

Beast of Reincarnation is coming to PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S on August 4th. For more details, check out its prices and pre-orders.

This means it could cost $79.99 in the United States. Why? It’s the physical version, which Nintendo began pricing differently from digital releases of its first-party Switch 2 titles. Yoshi and the Mysterious Book, for example, costs $60 digitally and $70 physically, while the upcoming Star Fox retails for $50 digitally and $60 physically.

Since Pokémon Winds and Waves will follow the same pattern (unless something drastic changes), physical collectors are back to paying $80 for a first-party Switch 2 title. It’s 2025 all over again, with Mario Kart World serving as the first game in history to demand $80, although that was in both formats.

Again, we’ll have to wait for an official announcement from Nintendo, but the fact that retail listings have gone live could also indicate something at the next Nintendo Direct. It’s allegedly taking place in mid-June, around or after the Summer Game Fest showcase. Perhaps this is further evidence that it will be a general Direct and not a Partner Showcase? Stay tuned in the meantime.

The song was performed for the recording by the NHK Symphony Orchestra, and features a wide variety of instruments used in the process, from pianos to violins, and quite a few wind instruments as well, including flutes and trombones.

Pokémon Winds and Waves will make up the 10th generation for the franchise, and will bring players to a brand new region that seems to be quite watery. The trailers have indicated a large variety of environments for players to explore, from underwater zones to forests and beaches, and many small towns. The titles will also include three new starter Pokémon: the Grass-type Browt, the Fire-type Pompon, and the Water-type Gecqua.

Alongside a host of new Pokémon to capture and battle against, players will also find several returning from previous generations, like Tangela, Krabby, Wailord, and even the series mascot, Pikachu.

Not too many details about Pokémon Winds and Waves have been revealed yet. However, we did get a small idea of what we can expect when the games come out next year from the official website, which confirms that this generation of games will be open-world. Among other things, players will get to explore “beautiful windswept islands and a vast ocean with glittering waves that ebb and flow,” and meet Pokémon that “live in harmony with this region’s lush environment and have developed their own unique ecosystems.”

In the meantime, the most recent release in the franchise on Nintendo Switch 2 was Pokémon Pokopia from back in March. The title was released to widespread acclaim and has gone on to become incredibly successful. Nintendo had announced shortly after its release that it had sold more than 2.2 million copies in its first four days, with around 1 million of the sales coming from Japan alone. The commercial performance of Pokémon Pokopia even went as far as affecting Nintendo’s share prices for a time.

Koei Tecmo, which helped in the planning and development of Pokémon Pokopia, also ended up revising its revenue and profit forecast for the fiscal year ending in March 2026 to account for the title’s success. The company reported that it had performed “better than expected,” and that the company as a whole has “significantly exceeded” previous projections as a result.

Pokémon Pokopia is available on the Nintendo Switch 2. For more details, check out our review, where we gave it a score of 9 out of 10 thanks to its surprisingly engaging premise, sense of charm and personality, and addictive construction mechanics. Our only complaints with the game were its frustrating storage restrictions and long waiting times during its early hours. Despite this, however, we found Pokémon Pokopia to be “the best Pokémon spin-off of all time.”

The forecast for net profit for the financial year has been raised to ¥41.5 billion (roughly $260 million), up from the previous forecast of ¥27 billion (roughly $169 million). When compared to the ¥37.6 billion reported in the previous fiscal year, this means that Koei Tecmo will end up with record highs in its net profits.

Pokémon Pokopia was released on Nintendo Switch 2 just last month, and its success since then has been quite well documented. Nintendo and The Pokémon Company had announced just a week after release that the title had sold more than 2.2 million copies in its first four days. Of this impressive milestone, around 1 million units were noted as being sold in Japan alone.

Earlier this month, a report revealed that Pokémon Pokopia‘s release had also led to the rise of Nintendo Switch 2 console sales in the UK. The company saw a rise of 154 percent in its hardware sales when compared to sales in February.

“Nintendo Switch 2 UK sales jumped 154% in March month-on-month following the release of Pokémon Pokopia,” wrote The Game Business’ Christopher Dring. “Nintendo accounts for over 50% of all consoles sold in the UK so far this year.”

