Pokemon UNITE (Switch, iOS & Android)

Titles	Pokémon UNITE ポケモンユナイト (Pokémon Yunaito) Chinese: 宝可梦大集结 / 寶可夢大集結 (Bǎokěmèng Dà Jíjié) · Korean: 포켓몬 유나이트
Platforms	Nintendo Switch (free download on the Nintendo eShop) · iOS and iPadOS (App Store) · Android (Google Play)
Developer	TiMi Studio Group (Tencent Games)
Publisher	The Pokémon Company (worldwide) · Tencent Games (mainland China)
Producer	Masaaki Hoshino
Players	Online only: 5-on-5 (Casual and Ranked), 4-on-4 and 3-on-3 (Quick Battle) · CPU matches and Solo Mode · cross-play between Switch and mobile
Genre	Multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA), real-time team strategy
Business model	Free-to-start, with optional purchases: Aeos gems, Battle Pass and UNITE Club membership
Pokémon	102 Unite licences covering 97 species (October 2026) · 20 at launch
Stages	Remoat Stadium and Theia Sky Ruins (5-on-5) · Mer Stadium, Shivre City and Auroma Park (Quick Battle)
Released	21 July 2021 (Nintendo Switch, worldwide) · 22 September 2021 (iOS and Android, 73 countries) · 20 January 2022 (Taiwan, mobile) · 7 November 2024 (mainland China, Tencent version)
Service ended	Netherlands and Belgium only (30 November 2025); live everywhere else
Rating	ESRB E10+ · PEGI 7 at launch · CERO A · ACB PG · GRAC ALL · GSRR 6+
Predecessor	None – the series’ first MOBA
Successor	None
Downloads	80 million+ by August 2022 · 100 million+ installs on Google Play (October 2026)

Overview · Quick Answers · Story · Roles, Stages & Worlds · Gameplay · Bosses · Pokémon · Updates & Events · Regional Variations · Videos · Trivia · Legacy · Downloads & Reviews · Media

Overview

Pokémon UNITE is the series’ first full-blown multiplayer online battle arena game: a free-to-start team battler made for The Pokémon Company by TiMi Studio Group, the Tencent Games studio behind Honor of Kings. Revealed in a Pokémon Presents on 24 June 2020, it arrived on Nintendo Switch on 21 July 2021 and on iOS and Android on 22 September 2021, and players on all three share the same matches and, once their accounts are linked, the same progress.

Everything happens on Aeos Island, where Trainers compete in Unite Battles. In the standard ten-minute match two teams of five, each player with a Pokémon from one of five roles, knock out wild Pokémon to collect Aeos energy and score it by standing in the other side’s goal zones. Every Pokémon starts the match at Level 1, so a Charmander has to earn its way to Charizard, learning new moves and finally a match-turning Unite Move as it goes. In the last two minutes every goal is worth double and a big boss such as Zapdos or Rayquaza appears, so a match is rarely settled until the buzzer.

Around that core sit quicker 3-on-3 and 4-on-4 Quick Battles, Ranked Match, a rotating calendar of event modes and, since February 2026, a single-player Solo Mode. The roster has grown from 20 Pokémon at launch to 102 playable licences by October 2026, picking up Legendary Pokémon, Mega Evolutions and all eight Eeveelutions along the way.

UNITE won Google Play’s Best Game of 2021 and the D.I.C.E. award for Mobile Game of the Year, passed 80 million downloads in about a year and was a World Championships event every year from 2022 to 2026. In 2027 it leaves Worlds for a championship of its own, the Pokémon UNITE Aeos Crown in Tokyo, while mainland China has had a separate version, published by Tencent, since November 2024.

Quick Answers

The questions people ask about Pokémon UNITE, answered first and explained further down the page.

Is Pokémon UNITE free, and is it pay-to-win?

It is free to download and play on Switch and mobile, and makes its money from Aeos gems, a Battle Pass and a UNITE Club membership. Most purchases are cosmetic Holowear, but reviewers at launch called out the paid routes to upgrading stat-boosting held items as pay-to-win. The later License Journey system changed how licences are earned through play. More →

Can you still play Pokémon UNITE in 2026?

