Pokémon Go will finally be able to link up with Pokémon HOME later this year, allowing players to transfer their Pokémon caught playing on their phone over to Sword and Shield. But a Japanese article on the official Pokémon Support website indicates that there might be an additional cost to make these transfers.
As discovered by Pokémon database Seribii’s webmaster Joe Merrick, a page in the Frequently Asked Questions portion of the HOME support section shows a recently updated listing for how many PokéCoins are needed to transfer a Pokémon from Go to HOME.
The question itself was updated earlier today, with the answer saying “After implementing the linkage between ‘Pokémon Go‘ and ‘Pokémon HOME,’ please check for yourself.” No further details about a potential PokéCoin cost are mentioned, but this doesn’t bode well for the HOME service that already charges players to store and transfer more than just a handful of Pokémon.
If it’s true that these potential PokéCoin payments for transferring from Go to HOME wouldn’t require a paid subscription to HOME but would instead charge players in-game currency from Go only, this could be the latest misstep from Game Freak, Niantic, and The Pokémon Company.
Using HOME to transfer between the Let’s Go! series of games, HOME, and Sword and Shield is completely free, though limited if you don’t have a paid membership. If you have Pokémon Bank from back in the 3DS days, then you’ll need a subscription to transfer over your older Pokémon.
These limitations and the requirement for a paid option for 3DS or older transfers were met with mixed feelings from the community, though there was a window at launch to transfer from Bank for free. So another avenue for transfers being locked behind another payment method isn’t a great look.
Just because that support page exists doesn’t mean a PokéCoin payment system will actually be implemented, however. The wording in the answer seems to suggest that it might be there just in case someone is confused and Niantic and TPC are just covering their bases by having the page ready.
