Pokémon’s 30th anniversary is already underway with exciting new Pokémon projects heading in your direction. One of these is Pokémon Champions, a new free-to-play game that allows fans to recruit their favorite Pokémon and compete with other Pokémon Trainers locally and globally.
Unlike other Pokémon games, Champions places a huge emphasis on refining your battle strategy and having fun training and battling Pokémon. There’s also no story campaign to get through in order to collect Pokémon, making the process a lot easier. Here’s all you need to know about Pokémon Champions.
When is the Pokémon Champions release date?
Pokémon Champions will be released on April 8, 2026. The Pokémon Company released the trailer for the game on Pokémon Day last month, giving April 2026 as the release window. The company announced the hard release date in the overview trailer for the game, scheduled just days after Easter.
What platforms will Pokémon Champions be available on?
Pokémon Champions will be available on Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch 2. The game’s availability on both Switch models will give Pokémon fans who have not gotten the Switch 2 yet — either due to financial reasons or something else — a chance to acquaint themselves with the new online Pokémon game. It will also be available on mobile later this year.
How is the gameplay in Pokémon Champions?
The gameplay in Pokémon Champions is about the same as in regular Pokémon games battle-wise, where you have to fight to drop the HP of your opponent’s Pokémon down to zero using familiar moves, Types, abilities, and, for some Pokémon, Mega Evolution.
Before a battle, you can view the Pokémon your opponent will use and their Types to consider picking the Pokémon whose moves you feel will be the most effective against them. Then, every time you win a Pokémon battle, you earn victory points (VP), which can be used to adjust your Pokémon’s stats, nature, moveset, and even buy outfits for your trainer as well as held items and Mega Stones.
Pokémon can be recruited by transferring Pokémon you collected from various games, such as Pokémon Legends: Z-A and Pokémon GO, from the Pokémon Home app on your phone or Switch console to Pokémon Champions. You can also get Pokémon through Recruit, where you can pick a random Pokémon that pops up in a ranch once a day. However, the Pokémon you get can only be used for a week unless you use your VP to keep them, provided you recruit the same Pokémon more than once.
There are three types of online battles to choose from. Ranked Battles pit you against a player at the same level as you, which you’ll have to beat to climb ranks. Meanwhile, Casual Battles are more relaxed because wins and losses aren’t recorded. Lastly, Private Battles allow you to create a room for yourself and anyone you give the room ID to — most likely your close friends and family. If you want to get really competitive, you can battle in online competitions with pre-set rules that change every season, the frequency of which is unknown at this time.
Now that you’re up to date on what to expect from Pokémon Champions, check out everything you need to know about The Adventures of Elliot: The Millinneum Tales.