Yes. As of October 2026 the game is live on Nintendo Switch, iOS and Android, with new Pokémon still arriving: Jolteon and Flareon joined on 13 October 2026. The exceptions are the Netherlands and Belgium, where service ended on 30 November 2025, and mainland China, which uses its own Tencent-published version. More →

Is Pokémon UNITE on Switch and phones, and do they play together?

Yes. It launched on Nintendo Switch on 21 July 2021 and on iOS and Android on 22 September 2021. Switch and mobile players share the same matchmaking, and progress carries across devices once accounts are linked. It is online-only, so even CPU matches and Solo Mode need an internet connection. More →

How many Pokémon are playable in Pokémon UNITE?

As of 21 October 2026 the international version has 102 playable Unite licences covering 97 species. Mewtwo has two licences (X and Y), and Charizard, Gyarados and Lucario also have separate Mega Evolution licences. The game launched with 20 Pokémon in July 2021; the mainland Chinese version has 77 licences. More →

How do you unlock new Pokémon in UNITE?

Each Pokémon needs a Unite licence. Early Trainer Levels and the Beginner Challenge hand out several free licences, including Slowbro at Level 3 and Venusaur at Level 5. Others come from the License Journey, which spends License Points earned from Battle Passes, events and Solo Mode, or can be bought with Aeos gems. Three trial licences rotate weekly. More →

Does Pokémon UNITE connect to Pokémon HOME or other Pokémon games?

No. UNITE is a standalone game with no Pokémon HOME link and no transfers: its Pokémon are licences that exist only for UNITE battles, and your progress lives on your UNITE account. Its ties to the wider series are promotional, such as Pokémon Presents reveals and World Championships viewing rewards. More →

Is Pokémon UNITE still part of the Pokémon World Championships?

Not after 2026. UNITE was a Worlds event from London 2022 to San Francisco 2026, where ZETA DIVISION won the final title. On 15 July 2026 Play! Pokémon announced that UNITE would leave the Championship Series and hold its own event, the Pokémon UNITE Aeos Crown 2027, in Tokyo in late March 2027. More →

Is the Chinese version of Pokémon UNITE different?

Yes. Mainland China received a separate Tencent-published version on 7 November 2024 after years of testing. It uses a hub world instead of a menu, has different modes and mechanics, and a smaller roster of 77 licences. Some of its ideas reached the international game from February 2025, starting with the First to 500 mode. More →

Story

UNITE keeps its story light. You play a rookie Trainer who sails to Aeos Island, a mythical island on an unexplored frontier of the ocean, to take part in Unite Battles. These are staged by the Unite Battle Committee and powered by Aeos energy, and each of the island’s stadiums stands over a spot where that energy gathers.

New arrivals are welcomed by Professor Phorus of the Aeos Research Institute and by the professor’s research partner Erbie, who runs the battles. Erbie lends you one of the institute’s Pikachu for the tutorial matches, then hands over a Unite licence of your own as a welcome gift.

Aeos energy also explains the rules. Pokémon are returned to Level 1 before every Unite Battle and grow again by gathering energy during the match, and the Holowear outfits sold by Zirco Trading are holograms made of the same stuff. There is no campaign or ending beyond that introduction: the backstory of the island and its stadiums is filled in by a free manga, covered under UNITE elsewhere.

Who’s who on Aeos Island

Professor Phorus

Head of the Aeos Research Institute, which studies the energy behind the island’s battles. The professor greets newcomers, explains Aeos Island and its unusual energy, and lets players spend Aeos energy on a random prize draw. Phorus is the friendly face of the lore rather than a battler.

Erbie

Professor Phorus’s research partner and the organiser of the Unite Battles. Erbie talks new Trainers through the tutorial, lending them the institute’s Pikachu for their first matches, then gives them a Unite licence so they can start a roster of their own, and stays their guide for battle tutorials.

• Zirco: Runs Zirco Trading, the Holowear shop. Holowear are holographic outfits made from Aeos energy, mostly for fully evolved Pokémon, and are bought with Aeos gems or Holowear tickets. The second chapter of the in-game manga, Zirco’s Holowear, is about the business, and Sableye even has a Zirco Trading Style outfit.
• The player: A newcomer whose avatar is dressed from the Aeos Emporium, with a Trainer card that can be posed and customised. Trainer Level, ranked tier and Battle Ribbons, awarded in green, blue and gold at 30,000, 85,000 and 165,000 Battle Points, show how far they have come.
• The Unite Battle Committee: Usually shortened to UBC, the body that stages the island’s tournaments and harnesses its energy. It also lends its name to the Unite Battle Committee shop, where licences and items are sold.

