With Pokémon Day approaching, what better way to get into the spirit of things than by attending the 2026 Pokémon Europe International Championships and playing the Pokémon Pokopia demo? So, without further ado, it’s time to talk about it!
Instead of taking you right to the beginning of the game and having players design their own Ditto character, the demo takes place in an established setting. Some structures have already been built, double jumping lets you transform into a Dragonite and fly, and Pokémon such as Arcanine can be encountered.
But in order to meet other Pokémon, first you need to use your Water Gun ability with ZR to restore life to dead plants and trees to prompt Bulbasaur to appear, and then use Bulbasaur’s Leafage ability to get Scyther to appear and teach you Cut. Once Cut has been learned, players are free to destroy the obstruction that limited their exploration and then spend the rest of the 20-minute demo doing as they please.
With plenty of Pokémon to encounter and each encounter prompting our protagonist Ditto to take out their Pokédex and register each new friend, there’s no shortage of who you can meet next and present them with gifts to improve your affinity with them. Because of this, the 90-minute wait in the queue was worth it as it gave us the chance to see what everyone else was doing, what Pokémon they were meeting, and what number in the Pokédex they were.
Of course, Pokémon Pokopia has more than just one Pokédex, as it also has a Habitat Pokédex, which covers all the habitats you will need to build in order to meet other Pokémon. It’s a nice little touch, and one we’re looking forward to filling up just as soon as we get our hands on the full game. But what about the game itself? As a cosy life-sim game, one could assume it’s like an Animal Crossing title, but they would be wrong, as it’s more akin to Viva Piñata (Viva Ponyta) than anything else.
Yes, you take control of a Ditto and are tasked with restoring life and wonder to a desecrated Kanto, but Pokémon Pokopia is a game all about the journey and the friends you make along the way. Meowth is no longer the only Pokémon capable of speech, as every Pokémon you meet has something to say, and the more you interact with them, the better the responses you will get out of them.
In terms of pacing, the game utilises 60fps to ensure a fast-paced frame rate, but the gameplay itself is slow and simple. This is a game where you can do as much or as little as you want. If you desire to do the bare minimum and switch your brain off for a couple of hours, you can. Your progress may be limited, but Pokémon Pokopia is not designed to be a game that tests your patience; it’s designed to allow you to relax and lose yourself in something non-consequential. But if you do want to think and obsess over every detail and make a Kanto that is truly impressive, you can do that too.
Alas, this is where we come to acknowledge a sad truth. Pokémon Pokopia is easily one of the best and most enjoyable Pokémon games ever created, but with the decision to make it a Nintendo Switch 2 exclusive and a Game-Key Card title, Pokémon Pokopia is easily a game that can fall by the wayside and go unnoticed. I do feel the game has more than enough content to justify its $69.99 price tag, but as a game that is only a 10GB download, Game-Key Card feels like a step too far, especially when you have the likes of Tomodachi Life: Living the Dream releasing on both the Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch 2 on April 16, 2026 with a physical release.
Instead, much like how Pokémon Legends: Z-A has only sold 3.89 million units on the Nintendo Switch 2 versus 8.41 million units on Nintendo Switch, we get the feeling initial sales for Pokémon Pokopia will be slow for the first couple of years, before new Nintendo Switch 2 owners pick it up and the game starts getting the appreciation it deserves. Until then, we’re just going to love it regardless, actively exhibit that love, and welcome March 5, 2026 with open arms. Pokémon Pokopia, we choose you!
@miketendo64gaming Playing the #PokemonPokopia #demo at #2026 #Pokemon EUIC!