The release of Pokémon Pokopia had seemingly led to immediate positive effects for Nintendo as a whole, with a report revealing that the company’s share prices had jumped by 10 percent just days after its launch. Jeffries analyst Atul Goyal called the game a “viral hit” and noted that it counteracted “memory cost headwinds” that had been worrying Nintendo’s investors.

Pokémon Pokopia revolves around players taking on the role of a strange Ditto that has taken on the form of a young human. In a world where humans have seemingly disappeared, the player has to create their own new home, and along the way, befriend other Pokémon. The title has been praised quite a bit thanks to its engaging gameplay premise, charm and personality, and addictive construction mechanics.

For more details about Pokémon Pokopia, check out our review, where we gave it a score of 9 out of 10. Our only complaints with the game revolved around long wait times in its early hours and frustrating storage restrictions. If you’re already a fan of the game, take a look at our guides on how to hunt legendary Pokémon, how you can raise the environment level, and how and why you can time-travel. Also, check out what other critics have had to say about the game, with some going as far as calling it the first must-have game for Nintendo’s console this year.

Meanwhile, Koo, her dog companion, gets black and brown Shiba skins. You also get 100,000 of the in-game currency, Amber, which provides a nice boost out of the gate and several vegetable seedlings. You can check out how all of the bonus in-game items look in a new trailer below (which also showcases some slick combat gameplay).

The physical versions of both editions retail at the same prices, but they’re only available on PS5 and Xbox Series X/S. Sorry, PC players.

Beast of Reincarnation launches on August 4th and will also be playable on day one through Game Pass. You can learn more about its story, progression and combat in this video, or how Game Freak is focusing on the “gameplay experience” above all else.

Those seeking a challenge can avail themselves of the difficulty options available at launch. However, while game director Kota Furushima wants players to engage in some trial and error, he also doesn’t want them to “have to retry dozens or hundreds of times.”

Popular leaker CentroLeaks slammed the release in a post on X, lamenting the poor Switch 2 performance (keep in mind that this is a Switch 1 game), a lack of popular Pokémon in a limited roster, not being able to automatically add friends over from your Switch list, and so on. “Tons” of competitive items are also missing and there’s no support for local wireless play. Others have since chimed in, with a 30fps lock on performance, along with tedious menus, standing out the most among all the other issues.

While there is hope from a section of the player base who expect additional Pokémon to make their way to the game, and potential fixes coming along, it’s still disheartening to see what could have been a serious contender for competitive Pokémon play get such a lukewarm response. Pokémon Pokopia, by comparison, has received a very encouraging response, one that now seems a little out of Pokémon Champions‘ reach.

https://x.com/CentroLeaks/status/2041751437047161194

This one’s free to play for those of you who haven’t kept up with it, and you can dive in on your Switch, Android, or iOS. It takes you to the Frontier, where you’re going to have to capture Pokémon and train them to take on opponents in battles that put a fresh but familiar spin on the formula to enable varied strategies for both newcomers and veterans alike.

If you’re on Pokémon Home, you’ll be pleased to know that you can bring over your Pokémon. While the trailer is somewhat light on the details, the battle-focused multiplayer title includes familiar abilities and mechanics, including Mega Evolutions. In fact, some, like Mega Meganium, Mega Emboar, and Mega Feraligatr from Pokémon Legends: Z-A even get “never-before-seen abilities.”

You can learn more here, but if you’ve ever wanted to prove your mettle as a trainer, Pokémon Champions is a sure-fire way to do that. It’s free to play and can be downloaded from the Nintendo eShop. For those seeking a more traditional Pokémon experience, Pokémon Winds and Waves is launching in 2027 for Nintendo Switch 2. Head here for more details.

Dring also mentioned that this means that Nintendo consoles now account for more than half of all consoles sold in the region so far in 2026. “Nintendo Switch 2 UK sales jumped 154% in March month-on-month following the release of Pokémon Pokopia,” he wrote. “Nintendo accounts for over 50% of all consoles sold in the UK so far this year.” He did offer a caveat, however, that March was a five-week month, compared to February having only four weeks.

The success of Pokémon Pokopia in helping boost console sales should come as no surprise. Just last month, Nintendo confirmed that it had sold 2.2 million copies of the game in just four days after its March 5th release. Of the impressive sales milestone, around one million units were sold in Japan alone.

