Pokémon Winds & Waves Leaked Screenshot Confirms Brand-New Pokémon

Published Sep 1, 2026, 9:21 AM EDT Chris is a Gaming Editor at ScreenRant. He has been a professional writer since 2009, and has written for top TV, comics, movie, and video game outlets like Engadget, Polygon, Destructoid, and more. He brings with him an expertise in every game genre, no matter how niche or mainstream. You may know him as the former Managing/Reviews Editor of Destructoid, where he published hundreds of game reviews across every genre, including MMOs, sports games, and Metroidvanias. Find Chris on Twitter @_SRChris. Pokémon Winds & Waves is already making a huge splash, as it were. We barely know anything about it outside a single launch trailer (which only shows existing Pokémon and the three starters), but thanks to a ton of leaks, we have an idea of what to expect when it arrives sometime in 2027. Generation 10 feels like a huge milestone for the series, and it's set to launch a year after the series' 30th anniversary. It's not only a testament to Pokémon's dogged persistence; it also has thepotential to be the biggest game in the series yet, both in terms of its open world and commercially. For now, we have a bit of info via X on another Gen 10 Pokémon set to make its debut. Thanks to info from Centro Leaks, the Pokémon Winds & Waves beta bag UI has leaked. It looks very similar to previous games (including Pokémon Z-A), which isn't surprising. If Game Freak uses this version, we could keep seeing sprite-based characters on the selection screen, which would be a nice nostalgic touch. So far, fans are mixed on the UI, but some are accepting of it: "Definitely better than SV’s. I still do wish these menus could be a bit more stylish and not just be an overlay over the screen. If it’s going to cover the whole screen anyway, it can stand to do more visually, but the cursor looking a bit more detailed is a good step." Although the screenshot is interesting on its own, it also shows a placeholder image of Moltres and the name "Gokurakucho," which roughly translates to "Paradise Bird" in Japanese. Some fans are hoping that the Kanto Legendary Bird Trio will also return in some capacity (as well as Zarude, which is the only Mythical that is not currently in any game). This would align perfectly with the fact that Winds & Waves is based on Indonesian islands, but since Game Freak and Nintendo haven't revealed the name of the region yet, we'll have to wait for more info to properly speculate on other Pokémon. Pokémon Winds & Waves feels like it's coming at a perfect time, even if it feels late compared to the Gen 9 release. Currently, we're in the biggest wait in series history of five years, following previous generations: three years from Gen 1 to Gen 2, four years from Gen 2 to Gen 3, four years from Gen 3 to Gen 4, another four years from Gen 4 to Gen 5, three years from Gen 5 to Gen 6, three years from Gen 6 to Gen 7, three years from Gen 7 to Gen 8, and yet another three year gap between Gens 8 and 9. If Pokémon returns in a big way in 2027, it'll have the momentum of the 30th anniversary behind it. Released 2027 Developer(s) Game Freak Publisher(s) The Pokemon Company, Nintendo Multiplayer Online Co-Op, Online Multiplayer Prequel(s) Pokemon Scarlet and Violet Franchise Pokemon Number of Players Single-player