What a year for Pokémon, eh? I never thought I’d say that in the big 2026. As someone who loved the anime growing up and watched every episode religiously at 5PM when it aired, and had many figurines as a child, my love from Pokémon can’t be overstated. So imagine my surprise when Nintendo announced Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen on the Nintendo Switch family of consoles.
Of course, that wasn’t the only important Pocket Monsters game to arrive on the Switch in 2026. Who would have thought that Pokémon Pokopia would be so popular that most retailers ran out of physical stock during launch week? Not me, but then again, I’ve never been a fan of cozy games. And no, I don’t care for Animal Crossing or Stardew Valley.
But I’m not afraid to be proven wrong, and I finally get the hype behind cozy games, because after 150 hours spent trying to create the perfect island in Pokopia, I’m a believer. Pokopia is packed with over 300 Pokémon with individual personalities, quirky and funny dialogues that make you love them even more. I see it when I close my eyes, I think about it when I wake up. Call the 90s because I’m officially back in my Pokémon phase.
Giving my Pokémon the best lives they deserve
Similar to Animal Crossing and The Sims, Pokémon Pokopia is a social simulation game where you build houses and do whatever you want to the different landscapes. You play as a Ditto disguised as their trainer, and there are four different areas to explore which you unlock as part of the story. Along the way, you make habitats to attract different Pokémon, and unlock abilities that make it easier to make your islands better than how you find them (there’s trash everywhere, plants are dead because they haven’t been watered, etc.).
All the abilities you gain help you transform the landscape and make it look pretty — or brutalist, depending on the style you like. Your goal is simple: make habitats for your Pokémon, raise their comfort levels by asking them what they want, and increase each area’s environment level to unlock new items, including furniture and decorations. Because all the Pokémon you encounter have their own personalities (more on this shortly), you want to give them the best life possible, and that’s been my aim since I started playing the game.
While people online have been going crazy with builds (and I am envious), I’ve gone for a “Pokémon living in the wild, in the grass and amongst nature, but comfortably” kinda look for my islands. I’ve created tree-shaded habitats, installed campfires, built leafy statues, and… built a hot spring spa! My Pokémon seem to enjoy it too as, more often than not, that’s where they’re hanging out.
But I’m not done yet. I want to do so much more with my islands and the possibilities are truly endless. I’m currently planning on building a gazebo at the top of a hill with toys, decorations, lovely lighting, and comfy seats where my Pokémon can relax and unwind (after a day of making me 99 bricks and 99 gold ingots). Pokopia has a strange hold on me where it feels like an addiction. It’s all I think about when I wake up or even as I fall asleep — I’m mapping out my islands and builds as I drift off.
Some of the best dialogue I’ve ever seen
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Pokémon Pokopia wouldn’t be what it is if it wasn’t for the impeccable writing — and I’m not just talking about the main story. I won’t be discussing the main story here to avoid spoilers, so instead, I’d like to talk about the dialogue. The developers were clearly looking to appeal to Gen Z and millennials who grew up watching Pokémon with the dialogue, as most of the Pocket Monsters love saying, “Yo!” I wasn’t expecting that, if I’m honest, and it caught me off-guard when I first started playing. I also couldn’t stop laughing when a certain legendary shows up and has… a Southern accent?
Even if you haven’t played Pokopia (you really need to), you’ve probably seen many memes making the rounds online, and one of the most famous ones is of Charmander saying, “I… I frew up.” Now, Charmander is one of my favorite Pokémon (he’s always my starter) so I really wanted to get this dialogue. I hate to break it to you, but he never frew up. Instead, he says, “I… I tripped.” While not as funny as the meme-ified version, it still cracks me up as he pulls a face like he’s been kicked.
The dialogue is equal parts funny and heartbreaking, and remains true to the lore. From Lapras hinting at traveling the seas with Ash on its back to Cubone saying, “Mom prob’ly woulda liked a place like this too,” there’s plenty of nostalgia to be enjoyed by those, such as myself, who grew up with the Pokémon anime. Also, as someone who’s favorite evolution is Pidgeot, I was brought to tears when mine told me that it loved me to pieces.
But I have one issue with Pokopia
By now, it should be clear that I absolutely adore Pokémon Pokopia, and there are very few things I’d change about it. But there’s one aspect of the game that I find myself complaining about a fair bit, nearly every time I boot up the game, and that’s the inventory management system. When you start, your backpack has limited space for items you pick up and craft. But as you progress through the game, rebuild Poké Centres and increase your trainer rank, you can buy “Packing Tips” from the PC at different points in your adventure.
“Packing Tips” essentially increase the number of items you can carry in your backpack, and I highly recommend buying these items if you find yourself complaining about space in your bag. But even so, it’s easy to run out of space in your bag, and I find myself either dropping items in the overworld or stashing them away in storage boxes. But I have storage boxes all over the place, in all the regions. Do I remember where I put the seaweed? Nope. Do I remember which storage box has my 20 iron ingots that I now need to build this house? Nope!
There’s no central storage management system. It’s not like you can check the PC to see which storage box includes what item, and I so desperately wish there was as it would make the game much easier to play (and more enjoyable than it already is). I know people online have been getting creative with their own storage solutions, but I just want a central, easily accessible storage system, and I don’t think that’s a lot to ask for. I hope, fingers and toes crossed, that Nintendo puts out a patch to introduce it.
Regardless, Pokopia is still heaps of fun, and while the storage system isn’t perfect, it hasn’t stopped me from enjoying the game to its fullest. The writing is sublime; terraforming and building is effortless once you unlock all the abilities; and the peaceful soundtrack adds to the game’s overall cozy appeal. I love how the areas bustle with life once Pokémon start spawning, and the way the Pokémon interact with one another either via dialogue or by playing together.
Though I don’t like all cozy games, I understand the hype now. I’m a skeptic no more, and I’ve got my love for Pokémon to thank for that. After nearly 200 hours in, it has quickly become not only one of my favorite Pokémon games, but one of my favorite games full stop.
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