Pokémon Sword and Shield unsheathed for Switch

Nintendo announced the next installments in its hit Pokémon series during a short Nintendo Direct presentation this morning. The new games are Pokémon Sword and Pokémon Shield, and they’re coming later this year to Switch.

Pokémon is a giant brand, encompassing multiple gaming genres, anime, card games, and (soon) a Hollywood movie. Pokémon has also become a dominant force on mobile thanks to Pokémon Go. But the franchise started as a monster-collecting role-playing game, and Sword and Shield represent the eighth generation in the main series. The release of these games will be a major event for Switch, a system that has already been a success for Nintendo. The console released in March 2017 and has sold over 32 million machines. Let’s Go Pikachu and Let’s Go Eevee gave Switch owners a taste of Pokémon last November, and the casual-friendly remakes have already sold over 10 million copies combined.