The Pokémon Company has finally revealed the details for Pokémon Home. It will launch in February 2020 on iOS, Android, and on Nintendo Switch.
The Pitch
Pokémon Home is a subscription service that acts as a replacement to Pokémon Bank. The service is both a mobile and switch app. The core purpose of the service is to allow players to start the Pokémon they have captured or bred in various Pokémon games in the cloud and upload them into compatible games.
How Does it Work?
Subscribers can connect their Pokémon Home account to a Nintendo account. Once that is complete then they will be able to connect to compatible games and services to transfer Pokémon into their “home.” They can then transfer those Pokémon from their “home” into compatible games.
The games that Pokémon Home can currently connect to are:
Pokémon Home cannot currently connect to Pokémon Go, but that functionality will be added in the future.
Pokémon Home can also connect to Pokémon Bank. This is the only way for players to bring their Pokémon from Pokémon games on the 3DS and earlier into Home.
Features
Trading
Pokémon Home serves another purpose aside from acting as cloud storage for your Pokémon collection. It allows you to trade your Pokémon to help fill out your Pokedex through a bunch of different methods.
Wonder Box
Wondertrading in Pokémon is the act of offering up a Pokémon from your collection in exchange for a random Pokémon that someone else has offered up using the same feature. This is one of my favorite features in Pokémon games because I am always surprised at the interesting things that people are willing to give away. A lot of times I will end up receiving Pokémon that competitive players have been bred that don’t have perfect stats. This is great for casual fans who aren’t concerned with stats and just want to build a collection.
The free version of Pokémon Home allows you to Wondertrade one Pokémon at a time. The premium version bumps that number up to three.
GTS
The Global Trade System (GTS) allows you to offer up one of your Pokémon and list it online requesting to trade it for another specific Pokémon. This is a good way to build your collection if you are looking to catch ‘em all, because you can put up duplicates of rare Pokémon you own to trade specific Pokémon that you need to complete your collection.
The free version of Pokémon Home allows you to put one Pokémon at a time into the GTS. The premium version bumps that number up to three.
Room Trade
Another of Pokémon Home’s great features is Room Trading. You can use the apps to create rooms that nearby friends can join to trade their Pokémon. Anyone can join a Room, but only Premium Subscribers can create one.
Friend Trade
Friend Trade is a feature that allows you to trade Pokémon with players who you have become friends with on the service.
Other Features
Trading isn’t all though. There are several other useful features in Pokémon Home to consider.
National Pokédex
Any Pokémon you bring into Pokémon Home will be registered to your National Pokedex. This will bring you one step closer to catching them all!
Mystery Gifts
Mystery gifts are a big part of the Pokémon experience. The Pokémon Company regularly distributes them as part of events and sometimes just for fun. The Pokémon home service lets you redeem the gift codes you find without having to get out your Switch. There will even be Mystery Gifts that exclusive to Pokémon Home.
Judge Pokémon
Premium subscribers have access to the Judge function. This is a tool that lets you carefully examine your Pokémon to determine how strong they are. This is a must for competitive players who are looking to build the perfect team.
How Much Does it Cost?
There are three purchase options for the Premium Subscription.
- 1 month (30 days) – $2.99
- 3 months (90 days) – $4.99
- 12 months (365 days) – $15.99
Advice
The free version of Pokémon Home is a no brainer for anyone with more than one Pokémon game. It adds limited functionality to your games for no charge.
The premium version of the service is a tougher nut to crack. You need to evaluate your activity level and your enthusiasm for Pokémon to determine if it is worth it. I think the biggest question is if you have Pokémon in the Pokémon bank. If you do, then the premium service is the only way to access them and bring them forward.
Do you have a question we didn’t address here? Leave your question in the comments and we will reply and add to the guide!
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Other Guides
There are a ton of other premium video game services out there so we wrote guides for all of them. Take a look below:
A Parent’s Guide to EA Origins Access
A Parent’s Guide to the Xbox Game Pass
A Parent’s Guide to PlayStation Now
A Parent’s Guide to PlayStation Plus
A Parent’s Guide to Nintendo Switch Online
What do you think? Sound off in the comments and let us know your thoughts!
Make sure to keep your eyes on Engaged Family Gaming for all of the latest news and reviews you need to Get Your Family Game On!
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Linda Wrobel
So the only way to retrieve Pokemon once they are stored in the bank is to have a premium paid account?
Hi E,
Yes. That has been our experience with the service.