New Pokemon Sun and Moon Version Coming to Nintendo Switch - Report

Pokemon Sun and Moon may be getting a third version for Nintendo Switch.

That's according to Eurogamer, which claims "multiple sources" have told it this third Alolan adventure is currently titled Pokemon Stars--though that may just be a codename.

Stars was due for release in summer 2017, but has apparently been pushed back to "later in the year" following a brief development hiatus, required for Sun and Moon to be completed on time.

The game is being made at long-time Pokemon dev Game Freak, and it will feature higher-resolution assets enabled by the platform's greater power. It will, however, have the same map, journey, and art style as Sun and Moon--just as earlier third games in the series, like Crystal and Yellow, shared much common ground with Gold/Silver and Red/Blue before them.

If real, Stars would be the first mainline Pokemon game to ever appear on a Nintendo home console. Veteran Pokemon producer Junichi Masuda said recently that Game Freak was "already starting to think about the next title," and that the timing of release "will determine which platform we would release it on." This came after an earlier report saying the Switch would receive a new Pokemon, Mario, and Zelda game within six months of launching.

Pokemon Sun and Moon are out now in North America and Japan, while European players have to wait until November 23. Distributer Nintendo said recently that Sun and Moon are the "best pre-selling games in Nintendo history," while a connection between Pokemon Sun/Moon and Pokemon Go is still in the works.

Check out our Pokemon Sun and Moon review in progress for more on the pair of critter-collecting games.