Pokemon Sun And Moon Starters And Legendaries Finally Revealed [Updated]
Junichi Masuda, the director of the Pokemon video game series, has finally dropped a video revealing some huge news about Pokemon Sun and Moon, the seventh generation of Pokemon games set to come out in late 2016. Pokemon fans, rejoice!
High quality pictures of the box art for Pokémon Sun and Moon. pic.twitter.com/sN0MCEkMoJ
— PokéTrends (@PokeTrends) May 10, 2016
Masuda told Pokemon fans about the timing of the info dump via Twitter on Friday, and Pokemon players across the globe had been waiting eagerly since then.
New #PokemonSunMoon information will be revealed on May 10th, around 21:00 JST! Stay tuned everybody!
— ????@Pokémon (@Junichi_Masuda) May 6, 2016
The three new starting Pokemon for the generation were revealed (not just their outlines), as were the two legendaries. Rowlet looks to be a grass owl, Litten looks to be a fiery kitten, and Popplio looks to be a sea lion. The two legendaries look to be a white, fiery-maned lion (probably the Pokemon Sun legendary) and a purple-and-gold batlike creature (probably the Pokemon Moon legendary). Also revealed were the typings of the starting Pokemon’s base forms and the names of the starters: Rowlet (grass/flying), Litten (pure fire), and Popplio (pure water).
Here is some official artwork of our 3 new starters from the Pokémon Sun and Moon webpage! https://t.co/b5gQhwjSbt pic.twitter.com/VtRiFCHQR3
— Amiibo News (@AmiiboNews) May 10, 2016
Rowlet’s pokedex entry states it is the “grass quill Pokemon,” says Pokemon’s official site.
Its pokedex description is as follows.
“Rowlet can attack without making a sound! It flies silently through the skies, drawing near to its opponent without being noticed, and then lashing out with powerful kicks. It can also attack from a distance using the razor-sharp leaves that form part of its feathers.”
Rowlet’s signature move is Leafege, the only one of the starters’ announced specialty moves that is a new move in the Pokemon main series.
Litten is the fire cat Pokemon, and its pokedex description is a bit shorter.
“Logical but also passionate, Litten always remains coolheaded and doesn’t show its emotions on the surface.”
Popplio is the sea lion Pokemon, and its entry is as follows.
“Popplio’s swimming speed is known to exceed 25 mph. It’s better at moving in the water than on land. Still, when it’s on land, it takes advantage of the elasticity of its balloons to perform acrobatic stunts and jumps.”
A good amount of gameplay was shown as well, and based on the tropical and tribal theme of the scenery the male protagonist is running through (as well as the fact that the region is set on an island), it appears fans were right that Pokemon Sun and Moon will be set in a region inspired by Hawaii. That the name of the region in Pokemon Sun and Moon will be “Alola” – it was revealed in the Japanese version of the trailer, viewable at the bottom of this article. The region name’s similarity to the traditional Hawaiian greeting “aloha” all but confirms the location.
A good look at your rival in Pokemon Sun and Moon. pic.twitter.com/QghHJuFAGG
— PLDH (@PLDHnet) May 10, 2016
Many fans will be glad to hear that the Japanese trailer confirms the return of a much-requested feature that last appeared in Pokemon X and Y: trainer customization!
Here are the protagonists for Pokemon Sun and Moon and their different possible appearances. pic.twitter.com/TiWoFnjiYb
— PLDH (@PLDHnet) May 10, 2016
Lastly, the trailer revealed that Pokemon Sun and Moon will be released on November 18, 2016.
Ah, sweet deliverance.
Pokemon fans’ anticipation of this reveal is even higher than it would be for a normal Pokemon main series game reveal thanks to the tremendous amount of teasing the folks at Pokemon have done for Pokemon Sun and Moon information.
The short clip released for the Pokemon franchise’s 20th anniversary in late February really got the hype train rolling by officially announcing the games and revealing just a tiny bit of Pokemon concept art that went into making them.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hmzDL1l3Fag
Since then, Pokemon fan theories have abounded all over social media, from YouTube to Twitter to Reddit.
Pokemon added fuel to the fire on a few occasions.
In March, for example, Pokemon announced it would be showing the first televised airing of Sun and Moon-related content on the Japanese show Pokenchi during its April 3 episode. No, Pokemon did not say they would be revealing gameplay, but as most rabid fandoms do, Pokemon fans stretched what was said into a promise of exactly that: Pokemon Sun and Moon gameplay. When April 3 rolled around, Pokemon only showed the clip they had aired for the 20th anniversary on Pokenchi, and fans were disappointed.
Also in March, Coro Coro, a Japanese magazine that always serves as the official reveal source for the Pokemon main series games, guaranteed fans that its April 15 issue would bring news relating to Pokemon Sun and Moon. Again, Pokemon fans took the promise and inflated it, thinking that the April Coro Coro would certainly bring some huge Pokemon Sun and Moon game reveals. When Coro Coro came, though, it pulled a fast one by saying secret agents had broken into the offices where Pokemon games are made and tampered with the info, meaning that fans could not read it. Again, disappointment all around.
When it comes to fandoms of popular franchises like Pokemon, though, the anticipation of a new release or big news is a funny thing. Repeated disappointment does not lessen hype; it actually contributes to it.
That is why Pokemon fans were so excited for some major Pokemon Sun and Moon news, and that is why they can sleep well tonight.
Which of the revealed starter Pokemon do you like the most?
If you go with Popplet, you are definitely in the minority, and team Rowlet is in the majority.
Again, here is the Japanese version of the trailer. It is definitely worth a watch for Pokemon fans, as it contains a lot of material the English trailer does not.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2r0_F-_ClcQ
[Photo by Junko Kimura/Getty Images]
