5 major announcements from Pokemon Presents (February 27, 2024)

With February 27 being celebrated as Pokemon Day, a celebratory showcase was released online, revealing the projects that will be coming to the franchise in the near future. Most of these developments were nothing like the waves of leaks claimed. A lot of interesting information was revealed, but most rumors were proven to be false, at least for the moment.

Here are five of the biggest announcements from the showcase and everything we know about what is to come.

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5 highlights from the Pokemon Day showcase

1) Return of the Mighty Starters

New Raid Bosses are coming to Scarlet and Violet (Image via The Pokemon Company)

Pokemon Presents revealed that not only would the first limited-time boss, Mighty Charizard, be making a return to Scarlet and Violet, but it would also be bringing its friends along with it. Mighty Charizard, Mighty Blastoise, and Mighty Venusaur will be available for a limited time starting on Wednesday, February 28, 2024.

Each starter will have their unique Tera Typings and the Mightiest Mark. Charizard will retain its Dragon Tera Typing from its first rendition. Venusaur will have the Ground Tera Typing, but Blastoise is a bit hard to tell. Some fans online are saying that it will be Steel, but it also looks like it could just be Water.

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2) Pokemon GO collaboration

This collaboration between the new anime series and the popular mobile game has been foreseen for quite some time by the community (Image via TPC)

Pokemon GO is known for having a lot of different collaborations with brands and other aspects of its home franchise. During the showcase, it was announced that a new event surrounding the Horizons anime series would be going live in the mobile game in the near future. This event will introduce new Pocket Monsters and a costume for Pikachu.

In addition, the signature move of the Pikachu line, Volt Tackle, will be available throughout the event. It can be obtained by catching the costumed Pikachus that will be spawning in large quantities.

There will even be special surprise appearances by characters from the anime series through the snapshot feature. This collaboration event will go live on Tuesday, March 5, 2024.

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3) Pokemon TCG: Pocket

TCG: Pocket aims to be a more accessible way to get into the world of the card game (Image via TPC)

The showcase also announced a new online trading card game. The project's development is likely why servers for the official mobile port of the standard online card game were taken down. However, this title is not just the old card game with a fresh coat of paint.

Similar to what Konami did for Yu-Gi-Oh with Yu-Gi-Oh: Duel Links, TCG: Pocket aims to simplify the card game a bit to allow for faster matches. Players will also have two free card packs per day to open. Some rare cards even have expanded art with special cutscenes to go with them.

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4) Unite roadmap

We now have information regarding the next three characters being added to Unite (Image via TPC)

The showcase revealed the character roadmap for Pokemon Unite, a popular MOBA spin-off for mobile devices and the Nintendo Switch. Miraidon can be obtained right now by completing a limited-time event, which is standard with a lot of the game's newer additions.

Falinks was recently seen in test builds of the title, and many players seem to love the character and its unique gameplay, thanks to the many soldiers that follow the main leader.

Cerluedge is a very interesting choice, but not a surprising one, since it was leaked quite some time ago. Nevertheless, it is great to see these two other characters on their way to the game.

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5) Pokemon Legends: Z-A

Pokemon Legends: Z-A is easily the best announcement from the showcase (Image via TPC)

Easily the best announcement from the showcase, Pokemon Legends: Z-A is the last thing anyone expected.

Many players assumed they would either get a Legends game for Johto or Generation Five remakes. Nobody had a Legends game for the Kalos region on their bingo cards.

Given the trailer showcasing advancements in technology and the title being read "Z to A," it is safe to assume that the game could start by showing the present before introducing some sort of mechanic that allows players to go back to the past, with their actions changing the modern day they live in, Ocarina of Time-style.