Pokémon Champions is already taking over my life, and the mobile release was only on Wednesday. On June 17, Pokémon Champions released on iOS and Android, and I’ve been playing it non-stop on my iPhone 17 Pro Max. Pokémon Champions originally released on Nintendo Switch and Switch 2 back in April, but I didn’t want to give the title a shot on my Switch Lite, so I waited until the mobile release, and I’m enjoying it even more than I expected.
Pokémon Champions makes me think that the next evolution for Pokémon games is playing them on mobile. Over the past year, I’ve been playing a lot of Pokémon ROMs on my phone, so playing Pokémon Champions, an official Pokémon game on my handset, is almost a dream come true. I love Pokémon battles, they’re my favourite aspect of Pokémon games. So a game like Champions that focuses on battles is great, but even better that I can play anywhere on my phone — whether that’s in bed, on my commute, or anywhere else.
Champions lets you battle with select Pokémon from previous games by grabbing them from your Pokémon Home. I have all the previous titles, so I had a number of Pokémon I could bring into Champions. Because I had more than 30, I needed to purchase box space for C$6.99, but this is all the money I’ve spent on the title. And it’s because I’m indecisive and didn’t want to have to pick specific Pokémon to bring into the game. The game also provides people with a limited number of Pokémon they can play with if they haven’t amassed a collection over the year. If you’re in this situation, this game might feel a bit “pay to win,” as my partner describes Champions.
Have you ever played the Pokémon Stadium series, or Pokémon Battle Revolution? These were Pokémon battle simulators on previous Nintendo consoles, and at the time of their launches, they were some of the best ways to battle against one another, and Pokémon Champions is no different.
Raichu, Mega-Evolve!
Elements like Mega Evolution return after the more recent Pokémon Legends: Z-A. You can also use the in-game currency to manipulate your Pokémon, changing their natures, abilities and moves, and Champions removes IVs and replaces EVs with Stat Points that are easy to use. I never competitively played Pokémon before, but I understand enough of the game for a smooth experience. I’m not climbing the ranks or anything and typically play casually, but when I tried out ranked matches, I did go nine games in a row undefeated.
And when you are battling, you can pick the music, which has several tracks from previous titles. As someone who played the original game, each battle has an element of nostalgia. I also like the way the game looks. It’s locked at 30fps and resolution scales depending on your mobile. On my 17 Pro Max, the game seems to offer a 720p resolution, maybe higher; either way, on the 6.9-inch screen, I find that the title looks good enough, helped by the handset’s 120Hz refresh rate.
I’ve seen a lot of people complain on Reddit about how the game looks, but in my experience, it’s not too bad. Honestly, it looks and runs better than it does on my Switch Lite. And I find it looks pretty comparable to how it looks on the Switch 2 in handheld mode. And what I love most is the nostalgia factor because it looks like Pokémon Battle Revolution so much, but with a fresh coat of paint, smoother gameplay, and it fits in my pocket.
Hyper Beam
Pokémon Champions is everything I wanted and more. I’ve easily replaced Pokémon Showdown, a web game I typically play when I’m bored, and I am eagerly looking forward to future updates that add more Pokémon to the game, which is pretty much my only complaint so far, as there are currently only 208 Pokémon available.
My only fear is what Pokémon Champions means for Pokémon. I’m afraid that the standard Pokémon battle might change from now on in the mainline series. Pokémon Legends: Z-A introduced a new form of battling that involved moving your character around while controlling your Pokémon in real time. I wasn’t a fan of this form of battling and love traditional turn-based Pokémon. I’m worried that future main series games might do away with turn-based battles in favour of this new flavour of battling, and keep traditional battling only in Champions.
That would definitely impact my Pokémon experience negatively, as it would mean only using new Pokémon in Champions instead of battling in the mainline games. Worse, pulling new Pokémon into Champions means using the in-game recruitment, which as mentioned above, has a cost.
Thankfully, I don’t need to worry about that for over a year, as Pokémon Winds & Waves isn’t slated until September 2027. Until then, I’ll keep happily playing Champions.
