Pokémon Go director Michael Steranka teased the future of the popular mobile game, including the long-awaited addition of Sword and Shield’s Galar Pokémon in a new interview.
The addition of new Pokémon to Pokémon Go has slowed significantly in the game’s recent history, a fact that Steranka himself admits to and even confidently says is for the good of Pokémon Go‘s longevity. Still, the unrushed pace of new content combined with the pressure to add the latest and most hyped Pokémon resulted in the Galar region being, unfortunately, skipped in favor of Paldea. Nearly a year after adding more than a dozen Pokémon from Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, Galar still hasn’t seen any love, but Steranka says that’s going to change.
Speaking to Eurogamer during a June 15 interview, Steranka said, “Know that as the team is thinking about Gen 8 Pokémon, they’re thinking about Galar, they’re thinking about what makes those Pokémon special, and when it’s time for them to make their debut in Pokémon Go, it will make sense.”
This comment teases not only the addition of Galar Pokémon to Pokémon Go but also features from Galar, AKA “what makes those Pokémon special.” The main features in question are Dynamaxing and Gigantamaxing. Pokémon Go has proven itself a worthy medium for retired battle mechanics from older main series games. It would be interesting to see how Niantic implements Dynamaxing and Gigantamaxing to work alongside Mega Evolution and maybe even Z-Moves in the future.
The Galar starters—Grookey, Scorbunny, and Sobble—are the only starters that remain unavailable in Pokémon Go, an unfortunate fact considering the impact Pokémon like Rillaboom have had on the Pokémon Scarlet and Violet competitive meta. Hopefully, the more than 80 Pokémon introduced in Sword and Shield are given a life in Pokémon Go soon.
