Pokemon Pokopia is an Animal Crossing-like life sim where you play as a humanoid Ditto
A cozy game, if you can get past how the Ditto-human looks.
One of the more interesting announcements to come out of last Friday’s Nintendo Direct was Pokemon Pokopia. The game will be the first life simulation game in the series, and while it’s a fair assumption that you’ll be a trainer living in, say, a town full of Pokemon, that is not how co-developers Game Freak and Koei Tecmo Games have decided to approach it.
Instead, you’ll be playing as a Ditto, who transforms into a human-like character resembling a trainer. We’ve seen humanoid Dittos before (in Pokemon Ultra Sun and Moon, and in Detective Pikachu if that counts), but add it together with other details in the trailer below, and it sets a rather odd tone. For instance, what’s with the broken Pokedex at the start? This Ditto seems to have had a trainer before, so where are they?
Maybe it’s best not to think about these things in what’s supposed to be the cozy Pokemon game.
The atmosphere that Pokemon Pokopia does aim for is a tranquil one, similar to Animal Crossing, though the block-like designs for terrain are also somewhat reminiscent of Minecraft. What this game does differently is that, as a Ditto-human, all actions are done by learning moves from different Pokémon.
By learning new moves from different Pokemon, you can clear the field you popped out into.
And turn it into a lush little Pokemon town.
For example, you can grow tall grass by learning it from Bulbasaur (through which more Pokemon will spawn), water the grass by learning Squirtle’s Water Gun, and more. As more Pokemon arrive at your little enclave, you’ll eventually be able to break down harder objects (like rocks and wood), build houses and grow food.
And like Animal Crossing, Pokemon Pokopia’s day-night cycle will be linked to real-life time, and players will be able to visit each other’s worlds (up to three other players at a time).
Pricing and Availability
Pokemon Pokopia is set to release sometime in 2026, though pre-orders will be available on the Nintendo eShop and My Nintendo Store starting 12 November 2025. It’s also set to be a Switch 2 exclusive.