As we approach the “oh god everything is launching at once” period of the game release calendar, Pokémon Pokopia feels like the defining game of the year thus far. It’s the first console-moving game for the Nintendo Switch 2, and few things have gotten their hooks into me (and my whole family) quite like it. Now, with the arrival of Pokémon Pokopia Expansion Pass—Part 1: Bubbly Basin, the first of three installments in the game’s expansion eass DLC, this delicious time-sink of a game has become all the more appealing.
Nintendo has established a sort of cadence for expansion packs in its big first-party games, or at least for Pokémon games, and by this point I had a pretty good feeling about what Bubbly Basin would bring to Pokémon Pokopia‘s table. Those expectations were fulfilled pretty well, making an already satisfying game all the richer.
Pokémon Pokopia Expansion Pass—Part 1: Bubbly Basin helps do away with one of the more dastardly pitfalls of an otherwise no-risk game: the threat of getting stuck in the water. Previously, if your Ditto spent too long underwater, you’d be warped back to safe, dry land. No more, though. As of the game’s update that added the DLC, a new free update allows players to learn the move Dive from Manaphy, provided you’ve advanced far enough in Bleak Beach, the second town. Dive alone is a huge addition to the game, and thankfully it’s not gated behind the expansion pass.
“Speaking of neighbours, there are about 50 new Pokémon in Pokémon Pokopia Expansion Pass—Part 1: Bubbly Basin, filling out the game’s somewhat lacking base roster of water-related critters. “
The integration of this new update is handled rather well. More witty dialogue addresses the fact that there are convenient new landmasses, like the island where Manaphy is found or the underwater gate that leads to the Bubbly Basin itself. It’s also situated nicely amidst the rest of the game’s progression—should they own the expansion pack, latecomers to Pokémon Pokopia are going to have quite the feast of content by the time they finish in the original coastal town, without necessarily ruining the pacing of the other two zones from the base game.
Once players arrive in Bubbly Basin proper, the familiar process of restoring a new town’s environment level begins anew, but with the added twist of being underwater. The vast majority of the map is submerged, with only a few smatterings of land or buildings jutting up out of the sea. Dive integrates seamlessly with the usual controls, with the added freedom of being able to move vertically, so the processes of exploring and building are reinvigorated naturally.
As quest lines go, the town of Bubbly Basin is not quite as robust as the core game towns, but it more than makes up the difference in exploration and restoration potential. Cerulean City in Kanto has virtually sunk into the sea, with some buildings split in half and other structures buried beneath rock—meaning that this map was every bit as fascinating to poke around in as Rocky Ridges or Sparkling Skylands.
If you enjoyed finding lost signs of civilization and rebuilding the other towns to somewhat resemble their previous designs, you’ll have a grand time under the sea. I was pleasantly surprised to stumble upon some buried structures in unexpected spots, while the game feeds exploration with a small subquest involving treasure maps. The maps point to hidden chambers, where pieces of a special habitat can be found—allowing the restoration of one of my new favourite allusions to other Pokémon media in the game.
There are also new literal and metaphorical depths to explore, continuing Tears of the Kingdom‘s subconscious dominance over the Nintendo design space. The darkest, deepest corners of the sea require Pokémon assistance and diligent use of light-based objects to plumb. In reality, these areas aren’t really that substantial; they’re a neat yet thin layer of exploration, not a dedicated feature, like the similar Depths were to TOTK.
Above the pitch-black regions, Bubbly Basin is a good-sized map, with plenty of ground to explore and to make into your own bustling underwater village. And that’s a good thing, as players are left more hands-off this time around to apply what they’ve learned elsewhere to improve the environment and discover more neighbours.
Speaking of neighbours, there are about 50 new Pokémon in Pokémon Pokopia Expansion Pass—Part 1: Bubbly Basin, filling out the game’s somewhat lacking base roster of water-related critters. This means almost as many new habitats, which means a whole host of new furniture items, crafting recipes, and other natural components like crops. These enrich the larger catalogue, and I’d be curious to use them in other (drier) environments.
Among the additions is a blender item, used with new sea grape crops to make smoothies, which power up the move Surf. Normally Surf can’t be used while Diving, but down a smoothie and you’ll be able to transform into Lapras underwater for as long as your stamina holds. It’s not quite as universally helpful as Magnet Rise, but it does drain less stamina and makes getting around underwater smoother.
I admit I was hoping for a touch more of a “plot” to this area, but having another big ol’ sandbox to play around in is just as good. In that way, Bubbly Basin enriches Pokémon Pokopia, rounding out an already impressive main game with a dedicated space devoted to water types. “More Pokopia” is exactly what I’ve been asking for since March, and it’s exactly what Nintendo has delivered.
That being said, I do have to wonder about the rest of the expansion pass’s fate. Pokémon Pokopia Expansion Pass—Part 2 will add new “accessories” for your Ditto and Pokémon friends, while the third part will add another new zone altogether. With any luck, we’ll head to a version of Lavender Town and get a town revolving around Ghost types, or a frozen city where we can fill in the Ice-types missing from our Pokédexes.
Part 2 doesn’t sound quite as inspiring, unless something’s hiding up Nintendo’s sleeves. But if the expansion pass has two sections of this calibre, I can easily recommend its purchase to anyone who blinked and lost an afternoon or evening to playing the original game and still wants more ground to explore. Pokémon Pokopia Expansion Pass—Part 1: Bubbly Basin was just the right add-on to hook me back in for another go-around post-apocalyptic Kanto.
- Pokémon Pokopia Expansion Pass
