Summary
- Pokemon Champions will be a digital-only title on Nintendo Switch.
- It also seems to require a Nintendo Switch Online subscription, hinting that it may not be free-to-play.
- More clarification and other details on Pokemon Champions will come at a later date.
It’s been confirmed that the upcoming Pokemon Champions will be a digital-only title. Pokemon Champions was one of the surprise announcements during the latest Pokemon Presents event. Airing as part of the Pokemon Day celebrations for 2025, the latest Pokemon Presents revealed the Pokemon Legends: Z-A starters, new content coming to ongoing Pokemon live-service games, and of course, the existence of Pokemon Champions.
Pokemon Champions keeps the focus on Pokemon battles, serving as a successor of sorts to the classic Pokemon Stadium games. One of Pokemon Champions‘ big draws is the ability to play it online, giving franchise fans the chance to jump into Pokemon battles whenever they want. The game will also see some of the franchise’s battle gimmicks go head-to-head, with Mega Evolution and terastalization shown in the reveal trailer. There is some hype for Pokemon Champions, but there are some drawbacks to the game that have left some fans disappointed.
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Everything We Know About Pokemon Champions So Far
Pokemon Champions presents itself as a new medium for competitive Pokemon battling, but it’s more than just bringing the series’ gameplay on the go.
For example, it’s been confirmed that Pokemon Champions will be a digital-only title. It’s also believed that Pokemon Champions will be a paid experience and not free-to-play as some may have assumed, at least on the Nintendo Switch. This is because, as pointed out by Centro Leaks, Pokemon Champions requires a Nintendo Switch Online subscription for its online multiplayer modes. Nintendo Switch Online isn’t typically a requirement for free-to-play titles. Of course, it’s possible Pokemon Champions will be both free-to-play and require a Nintendo Switch Online subscription for whatever reason, but that has yet to be clarified. Note that this information only applies to the Nintendo Switch version of the game, and it’s possible the mobile version will have a completely different set-up.
Pokemon Champions Will Be Digital-Only
This isn’t the first disappointing revelation about Pokemon Champions since the game was announced. Shortly after the reveal, it was confirmed that Pokemon Champions will not have all 1,000+ Pokemon available for players to use. It’s unclear what Pokemon games will be left out, but more information on that front should come to light as we get closer to the game’s release date.
A specific release date for Pokemon Champions has not been announced at the time of this writing, but the game is expected to launch by the end of the year. When it does launch, it will allow players to transfer their Pokemon from other games through Pokemon Home for battling purposes in Pokemon Champions. As far as game modes go, we know that Pokemon Champions will have at least three modes, but it’s possible more will be announced.
