There’s a bit of a twist in Giovanni’s return. He’s brought together the leading villains from every Pokemon game, including Team Flare’s Lysandre and Team Galactic’s Cyrus, and formed Team Rainbow Rocket, with himself at the head. The announcement made no mention of the bosses’ role in the game, though players should prepare to face off against them all at some point.
The announcement trailer also shows Mewtwo making a return, seemingly fighting alongside his creator, while Giovanni himself throws out some remarks that might tug the nostalgia strings of series veterans.
Players will also be able to visit the Battle Agency, where they will don a special pair of sunglasses and rent three powerful Pokemon for one-on-one battles, where the goal is to battle through the ranks to become the top agent. The more you interact with players via local or wireless Internet, the stronger the Pokemon offered you will be.
If you fancied the Totem Pokemon from the original Pokemon Sun and Pokemon Moon, then you’ll be happy to know Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon offer you the chance to have a “Totem-like” Pokemon on your team by collecting Totem stickers. These stickers are scattered across Alola, rather like Zygarde cores were. How many you collect determines the Totem-style Pokemon you can have fight for you, and different Pokemon will be available depending on which version you play.
The Island Scan makes a return in Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon as well. This time around, the Scan makes it possible for Pokemon not originally in the Alola Pokedex to appear, including Charmander and Grovyle, among others.
Ultra Sun & Ultra Moon release worldwide November 17, but the Pokemon Company promised yet another information drop on November 10.
Be sure to check back for more updates, and let us know in the comments whether you’re excited for the new entries or plan on passing them by!