The ocean floor is officially open in Pokémon Pokopia, with the version 2.0.0 update arriving today on Switch 2 alongside Bubbly Basin, the first part of the game’s paid Expansion Pass. The free update delivers the Dive move promised back in June, letting players move freely underwater, and the Build specialty now works down there too, so underwater houses are now a possibility. Strength can also be used beneath the surface, new items like the portal pod and safe have been added, and new recipes can be purchased after raising Palette Town’s environment level.
Bubbly Basin builds on that foundation with a new underwater town stocked with extra furniture, new outfits for Ditto, and more Pokémon to meet. As we covered in June, reaching it requires learning Dive from the free update and clearing the request Raise the environment level! in Bleak Beach, and the Expansion Pass is available on the Nintendo eShop with two more parts still to come.
On the cosmetic side, update 2.0.0 adds the dynamic Ditto print pattern, obtained by talking to Smearguru after acquiring the diploma, along with the Lie Down and Ready, Set, Go! emotes found in Bleak Beach and on Dream Islands, plus five new hair colors: orange, light pink, yellow-green, blue-green, and brown.
The quality of life list is long, and it addresses a lot. Items can now be moved in bulk between the storage box and bag, lost relics can be appraised in batches of up to 10, and Paint, Gather Honey, and Collect can all be performed multiple times in a single interaction. Crafting now pulls materials from a storage box next to the workbench before dipping into your bag, the placement limit for power generators has doubled from 64 to 128, and towns can now display 40 different photos, up from 10. Pokémon companions can finally follow you while using Surf, Glide, Rollout, or Magnet Rise, Rollout can smash large boulders, Surf can be activated from land, and both the Pokédex and Habitat Dex get an All tab. There are some thoughtful touches in there as well, like Pokémon moving back into rebuilt habitats, noticing more quickly when removed furniture is replaced, and responding in kind when you use an emote they taught you. New settings cover motion-sickness reduction for the camera and movement while the move wheel is open.
The fixes are just as extensive, taking care of issues like Suicune and Gholdengo being unable to travel across water, Pokémon occasionally falling into the ocean or off cliffs when leaving their habitats, loading problems when returning from Dream Islands, multiplayer builds that couldn’t be completed or canceled, and a batch of painting bugs.
In my review, I called Pokémon Pokopia the best Pokémon game I’ve ever played and said I could easily see myself pouring another 60 hours into it. Between underwater towns and two more Expansion Pass parts on the way, it looks like I’ll get the chance.