Roles, Stages & the World Championships

Three things give UNITE its shape: a roster split into five roles, a handful of stadiums on Aeos Island and a competitive scene that reached the Pokémon World Championships barely a year after launch. Between July 2021 and October 2026 the roster grew from 20 licences to 102, the ranked stage moved from Remoat Stadium to Theia Sky Ruins, and five world champions were crowned, from London in 2022 to San Francisco in 2026.

• 102Unite licences (97 species), October 2026
• 20Pokémon at launch, July 2021
• 5roles, from Attacker to Supporter
• 2022–26a World Championships event

The five roles

Every licence belongs to one of five roles, and each Pokémon is also either melee or ranged. A balanced team usually fields a mix, and this is how the roster splits today:

The stages of Aeos Island

Unite Battles are fought in purpose-built stadiums across Aeos Island: two full-size stages for the 5-on-5 games and three smaller ones for Quick Battles.

Remoat StadiumThe original 5-on-5 stage: a floating landmass of woods and beaches split into a Top Path, a Bottom Path and a Central Area, with five goal zones for each side. Rotom and Drednaw are its mid-game prizes and Zapdos its final boss. Remoat was the Ranked stage until September 2022, dresses up in snow and ice every winter and is now the home of First to 500.

Theia Sky RuinsAdded on 2 September 2022 and set among ancient ruins on a mountain high above Aeos Island, Theia is the largest stage, with wider paths, jump pads, a Superjump springboard and a pit in the middle. Regieleki and the three Regi golems hold the mid-game, Rayquaza arrives with two minutes to go, and variants led by Groudon and Kyogre have since joined the Ranked rotation.

The Quick Battle stagesMer Stadium is a smaller 4-on-4 cousin of Remoat with three goals a side, and plays host to many of the seasonal events. Shivre City is a 4-on-4 stage with a single goal zone for each team and Avalugg as its boss, while Auroma Park is a 3-on-3 stage where both teams fight over two shared goal zones, with Regigigas as the late prize.

UNITE at the World Championships

UNITE joined the Pokémon World Championships within a year of launch and stayed for five events, backed by a regional Championship Series. North American teams won the first two titles before Japan and Peru took over:

Gameplay

A Unite Battle is easy to pick up, but there is plenty going on underneath. These are the systems that decide a match, followed by the modes and the way the game is paid for.

How a Unite Battle works

Modes

The seven ranked tiers, lowest first: Beginner, Great, Expert, Veteran, Ultra, Master and Legend. The emblem shown is Master rank’s.

Solo ModeAdded on 26 February 2026, Solo Mode is UNITE’s first single-player progression. You work your way across a map styled on Theia Sky Ruins, and each stage is a full match with CPU teammates against a complete CPU team. Every stage has three missions, and clearing all of them earns a three-star rank and extra rewards. Opponents get tougher as you go, points from cleared stages buy stat boosts for your team in the Aeos Shooter shop, and a Hard mode opens once enough stages are done.

Event modesLimited-time modes rotate through the calendar. Halloween in Mer Stadium returns every October, and Snowball Battle in Shivre City turns knocked-out players into snowmen each December. Full-Fury Battle, Pika Party, Boss Rush in Auroma Park, the Eeveelution-only Eevee Appeal-o-rama and Panic Parade, a co-operative wave defence fought alongside Tinkaton, have all come back several times. Electrode Volleyball, a three-minute 3-on-3 mode from July 2025, has since become a permanent Quick Battle map.

Licences, currencies & Holowear

Licences and progressionTrainer Levels, earned through Battle Points, unlock features and free licences: Slowbro at Level 3, Quick Battle at Level 4, Venusaur at Level 5 and Ranked at Level 6. The License Journey groups licences into stages of up to five choices that cost the same number of License Points, which come from Battle Passes, Solo Mode and events. Three trial licences rotate each week (five for UNITE Club members), every Pokémon can be tried on Unite Weekend, the first weekend of each month, and Daily Energy Rewards and the Prize Machine add more random prizes.

