Published , by Brittany Vincent
Published , by Brittany Vincent
Pokemon Sword and Shield will feature some particularly exciting ways to jazz up Pokemon battles, including the series' first online multiplayer raids and a way to make your Pokemon quite literally larger than life.
Dynamaxing is a new process that's found specifically in some locations throughout the Galar region. It allows Pokemon to take on enormous appearances during battle, becoming larger than the trainers and other Pokemon themselves. Not only do they become ridiculously large, but they're also temporarily given power boosts and gain tremendous strength for three turns in battle. Pokemon can only be Dynamaxed once per battle, and then after the three turns have passed, the Pokemon will return to its normal form. Trainers must use a Dynamax Band to use the ability.
While Dynamaxed, the Pokemon's moves will be transformed into Max Moves, which are extremely powerful and formidable abilities. Some can also trigger different effects. The Normal-type Max Move, Max Strike, may lower the Speed stat of its opponent. What Max Moves your Pokemon can use will vary wildly depending on what kind of Pokemon you're using and the moves they knew before Dynamaxing.
Dynamaxing will be an important part of the new Max Raid Battle format, which will take place in the new Wild Area. Players can team up with three other Trainers to fight against a wild Dynamaxed Pokemon. They can work together to try and defeat it, then capture it, but it will be a difficult battle. The wild Dynamaxed Pokemon will remain in that form the entire battle instead of just three turns. Only one Trainer in the battle will have the ability to Dynamax in return, so you'll have to be strategic about how you handle these transformations.
Some Pokemon can only be caught via Max Raid Battles, so you'll definitely want to recruit friends via local wireless play on Nintendo Switch or by going online with Nintendo Switch Online. And if you don't have three other friends to play with, support Trainers will be automatically added to the battle to ensure you can still participate, meaning Max Raid Battles will be available for all.
Pokemon Sword and Shield will debut on November 15, 2019 on Nintendo Switch.