Games like Pokemon Winds and Waves could eventually move away from the classic turn-based combat system that has defined the franchise for three decades, according to Pokemon Champions director Kazumasa Iwao. Pokemon Winds and Waves were announced earlier this year and will represent the tenth generation of the franchise, making them the direct follow-up to Pokemon Scarlet and Violet, which launched on Nintendo Switch in 2022.

Pokemon Winds and Waves are scheduled to release in 2027, but few concrete details about the games have been revealed so far. Several leaks have circulated, though The Pokemon Company and Game Freak have officially confirmed just three new Pokemon: Browt, Pombon, and Gecqua. The three Pokemon will serve as the starters for Gen 10.

In a new video published on Game Freak's YouTube channel, Pokemon Champions director Kazumasa Iwao discussed how the competitive game's existence could give the developer more freedom to experiment with the combat system in future mainline Pokemon titles.

Pokemon Champions has become the franchise's hub for competitive battles, preserving the traditional battle system that fans have used since the earliest games.

According to Iwao, keeping that classic system in Pokemon Champions allows Game Freak to make changes "little by little" in future games without completely abandoning the mechanics longtime players know.

"There are people who have battled for decades since Pokemon Red/Green or Pokemon Gold/Silver, so we didn't want to say like 'it's changed now, so please buy and play the new games.' That wouldn't be good," says Iwao. "However, at Game Freak, we always want to challenge ourselves by doing new things with the series, but we don't want to throw away the battle system that we've built until now.

Because of this, we thought it would be good to put the battle system we've constructed into one game that you can keep playing, and that's where the development of Pokemon Champions began."While the core battle system has remained recognizable since 1996, Game Freak has continued to introduce significant changes with each new generation. The series has added new types such as Dark, Steel, and Fairy, along with held items, abilities, and mechanics such as Terastallization.

Pokemon Scarlet and Violet also introduced auto battles, allowing Pokemon to fight wild creatures independently while exploring the overworld. Meanwhile, the Pokemon Legends games have provided Game Freak with an opportunity to experiment even further, with Pokemon Legends: Z-A introducing a real-time battle system.

It's unclear whether the changes hinted at by Iwao will begin with Pokemon Winds and Waves or appear in a later generation. However, the comments suggest that Game Freak is considering ways to evolve the series' combat without completely abandoning the mechanics that have kept longtime players invested. Other major RPG franchises have already moved away from traditional turn-based systems, with Final Fantasy being one of the most prominent examples.

The existence of Pokemon Champions could give Game Freak a way to balance both approaches. Players who want the traditional competitive battle system can continue using Pokemon Champions, while the mainline games could experiment with new mechanics and combat systems without forcing longtime competitive players to abandon the format they have spent decades mastering.

At this time, it remains unclear when more information about Pokemon Winds and Waves will be revealed. Since the Nintendo Switch 2 games are not scheduled to launch until 2027, The Pokemon Company appears to be revealing information gradually.

Pokemon Winds and Waves received a behind-the-scenes video about its main theme in May, but little else has been shown in the months since. As 2027 approaches, however, Game Freak will likely begin revealing more about what players can expect, including whether the series' traditional combat system is about to undergo its biggest change yet.