Today the Pokemon Home website went live, and with it comes all the information concerning the service. Up until now we've only known that it would be a replacement for Pokemon Bank, and that it would allow us to trade Pokemon to the new Switch games. However now it looks like it'll actually be quite a bit more. For the full overview you can check out the official website, but I'll try to sum up the basics here as well.
Supported Games:
Currently Pokemon Home will support the following games:
The National Dex:
Pokemon Home will include the National Pokedex. This means all Pokemon sent to home will be registered in it, and will give you access to all information concerning these Pokemon. You'll be able to check their moves, see mega evolution forms, etc. It's a complete catalogue that can be used both as a resource, and to show off to your friends.
Trading:
Previous Global Trade services have now been moved to Pokemon Home. You can make or join rooms of other players to swap Pokemon, or you can use the old request system and random trade system. Simply search for Pokemon you'd like for yourself, or offer your own up in return for what you're looking for. In the past this was a great way to get version exclusive Pokemon as all you had to do is offer up your version's counterpart, and then the rest was a waiting game. Considering this is a mobile app that more people will have access to at all times, things should be even easier than during the DS and 3DS days. It should also be noted that these trading features are limited to the mobile version of the app, and cannot be done on the Switch itself.
Mystery Gift:
Mystery Gift is also a part of the Pokemon Home App. By using this feature you can access special events and receive different types of free gifts from Nintendo. This is something that's existed in Pokemon since the Game Boy days, but has now been made easier by allowing you to access it any time.
Pokemon Go:
This feature is NOT going to be a part of Home at launch; however it has been confirmed that Pokemon Go will eventually be connected to the service as well. How this will work is currently unknown, but it'll most likely have access to similar features as the rest of the games in the series. It may finally even allow trading without having to physically be next to someone -- but this is only speculation.
And that about covers it. There's also a Pokemon Judging system where you can judge other people's Pokemon, but it's really not the focus here. The point of this service is to keep all of your Pokemon together in one place, and to have instant access to them via your phone from anywhere you go. No more booting up the games to check out your trade status, or to try to find someone to trade with. Now you simply open the app, and you're good to go. Sadly the service will cost $16 a year, but some of the features will be free with limited access. Pokemon Bank will also be free for a month once it launches, so anyone who's put off getting it up until now can trade all of their Pokemon over for free.
Supported Games:
Currently Pokemon Home will support the following games:
- Pokemon Let's go Pikachu
- Pokemon Let's Go Eevee
- Pokemon Sword
- Pokemon Shield
- Pokemon Bank (Service)
The National Dex:
Pokemon Home will include the National Pokedex. This means all Pokemon sent to home will be registered in it, and will give you access to all information concerning these Pokemon. You'll be able to check their moves, see mega evolution forms, etc. It's a complete catalogue that can be used both as a resource, and to show off to your friends.
Trading:
Previous Global Trade services have now been moved to Pokemon Home. You can make or join rooms of other players to swap Pokemon, or you can use the old request system and random trade system. Simply search for Pokemon you'd like for yourself, or offer your own up in return for what you're looking for. In the past this was a great way to get version exclusive Pokemon as all you had to do is offer up your version's counterpart, and then the rest was a waiting game. Considering this is a mobile app that more people will have access to at all times, things should be even easier than during the DS and 3DS days. It should also be noted that these trading features are limited to the mobile version of the app, and cannot be done on the Switch itself.
Mystery Gift:
Mystery Gift is also a part of the Pokemon Home App. By using this feature you can access special events and receive different types of free gifts from Nintendo. This is something that's existed in Pokemon since the Game Boy days, but has now been made easier by allowing you to access it any time.
Pokemon Go:
This feature is NOT going to be a part of Home at launch; however it has been confirmed that Pokemon Go will eventually be connected to the service as well. How this will work is currently unknown, but it'll most likely have access to similar features as the rest of the games in the series. It may finally even allow trading without having to physically be next to someone -- but this is only speculation.
And that about covers it. There's also a Pokemon Judging system where you can judge other people's Pokemon, but it's really not the focus here. The point of this service is to keep all of your Pokemon together in one place, and to have instant access to them via your phone from anywhere you go. No more booting up the games to check out your trade status, or to try to find someone to trade with. Now you simply open the app, and you're good to go. Sadly the service will cost $16 a year, but some of the features will be free with limited access. Pokemon Bank will also be free for a month once it launches, so anyone who's put off getting it up until now can trade all of their Pokemon over for free.