Pokemon Scarlet and Pokemon Violet Usher In A New Generation Of Pokemon Later This Year

The Pokemon Company has announced the next generation of Pokemon games: Pokemon Scarlet and Pokemon Violet, and both are coming to Nintendo Switch later this year. This will be the ninth generation (or “Gen 9”) of the game series.

The games were revealed via a teaser trailer at the end of the Pokemon Day Pokemon Presents livestream, giving glimpses into the world players will be hunting Pokemon in, as well as a quick peek at the three apparent starters from this new unnamed region: Sprigatito (grass cat), Fuecoco (fire croc), and Quaxly (water duckling).

The trailer started with a live-action segment, showing a security guard getting spooked by a strange glowing light. It then transitioned to in-game footage of the new region, with lots of overhead shots of the world and wild Pokemon roaming about. The region looks like it has a variety of environments, from grassy plains to villages with palm trees. The official announcement notes this new region has various towns without borders that blend into the wilderness, so you may not have hard cuts between town transitions. It also says you’ll be able to see Pokemon roaming around anywhere, including inside of towns.

Pokemon Scarlet and Pokemon Violet follow Pokemon Sword and Shield in the core Pokemon lineup of games. The most recent Pokemon game, Pokemon Legends: Arceus, took the series to Pokemon’s past in the Sinnoh region when it launched January 28.

The Pokemon Presents celebrating Pokemon Day also showed off new updates for Pokemon Go, Pokemon Legends: Arceus, Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl, and more.