Pokémon surprise released a new puzzle game yesterday (July 22) but fans aren’t impressed with Friends
A 24-minute long Pokémon Presents took place yesterday, with updates on Legends: Z–A, new multiplayer game Champions, the official Trading Card Game and the upcoming second season of Netflix show Pokémon Concierge. During the livestream, new puzzle game Pokémon Friends was also announced and made available to download instantly.
“Pay a visit to Think Town, a place where thinking is fun, with Pokémon Friends, now available on Nintendo Switch and iOS and Android devices,” reads the official announcement. “Put your brain to work untangling more than 1,200 puzzles, and earn yarn as you unravel them. The only thing better than Pokémon-themed puzzles is growing your in-game collection of Pokémon plush. Put the yarn you earn into the Plush-O-Matic to make your very own! You can decorate your customisable plush rooms with your new plush or help out the residents of Think Town by sharing your plush with them.”
Pokémon Friends, a new game where you tackle over 1200 puzzles and make virtual Pokémon plush, is available now!
Play today: https://t.co/WkWYXqmhkx pic.twitter.com/CWJu3hDIy9
— Nintendo of America (@NintendoAmerica) July 22, 2025
A free-to-play version of the family-friendly game is available to play on mobile but if you want to take on more than one set of puzzles a day, you’ll need to buy the Basic Pack which costs £9.99. Two ‘Puzzle On! Packs’ are also available for £14.99 each, that add new puzzles and plushs to the game. Meanwhile the Switch version of Pokémon Friends costs £7.99 with a pair of ‘Puzzle On! Packs’ also available for £14.99 each.
“…they’re CHARGING for this???” reads the top-rated comment on Reddit. “10 dollars for mobile game puzzles lmao. This might be the single most out of touch thing Pokémon/GameFreak has ever made,” says another. “These are like the free flash mini games they used to have on their website to promote their new games. I can’t believe they’re charging separately for this,” wrote another fan.
“Why is Pokémon addicted to releasing crappy phone apps that not many people will play yet they don’t want to release the old Pokémon games on Nintendo Switch Online,” asked one fan.
Next year is the 30th anniversary of Pokémon and Nintendo had been teasing yesterday’s Presents more than usual, with many fans expecting some big announcements about the future of the franchise or the classic games finally being made available on the Switch 2. However, beyond Pokémon Friends, no new information was shared. “Extremely underwhelming,” wrote one fan.
In other news, video game fans have been remembering Ozzy Osbourne’s iconic adverts for PlayStation’s virtual reality PSVR2 headset and World Of Warcraft following his death yesterday.
English (US) · 