Pokémon Winds & Waves Reveals New Starter Trio Designs for 30th Anniversary

Pokémon Winds and Waves was announced earlier this year and is set to arrive in 2027. So far, The Pokémon Company hasn't revealed much about the upcoming title, but they did show off the game's starter trio, Fire-type Pombon, the Grass-type Browt, and the Water-type Gecqua. Now, an official anniversary release has given fans another look at these new starters.

There have been leaks hinting at what the evolved forms of Pombon, Browt, and Gecqua will look like, along with their secondary typings, but this art only shows off their original forms. It also features some adorable designs for other Pokémon starters, with beloved Pokémon like Squirtle and Sprigatito playing instruments.

Pokémon Officially Reveals a New Look at the Winds and Waves Starter Trio

While Pokémon Winds and Waves won't be releasing this year, The Pokémon Company has found numerous other ways to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the biggest multimedia franchise in history. These celebrations will continue through the end of the year, with examples including the special 30th anniversary Pokémon TCG set that just launched, and the release of a Pokémon artbook featuring work from all nine past generations in December.

This October, Pokémon will be sharing its anniversary with another major brand. The NHK Symphony Orchestra in Japan, originally founded as the New Symphony Orchestra in 1926, will be celebrating its 100th anniversary, and it's teaming up with The Pokémon Company to celebrate their mutual time to shine together.

The NHK Symphony Orchestra × Pokémon Classic Concert Tour is an official collaboration occurring in Japan and, tying into this momentous occasion, is official new artwork of every Starter Pokémon. This includes the Generation X Starters: Browt, Pombon, and Gecqua.

Drawn by illustrator SowSow, and posted to their X account, @sowsowkoubou, showcases Bulbasaur, Charmander, Squirtle, Chikorita, Cyndaquil, Totodile, Treeko, Torchic, Mudkip, Turtwig, Chimchar, Piplup, Snivy, Tepig, Oshawott, Chespin, Fennekin, Froakie, Rowlet, Litten, Popplio, Grookey, Scorbunny, Sobble, Sprigatito, Fuecoco, and Quaxly all playing different musical instruments. Then, underneath all of them are Browt, Pombon, and Gecqua just looking adorable.

It remains unclear when fans will get their first looks at the evolved forms of the Generation X Starters but, for now, it's clear to all that Browt, Pombon, and Gecqua look positively precious in Sowsow's art style. It's also far from the only thing that casual fans have to look forward to.

Earlier this year, Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen were ported to Nintendo Switch 2, complete with new quality of life upgrades and access to special events that relatively few players were able to access legitimately before. Now, it's been leaked that Pokémon Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald, the aforementioned games' GBA siblings, will be joining them on the Switch 2 in either September or October.

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