Nintendo and Pokemon hosted a direct late last night, which detailed many new things about the upcoming game, from new Pokemon, to new ways to battle them. We got new characters and locations and even our first look at the Legendaries. Check out the Direct below and enjoy that new trailer, with the killer song.

Many different species of Pokémon call the Galar region home. Much is unknown about the biology of these Pokémon, so researchers are working diligently to discover more information.

The new folks that we got to meet are Professor Magnolia, her granddaughter Sonia, your Rival Hop and his older brother and current league champion Leon. We were also treated to a look at the first gym leader, Milo who is a grass type user

Professor Magnolia is the preeminent Pokémon Professor of the Galar region. The main focus of her research has been the Dynamax phenomenon.

Sonia is the granddaughter of Professor Magnolia as well as being Leon’s childhood friend. Besides being very knowledgeable and willing to offer helpful advice to the player, Sonia is also a young researcher and Professor Magnolia’s assistant.

Leon is the current Champion of the Galar region and has never been defeated in an official Pokémon battle. Extremely popular for his skill and personality, Leon holds the title of “the greatest Trainer in all of Galar.”

Hop is Leon’s younger brother and will become one of the player’s rivals. The player and Hop are neighbors and begin their journey to become Champion on the same day.

Milo is the Grass Gym Leader and is well liked by the Trainers of his Gym. His credo is to always enjoy battles and he specializes in endurance matches using Grass-type Pokémon.

Of course new gym leaders mean new battles and things in Sword and Shield are changing in a big way, with the addition of Dynamax. Dynamax is a phenomenon unique to specific locations in the Galar region, where Pokémon can take on gigantic appearances during battle, and it’s an integral part of Pokémon battles in the region. Pokémon from the Galar region are able to Dynamax, and when they do, they become tremendously strong and receive a boost to their power. Trainers can only Dynamax their Pokémon once during battle and the Dynamaxed Pokémon will return to its regular form after three turns. Only Trainers who possess a Dynamax Band can Dynamax their Pokémon.

All the moves of a Dynamax Pokémon will turn into special Max Moves. Max Moves are powerful, and some can even trigger additional effects. For example, the Normal-type Max Move, Max Strike, has the additional effect of lowering the Speed stat of an opponent it hits. The Max Moves the player’s Pokémon can use are determined by the kind and types of moves they knew before Dynamaxing. There is one restriction though, you can only Dynamax once in a battle and it will only last for three turns, so you have to make it count.

Capturing Pokemon is also different here as there is now an all new ways to do it, you can venture into a Wild Area or take part in multiplayer max raid battles.

The Wild Area is a vast expanse of land in the Galar region with untamed wilderness. It is full of nature and connects several different towns and cities. Trainers will find a greater variety of Pokémon living in the Wild Area than anywhere else in the Galar region. The Pokémon encountered in the Wild Area will change depending on factors like weather or location, so Trainers might see something new each time they visit. While in the Wild Area, players can control the camera to explore the vast areas around them and search for Pokémon and items.

Max Raid Battles are a new battle format that takes place in the Wild Area, in which the player will team up with three[1] other Trainers to take on a wild Dynamax Pokémon. Trainers will then get a chance to catch the wild Dynamax Pokémon if they manage to defeat it—but it won’t go down easily. The wild Dynamax Pokémon remain in their giant form the entire battle and have other unique powers. Close teamwork is the key to success, because only one Trainer involved in the battle can Dynamax their Pokémon. Some Pokémon can only be caught in Max Raid Battles. Max Raid Battles can become even more fun when the player connects with friends to battle together via Nintendo Switch Online[2]. If three other Trainers aren’t available to participate in Max Raid Battles, support Trainers will automatically be added to the player’s team to help battle the wild Dynamax Pokémon.

Of course, new ways to capture means that there are new Pokemon to capture and in addition to Grookey, Scorbunny, and Sobble that were announce when the game was revealed, there are even more new ones to find, such as:

Gossifleur
Category: Flowering Pokémon
Type: Grass
Height: 1′4″
Weight: 4.9 lbs.
Ability: Cotton Down / Regenerator

Gossifleur prefers land with clear water and air. Its pollen has a healing effect and is commonly used as a folk medicine remedy and made into a tea given to children in the Galar region when they are ill. Gossifleur travels over long distances by getting blown along by the wind. It controls the direction of its travels by twisting its body and petals.

Eldegoss
Category: Cotton Bloom Pokémon
Type: Grass
Height: 1′8″
Weight: 5.5 lbs.
Ability: Cotton Down / Regenerator

When Gossifleur evolves into Eldegoss, its head becomes covered in thick cotton fluff. This cotton fluff serves as a cushion that helps to protect Eldegoss’s head from damage. The tiny seeds attached to the cotton fluff are said to be highly nutritious and beneficial to both people and Pokémon. Eldegoss spreads these seeds throughout the region, making the soil of the Galar region rich in nutrients.

Wooloo
Category: Sheep Pokémon
Type: Normal
Height: 2′
Weight: 13.2 lbs.
Ability: Fluffy / Run Away

The white fur that covers Wooloo’s body grows throughout its life and will fully grow back in three months even if it has been completely shorn. The fur is used for clothing, carpets, and other goods and is very popular as a specialty product of the Galar region. Wooloo live as a herd and mimic the actions of their Trainer or herd leader. They dislike conflict, and if they need to escape from enemies, they will simply roll away.

Corviknight
Category: Raven Pokémon
Type: Flying/Steel
Height: 7′3″
Weight: 165.3 lbs.
Ability: Pressure / Unnerve

It is said that Corviknight is the strongest Pokémon living in the skies of the Galar region. It can often be seen fearlessly soaring through the air. Many say that any Pokémon foolish enough to challenge Corviknight are sent running with just a sharp glare and cry from this fearsome Pokémon. Because Corviknight possess superb flying skills and high intelligence, many of them work for the company called Galar Taxi and help transport people from town to town.

Drednaw
Category: Bite Pokémon
Type: Water/Rock
Height: 3′3″
Weight: 254.6 lbs.
Ability: Strong Jaw / Shell Armor

The jagged fangs of the Bite Pokémon Drednaw are strong and sharp enough to bite through rock and iron. Though it has a heavy shell, its well-developed muscles allow it to move quickly. Drednaw is known to be extremely aggressive, so it takes a skilled Trainer to tame and handle this Pokémon. It seems that some Trainers will release Drednaw back into the wild once they discover they can’t handle it.

The Direct of course ended with us getting the release date, which should not be a surprise to anyone, but November 15th is the day when adventures in the Galar Region can begin.