While I was at the Nintendo office last month previewing Mario Tennis Fever, Virtual Boy – Nintendo Classics, Resident Evil Requiem and Pragmata, there was one other upcoming game that we were able to sit down with. If you’ve read the article title, you already know it was Pokémon Pokopia. 

You begin as a lone Ditto awakens with distant memories of its trainer, finding the world is absent of humans and a lot less Pokémon. Ditto decides to take on its missing trainer’s human form, which you get to customise. You’re not alone for long, though. Early on, you come across Professor Tangrowth, an elder Tangrowth who has been seemingly all alone until this point. So all we know so far is that all the humans and Pokémon have gone, bar this Tangrowth. For the start of the game, at least, they help to introduce you to the basics, beginning with bringing back some Pokémon and learning some moves to help rebuild the world. 

Across the world, you’ll find hints to what habitat will lure a Pokémon to make a home there. It could be as simple as some tall grass and a tree, or a bench and punching bag. It can also be dependent on the surface, say if it’s on dirt or rock. To help do this, you’ll need to use Ditto’s copy ability to change the land around you. From Bulbasaur, you learn how to pull out grass from the ground, helping to rebuild habitats. From Squirtle, you learn how to water the dried-up environment, restoring trees and plants. It takes  a little longer, but not too long, to get Hitmonchan to learn to break wall blocks. Once I could smash through leaking blocks, I could free a flowing water source, one more step to revitalising the area. It’s also just satisfying to punch through a bunch of sand blocks!

Copy abilities can’t just be endlessly used; you have one energy meter that they all draw from. This can be easily recharged by eating berries that are knocked off the trees. So when you come across a tree with berries, you should definitely collect them; they seem to regrow fairly quickly too. 

After I got some nests/habitats built up for my new Pokémon pals, it helps to make sure they’re nice and cosy. You can ask them what would make them even happier at home; it might be having a crafted item added to their home. I didn’t get a chance to explore this much, but it seems that just getting a Pokémon to set up shop in your Pokopia isn’t the end.  

While it’s good to be bringing Pokémon back to the area, there is still so much more to do. To rebuild the world, you’ll need resources, and you’ll need help. Your moves help you to gather wood and rock, whether it’s mining it from larger resources or finding bits of wood and rock about the place. There’s also a handy button to hold down so Ditto can suck up all the nearby collectible resources. I didn’t realise this until after lots of running around picking up all the things I busted up. 

It’s not all Pokémon befriending and resource gathering, though; there’s a crafting system to help make your Pokopia nicer,  keep your pals happy, and help to make a wider variety of habitats. I barely scratched the surface of what there is, but it was only the beginning!

There’s also a reward system, earning points for when you accomplish tasks for your Pokopia. Some were easily earned as I went around doing my thing. Other tasks seem to help encourage and maybe guide you to what will help you with your efforts. The points go towards unlocking more items, which help you overall. 

Some people started their Pokopia experience in the multiplayer, where they had extra Pokémon moves, some different scenery, and seemingly no tutorial/story happening— more free reign. When I jumped in, players had already had their fun, and it felt like I was intruding on someone else’s game, so I explored. I don’t want to go too much into what lies beyond the initial area, but there was plenty to see, and the crafted items looked much more involved. 

A construction job requires more resources and more Pokémon, including specific Pokémon. I can see how many hands would make light work as you rebuild together. Ultimately, there’s a lot of detail not currently known about the ins and outs of how the multiplayer stuff works just yet. I have no doubt people will enjoy making their own little communities together though. 

As soon as the game was announced, it was unmistakably Dragon Quest Builders, so I am interested to see how the style works within a Pokémon world. I am not going to look down on the Pokémon franchise trying different things, different spins on the world. Pokémon Pokopia will be restoring a world from ruin in just a few weeks. I can’t wait to get stuck into this Pokémon/Dragon Quest Builder world!

Pokémon Pokopia is out on March 5th, 2026 and is exclusive to the Nintendo Switch 2. We’ve begun rounding up the best local prices for the game already in our bargain roundup.

This title is planned and co-developed by The Pokémon Company, GAME FREAK inc., and KOEI TECMO GAMES