Currencies and monetisationAeos gems are the premium currency, bought with real money and spent on licences, Holowear, Battle Passes and boosts, and a paid UNITE Club membership adds extras such as more trial licences. Aeos tickets, earned from ranked seasons, events and achievements, buy items and Item Enhancers. Aeos coins, once earned in battle and spent on licences, lost most of their uses in a later overhaul and were withdrawn in June 2026 after a period in which they could be converted into License Points. The price of premium Holowear drew criticism at launch.

Cross-play & teamwork

Cross-play and communicationSwitch and mobile players share the same servers and queues, and progress follows you between devices once your account is linked, so a licence bought on a phone works on Switch too. Because teamwork decides matches, there are pings and signals, quick-chat phrases and voice chat, and you can form squads and parties with friends. On Switch you play with buttons and the analogue stick, while phones use touch controls with virtual sticks. Signing in with a Facebook account stopped working on 30 September 2026.

UNITE stands apart from the rest of the series: there is no Pokémon HOME link, and nothing transfers in or out. Its connections with other games are promotional, from Pokémon Presents reveals to in-game rewards for watching the World Championships.

Wild Pokémon & Bosses

Beyond the lane and jungle Pokémon, every stage runs to a timetable of big objectives. Mid-game prizes push a lane or buff the team that wins them, and each stage’s final boss can turn a losing match around in seconds:

• ZapdosRemoat Stadium
• RotomRemoat Stadium
• DrednawRemoat Stadium
• RayquazaTheia Sky Ruins
• RegielekiTheia Sky Ruins
• RegiceTheia Sky Ruins
• RegirockTheia Sky Ruins
• RegisteelTheia Sky Ruins
• GroudonTheia variant
• KyogreTheia variant
• AvaluggShivre City
• RegigigasAuroma Park

The team that lands the final hit on Zapdos usually wins the match. Events shuffle the line-up: Articuno replaces Avalugg in Snowball Battle and Gigantamax Eevee does so in Eevee Appeal-o-rama, Boss Rush turns Regigigas into a raid boss for a full team, and a Shiny Rayquaza took over Theia Sky Ruins from 22 February to 12 March 2024.

Legacy Trainer Showdown

One event swapped wild bosses for famous faces. Legacy Trainer Showdown, first held from 9 September to 6 October 2022 and repeated in spring 2023, pitted a team of players against a CPU side of Leon, Korrina, Cynthia, Raihan and Green on Theia Sky Ruins, and Cynthia and Leon Solo Challenges carried the idea into 2024. The mode was retired when Solo Mode arrived in February 2026.

Pokémon

UNITE launched on 21 July 2021 with 20 playable Pokémon, from Pikachu and Charizard to the Mythical Zeraora, and new licences have arrived every few weeks ever since. By 21 October 2026 the international roster stood at 102 licences covering 97 species from all nine generations: Mewtwo counts twice through its X and Y licences, and Charizard, Gyarados and Lucario gained separate Mega Evolution licences in 2025. Dozens more Pokémon appear only as wild Pokémon and bosses.

Each playable Pokémon needs a Unite licence. A few come free through early Trainer Levels and the Beginner Challenge, the rest through the License Journey or for Aeos gems, and a rotating handful can be borrowed on trial each week.

The roster, year by year

Notable Pokémon

• PikachuLaunch Attacker
• SlowbroFirst free licence
• GardevoirFirst new arrival
• ZeraoraLaunch Speedster
• ZacianFirst Legendary
• MewtwoX and Y licences
• MiraidonPokémon Day 2024
• LucarioPlus Mega Lucario
• ZapdosBoss turned Attacker
• ArticunoBoss turned Defender
• FlareonEighth Eeveelution
• RayquazaBoss only

