Limiting The Pokémon Sword and Shield Pokédex Was A “Difficult Decision”

Earlier this month, it’s been confirmed that, for the first time since the release of the second man entries in the Pokémon series, not all Pokémon would be included in Pokémon Sword and Shield. The decision to limit the games’ Pokédex was made due to the huge number of creatures available so far, and the time it would take to recreate them in the upcoming Nintendo Switch entry in the series.

The Pokémon Company Junichi Masuda recently released a statement to address the situation, stressing out how limiting the Pokémon Sword and Shield Pokédex was a difficult decision to make.

Just like all of you, we are passionate about Pokémon and each and every one of them is very important to us. After so many years of developing the Pokémon video games, this was a very difficult decision for me. I’d like to make one thing clear: even if a specific Pokémon is not available in Pokémon Sword and Pokémon Shield, that does not mean it will not appear in future games.

The world of Pokémon continues to evolve. The Galar region offers new Pokémon to encounter, Trainers to battle, and adventures to embark on. We are pouring our hearts into these games, and we hope you will look forward to joining us on this new journey.

Pokémon Sword and Shield launch on November 15th in all regions.