Media Essays: Pokémon Winds and Waves (First Impressions)

Man, what an anniversary celebration that was. GameFreak really pulled all the stops for this one with that presents last week that gave montages of all the various gens over the years and gave us a lot of new info regarding the games, both current and upcoming. But of course, the biggest one of the bunch was the reveal for the upcoming tenth generation of the franchise with the next mainline games being publicly announced. Ladies and gentlemen, Pokémon fans of all ages, it is time we talked about the newest games that will kickstart a whole new generation. Those games...are Pokémon Winds and Waves.

Despite being publicly announced on Pokémon day itself, I and many other fans actually knew beforehand that the new games were going to be called "Winds and Waves" respectively. Believe it or not, somehow there was YET ANOTHER LEAK(!) that ended up exposing what the new games were going to be. Fans got to see the titles and a beta version of what the new games would look like and possibly some features that we may get in the finished version. I myself purposefully kept away from most of the leaks because I respect the hard work that GameFreak is putting into these games and wanted at least some surprises to look forward to.

Now this post may be a little short because we don't have a whole lot to go on. These games did only just get announced after all. Also they don't release until next year, so we won't get anymore news about them for quite some time. As is, my enthusiasm for these new games is enough for me to at least share my first impressions of Pokémon Winds and Waves, so let's get into it...

A Truly Spectacular Upgrade Visually

I think we can unanimously agree that compared to previous Pokémon games, Winds and Waves are one hell of an upgrade. This may be from a trailer and the visuals may change a little in the finished version, but from what I can see here, this is a GREAT first impression. This game. Looks. GORGEOUS! Seriously, it's unreal how beautiful these games look, especially when it comes to the rendering of the water! I haven't seen water animation this pretty looking in a Pokémon game since the Diamond and Pearl remakes! It's rendered a lot more realistically this time around and genuinely looks convincing. The realistic looking lighting also helps too. Looking at the visuals, I feel we've gone back to the graphic style of Scarlet and Violet rather than keeping the style of Legends Z-A as we're back to realistic looking textures and a slightly muted colour palette. I would've kept the colour palette of Legends Z-A myself, but then the characters and Pokémon might've looked a little out of place, so I guess this colour palette blends in better with the hyper realistic looking environments.

Speaking of the Pokémon themselves, big shocker, they still look fantastic in these games. One shot from the trailer was especially noticeable for this change you can see in the screenshot above. You see, this Pikachu has been given a new battle stance animation that he never had in the previous games.

For context, this was Pikachu's battle stance in previous games, but in Winds and Waves it's different now. This could mean that many of the Pokémon in the games might have new updated models with new animations they didn't have before. We did see some of that with mons like Charizard getting a new model in Scarlet and Violet and actual turning animations being added to the games from Legends Arceus onwards. I wonder what other Pokémon will get new models in these games? I doubt Pikachu's the exception.

Oh and speaking of battles, to my dismay we're apparently going back to turn-based combat for these games. Just...why? Legends Z-A is the most logical step forward for battle mechanics in future Pokémon games. Going back to turn-based combat is back-tracking and just undermines all the improvements Legends Z-A made to the battle mechanics and how several attacks are way more useful outside of turn-based combat. Ah well, I'm sure we'll still get some challenges here and there with these games in spite of it.

We don't know the name of the new region yet, but from what I'm seeing so far? I can't wait to see more of it. It looks like a truly beautiful region that will have much to offer. The whole place has a very tropical vibe and is apparently based on the Southeast Asian Islands, so that might explain all the visual eye-candy on display. The fact we're continuing the trend of open-world Pokémon games that was set-up by Legends Arceus and fully brought to life with Scarlet and Violet makes this even better. Hey, all you miserable people out there who complained about being confined to a single city in Legends Z-A? No longer the case here so you can quit whining. =P We've got a full open world region to explore just like in Scarlet and Violet and it looks stunning! I also noticed that it seems Pokémon Centres and PokéMarts are following Scarlet and Violet's example by being in a single building you can visit on your travels again. One handy feature about this region is that Pokémon Centres have a balloon on top so you can find them easily even at a distance. That's helpful. Should prevent us from getting lost when looking for a Pokémon Centre. Oh and you think this game will have a lot to explore...?

These games let you explore underwater as well! We haven't had a Pokémon game that lets us explore underwater since the Ruby and Sapphire remakes! I assume in this case, you won't need a HM for Dive in order to pull this off. I imagine you'll probably get scuba gear and be able to swim underwater or something. On that subject, leaked information so far released indicates the hoverboards the player characters are carrying with them will be your main method of travel in this game. I imagine they'll let you move faster and hover above the water. I am curious to see how this'll work and all in the finished products. In any case, this may be one of the biggest regions we'll get to explore in a Pokémon game yet as we're in a fully open world area with exploration options above and below water. I can't wait to see more of it...

