The most recent Pokemon Sword and Pokemon Shield presentation may have been primarily focused on the second half of the games' expansion pass, the Crown Tundra DLC, but it came with an announcement that a new, physical version of them is set to release this year. Aside from containing the base games, these versions also include the full expansion pass, making them perfect for anyone who hasn't purchased one of the games yet.
At the time, The Pokemon Company didn't clarify how much these versions will cost, but pre-orders for Pokemon Sword + Expansion Pass and Pokemon Shield Expansion Pass have been discovered on Amazon. Both bundles are set to release on November 6th.
In the US, the bundles are listed at $89.99. The standalone versions of both games still retail for $59.99, at least via Nintendo's official store, and the Expansion Pass costs $29.99, so the bundles aren't necessarily any cheaper than purchasing the game and DLC separately. It's possible to buy a copy of Sword or Shield for less at some retailers, since the games have been out for almost a year, so those looking for the cheapest alternative may want to pass up on these new bundles if they can.
As for the Crown Tundra DLC, aside from it giving players the opportunity to encounter and catch every Legendary Pokemon to have appeared in the series so far, it will also come with plenty of returning Pokemon, including fan favorites like Dragonite and Garchomp, new Galarian forms for the Legendary Bird trio, and a new tournament that lets players partner up with one of the region's Gym Leaders or rivals in 2v2 matches.
Though the Expansion Pass only consists of two pieces of DLC, the Crown Tundra and the Isle of Armor (which released earlier this year), some fans believe that an unannounced third DLC centered around the Kalos region from the Pokemon X and Y games is in the works, but this is only a rumor and seems incredibly unlikely.
There are also rumors aplenty regarding the series' 25th anniversary, which is happening next year. These rumors range from simple Switch ports of Pokemon HeartGold and SoulSilver, the DS remakes of the Gen 2 titles, to full-on remastered collections of the previous seven generations of games, which just sounds like wishful thinking.
In Pokemon GO news, developer Niantic is launching a new initiative to support small businesses affected by the coronavirus pandemic by upgrading them to become PokeStops and Gyms in the game.
Pokemon Sword and Shield are available on Nintendo Switch.
Source: Nintendo Life