Pokémon Sword & Shield DLC has now been confirmed. And yes, it’s exactly what many called it as, hundreds of Pokémon from previous games. Players can also expect free updates and other goodies. And yes, the new DLC will be out pretty soon. So all that crowing about a reduced Pokédex was a bit misplaced after all, thankfully.
Each one includes a whole bunch of new beasts, spread across two new locales within the wider game. These two expansion passes are titled, “The Isle of Armor,” and “The Crown Tundra.” Together, these account for adding over 200 existing Pokémon to the game and two new Legendary monsters as well.
And because Nintendo would be stupid not to hop on the current trend of season passes, these two DLC packs will be split into two, and there will be a season pass for them both. The first of the packs, Armor Isle, is coming in June 2020. The latter of the two is due out for Switch in fall 2020. Now let’s get into what these new expansions have in store.
The Isle of Armor is a mix of different biomes, each with dozens of new and returning Pokémon. This area will act as a new end-game for top tier trainers as they seek to train alongside the mysterious Mustard, yes that’s their real name. Journey to their hidden dojo and impress them by competing various story quests. Once Mustard is impressed with the player’s progress, he will give them Kubfu, one of the two new Legendaries. This new entry evolves in Urshifu and is a strong fighting type. The unique mechanic with this monster is that it has two fighting styles that it can alternate between. One is a powerful Single-Strike style, which is Fighting and Dark type. The other is the faster Rapid-Strike style, which is Fighting and Water type.
The Crown Tundra is a bit different, featuring a much more open structure, but still packing in new quests and content. The new new underground environments will be home to a team of explorers that the player must join forces with. Journeying into the dank chasms with this team of daredevils is the backdrop for new solo and cooperative adventures. It looks like the new DLC could also offer new local multiplayer options. Of course there’s a new Legendary, Calyrex too.
There will also be some version exclusives in the new Pokémon Sword & Shield DLC. Pokémon Sword players will encounter Poison type trainer Klara but Pokémon Shield players will meet Psychic type trainer Avery. Also, Rillaboom, Cinderace, and Inteleon get new Gigantamax forms that must be unlocked in the new DLC zones. Nintendo also teased that a Galarian Articuno, Moltres, and Zapdos could be added soon.
Game Freak also teased other new content as well, this time as free updates to both main games. Said free updates for Pokémon Sword & Shield will coincide with the releases of expansion passes, coming soon. The Isle of Armor and in The Crown Tundra will launch in June 2020 and fall 2020 for Pokémon Sword & Shield on the Nintendo Switch. Watch the trailer below. Price wise, the packs will cost $30 each, so start saving your cash now. The good news is that you will only need to pay $60 if you want the expansion pass for both games.
