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[Updated] Here's where to watch Nintendo's Pokemon Direct - Pokemon Home, Pokemon Sleep and Shield/Sword details expected

Pokemon Snap 2? No? Okay then

[Updated] Here's where to watch Nintendo's Pokemon Direct - Pokemon Home, Pokemon Sleep and Shield/Sword details expected
Update: 09/01/2020 - 15:26

The Pokemon Direct is over and they packed an awful lot of information into that 20 minutes, most notably about Pokemon Sword and Shield. There were a few other announcements too though and we'll get into all of them right now.

Pokemon Mystery Dungeon Rescue Team DX

It's been 15 years since Pokemon Mystery Dungeon Red and Blue team were released. This has proven to be one of the more popular Pokemon spin-offs over the years so it was nice to hear that a remake would be making its way to Nintendo Switch and fairly soon too. 

Pokemon Mystery Dungeon Rescue Team DX will be available from March 6th this year. That's less than two months away! There will also be a demo available on the Switch eshop later today so you can hop straight into some nostalgia before its full release. On top of that, any progress you do make in that demo will carry over to the full game.

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Pokemon Sword and Shield Expansion Pass

During the Direct the biggest announcement was that Pokemon Sword and Shield would be getting two expansions. They will be called the Isle of Armor and The Crown Tundra and will be available in June and Fall 2020 respectively. 

The idea is that this will usually replace the Emerald, Black/White 2, Ultra Sun/Moon setup that we're used to with Pokemon games and it will also be slightly cheaper than buying a full retail game as well. You'll be able to pre-purchase it on the Switch eshop later today for $30. 

Both areas will feature new clothing items, areas to explore and more important new Pokemon to discover. Yes, the expansion will see the return of more than 200 previously lost Pokemon including the likes of Garchomp, Kingdra, Walrein and Slowpoke.

It still won't be all of them and folks will surely be aggravated that they're essentially having to pay to get old Pokemon back. Me, I'm just happy to see them return. However, it's worth noting that if you opt not to buy the Expansion Pass you can still trade for the old Pokemon to obtain them.

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The Isle of Armor

The first expansion, the Isle of Armor and it will follow a story that revolves around a Pokemon Dojo where you'll become an apprentice to a chap called Mustard. During this adventure, you'll be given a Pokemon called Kubfu, which eventually evolve into something called Urshifu. This Pokemon will have two forms called Single or Rapid Strike. They will both have unique moves and Gigantamax forms that change depending on which variant you have. 

Players will also be able to find a few new features to help train their Pokemon. There will be an Exp Charm on offer to make levelling up your Pokes become a far speedier process and you'll also be to find a new Move Tutor so you can teach your team some new attacks. 

There will also be Gigantamax versions of the Galar starters in this area. So Rillaboom, Cinderace and Intelleon will all get a new unique look when they decide to become 30 foot tall for three turns. They'll each have their own G-Max move too, as is Gigantamax tradition.

The Crown Tundra

The second expansion, the Crown Tundra will be focused more on exploration. Once you make your way to this frozen land you'll be made the leader of an exploration group where you'll be tasked with investigating this frozen land. It will also introduce a new legendary Pokemon called Calyrex, which is a psychic and grass Pokemon with a big ball thing on its head. 

This will allow you to properly explore Pokemon Dens, which we've only briefly been able to visit so far. Alongside this is the addition of a co-op mode where you'll be able to team up with other players to explore these Dens. Within them you'll be able to find most of the legendary Pokemon from the previous games to catch and it appears there may also be alternative variations of the Regis and the legendary birds. 

Pokemon Home

During the direct, there were also a few sparse details about Pokemon Home. We didn't' get a specific release date but we know it will become available in February. We also learned that you will be able to transfer your Pokemon from Let's Go Eevee and Pikachu to Sword and Shield as long as they appear in Galar Dex. More details about pricing are expected to be announced soon. 

So that was everything that was announced during the Pokemon Direct. For a breakdown of all the minutia of the new features, check out the official site for more details. 

Original Story

Nintendo's Pokemon Direct is just under an hour away and we're anticipating some news about Pokemon Home, Sleep and most likely some more details about Shield and Sword. We can expect around 20 minutes or so of Pokemon news so there could always be a few surprises, I will always be hoping for a Pokemon Snap 2.

The stream will be live over on Nintendo's YouTube channel, so you can either head over there to watch it or via the embedded video we've conveniently included below this paragraph to save you mere seconds of time. If you'll be busy during the Direct, check back here later and we'll have updated this page with all the details.

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The Direct will start at 6:30 am PT, so that's 9:30 am ET, so an early start for folks in those timezones. Here in the UK, it's at a more leisurely 2:30 pm.

Is there anything you're specifically hoping for from this Direct? Let us know in the comments.

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Stephen Gregson-Wood
Stephen Gregson-Wood
Stephen brings both a love of games and a very formal-sounding journalism qualification to the Pocket Gamer team.