Pokemon leaker claims Gen 9 is coming sooner than expected
Game Freak / The Pokemon CompanyIs Pokemon Gen 9’s release just around the corner? According to one leaker, the next generation of Game Freak’s RPG will launch sooner than fans expected.
When Pokemon Legends: Arceus was announced for 2022, it appeared that Pokemon’s ninth generation would be missing its usual three-year release cycle for the first time in decades. The Gen IV origin story looked to delay the franchise’s next mainline game.
However, one leaker claims that this isn’t the case after all. According to the account, Game Freak is not only far along into development with Gen 9, but it could release shortly after the Sinnoh open-world title.
Game Freak / The Pokemon CompanyLeaker claims to reveal Pokemon Gen 9 release date
With Sword & Shield making its debut in 2019, many fans expected that Gen 9 would be hitting stores in the Fall of 2022. After years of predictable release cycles, Game Freak announced in February that they would be taking on a new project instead.
In another first for the company, the developer also revealed that they wouldn’t be working on the wildly anticipated Sinnoh remakes, instead giving the Diamond & Pearl reimagining to third-party studio ILCA.
Despite the major shakeup, a rumor claims that the Japanese developer is actually deep into development for Gen 9. On October 15, Pokemon leaks account ‘CentroLeaks’ tweeted, “Not DLC. Gen 9 is next in 2022.”
The account followed up the claims and went deeper into the ninth generation’s supposed development status.
“Gen 9 is well in development and targeting a 2022 release as of a couple months ago, but don’t know if plans have changed,” they wrote.
The rumor should be taken with a major grain of salt as there is absolutely no way to verify it. Despite its questionable nature, the “leak” was met with mixed reactions from fans, with many skeptical that Game Freak could put out a “quality” game so close to Legends Arceus.
While it seems unlikely for Gen 9 to release in 2022, it should be pointed out that the Nintendo developer has a history of breaking up into two teams to work on both a remaster and a generation RPG alongside each other.