What does this mean for Sword and Shield? This means that the normal forms of Ponyta, Rapidash, Farfetch'd, Weezing, Corsola, Zigzagoon, Linoone, Darumaka, Darmanitan, and Stunfisk can now be used, among others. It's also worth pointing out that alternate forms of Pokemon already available in Sword and Shield are automatically compatible as well. I am a big fan of the Squirtle line, Jirachi, and Zekrom, so those are the ones I'll be transferring over almost immediately as soon as I get Pokemon Home. Many of those starters are fan favorites and several of those legendaries have never been available by normal means, so it makes sense that they are now compatible. While most other Pokémon are stuck in the purgatory that is Pokémon Home until they are possibly added in future expansions or updates, 35 new Pokémon across several previous generations can now be transferred and used in-game right away.Īs you can see, the new Pokemon compatible with Sword and Shield are Kanto and Alola starters and legendaries from a plethora of regions. With Pokémon Home, players can transfer Pokémon from previous games to Sword and Shield via a central database, but the process is limited by the scope of the Pokédex on these games. Nintendo had previously confirmed Pokémon Home would launch sometime in February, but the system's unannounced launch overnight into Wednesday took most fans by surprise.
The Isle of Armor and Crown Tundra expansions are expected to alleviate the Dexit problem further by adding even more Pokémon to the games, but these new additions are an important step forward for fixing the current state of the Pokédex. Pokémon Sword and Shield's "Dexit" controversy has plagued the games since before they were even released once fans realized the games have a short list of pocket monsters in the game, but with the surprise launch of Pokémon Home Wednesday morning, an additional 35 Pokémon were added to the Pokédex.