Well, it's real friends, Pokemon Winds and Waves is officially the next Pokemon game heading to Nintendo. Although there had been rumours and speculation that Pokemon Gen 10 was in the works since last year, the new game was only just revealed during the February 27 Pokemon Presents showcase, and I will say, it was a very exciting bit of news to celebrate the series' 30th anniversary with.
While details are still pretty light right now, the showcase did give us some insights and thanks to a bunch of online leaks, there is already a ton of information out in the wild to start piecing together. So, as expert Pokedex fillers and members of the Professor Oak fan club, we've done a ton of research to give you a complete guide on what looks to be a future addition to our list of the best Pokemon games of all time.
Read on for an overview of Pokemon Winds and Waves, breaking down all details on a possible release date, the latest news, online rumours, and so much more.
Pokemon Winds and Waves release date speculation
Good news, trainers, we know the release window for Pokemon Winds and Waves is set for 2027.
While we don't have a firm release date yet, we suspect that it will arrive in the latter half of next year, given the release pattern of Pokemon Legends: Z-A. Pokemon Legends: Z-A was announced during a Pokemon Presents showcase in 2024 and then released in October 2025. While Winds and Waves is a main title instead of a Legends spin-off, we assume that the timeline will be similar.
Is Pokemon Winds and Waves a Switch 2 exclusive?
Pokemon Winds and Waves will be a Nintendo Switch 2 exclusive. This choice does make sense and again follows past patterns in the series. I can still remember Pokemon Sun and Moon being a 3DS game while I had my regular old DS still in hand. When a new Ninty console drops, a new Pokemon exclusive tends to come with it.
If you want to know more about other upcoming Switch 2 games, we have a handy guide for you. And if you are still on the OG Switch, there are still a handful of upcoming Switch games for you to check out as well.
Pokemon Winds and Waves trailer
Pokemon Winds and Waves gameplay
While a lot of gameplay details for Pokemon Winds and Waves are still under wraps it looks like the classic Pokemon battling system is back in place. As with previous games, you'll start with a starter Pokemon that is either a grass, fire or water type and will have to go out into the world in order to battle and catch other Pokemon in order to build your team up.
From what we've seen so far, it's unclear if Pokemon Winds and Waves will have real-time battles like Pokemon Legends: Z-A introduced, or if we'll be going back to turn-based affairs. We've also learnt that the game will be open world. Given the Switch 2's hardware, an open world experience is very doable, and is something that I personally loved about Pokemon Scarlet and Violet. So, yeah, I'm very pleased about this news.
What are the Pokemon Winds and Waves starters?
Thanks to the recent Pokemon Presents trailer, we did get to see the new starters for Pokemon Winds and Waves and they are extremely cute.
The grass type starter is a bird called Browt, the fire type starter is a cute like puppy called Pombon, and finally, the water starter looks to be a snazzy reptile called Gecqua. We didn't get to see much of their abilities or evolutions during the teaser, so stay tuned as we keep an eye out for more details on our new partners.
In the meantime, you can check out our Pokemon Winds and Waves starters guide for a closer look at the adorable trio. We also have a guide on Pokemon Winds and Waves Pokedex, which lists all of the confirmed Pokemon coming to the game as well. Just in case you wanted to start planning your team now.
Pokemon Winds and Waves leaks
There are a ton of Pokemon Winds and Waves leaks out in the wild ever since 2024. In October 2024, well-known Pokemon leaker Riddler Khu gave us hints about the names of the upcoming games. And since then, we've had a number of other leaks that reportedly also give insights into Pokemon Winds and Waves's region, game mechanics, and more.
A big leak that we are particularly interested in was reported by Vice back in 2025, which shared rumours that the game will centre around "infinity". Account CentroLeaks stated that this may refer to a new feature where the game procedurally generates the region's map. If this is true, it'll be a pretty mind-blowing experience to say the least.
Another rumour is that the Pokemon Winds and Waves region is located in Southeast Asia. The game is supposedly said to have a jungle section as well, and we'll be playing as a kid who lives in a hotel (which is also said to act as an MMO-like hub that will show us other players). From the recent trailer, it does look like the jungle leak was correct, though; however, it seems like we'll be getting a more tropical island vibe as well.
Leaks have also reported weather effects in battle, maybe coming, and a potential new breeding/evolution mechanic. However, it's important to keep in mind that leaks aren't confirmed. So before you get excited, it's always best to wait until we get proper confirmation from either Nintendo or Game Freak.
Pokemon Winds and Waves region speculation
While the recent trailer shown during the February Pokemon Presents showcase did give us a look at the games, it didn't explicitly mention where the games are set. However, taking previous leaks into account and also piecing together all the different locations we saw, we are pretty sure that the region is based on Southeast Asia.
The tropical climate seen in the trailer, paired with the mountain areas, active volcano shots, jungle areas and Singapore's looking architecture, all point to our hunch being correct. We will keep you posted as we wait for firm confirmations.
But, if you want more information on whether past areas will make an appearance, or a deeper analysis on what we've seen from the trailer already, we have a Pokemon Winds and Waves region guide that dives into the nitty-gritty.
