New Pokémon game earns rave reviews to become highest-rated game in franchise history

Upcoming Pokémon spin-off Pokémon Pokopia has certainly gone down well with critics, managing to rack up the highest Metacritic score in Pokémon history.

First announced during the September 2025 Nintendo Direct, Pokopia comes from the studio behind fellow RPG spin-off Dragon Quest Builders, Omega Force.

It combines the creature collection elements of the Pokémon series with the life simulation elements of the likes of Animal Crossing, seeing players revamp a seemingly deserted island to attract Pokémon and humans back.

While players are yet to get their hands on the title, critics – ourselves included – have lauded the game, launching Pokopia to an impressive 88 rating on review aggregator Metacritic.

At the time of writing, this places Pokopia neck and neck with Resident Evil Requiem and fantasy CRPG Esoteric Ebb as the joint highest-rated game of 2026.

Perhaps more impressively, however, is that this 88 rating also means Pokopia is now the highest-rated Pokémon game of all time on the website, according to critic reviews.

Although technically sharing the top spot with Pokémon Y, the presence of its counterpart Pokémon X one point below on an 87 rating gives Pokopia the bragging rights as a standalone title.

It's an impressive achievement, managing to eclipse several other franchise heavy hitters including Pokémon Sun and Moon, Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver, and Pokémon Black and White, all of which sit alongside X at an 87 rating.

It also represents a significantly higher score than any Pokémon game has had in recent years.

2022's Pokémon Legends: Arceus had been the last title in the series to score above 80, while Sun and Moon were the last to breach an 85-rating way back in November 2016.

Pokopia arrives at the start of Pokémon's 30th anniversary year in which there have already been ports of the classic GBA titles FireRed and LeafGreen.

With the upcoming Pokémon Champions spin-off and next year's 10th Generation Pokémon Winds and Waves now confirmed, both Nintendo and Game Freak will be hoping that Pokopia is the start of a turning tide back towards critical acclaim for the series.

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