• Pikachu – A launch Attacker, and the partner Erbie lends every new player for the tutorial.
• Slowbro – A launch Defender and the first free licence, earned at Trainer Level 3.
• Gardevoir – The first Pokémon added after launch, on 28 July 2021.
• Zeraora – The Mythical Speedster in the 20-strong launch roster.
• Zacian – The first Legendary licence, on 27 February 2023; the team later admitted it had launched too strong.
• Mewtwo – Two licences through Mega Evolution: Mewtwo X as an All-Rounder (21 July 2023) and Mewtwo Y as an Attacker (17 August 2023).
• Miraidon – Paldea’s box Legendary, released as an Attacker on Pokémon Day 2024.
• Lucario – A launch All-Rounder that gained a separate Mega Lucario licence on 28 September 2025.
• Zapdos – Remoat Stadium’s long-serving final boss, playable as an Attacker since 27 February 2026.
• Articuno – The Snowball Battle boss, playable as a Defender since 10 April 2026, completing the Legendary birds with Zapdos and Moltres.
• Flareon – Joined with Jolteon on 13 October 2026, making all eight Eeveelutions playable.
• Rayquaza – Not playable: the final boss of Theia Sky Ruins since September 2022.

Updates & Events

UNITE is a live service, so the game you download today is a very different beast from the one that launched in 2021. These are its milestones, year by year:

2020 and 2021: reveal, tests and launch

After the June 2020 reveal, UNITE was tested in stages: a closed beta in mainland China, a regional Android beta in Canada and a three-day Switch network test in Japan. The Switch launch in July was followed by phones in September and by the first seasonal events in October and December.

2022: Worlds and a new stage

The first full year brought Tournament Mode, a public test server for trying new Pokémon before release, a World Championships debut and Theia Sky Ruins, which took Ranked Match away from the original stadium.

2023: the Legendaries arrive

Zacian opened the door to Legendary Pokémon on Pokémon Day, and the second anniversary in July brought Mewtwo and Panic Parade, a co-operative mode that has come back many times since.

2024: Miraidon and a version for China

Miraidon headlined Pokémon Day, a Shiny Rayquaza briefly took over Theia Sky Ruins, and in November mainland China finally got a version of its own, published by Tencent with a hub world and its own set of modes.

2025: First to 500 and the Megas

Ideas from the Chinese version began crossing over with First to 500, Electrode Volleyball arrived as a summer event, and Mega Lucario led a run of four Mega Evolution licences. The year ended with the game’s withdrawal from the Netherlands and Belgium.

2026: Solo Mode and a fifth birthday

UNITE’s fifth year has been one of its busiest. Solo Mode finally gave it a single-player path, Pokémon Day brought Zapdos and news of the Legendary birds and the Johto starters, and the game turned five on 21 July. Days earlier, on 15 July, Play! Pokémon had confirmed that UNITE would leave Worlds after San Francisco for a championship of its own.

Regional Variations

UNITE launched around the world on the same day, but where you live still shapes what you can play:

• Mainland China has its own version, published by Tencent Games on iOS and Android on 7 November 2024. It uses a hub world instead of menus, has different modes and mechanics and a smaller roster of 77 licences (74 species). A Switch version was tested there from 25 June to 2 July 2024 but never released, and some of its ideas have reached the international game since February 2025, starting with First to 500.
• UNITE is no longer available in the Netherlands or Belgium: UNITE Club sign-ups and Aeos gem sales stopped there on 31 October 2024, and the service closed on 30 November 2025.
• Japanese, English, Korean and Chinese were available at launch. German, French, Italian and Spanish arrived with the mobile release on 22 September 2021, six more languages followed on 20 January 2022, and Turkish, Russian and Hindi were withdrawn on 4 December 2025.
• The game reached more countries in stages: Taiwan got the mobile version on 20 January 2022, Cambodia, Laos and Sri Lanka on 16 July 2024, and Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand the Nintendo eShop version on 18 November 2025.
• Stage names are localised too: Remoat Stadium, for one, is Remota Stadium in Japanese and Stade Outremer in French.

Before release

UNITE changed a good deal between its 2020 reveal and launch. Early footage and pre-launch images show:

• The June 2020 reveal showed a forest-like stage with wild Stufful and Toxicroak. It was reworked into the beachside stadium players know, and those wild Pokémon were replaced before release.
• The same footage put Blastoise and Clefable on the selection screen, though neither made the launch roster: Blastoise arrived in September 2021 and Clefable not until October 2022.
• Early battle footage used a different HUD, with the level shown as a tank filling with experience and the HP counter in a hexagon rather than a Poké Ball icon, and some of Lucario’s move icons were mirrored.
• Pre-launch mobile images showed a Battle Pass paying out 40 and 20 Aeos tickets per reward (300 and 150 in the final game) and a season labelled Season First.
• Talonflame appeared in early menus as a static image rated Intermediate, with a moveset drop-down; the finished game uses animated 3D models and rates it Novice.

