Pokémon Winds & Waves was announced during Pokémon Day yesterday, and the early footage is extremely promising. Winds & Waves will take the franchise into its tenth generation, with a lush tropical island location bursting with biomes to explore. After months of leaks and rumors, the official launch trailer shows a game that's a huge graphical push forward.
Recent Pokémon games have been criticized for not meeting current-gen visual standards. Game Freak has come under heavy fire from fans for bland-looking environments, textures, and buildings—the latter being especially jarring in Pokémon Legends: Z-A, which took place in a city almost entirely made up of buildings. The upcoming game is breaking through these visual limitations, especially when compared to the most recent games in the franchise.
Winds & Waves will be released in 2027, which is a longer wait than between most mainline franchise games. However, this slight delay may be a good thing. It means Game Freak will have more time to create a product that will look and feel like a title that pushes current gen standards.
Pokémon Scarlet & Violet also suffered from performance issues and glitches, combined with a world that felt empty. These issues are especially...
