Livescore
Pokémon Day is fast approaching, expected to take place later this month on Feb. 27, and while everyone is awaiting news of Pokémon Legends Z-A, there’s a series I am personally praying will get some love after years of neglect—the Mystery Dungeon series.
The Mystery Dungeon series is a fan-favorite spin-off game where you wake up as a Pokémon and create a team to rescue various creatures and the world. It has become a beloved part of the franchise with a rabid fanbase, and most of them, including myself, have been crying out for a new installment for quite some time. The last time we got a new entry in the Pokémon Mystery Dungeon series was a decade ago with the release of Super Mystery Dungeon for Nintendo 3DS. In 2020, we did get a remake of the original Mystery Dungeon: Rescue Team for Nintendo Switch for its 15th anniversary, but a new entry in the series has been painfully missing for some time.
The Mystery Dungeon games are known for a lot of things. The emotional story, the repetitive-but-challenging gameplay, and a wealth of content can keep players coming back for days and weeks at a time to try and complete everything on offer. Not only is the story typically massive in scale, but there is usually sizeable post-game and end-game content that’ll challenge even the most experienced players. There is nothing quite like it.
If a new game were to appear, there are plenty of things the series could pull from. We could see Tera-types make an appearance to spruce up gameplay like Mega Evolutions did for Super Mystery Dungeon, or add Pokémon from Gen VII of Pokémon games onwards, as the last installment only included Pokémon up until Kalos. There’s a wealth of potential options at the disposal of the series.
Outside of the main RPG series and mobile titles, it’s been a while since we had an actual Pokémon spin-off game to tie fans over. The Switch has sorely missed alternative Pokémon games besides the Mystery Dungeon remaster, New Pokémon Snap, and Detective Pikachu 2. There’s always space for more Pokémon love on a Nintendo console, especially with a new one on the horizon.
What makes me hopeful that a new installment is on the way, however, is the most obvious caveat.
The series celebrates its 20th anniversary this year, with the original GBA and DS games launching in 2005. A 20-year anniversary would be the perfect way to evolve the series or give us a new installment for Switch or Switch 2.
There are plenty of supposed leaks buzzing around, too, albeit with most of them feeling fake. one of which claims that a new Pokémon Explorers game is coming, which is a 3D spiritual successor to the Mystery Dungeon series, and that it won’t rely on the Spike Chunsoft Mystery Dungeon license, which in the face of a potential Sony takeover would make a lot of sense.
Either way, the hope is alive in the PMD community that this year will finally be the year we get a new entry in the series. So, Arceus, if you are listening, bless us with adventures, rescue teams, and emotional stories this year. We have been waiting long enough for something new to experience the world of Mystery Dungeon with a host of new Pokémon and beloved characters.
Only a few more days to wait to see if our wishes come true on Pokémon Day.
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