Player Character Designs and the New Starter Trio

Now let's move on to the new characters and Pokémon we have so far. Not much to cover other than what the new player characters look like and the new starter trio.

As you can see, we're taking another page from Scarlet and Violet's books by having version exclusive outfits for the characters. In Winds, they wear a Stetson style hat, wear white coloured backpacks and carry a white hoverboard while in Waves, they wear caps, wear blue coloured backpacks and carry a blue hoverboard. I'm not entirely sure why that's the case, but I don't mind it. I think the boy looks better with the Winds variant while the girl looks better with the Waves variant. Oh and design wise, these two are a HUGE upgrade from Florian and Julian in Scarlet & Violet. Seriously, these designs are anything BUT bland this time around with more striking looking hair styles, visually interesting outfits and truly looking like they're ready for adventure. I dunno what their official names are, but chances are they'll be wind and wave related. How funny would it be if the girl was called "Moana" since that means "ocean"? XD

Speaking of the girl, I've seen a few people joking about how she bares a passing resemblance to Liko from Pokémon Horizons and now I can't unsee it. I wouldn't say she looks that much like Liko myself, but I can see where they're coming from. Similar hair colour, similar hair shape, similar looking face and even their smiles are pretty similar to one another. My personal head canon will be that they're distant cousins and the girl grew up in this region while Liko grew up in Paldea. When I play the games for the first time, I'll even name her Liko because of it, because why not? XD

And now the one you've all been waiting for: the new starter trio. For this region, we get to choose between these three Pokémon. From left to right we have the Grass-type Browt, the Fire-type Pombon and the water type Gecqua. All three of them look adorable and promising to me and I can't wait to play as any of them. For my first playthrough, I might go with Pombon as I'm leaning towards him just slightly above the others. The only downside to these starters for me is that they kinda feel a bit...recycled shall we say? I mean Browt looks like a regional variant of Rowlet from the Sun and Moon games and Gecqua is another water-type lizard starter in the same vein as Sobble from Sword and Shield. Only Pombon has any uniqueness to it as we haven't had a Fire-type starter Pokémon based on a dog before and even then, a fluffy looking Fire-type dog Pokémon just reminds me of Growlithe. I'm not saying I don't like these Pokémon, I just said I can't wait to use any of these starters. It's just in concept, they're not the most imaginative mons ever and kinda feel recycled. Then again a lot of Gen 5 Pokémon felt recycled from Gen 1 and they turned out great, so these starters should be no different. I am curious about their evolved forms. Will they become dual types when they reach their final stages? If so, I'm curious what types we'll get. Gecqua becoming Dragon/Water would be pretty hype.

As is, I can't wait to begin my new adventure with these starters. I bet they'll be awesome...

Oh and I'd be amiss if I didn't bring up the fact we got two new cosplay Pikachu here, Mr. Windychu and Ms. Wavychu respectively. No really, that's what they're called. XD I have no idea on how significant these two will be, if they'll even be significant at all. They'll likely just be glorified gifts you can get in-game that otherwise have no real value or benefit to owning them. I don't think I'll get these myself when I play the games, but I can't deny Ms. Wavychu looks adorable in that dress. ^^ I also love how the two have a darker yellow colour to them to give the impression that they're tanned. That's pretty funny. XD

Returning Pokémon

So far I can confirm these are the following Pokémon that are going to be available in these games:

Pikachu line (no duh)

Sizzlipede line

Slugma line

Ledyba line

Wailmer line

Oddish line

Krabby line

Tangela line

Corsola

Taillow line

Wingull line

Duskull line

Tropius

Carnivine

Finneon line

Tympole line

Tynamo line

Frillish line

Mareanie line

Sandyghast line

Nymble line

The trailer also shows us a cloud that resembles a Gyarados, so I imagine the Magikarp line will also return.

I imagine many more old mons will return alongside this lot and given the presence of Corsola, we might be able to get the Galarian variant of Corsola as well. I also imagine Alolan Raichu will be available too, because why not? It's got a surfer theme to it and these games are all about winds and waves, so Alolan Raichu has to show up at some point.

My Predictions And Wants For The Games

Now it's time for me to make some (not so) educated guesses for what we might get with these games.

