What happens when you cross some of the best cozy games like Stardew Valley, Animal Crossing, or even Minecraft with Pokémon? You get Pokémon Pokopia, a game I’ve been (admittedly cautiously) anticipating since it was first announced late in 2025.
Immediately, comparisons were drawn to some of the games I listed above, as well as the likes of Dragon Quest Builders 2, further fuelled by the fact that the games were co-developed by the internal Koei Tecmo team Omega Force. For many Pokémon fans, it felt like a moment we’d all been waiting for.
However, we’ve been through this wringer before with Pokémon – recently, too, with its uphill battles to break into open-world gaming – so it’s been a long wait to learn more about this mysterious life simulation and cozy crafting game.
The wait is over, folks. Well, not fully – the game isn’t out for another few weeks still – but I’ve spent over an hour in Pokopia and can confirm it’s every bit as fun as I’d hoped it would be. At least, the tutorial is…
The most depressing Pokémon game ever
The premise of Pokopia alone has me pretty hooked. We haven’t got confirmation on which region the game takes place in (and a Nintendo representative told me that’s a surprise we’ll have to wait to discover once we play the full game), but wherever it is, humans and Pokémon alike are nowhere to be found, and it’s your job to bring them back.
Your main story characters are Professor Tangrowth – modelled after the classic researcher role previously filled by the likes of Professor Oak – and Ditto, the playable main character who can transform into a human but has limited ability to mimic Pokémon.
The game opens as Professor Tangrowth rummages through salvaged remnants in some mysterious cave. There, Tangrowth is surprised to not only find a Ditto, but a Ditto that can transform into a trainer and use the technology the humans left behind.
The two emerge from the cave, confronting the barren landscape left behind after whatever tragedy occurred and vanished all known life. All known life, that is, barring Tangrowth, Ditto, and an unconscious Squirtle near the mouth of the cave. Awakening said water-type Pokémon reveals Ditto’s true power: maintaining a human-like body while adopting special moves from other Pokémon that allow the player to terraform and reconstruct the post-apocalyptic landscape.
As part of this, you’ll be restoring the natural habitat of Pokémon to encourage their return. Different combinations of terrain, flora, furniture, and even elevation levels will attract different species of Pokémon, bringing with them new abilities. For example, Bulbasaur’s Leafage plants tall grass, Scyther’s Chop helps break down large logs; you get the picture.
You can also place and remove blocks to more directly terraform the world around you – that is, once you’ve unlocked those abilities – and overall, there’s a great variety of ways your environment can be shaped and used to your advantage.
The world is your Cloyster
As you explore the map, you’ll spot sparkles on the ground that give clues to what Pokémon might suit nearby habitats. Some rarer species will take a little longer to spawn in, but most of the Pokémon I found appeared within a couple of minutes of me fixing up their habitat.
Other Pokémon serve more functional roles as you progress through different areas of the map. For example, when repairing or constructing new structures, Timburr can help build. Some projects like these are completed based on real-world timings; I had a 15-minute wait for my house to finish construction in the demo (which, sadly, came to pass once I was already out of the demo save).
You’ll also need to enlist the help of Pokémon with specific abilities to help with different projects, so building up your Pokédex and ensuring a diverse array of Pokémon live around you is a priority.
As well as building structures for yourself and your fellow Pokémon, you’ll also be tasked with recovering various old-world buildings like Pokémon Centers. I didn’t get to see mine fully re-established, but I did get to interact with the Poké Life computers stationed outside, where you can pick up daily quests, shop for new items, and more.
We also had the opportunity to try out multiplayer mode, during which we were tasked with assembling a motley crew of Pokémon to help rebuild a Pokémon Center. For this, we had to do a combination of terraforming to entice the necessary species, but also work as a team to fetch the inhabitants of a nearby island. After discovering many wouldn’t follow us into the water, we built a great dirt bridge, Minecraft-style, and ferried them across. Chaos naturally ensued, and it was wonderful.
This multiplayer experience was staged for the demo, so it’s hard to know what the end product will look like, but it’s certainly more hands-on and interactive than multiplayer mode in games like Animal Crossing: New Horizons.
Don’t look a gift Ponyta in the mouth
At this early stage, I can’t say there’s much I dislike about Pokopia, but the test will be in trying the full game when it releases on March 5 on Nintendo Switch 2. Still, what’s winning me over so far isn’t just in the gameplay; it’s the attention to detail that makes this game really fun.
There’s a pretty vast world to explore, it seems, and with plenty to learn as you do; while I was exploring, I found several research notes from Professor Tangrowth’s original trainer detailing some of the circumstances that led to the disappearance of, well, everyone. This grants what could have been a very simple game a whole lot more intrigue and identity, and I can’t wait to see how the mystery unfolds.
I also loved how much personality was injected into these Pokémon. Different species have different likes and dislikes – take Squirtle, for example, who likes water, cleanliness, healing, cute stuff, group activities, and sweet flavors. I didn’t get to see much about how these factor into gameplay or if they’re just nice padding for the Pokédex, though.
Where it really shines is in dialogue. I’ve found recent Pokémon games to be wordy, to say the least, and more broadly, I think Nintendo has had a little trouble making its slower-paced games enjoyable to read through. No such problem in Pokopia, however, not only are your response options as Ditto pretty tongue-in-cheek in places, but some of the nonsense that comes out of different Pokémon caught me off guard.
At one point, Scyther shared his admiration for Charmander; “I like Charmander, we just vibe y’know”. I damn near did a spit take; it’s just not what I expected, but I’m delighted to see the game has a suitable amount of whimsy and doesn’t take itself too seriously.
With weeks left to wait until the full launch, my money is on Pokopia being one of the most successful Nintendo Switch 2 games yet, and not just because people will buy anything for the chance to see their favorite pocket pals. It’s full of heart, beautifully rendered, and perfect for a cozy night in.
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josephine.watson@futurenet.com (Josephine Watson)
