Pokémon Pokopia: Everything You Need to Know About This Adorable Game

Highlights

• Game Type: Pokémon Pokopia is a life and farming simulator similar to Animal Crossing.
• Release Date: The game is set to launch on March 5, 2026, for the Nintendo Switch 2.
• Online Features: Players can connect online with a Nintendo Switch Online membership.
• Pricing: The game will cost $69.99 and preorders are currently available.

I’m sorry, did someone order an outrageously cute Pokémon game that lets you farm crops, take long naps, and build little houses, one that might drag me out of the perpetual hellscape that is the 24-hour news cycle?

Well, it’s coming.

Enjoying the success of the newly released Pokémon Legends: Z-A, Nintendo has announced the coming of Pokémon Pokopia, an adorable-looking cosy game that allows you to build a nice little existence for yourself among your Pokémon neighbours. Developed by Koei Tecmo, Pokémon’s first life simulator game is set for release on Nintendo Switch 2 in 2026.

Nintendo showed a trailer for the game as part of Nintendo Direct in September and there’ll be another shown at the company’s announcement event on Thursday, Nov. 13 at 9 a.m. ET — you can watch that live.

But what exactly is Pokémon Pokopia? Here’s everything we know.

What type of game is Pokémon Pokopia?

A life and farming simulator game akin to Animal Crossing, Immortal Life, Grow A Garden, Stardew Valley and many others, Pokémon Pokopia sees you playing as loveable amorphous blob Ditto, who has assumed the appearance of a human being (yes, Ditto can shake up their cellular structure and appear as whatever they want, stay focused).

Your task, as in all farming sims, is to collect materials like wood and rocks, farm crops according to a range of weather conditions, and build a home for yourself and your Pokémon neighbours — but you’ll apparently have a much easier time of it if you befriend other Pokémon and absorb their sweet, sweet skills.

“For example,” Nintendo said in its announcement, “Ditto can use Bulbasaur’s Leafage to add greenery to the landscape or Squirtle’s Water Gun to hydrate plants.”

The more you tend to said landscape, the more Pokémon will appear, the more homes you can build for them — and establish your own little town of Pokémon neighbours. In the trailer, the game’s world seems like a Minecraft land-shaping situation, one where you can add little Animal Crossing-style features like waterfalls, outdoor dining spaces, windmills, and more.

Credit: Screenshot: Nintendo / YouTube

See also  US House bill would require national security reviews on connected vehicles from China

Like other life sims, the game mimics real-time day and night times, and your energy is paramount, drained by activities and restored by napping.

The game will be available in English, Japanese, French, German, Italian, Spanish, Korean, and both Simplified and Traditional Chinese.

Will Pokémon Pokopia be online?

Credit: Nintendo

According to Nintendo, you’ll be able to connect with other players online providing you pay for a Nintendo Switch Online membership. In its announcement, Nintendo said you’ll be able to “invite Pokémon and even other players to visit and hang out with you.”

When can I play Pokémon Pokopia and how much will it cost?

Credit: Nintendo

Pokémon Pokopia will be released on the Nintendo Switch 2 on March 5, 2026.

The game will cost $69.99 through Nintendo’s website and preorders are now open. That’s the same price as Pokémon Legends: Z-A.

There’s been a bit of controversy around the release, as IGN reports, fans were caught off-guard with the game’s announcement that Pokémon Pokopia will be the first Nintendo-published game offered on a Game-Key Card (which you’ll need to download the game’s full data) — despite Nintendo saying in May that it had “no plans to use Game-Key Cards for Nintendo-developed titles.”

The publisher (and Ziff Davis-owned sister site of Mashable) noted that this game has been developed by Koei Tecmo, not Nintendo, and that it’s only Nintendo’s Japan site that is currently showing the game as a Game-Key Card release. So, we’ll see what happens.