I imagine like Sword and Shield and Scarlet and Violet, there might be some kind of camping or picnic feature in which you and your Pokémon can play together and make a meal. In Sword and Shield, we got curry, in Scarlet and Violet we got sandwiches, so what meal would I guess we can make in these games (if there's such a feature)? Hell if I know! Your guess will be as good as mine. As is, it really won't surprise me at all if we get another feature like what we got in the last two gens.

Now for the inevitable Legendary Pokémon. This is a no-brainer, one will obviously be wind themed and one will obviously be wave themed. For the types, I'd guess maybe Flying/Dragon and Water/Dragon? I dunno why, I just get the feeling they'll be half dragon-type. If I'm wrong, do keep in mind that this is only a guess. I don't know what types the Legendries will be. I also imagine like in the previous games, we'll get some big cinematic style showdown with the Legendary that has big flashy cutscenes and such to amp up the excitement like the battle with Eternatus, the battle with Koraidon/Miraidon and the final battle with Angle Floette.

And this is definitely a VERY educated guess, but I strongly suspect these games will also get DLC that lets us explore new parts of the region and catch more Pokémon. Why do I think that? If you feel the need to ask this question, you haven't been paying attention to the recent Pokémon game releases. From Sword and Shield onwards, they've been adding DLC to the games a lot with Scarlet and Violet and Legends Z-A getting them too. These games will continue the trend, no doubt about it and I suspect the DLCs will follow the same pattern the past DLCs have done: brand new locations to explore, new Pokémon to catch (or new forms to unlock) and more returning Pokémon to catch as well.

Also, this is another educated guess, but I imagine the current Pokémon anime will debut at least one new Pokémon from Winds and Waves before the games release. They did it with Terapagos' base form before the Scarlet and Violet DLC came out and they debuted Mega Dragonite before Legends Z-A released last year, so I imagine that'll happen again. As for how it'll happen? I dunno, maybe Liko, Roy and Dot get the new starters or we get an episode showing off a different new mon we'll get in the games? It'd be so fun if the latter happens, but I doubt it will. We may even get an episode or arc where Liko and friends visit the new region that Winds and Waves is set in. Once again, this is only a guess so for all I know, I could be completely wrong here, but I am dead sure something like this will happen.

As for the story? (shrugs) Can't make any guesses on this one, not even an educated one. Except for one aspect at least. Judging by how the stories of Pokémon games have been written lately, I will not be surprised in the slightest if the new evil team for these games will be "Not Evil, Just Misunderstood" and there won't be any real villain for these games. I'll genuinely be surprised if we have an actual evil villain again for the first time since Legends Arceus.

Now for things I want for Winds and Waves? In terms of returning Pokémon, I'd love to see the return of the Aron line, Charcadet line, Duraludon line, Magmar line, Electabuzz line, Scyther line, Onix line, Deino line, Tinkatink line, Nacli line, Murkrow line, Bagon line, Trapinch line, Rhyhorn line, Snorunt line, Sneasel line and Noibat line. If all those Pokémon show up in the games, that'll be happy. If only some of them return, that's equally as fine.

Another thing I want is to continue what Legends Z-A did by making TMs infinitely useable again. They shouldn't have stopped doing this and Legends Z-A bringing it back has me hoping these games will bring it back too. I don't want them to bring back them TM Materials feature that Scarlet and Violet gave us. That was annoying and shouldn't have been a thing, so I hope these games don't bring it back. Just let us buy TMs and let them be infinite use, no need to screw around with a good thing here!

For things I want for the story, I hope we get a continuation of what Scarlet and Violet introduced and we have multiple storylines to playthrough instead of just one single narrative as that made Scarlet and Violet the most fun and varied experience playing a Pokémon game yet. I'd love it if these games do the same again.

And that's more or less it. I don't have a lot of wants but I do have a lot of guesses for these games. Now we'll have to see if any of these guesses are right and if my wishes are granted when they come out...

Conclusion

And that's it for my first impressions of Pokémon Winds and Waves. They already show much potential and the trailer was a wonderful first impression. It's a pity we've got to wait a year before these games come out, but at the same time it's a good thing since it means GameFreak don't want to rush these games. I'm dead sure the backlash to Scarlet and Violet is why Pokémon games aren't releasing yearly anymore and are being given more time to work on. It paid off for Legends Z-A, so I imagine it'll pay off again for these games. All I know is 2027 can't come soon enough...

And that's it for this post. I hope you enjoyed it and I invite you all to share your comments down below. What do you think to Winds and Waves? Will you be playing the games when they release? Do tell me.

Tune back in tomorrow for my Top 10 Favourite Mega Evolutions from Legends Z-A. See you then media fans!

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