With the release of a new Nintendo console comes the excitement of new entries in popular Nintendo franchises.
The switch 2 launched with the new Mario Kart, the surprising success of Kirby Air Riders made us excited that the next Super Smash Bros. game. what it might look like, and we wonder what the latest installment of Animal Crossing, Nintendo’s cozy life simulator, will look like.
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We all live in the world of Pokémon, and I want to see more of it.
And before you ask, no, Animal Crossing’s Switch 2 update doesn’t count as a new game.
After the release of Pokémon Pokopia, I feel like that’s a very important question, because I’m not sure what the Animal Crossing franchise looks like. Pokémon Pokopia combines the best features of Animal Crossing (literally in some cases), as well as everything we know and love from games like Minecraft and Dragon Quest Builders, all into an attractive package.
Pokémon Pokopia is not only one of the biggest surprises of 2026, but one of the best Pokémon games of all time.
While Pokémon Pokopia Won’t Reinvent the Wheel, It Does an Excellent Job at Polishing It
The premise of Pokémon Pokopia is simple: it’s a Ditto who remembers their human trainer. It’s not long before you realize that it’s not just humans that are gone, but other Pokémon as well. With one exception, that is. You will soon meet Professor Trangrowth, who, with your help, is trying to rebuild the world, including various habitats, buildings, and entire ecosystems, in order to bring back both lost Pokémon and people.
Thankfully, the Pokémon are more than happy to oblige and come out and play, but it’s the humans that seem to be missing out on the action throughout the game. In a sentence I never expected to say about Pokémon Pokopia, its story, and the mysteries that drive it, intrigued me like no other Pokémon story ever has. Now, I’m not saying that the Pokémon franchise is full of weak stories; there is an incredibly powerful narrative in the main games. What I am saying, though, is that the story within Pokémon Pokopia is better than it has any right to be.
Pokémon Pokopia is not only one of the biggest surprises of 2026, but one of the best Pokémon games of all time.
It’s not just the story that got me involved, but how Pokémon Pokopia can move forward using its core gameplay mechanics and systems without hitting you over the head with them.
While you’re learning how everything works in Pokopia, the opening hours of the game throws you off a lot. As someone who isn’t a fan of crafting games, being bombarded with tasks, constantly learning skills, and trying to balance completing goals while exploring the world at first felt daunting. Yet Pokémon Pokopia finds a way to avoid the pitfalls of similarly styled games. It does not flavor any of its game mechanics; instead, it (rightfully) focuses on delivering a fun experience that doesn’t overwhelm the player.
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The main focus of Pokémon Pokopia is being able to build the Pokémon town of your dreams, and it’s something that’s on full display here.
Sure, there’s that shockingly good story to the game, and we’ll talk more about it later, but the biggest draw is undoubtedly exploration, design, and terrain creation. It’s not something you have full access to from the jump, but like I said earlier, the game does a good job of not wasting time introducing the mechanics and abilities to you.
In some ways, it’s the opposite of Animal Crossing, and that’s probably my favorite thing. No scheduling is done which requires you to manage your system’s internal calendar. If you want to focus on accomplishing everything where you start your first site before you move on, you’re welcome to it. If you want to breed more Pokémon as quickly as possible, go ahead. There is no need to wait for them to enter. Just create their habitat, wait a few minutes, and bombyou get to be BFFs with Charmander.
It’s clear that Pokémon Pokopia respects your time, and I’m not just saying this because the last Animal Crossing game was released during a global pandemic where we were forced to stay at home. I remember picking up Animal Crossing: A New Leaf at midnight at my local Walmart because I had a flight to catch first thing in the morning to attend E3. To be honest, I don’t know why I was bothering myself, because I didn’t even get on the plane before I ran out of things to do for the day. If I had picked up Pokémon Pokopia instead, I would have had so much to see and do that the battery would have run out before I had a chance to accomplish everything I wanted.
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It allows you to play the game as you see fit
What makes Pokémon Pokopia so special is the fact that, depending on who you are, “getting everything you want” will look very different.
Yes, creativity is a big part of the game. Customizing your house, your town, that’s the main hook of the game, but there’s a lot more at play here that’s really impressive. I said earlier that I’m not a fan of crafting games, but Pokémon Pokopia doesn’t present itself as a 100% crafting game. A Pokémon game that happens to include items. Sure, I need to set up settlements, give my new Pokémon friends some items, and change the world as I see fit to progress through the game, but there’s an agency at play here that drives me forward.
Pokémon Pokopia finds a way to avoid the pitfalls of similar games in style. It does not flavor any of its game mechanics; instead, it (rightfully) focuses on delivering a fun experience that doesn’t overwhelm the player.
I’m not put in an open sandbox, given a picture of what other people have accomplished, thrown into a pizza oven they call a “pod,” and told I’m a wing. I have a purpose. There is a reason for everything I do, and it makes me very invested.
Little by little, when I tell myself to focus on fulfilling the important goals at hand, I blink and the hours pass as I focus on tickling and fixing the world. Never in a million years did I think that would happen to me in a video game. Best of all, this mode is not limited to building and terraforming features. There’s something incredibly satisfying about building settlements to find more Pokémon and work on my Pokédex. Whether it’s the original games or the spin-offs, you can’t stop a Pokémon trainer from catching them all.
Let’s Talk More About An Incredibly Emotional Story
Maybe it’s because I’m a millennial who celebrated the first 70-degree day of the year in Ohio by blasting Senses Fail’s “Calling All Cars” with the windows down. Anyway, the story of Pokémon Pokopia really got to me.
As you explore the world in search of long-lost people, you’ll find clues to the context of not only what happened, but where you are. I’m going to keep things spoiler-free (I never thought I’d say that about this game), but if you’re like me, they’re going to hit you in the feels.
That doesn’t hold a candle, however, to the strings that will tug at your heartstrings when you meet all the Pokémon you’ve found. They’re full of personality, happy to show you what they’ve found, engage with you, and have a quick chat. It’s not just about that, though; they are very satisfied to communicate regularly. You’ll see them appear in the background as you go about your other tasks or chat with other Pokémon, interacting in ways I never expected.
Again, I’m going to keep this spoiler-free, but there are a lot of amazing, fun, and emotional encounters in this game. All this time, I thought we were the creators, but it turns out it was really about the Pokémon friends we made along the way.
Pokémon Pokopia is a truly special, once-in-a-lifetime game that changes the entire landscape of the genre. There may be nothing new or revolutionary here, but that’s not the point. We’ve been sold on cute, fun, and cute Pokémon that can hold our cool gaming hearts until something like Tomodachi Life or the next Animal Crossing release. What we got was a game that asked if we would be willing to put down Pokémon Pokopia when those games came out.
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