Now that Pokémon games will no longer feature a complete Pokédex, Pokémon GO might be the last chance we ever have to catch 'em all.
As a brand new generation of Pokémon is being gradually revealed in preparation for the release of Sword and Shield, we have officially broken the 800 barrier when it comes to total Pokémon in existence. We often wonder whether the minds behind the franchise envisioned things going this far, or if they were overwhelmed enough when they realized a time was coming when they would have to add to the original 151.
As time has passed, some of the designs of certain new Pokémon have become a little lazy. Honestly, considering the task at hand, we've been willing to let the likes of Luvdisc and Trubbish slide. What we weren't mentally prepared for was a day when we would be playing a Pokémon game in which we wouldn't have the ability to catch 'em all. It's the franchise's slogan, after all.
Alas, that time has now come. Game Freak revealed earlier this year that Sword and Shield will not feature every single Pokémon that has ever lived. That announcement was naturally met with a fair bit of backlash from fans. After having time to reflect, though, and as we mentioned above, this time was always going to come eventually. Plus, with fewer move sets to tweak and designs to update, it will hopefully mean Pokémon in newer games look and play better than ever.
We're assuming that since the national Pokédex will only continue to grow from here on in, Game Freak titles beyond Sword and Shield also won't feature every single Pokémon. That means the only chance us trainers will ever have to live out the Pokémon mantra of catching them all is via Pokémon GO. Not every Pokémon is available on the mobile game yet, but we're assuming they will be one day.
At the time of typing this, Pokémon GO is up to generation four, and a little more than half of all of the Pokémon that have been created are out there in the real world for us to catch via the app. The even better news is that Pokémon GO's continued popularity means it won't be going anywhere anytime soon.
So, if the lack of Pokémon that will be in Sword and Shield has left you feeling blue, always remember you will eventually be able to fulfill your dream of being the ultimate Pokémon collector in Pokémon GO.