Videos & media

Trailers and Pokémon Presents broadcasts that follow UNITE from its reveal to its fifth year:

The June 2020 teaser that first showed UNITE to the world.

A cinematic trailer from the game’s own channel, released ahead of the Switch launch in July 2021.

The August 2021 Pokémon Presents, which put UNITE in the spotlight a month before the mobile launch.

The August 2023 Pokémon Presents, with UNITE news on Mewtwo and the Panic Parade mode.

Pokémon Day 2026, which confirmed the Legendary birds and the fully evolved Johto starters for UNITE.

Trivia & facts

• The lack of a live scoreboard in a standard match is deliberate: the developers have said that keeping the score hidden stops players giving up on a match they think is lost.

• 

  Mewtwo has two licences that play completely differently: Mewtwo X is a melee All-Rounder and Mewtwo Y a ranged Attacker.

• Jolteon and Flareon’s arrival on 13 October 2026 made all eight Eeveelutions playable, five years after Sylveon became the first of them to join in October 2021.

  

• Zapdos and Articuno were bosses long before they were playable. Zapdos has been Remoat Stadium’s final-stretch prize since launch, and Articuno stands in for Avalugg in the winter Snowball Battle.
• Shivre City’s name blends shiver with givre, the French word for frost, which is also where its Japanese name, Givre City, comes from.
• On Theia Sky Ruins, Diglett pop up beneath the jump pads and Dugtrio beneath the springboards, while Magnemite float around outside the stadium carrying cameras and screens.
• The Practice Area uses the Groudon version of Theia Sky Ruins, yet its menu button still shows Remoat Stadium.
• Producer Masaaki Hoshino, who had earlier worked on Pokkén Tournament, has named Absol, one of the launch Speedsters, as his favourite Pokémon in the game.
• Ahead of the 2023 World Championships, the UNITE team admitted in a producer letter that Zacian had been too strong at release, and promised that Legendary Pokémon would be added gradually, each with built-in weaknesses.

• 

  Holowear has made it into the anime: Pokémon such as Meowscarada, Quaquaval, Skeledirge and Sableye have worn UNITE outfits in Pokémon Horizons: The Series.

Legacy

What came after

• Announcement – 24 June 2020. Revealed in a Pokémon Presents as a joint project of The Pokémon Company and Tencent
• Nintendo Switch launch – 21 July 2021. A free-to-start release with 20 Pokémon
• iOS and Android launch – 22 September 2021. Released in 73 countries after more than 7.5 million pre-registrations, with cross-play from day one
• 25 million downloads – 4 October 2021. Across Switch and mobile, less than three months after launch
• 50 million downloads – 6 December 2021. Marked with free Aeos tickets for every player
• World Championships debut – 18 August 2022. BLVKHVND won the first UNITE world title in London
• Theia Sky Ruins – 2 September 2022. A new, larger stage that took over Ranked Match from Remoat Stadium
• Mainland Chinese version – 7 November 2024. A separate build published by Tencent, with a hub world
• Service ends in the Netherlands and Belgium – 30 November 2025. In-game sales there had already stopped in October 2024
• Solo Mode – 26 February 2026. The game’s first single-player progression mode
• Final World Championships appearance – 28 August 2026. ZETA DIVISION won UNITE’s last Worlds title in San Francisco
• Pokémon UNITE Aeos Crown 2027 – Late March 2027 (upcoming). A standalone championship in Tokyo, with online qualifiers due from November 2026

Where to play it today

Pokémon UNITE is still very much alive in October 2026. It is free to download from the Nintendo eShop, the App Store and Google Play, where it shows more than 100 million installs; the servers are running, new Pokémon keep arriving (Jolteon and Flareon joined on 13 October 2026), and Switch and mobile players still share matches and progress. The exceptions: the game has closed in the Netherlands and Belgium, mainland China has its own Tencent version, and signing in with Facebook stopped working on 30 September 2026. Competitive players now have the Pokémon UNITE Aeos Crown in Tokyo, in March 2027, to aim for.

