Pokemon Sword & Shield DLC Announced, Adds New Pokemon, Areas, And More

Pokemon Sword and Shield are getting paid DLC. During last week's big Pokemon Direct presentation, Nintendo and The Pokemon Company announced an expansion pass for the Switch Pokemon games, which costs $30 USD and consists of two DLC packs that each add new environments, new Pokemon, over 100 clothing items, and much more to the adventure.

Isle Of Armor

The first expansion, dubbed Isle of Armor, arrives this June and allows players to travel to the eponymous island, which is home to a handful of new and returning Pokemon not found in Galar proper. The theme of this expansion is "growth." Among the new Pokemon players can discover here is the new Legendary, Kubfu, a Fighting-type bear that can evolve into Urshifu. Urshifu has two possible forms, Single Strike Style or Rapid Strike Style; the former is a Fighting/Dark-type, while the latter is Fighting/Water. Each of Urshifu's forms is also able to Gigantamax.

Players will encounter a few never-before-seen characters on the Isle of Armor as well, such as Mustard, a former Pokemon League Champion and Leon's mentor. Training under Mustard on the Isle of Armor is a new rival character, who will differ depending on which version you're playing. Pokemon Sword players will meet Klara, a cunning Poison-type trainer, while Shield players will face off against Avery, a gentlemanly Psychic-type trainer.

Crown Tundra

The second expansion, dubbed The Crown Tundra, will follow sometime this fall. The theme of this expansion is "exploration," and it's set in a new arctic area of the Galar region called the Crown Tundra. This area is likewise home to a variety of new and returning Pokemon, such as the new Grass/Psychic-type Calyrex.

Like the Wild Area, the Crown Tundra is dotted with a number of Max Raid dens, and this time you'll actually be able to enter and explore the dens with other players. Deep inside these dens, you'll have a chance to encounter Legendary Pokemon from previous titles. New Legendary Pokemon also lurk in these dens, including what appear to be Galarian forms of the Legendary birds Articuno, Zapdos, and Moltres.

New And Old Pokemon

As previously mentioned, each expansion introduces an assortment of new and returning Pokemon to Sword and Shield. You'll only be able to capture these Pokemon either on the Isle of Armor or in the Crown Tundra, but players who haven't purchased the expansion pass can still obtain the monsters through trading. There will also be new regional variants for some familiar Pokemon, such as Galarian Slowpoke. Unlike a Kantonia Slowpoke, this variant is a pure Psychic-type.

Expansion Pass Preview And Bonus

Following the Pokemon Direct, The Pokemon Company will roll out an update for Sword and Shield that lets players sample the new expansion pass content. After the update goes live, you'll be able to head to Wedgehurst Station and meet Klara or Avery, depending on which version you own. You'll also be able to catch a Galarian Slowpoke, whether or not you've purchased the expansion pass.

If you do pick up the pass, however, you'll get a special bonus: a Pikachu uniform and an Eevee uniform for your trainer. After purchasing an expansion pass, you'll receive a download code for the outfits via email, which you can then enter via Mystery Gift.

There was a lot more news in today's big Pokemon Direct presentation, including the reveal of a Pokemon Mystery Dungeon remake for Switch. You can catch up on more announcements from the broadcast below.