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It“s been rocking arcades in Japan since July, and many fans were doubtful we“d see it anytime soon because it was missing at this year“s E3. But Pokkén Tournament was officially confirmed for Wii U at the Pokémon World Championship this morning, and it“s got a global release window of Spring 2016--you know, the cut-off date for many of this year“s E3 titles. I suspect they withheld news on Pokkén until now so they“d have something big to kick off the event with...which means we probably won“t hear news on a new Pokémon game for a little while longer, despite . Who knows, though? I“ve certainly been wrong before. Pokkén Tournament is a collaborative effort between Game Freak and the folks behind TEKKEN. It“s a traditional fighting game that pits Pokémon like Gengar, Pikachu and Suicune against each other in battles unlike anything you“ve ever seen before. You can check out the official North American trailer below! It“s almost fitting that today“s Individual Values concerns battling. Maybe when I get back from vacation in a few weeks, I“ll do a comprehensive write-up summarizing everything we know about Pokkén Tournament thus far. Is everyone excited for Pokkén Tournament“s Wii U confirmation and release? Will you be picking up the game day one, or would you rather wait to hear more? Be sure to let us know!

Welcome to the twenty-fifth week of my Pokémon feature here on Game Podunk! In case you missed the last one, check it out! Stay tuned for future entries coming every Friday morning. -------------------------------- Use Foresight to Predict E3 2015 Surprises Hard to believe that by this time next week, E3 2015 will be over and I“ll be on a plane back to my home from the West Coast. I suppose a lot can happen in seven days. Regardless of how you feel about press conferences, all the hype, and the fact that a few people will all get together inside a convention center for a few hours each day... E3 could be the epicenter of several paradigm shifts for the industry, Nintendo, and Pokémon. Or not. Right on the cusp of some of our E3 Predictions, it“s time for us to figure out what specific Pokémon-related things, games and announcements could be revealed in Los Angeles! Here are my educated guesses. Maybe I“ll throw in an off-the-wall suggestion along the way. Pokémon Super Mystery Dungeon will be playable Since it“s coming out in Japan in just a few months (and in the United States by Winter, and in Europe during the first part of 2016), I have to assume the game is far along in development. Hopefully we“ll get a definitive release date during the Nintendo Digital Event, but I won“t hold my breath. Regardless, I am officially on the PSMD hype train, especially after seeing the game“s debut trailer. It may follow the same formula as Gates to Infinity, but it certainly seems to have a lot more content! Speaking of which, have you read my Pokémon Mystery Dungeon-focused IV piece yet? The next mainline Pokémon game... could be announced, but it probably won“t be playable, and it probably isn“t coming this year. We“ve had a bunch of side content coming from the franchise lately. Between Shuffle, Rumble World, and now PSMD... I“m quite certain there are a number of distractions out there to keep fans busy until the next great adventure, which is probably farther off than some are hoping. What could it be, though? Does anyone have any ideas? I reaffirm that I think we“re getting a “third game” that blends elements of both Pokémon ORAS (Zinnia) and Pokémon X&Y (Zygarde) together — Pokémon Z! But speaking of distractions...there“s a game I haven“t brought up for a while hitting arcades in Japan this July. Have you forgotten? Pokkén Tournament will be announced during the Nintendo Digital Event as coming to Wii U worldwide in Q1 2016 I really hope it“s playable. And I also hope Nintendo has a decent-sized portion of its booth devoted to versus matches among attendees like they did for Smash Bros. and Splatoon last year. The unique arcade stick all but confirms a console variant is on the way. Pokémon Social Media here in the states and in Europe haven“t exactly been quiet about the game this whole time. Why not choose E3 to announce it, especially if there“s no mainline game coming until late next year? Will Pokémon amiibos be announced? I doubt any of it“s true, but sleuths have certainly seen rumors to that effect. I“m scared, y“all. I“m so, so scared (here“s an earlier IV that explains why). Okay, here“s an off-the-wall-one to wrap us up! What if...Pokémon Snap 2? Pokémon Stadium U?! I would backflip for either one. If The Pokémon Company has dispatched secret Alakazams or Gardevoirs to this location to read my mind... can either one of these please happen?? Pokémon Snap would be phenomenal to experience on Wii U. You could post photos of Pokémon seamlessly to the Miiverse... use the Wii U Gamepad“s gyro-scopic controls to move around freely in all directions (assuming the game continued the on-rails nature of its predecessor). Heck, why not make the Gamepad the camera itself and have the game be first-person and off-rails? The possibilities are endless. ...And listen, I know battling in Pokémon has become more seamless than ever, and we don“t need to see all 720 known creatures in stunning high-definition because they“re already 3D on our handhelds. But a guy can dream, can“t he?! I just want to see again. That“s all for me this week. Maybe I“ll have time enough to compile a “Greatest Bits of Pokémon at E3 2015” while I“m in Los Angeles. If not, I still have a cool side thing for next Friday“s Individual Values! What are your Pokémon-related E3 predictions?! Are mine right on the money, or do you think I couldn“t be more wrong? Be sure to let me know!

The Pokémon Company has been pretty silent in regards to Pokkén Tournament since its reveal last year. But earlier this morning, there was a stream that revealed playable characters, supporting characters and gameplay mechanics (including how things would be controlled)! There was a ton of footage shown too, so fans finally got to take a good, hard look at the game in action! Here's everything we learned from the stream: First and foremost, the confirmed playable Pokémon (so far) cover more types than just fighting: Gardevoir, Suicune and Pikachu were announced! While we're in the realm of the fighters themselves, I'll cover Support Pokémon next! Emolga, Snivy, Finnekin and Lapras (of those shown) are not playable, but they can lend a hand in battle to help turn the tide in your favor! They can be used at any time, but they'll have a cool-down period. Pokémon will be able to Mega Evolve, as well as use certain other powerful moves at the press of a button. Speaking of buttons: what you see above is the control-pad that will be used to play Pokkén Tournament. This setup is remarkably different from your typical arcade fighter, which should hopefully lend some credence to the fact that this game will wind up localized and on home consoles before too long. A bit more on gameplay: the game features a fully three-dimensional map with a full range of motion, but there's also something called a Phase Change that makes the camera switch to what you'd see in a traditional 2D-fighter. Certain moves can apparently force a Phase Change. This game is going to be much easier to get into than your typical fighter. Bandai-Namco wants Pokkén Tournament to appeal to both veterans and newcomers! I think, beyond noting that some of the stage descriptions of the game were shown in English, that should about cover it for the essentials from this morning's stream! The rest, you should totally watch for yourself! I've embedded some footage (including the full stream for those curious) below. Want more? Check out the official Pokkén Tournament Twitter. Are you excited for this game? Do you have any predictions as to when we'll see it stateside, and what form the game will take? Be sure to let us know!

The “shocking” Pokémon announcement many have been waiting for was revealed this morning in the form of Pokkén Tournament. It“s a Pokémon fighting game being developed in collaboration with Namco-Bandai. It“s coming to arcades in Japan sometime in 2015. A console release has not been officially confirmed yet, but the way Pokémon Company President Tsunekazu Ishihara phrased an answer during Q&A seemed to suggest that the game was coming to arcades first. The small teaser trailer they showed featured Lucario fighting Machamp. As the Pokémon Company has done in the past, an English language trailer has been made available, despite the news pertaining solely to Japan (for now). You can watch it below! Source(s): Official Website (JP), Siliconera