Pokemon Ultra Sun, Moon Not Coming to Nintendo Switch

The Pokemon Sun and Moon followups are 3DS exclusive.

By Jonathon Dornbush

Despite a listing suggesting the newly announced Pokemon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon would eventually be coming to the Nintendo Switch. The Pokemon Company International have now confirmed, however, that the upcoming games are Nintendo 3DS exclusive.

In a statement provided to IGN, The Pokemon Company explained that the website listing for a Switch version of Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon was "a clerical error" and that the two games "are not due for release on Nintendo Switch." The company's full statement reads:

"We would like to address rumours based on a clerical error on the Pokémon press site; Pokémon Ultra Sun and Pokémon Ultra Moon are coming exclusively to Nintendo 3DS family of systems and are not due for release on Nintendo Switch. This listing on the Pokémon press site was made in error and is not indicative of future plans. Please refer to the Pokémon Direct for more game details."

The Pokemon Company's press site previously listed the two games as coming to Switch with a "TBA" release date, but the post has since been updated to reflect its 3DS-exclusive plans.

Nintendo and The Pokemon Company have released Pokemon titles on handheld devices even after the releases of new hardware, though of course, the Nintendo Switch is not viewed as a successor to the 3DS given Nintendo executives' previous statements. Pokemon Black 2 and White 2 released on the Nintendo DS in 2012, over a year after the Nintendo 3DS first debuted, and also featured a new storyline set in an existing Pokemon world region.

Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon are set to include new Pokemon and new versions of Sun and Moon's Legendary Pokemon.

The Nintendo Switch will have a Pokemon game this year, however, in the form of Pokken Tournament DX, also announced during today's Nintendo Direct. The Pokemon-focused presentation also revealed that the original Pokemon Gold and Silver will be available on the 3DS Virtual Console later this year.

For more on Sun and Moon, check out IGN's original review of the 3DS Pokemon titles, which we gave a 9.0, saying they "reminded me why I fell in love with this RPG series in the first place without simply repeating what came before."

Jonathon Dornbush is an Associate Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter @jmdornbush.

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