Recent speculation surrounding a potential price increase for upcoming Pokémon titles has emerged following a leak from a prominent Pokémon leaker, Centro. The alleged internal documents, purportedly from a 2024 Game Freak data breach, detail product pricing discussions that have unsettled fans already navigating a landscape of rising game and hardware costs.
The leak suggests The Pokémon Company has been exploring ways to incentivize players to purchase both versions of new generations, a practice historically framed around encouraging social play rather than profit maximization. However, reports indicate that a significant portion of players already buy both versions, with 50% of Pokémon Ultra Sun and Moon players reportedly doing so. This has led to further claims that The Pokémon Company has considered increasing the price of Pokémon games beyond the traditional $60 mark since Pokémon Sword and Shield, though market conditions at the time were not conducive to such a move.
Fans have expressed dismay at the prospect of higher prices, especially given recent criticisms of the series' technical performance and presentation. Many cited the issues encountered with Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, which were criticized for being borderline unplayable on the Nintendo Switch, and noted the continued absence of voice acting in the franchise after three decades.
However, the documents referenced in the leak appear to date back to around 2018 and were specific to discussions about boosting sales in Japan for Pokémon Sword and Shield. As those games were not released at a higher price point, it suggests that previous considerations did not lead to an immediate price adjustment for that generation.
The current climate, marked by ongoing component shortages and price increases across the industry, could still influence future pricing strategies. Games like Mario Kart World have already seen prices rise to $79.99, making an $80 Pokémon game a plausible, though not guaranteed, development. Nintendo has also attempted to balance such increases with more affordable digital offerings. For now, with Pokémon Winds and Waves lacking official release dates, fans have no concrete reason to anticipate a price hike beyond the standard cost of a new console game.