Pokemon Unite devs explain why there’s no release date yet
Game Freak / Nintendo
In June, the Pokemon Company surprised fans with the announcement of 5v5 team battle MOBA Unite during a special Presents event. The new free-to-start title will be released on mobile devices and the Nintendo Switch.
During the presentation, the game was left without a proper release date. The announcement only stated “now in development.” In a July interview, the team behind the project explained why there is no current release window.
Pokemon Unite devs open up about release date
In an interview with Japanese outlet ‘Dime,’ Unite’s producer Masaaki Hoshino and his team dished out new details on the upcoming project. The creators explained that they view the project as more of a team battle and not a MOBA, while also explaining the current status of its release date.
Industry analyst Daniel Ahmad translated an overview of the discussion, and revealed that the upcoming mobile title doesn’t actually have a release window yet. “Timing of launch is not yet decided,” the tweet’s translation of the conversation read.
General Manager Kenjiro Ito, who was a part of the interview, stated that the reason that they have not yet decided on a release schedule is due to the progress of both localization and development. Although it’s not clear if he was referring to a worldwide release.
Twitter: @ZhugeEXThe devs also talked about other aspects, such as the Switch release being the result of North American players preferring physical controls to touch screens. They even weighed in on Unite’s potential for esports in the future.
While there still is a lot unknown about the game, the Pokemon Company’s June announcement came with an 11-minute long presentation which showed off the MOBA-like title’s gameplay.
Despite the creators’ optimistic look on the 5v5 team battle’s potential, its reveal sparked backlash in the community from players who were let down by the upcoming release, instead wanting a Gen IV remake.
