The most common question asked by Pokemon players recently is probably: When will “Pokemon Winds and Waves” be released? Many people originally thought that this new 10th-generation game would be launched in 2026, but the official has already pushed the schedule to 2027. Now some analysts point out that judging from the arrangement of the latest chapter of the Pokémon animation, the game is most likely not to be released in the first half of 2027, but closer to the autumn of 2027 or even November.
Pokémon animation has always been a game rhythm chart, it’s not a coincidence
Pokémon animation has been highly linked to the pace of game releases for many years. This is no longer an urban legend, but a fixed operation.
Since its launch in 1997, the animation has been updated almost every year. Every time a new generation of games is launched, the animation will switch to new regions, new characters, and new Pokémon at the appropriate time, which means that the entire cross-media promotion machine starts simultaneously.
So when the animation schedule is revealed, what old players see is not the plot, but the game launch timeline.
The latest chapter “Pokemon Horizons” is not over yet. The Purple Generation is not over yet.
According to the official announcement, the next chapter of “Pokemon Horizons” is called Wonder Voyage and is expected to start in May 2026 and last until around April 2027. What does this mean?
This means that the current animation is still finishing the content of the “Pokemon Scarlet” (Pokémon Scarlet) and “Pokemon Violet” (Pokémon Violet) eras, and it has not yet been the turn of the 10th generation to take over.
If we follow the rhythm of recent years, with new chapters usually coming once a year, then the animation-themed chapter that truly belongs to “Pokemon Winds and Waves” will not have a chance to debut until May 2028 at the earliest.
Players originally looked forward to 2026, but now it has become a long-term war
When “Pokemon Winds and Waves” was released on Pokémon Day, many players thought they would be able to play it in 2026. After all, the ninth generation of “Pokemon Scarlet” and “Pokemon Violet” are already works in 2022, and a four-year window is a long time for this series.
However, the pace of Game Freak has slowed down significantly in recent years. From the extension of DLC operation to the filling of gaps with “Pokemon Legends: Z-A” (official Chinese version undecided) and “Pokemon Pokopia” (official Chinese version undecided), it shows that the official no longer follows the rush mode of the original version every year.