How it was made

UNITE was built by TiMi Studio Group, the Tencent Games studio known for Honor of Kings, Arena of Valor and Call of Duty: Mobile, and was announced in a Pokémon Presents on 24 June 2020 as a partnership between The Pokémon Company and Tencent. It runs on the Unity engine. The reveal went down badly with many fans: the trailer became the most disliked video on The Pokémon Company’s YouTube channel.

Producer Masaaki Hoshino has said that he devised most of the goal-scoring motions and supervised the battle animations. Testing began with a closed beta in mainland China in January 2021, followed by a regional Android beta in Canada in March and a Japanese Switch network test from 24 to 26 June 2021. After launch, a public Android test server opened in June 2022 so that new Pokémon could be tried out before release, and a reworked Chinese build entered testing in August 2023.

UNITE elsewhere

Pokémon UNITE Manga – Come On Over to Aeos Island!A four-chapter manga by Hitoshi Ariga that fills in the backstory of Aeos Island and its stadiums. Chapters one and two were published internationally on 17 May 2022 and chapters three and four on 13 October 2022. It can be read free in the in-game Gallery, on the official UNITE websites and on Play Nintendo, in more than a dozen languages.

Pokémon Horizons: The SeriesIn episode HZ141 the Rising Volt Tacklers play their first Unite Battle, on Remoat Stadium against the Shining Oceans, and it is Zapdos that decides the result.

Esports beyond WorldsAlongside the World Championships, UNITE has had a regional Championship Series feeding into each final, and in January 2022 an AKB48 Group invitational was played during Pokémon Battle Festival Asia.

Worlds viewing rewardsWorld Championships broadcasts have come with in-game gifts for viewers. Twitch Drops for the 2026 event included a 2025 World Champion’s License Selector Box, 2026 Worlds Costumed Pikachu licence art and a 2026 Worlds logo sticker, and the 2025 event had UNITE drops and a sticker of its own.

Sales & reviews

Downloads

As a free-to-start game, UNITE is counted in downloads rather than copies sold. The Switch version alone passed 9 million downloads before the phone versions arrived, and the mobile launch on 22 September 2021 followed more than 7.5 million pre-registrations. The Pokémon Company then announced 25 million downloads across all platforms on 4 October 2021, 50 million on 6 December 2021, 70 million by April 2022 and 80 million by August 2022, marking several of those milestones with free Aeos tickets for every player. Sensor Tower estimated more than 30 million mobile downloads alone within about ten days of the mobile release, and by October 2026 the Google Play listing showed more than 100 million installs.

• 80m+downloads by August 2022
• 9m+Switch downloads before the mobile launch
• 100m+installs on Google Play (October 2026)
• 70on Metacritic (Switch)

Review scores

UNITE was reviewed mostly on Switch at launch in July 2021, and critics liked the short, readable matches a good deal more than the business model. GameSpot felt it “tries something new with the Pokemon brand and mostly succeeds”, while IGN called it “an entertaining casual MOBA constrained by its overcommitment to simplicity”. These are the main scores; OpenCritic has the full list of reviews.

Critics broadly liked the game underneath but were wary of how it makes its money. The Switch version settled at 70 on Metacritic and 68 on OpenCritic. Reviewers praised the brisk matches, clear objectives, distinctive move sets and slick animation, and plenty found it a friendly first MOBA, with Game Informer and Destructoid the keenest. Others thought the drive for simplicity left too little depth: IGN felt the streamlining held it back, and Digital Trends pointed to some strange design choices. The harshest words were saved for monetisation, above all the option to pay for upgrades to stat-boosting held items, the slow free route to new licences and the price of premium Holowear, and Nintendo Life wondered whether free players would stick around. Looking back later, Polygon acknowledged that balance had been a struggle in the early months.

Awards and honours:

Media & artwork

• Box art from Pokémon UNITE
• Official Pokémon artwork galleries from across the series

Further reading

More Switch, mobile and competitive Pokémon games on the site: