‘Pokemon Sun’ And ‘Moon’: E3 Reveals More New Alola Pokemon, New Pokemon Battle Format


Pokemon Sun and Moon news is coming hot and heavy nowadays, and today at E3 2016 in Los Angeles, Pokemon fans were given yet another huge news dump about Pokemon Sun and Moon‘s in-game features and playable creatures, in addition to some other features that will definitely be good fodder for speculation among the Pokemon community. The official Pokemon site has posted all of the information.

Firstly, three never-before-seen Pokemon were revealed.

Well, in the first case, that “never-before-seen” claim is not technically accurate. During the initial reveal for Pokemon Sun and Moon way back on February 26, Pokemon fans caught a glimpse of a wire-frame bird that everyone knew was going to be a Pokemon is Sun and Moon. It would obviously be colored in the final design, and there was a lot of Pokemon fan art going around online guessing what it would look like. Today, all that fan art was negated, because the official art for the mysterious wire-frame bird Pokemon was revealed.

The bird Pokemon, which is a normal and flying type, is named “Pikipeck,” and its design is clearly inspired by that of a woodpecker. This is made even more obvious by the long description accompanying the Pokemon, which states that it drills holes in trees and stores food and other small objects inside.

Pikipek has the abilities “Keen Eye” and “Skill Link,” both of which have been seen in previous Pokemon titles, and Pokemon-themed YouTube content creator Sleepy Jirachi says its description suggests it will learn the move “Bullet Seed.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=krkPlQVoliM

The second Pokemon is a pure normal type named “Yungoos.” As its name suggests, Yungoos’ design is based on a mongoose. The Pokemon is brown with yellow streaks of fur on its head, back, and belly, and its most defining feature is an ovular mouth full of sharp and crudely drawn teeth. Many members of the Pokemon community are already voicing their dislike for Yungoos’s design, saying it has “Trump hair” and that it looks like “a bad fan-made Pokemon.”

Although Pokemon fans may not love Yungoos’s design, they are excited about one of the Pokemon’s abilities, which has never before been seen in a Pokemon game. The ability is called “Stakeout,” and its effect ensures that the damage dealt to any Pokemon switching in on Yungoos will be doubled. For example, if Yungoos uses an attack with 40 base power but the opposing Pokemon trainer chooses to switch out into another Pokemon that turn, the switch will be made and Yungoos will use the same attack, but with a doubled base power of 80, on the new Pokemon. The other ability Yungoos can have is “Strong Jaw,” which has been seen in previous Pokemon titles, suggesting it will gain a variety of fang-based moves.

The third new Pokemon is “Grubbin,” a pure bug type Pokemon with the ability “Swarm,” which has been seen in previous Pokemon games.

It is widely speculated that Pikipek, Yungoos, and Grubbin will all be Pokemon catchable at very early stages of the game.

The Pokemon Sun and Moon trailer and Pokemon site update also reveal more of the details of Magearna, one of Alola’s mythical Pokemon. The new Magearna info includes the details of its never-before-seen ability, “Soul Heart,” which raises the Pokemon’s special attack each time any Pokemon on the field (ally or enemy) is knocked out.

Possibly the most exciting thing revealed in the new Pokemon Sun and Moon trailer, though, was the addition of a brand new battle format: Battle Royals. A Battle Royal is similar to a melee, where four trainers compete with their Pokemon teams and see who can come out on top. The trainers take turns in a circle, with the battle ending when all of one trainer’s Pokemon are knocked out. Players gain one point for each opposing Pokemon their team knocked out during the battle, as well as one for each Pokemon on their own team still standing.

In addition to all the information from the new Pokemon Sun and Moon trailer, Pokemon fans got a ton of information that came out of Pokemon’s E3 presentation, held yesterday. The information includes:

  • The bug type Pokemon Ledyba will be available on route 1 in Pokemon Sun and Moon, and its Alola Pokedex number is 20.
  • The water type starter Pokemon, Popplio, will learn the fairy-type move “Disarming Voice.” Some fans speculate this could mean Popplio’s final form could be water and fairy type, a typing that fans have been wanting to see for a while now.
  • Junichi Masuda will not direct Pokemon Sun and Moon. Instead, Masuda will step down to producer while Shigeru Ohmori. This is the first Pokemon main series game Masuda will not be directing.
  • The new bottom screen for Pokemon battles (the screen where the “fight,” “use item,” “swith Pokemon,” and “run” options are displayed”) for Pokemon Sun and Moon was revealed.

  • It was confirmed that custom clothing will return in Pokemon Sun and Moon.
  • It was confirmed that Pokemon’s trainers will remain on the battle screen during Pokemon battles.
  • It was said that if a trainer pulls up a move’s details during a battle, he or she can check if the move will have an enhanced or decreased effectiveness against whatever Pokemon is being fought.
  • During a battle, the trainer can check how much the current Pokemon’s stats have been raised or lowered, if they have been affected during the battle.
  • There will be a festival in Pokemon Sun and Moon‘s starting town, which is where the player will battle the game’s main rival, Hau. Hau will have the electric type Pokemon Pichu (it was not specified if he will have any other Pokemon in his party).

All this news has been dropped on the community while it is still digesting the Corocoro leak news dump from just a few days ago, and plenty more is sure to come, so stay tuned. It’s a good time to be a Pokemon fan!

[Photo by Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images]

Share this article: ‘Pokemon Sun’ And ‘Moon’: E3 Reveals More New Alola Pokemon, New Pokemon Battle Format
More from Inquisitr