Junichi Masuda GIves More Information About Why the National Dex Won't be in POKEMON SWORD and SHIELD
There are a lot of fans that are angry that the National Dex will not be around in Pokémon Sword and Shield. If you’re unfamiliar with what that means, it simply means that not all previously released Pokémon will be available in the next set of games. In the past, the developers have said that they couldn’t incorporate every Pokémon because of time constraints. Now, Game Freak’s Junichi Masuda is providing a little bit more information. In an interview with Game Informer, Masuda revealed:
“Up until now, we’ve been proud we’ve been able to include so many Pokémon in the games, but as a result of that, there’s actually been quite a few features or gameplay ideas that we’ve had to abandon in the past. Going forward, thinking about the future of Pokémon, we want to prioritize all those new gameplay ideas, new ways to enjoy the game, and want to challenge ourselves at Game Freak to create new ways to enjoy the game. That’s really what drove the decision for this new direction.
We have a lot of awesome new challenges that we haven’t even revealed in Sword and Shield. We want to continue to come up with these new features, so we figured this was the best path forward for the franchise”
If your favorite Pokémon doesn’t make it, don’t worry too much about future installments as Masuda has revealed that future games will incorporate Pokémon cut from Sword and Shield (plus, they could always bring back the National Dex via post-release content).
“You can look forward to seeing Pokémon that don’t appear in these games appearing in different regions in future games. I think Pokémon Home, for a lot of players, will serve as a launching pad to gather them all there and then embark on future adventures.”
I’m sure we’ll continue to learn more as we get closer to the release date of Sword and Shield as well as the release of Pokémon Home. I’m really excited for the next set of games even if it won’t have all the Pokémon.
Pokémon Sword and Shield will be available for Nintendo Switch on November 15.