As is often the case with Pokémon Presents, The Pokémon Company made some announcements during its showcase this morning that initially sounded like cool and fun new things but gradually got worse as the reality became clear. Pokémon Friends, a new puzzle game in which you solve old-fashioned brainteasers to create and collect Pokémon plushies, was shadow-dropped during the showcase. On mobile devices, the game is free-to-play with microtransactions. Which isn’t great, but it’s hardly unexpected from a mobile game meant to make you check in with daily puzzles and challenges (and maybe spend a buck or two). Where things get weird, however, is that the Switch version is a $10 purchase, but still has all the microtransaction elements intact.
The “Basic Pack” on Nintendo’s console includes “30 puzzles, 70 craftable plush, and all 11 yarn types.” On top of this, there are two “Puzzle On!” packs that cost $15 each, or you can buy them together for $26. The game’s monetization breakdown on its website explains that the Basic Pack lets you play through its puzzles without a daily limit, which you have to buy your way out of on the mobile version after you download it. The intended trade-off here seems to be that you can play Pokémon Friends on your Switch without ever being hit with a puzzle limit, but you lose the chance to try the game out to see if you even like the thing, as you can do on your phone. We’ve reached out to The Pokémon Company for comment and will update the story if we hear back.
Pokémon Friends was one of the only real reveals during today’s Pokémon Presents showcase, but there was plenty of other news about the company’s already-known mobile games, a new look at the next season of Pokémon Concierge, and a breakdown of the story and characters of Pokémon Legends: Z-A.
