Pokémon Champions Drops April

*Pokémon Champions* is being developed by The Pokémon Works, a joint venture between The Pokémon Company and ILCA, with planning support from mainline series developer Game Freak. This new title is a turn-based strategy game focused entirely on competitive battles, forgoing the exploration and catching elements of the core RPGs. The game will feature familiar mechanics like Pokémon types, Abilities, Mega Evolution, and Terastallization. The game introduces an in-game currency called Victory Points (VP), which are earned through ranked battles. VP can be used to recruit and train Pokémon, allowing for full customization of their stats, moves, and abilities. While there will be ranked, casual, and private battle modes, only ranked matches will award players with VP. *Pokémon Champions* will replace the mainline series games, such as *Pokémon Scarlet and Violet*, for all official Video Game Championship (VGC) events, including the Pokémon World Championships, starting in 2026. The game will support cross-platform play between the Nintendo Switch and mobile devices and will be compatible with Pokémon HOME, allowing players to import their existing Pokémon. The franchise's 30th anniversary in 2026 is a year-long celebration, kicking off with a Super Bowl LX commercial. The festivities include special merchandise, such as new LEGO sets and Uniqlo apparel, as well as in-game events across titles like *Pokémon GO* and *Pokémon Masters EX*. The Pokémon Company has also released over 1,000 unique 30th-anniversary logos, one for each Pokémon. The Pokémon World Championships have been held annually since 2004 for the Trading Card Game and since 2009 for the video games, only taking a break in 2020 and 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The 2026 World Championships will take place in San Francisco from August 28-30, alongside the first-ever Pokémon XP fan event. This marks a return to the city for the championships for the first time since 2016.