NintendObs Thinks: Game Freak really has become a yearly release factory.
Pokémon Scarlet & Pokémon Violet make it all clear now.
Initially I truly didn’t expect to see Pokémon Scarlet & Pokémon Violet revealed during this Pokémon Day. I acknowledge a Pokémon Presents around this date was the only presentation where such an announcement could be made, but I didn’t anticipate this one to come this soon. In all fairness also, The Pokémon Company wrote the script for the reveal of Pokémon Scarlet & Pokémon Violet with Detective Pikachu in mind, they were obviously aware it was the anticipated title since its announcement in 2019. And yet, it just dawned on me that ever since Nintendo Switch or rather ever since Pokémon Sun & Pokémon Moon in 2016, Game Freak has effectively output one Pokémon project every single year.
Let’s get into the details of Game Freak’s productions since the launch of Nintendo’s flagship platform. In 2017 they released Pokémon Ultra Sun & Pokémon Ultra Moon for Nintendo 3DS. 2018 saw their first Nintendo Switch title in Pokémon Let’s Go Pikachu and Pokémon Let’s Go Eevee, which served as a base for 2019’s first new generation Pokémon games on Nintendo Switch, Pokémon Sword & Pokémon Shield. 2020 was reserved for the Expansion Passes of these brand-new titles with the Isle of Armor and the Crown Tundra. It’s only 2021 that seems tricky because the mainline Pokémon games that year were not developed by Game Freak.
The Pokémon Company allocated the development of Pokémon Brilliant Diamond & Pokémon Shining Pearl to ILCA, outsourcing a Pokémon remake for the first time so that Game Freak could focus on making Pokémon Legends Arceus for early 2022. But now that Pokémon Scarlet & Pokémon Violet have been announced, launching in late 2022, it’s arguable that Pokémon Legends Arceus was Game Freak’s yearly project for 2021, positioned this January 2022 for the maximum effectiveness of The Pokémon Company’s Sinnoh/Hisui sales strategy. Make no mistake, just like Call of Duty or FIFA, Game Freak’s Pokémon releases are now an annual franchise.