The release of Pokémon Pokopia even led to Nintendo’s share prices growing by ten percent. A report at the time even noted that physical copies of the game had become hard to find thanks to major US retailers running out of stock quite quickly.

Jeffries analyst Atul Goyal acknowledged that the game boosted Switch 2’s sales momentum, calling it a “viral hit” that helped to counteract “memory cost headwinds” that Nintendo’s investors had been worried about. According to Tokyo Securities analyst Hideki Yasuda, “The Pokémon game was a dark horse. It was totally off people’s radars, making its popularity a positive development.” Its popularity “from Japan to Canada” also proved its global appeal.

Pokémon Pokopia offers a major twist on the Pokémon formula. Rather than players taking on the role of a young trainer setting off in the world for an adventure, Pokopia instead puts players in the shoes of a Ditto that transforms to vaguely look like a young human. After this, players are then free to explore the world and collect resources, which in turn can be used to craft equipment and their home. Along the way, players will also get to meet various other Pokémon, each with their own unique abilities that can be used for various gameplay aspects, like resource collection.

Pokémon Pokopia is available exclusively on Nintendo Switch 2. Check out our review, where we gave it a score of 9 out of 10 thanks to its engaging premise, charm, personality, and addictive construction mechanics, among other things. For players who have already been playing Pokémon Pokopia, take a look at our guides for hunting legendary Pokémon, time traveling, raising the environment level, and unlocking Palette Town and GameShare.

For those among you who are still undecided on whether or not Pokémon Pokopia is for you, check out its gameplay trailer showing off cooking and co-op gameplay.

This Pokemon Pokopia guide is all about hunting for Legendary Pokemon using a tried and tested strategy.

How To Unlock Dream Islands

The first step in your quest to collect Legendary Pokemon is unlocking Dream Islands. These standalone worlds are a source for a lot of items, including Stardust, Star Pieces, materials, and resources of all kinds.

Wait till nightfall, and leave Withered Wasteland from the west. Once outside the boundary, bear right in search of a lone Drifloon. Interact with it to begin its quest.

Fulfill its habitat request, and speak to it again for part two of its request, involving Poke Dolls. If you have not stumbled upon one of these already, Drifloon will give you a hint about where to acquire a Poke Doll nearby. Wrap up the Drifloon’s quest to finally unlock Dream Islands.

Dream Island Mechanics

Drifloon can transport you to Dream Islands on demand, simply by setting down and inspecting any given Poke Doll to summon them first. Each unique Poke Doll will take you to a distinct Dream Island, but you can only visit one island each game day.

Once you arrive on the randomly generated island, it will remain static, no matter how many times you leave and return on the same day. Which means that you cannot strip the island clean of its resources and hope to respawn it all. While you remain on the island, the so-called ‘Time Travel’ or date skip method will not work to reset things either. You also cannot visit any other Dream Islands for the duration of that day.

Instead, you will have to either let time progress naturally, or perform the Time Travel method in order to manually move the date forward by one day, specifically while outside of a Dream Island.

When you are on the island and ready to leave, make use of the ‘Return Home’ function in order to be teleported back to Drifloon and avoid time wasted on traversal.

Stardust And Star Pieces

When interacting with Poke Dolls, note the materials listed as predominant on a given Dream Island. Aside from those, you should also farm the goopy-looking materials called Stardust, 99 of which can eventually be combined into a single Star Piece.

Gifting a Star Piece to a visiting Pokemon that you do not already own will beget you a gift in return. Opening that gift within an empty habitat will spawn that same species of Pokemon there, regardless of whether the habitat suits it.

Hunting Legendary Pokemon

Legendary Pokemon can be found within either of the two cave systems that tend to appear on Dream Islands. While not a guaranteed spawn every single time, you can easily reset each island with the method mentioned previously until you stumble upon a good one.

Even when you fail to acquire a Legendary Pokemon, the yellow Pokeballs that you come across will still have plenty of valuable items for use, including Pokemetal ingots and habitat information.

You will know that you have stumbled upon a Legendary Pokemon in the caves visually, when you notice an enclosure of sorts, with the Pokemon confined within. Break through and simply take them home.

That is everything there is to know about exploiting Dream Islands and hunting Legendary Pokemon in Pokemon Pokopia.