Huge announcement today from Pokemon headquarters! For the new games "Sun" and "Moon," the starters, the box art--including the legendaries--and the region have been announced! Following are pictures of the game and any information I have gathered, as well as a bit of speculation that’s been floating around.
First, choose your starter!
Grass-type Rowlet:
Category: The Grass Quill Pokemon
Height: 1’00”
Weight: 3.3 lbs
Type: Grass/flying
Ability: Overgrow
From the pokemon.com/sunmoon website:
“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. Its visual abilities are impressive. The darkness of night is no obstacle to Rowlet! It can twist its neck nearly 180° from front to back so it can see directly behind itself. It has a habit of turning its head in battle to face its Trainer and receive instructions. The [brand new!] move Leafage attacks an opponent by striking it with leaves. Rowlet knows this move from the moment it becomes your partner!”
Fire-type Litten:
Category: Fire Cat Pokemon
Height: 1’04”
Weight: 9.5 lbs
Type: Fire
Ability: Blaze
“Logical but also passionate, Litten always remains coolheaded and doesn't show its emotions on the surface. Litten can attack with flaming hairballs! Its fur is rich in oils and immensely flammable. Litten grooms itself by licking its fur, and then uses the collected fur as fuel for fireball attacks! When the time comes for Litten to shed its old fur, it all burns up in a glorious blaze. The move Ember attacks an opponent by firing a small flame at it. Litten knows this move from the moment it becomes your partner!”
Water-type Popplio:
Category: Sea Lion Pokemon
Height: 1’04”
Weight: 16.5 lbs
Type: Water
Ability: Torrent
“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.Popplio can snort out balloons made of water! Watch it spin water balloons into a playful battle strategy! Both frivolous and hard-working, Popplio can easily get carried away—unleashing enough power in battle to make quite a spectacle! But Popplio’s determined spirit means it can usually be found practicing hard on its balloon skills. The Water Gun move attacks an opponent by firing a jet of water. Popplio knows this move from the moment it becomes your partner!”
Next, choose your game!
My original assumption for "Pokemon Sun/Moon" was that the legendaries were going to be based on the Japanese myths/deities Amaterasu and Tsukuyomi (gods of the sun and moon respectively) but considering the region, Alola, seems to be based on Hawaii, my hope is that the Pokemon Company did their research and the giant white lion and giant purple bat are in relation to Hawaiian(/other islander?) mythology. Or they could just be crazy doomsday devices like in Kalos, who knows.
Now, are you a boy or a girl?
Glad to see that skin and hair colors continue into this game! Also, some sharper eyed viewers than me noted that in the trailer, the male protagonist’s shorts and t-shirt appear to change, indicating that full trainer customization may be back on! (Thank Arceus, hopefully.) I hope haircuts are back too, but let's hope for one thing at a time...
Next, introducing the region, Alola, and who appears to be our newest Pokemon professor, Kukui (an Archie-type character?)!
Possibly our rival/neighbor/friend character? The way he directly approaches the player character, has a custom animation, and his different manner of dress from the other NPCs seen in the trailer (bright colors versus background colors) indicates that he’s important, but whether he is a true rival or more of a Sina/Dexio helper-character is undetermined.
Get ready for November 18 (and keep an eye out for Pokemon Go! while you’re at it…)!
