Shuffling in Alola

Pokémon Shuffle on the 3DS just updated, and it's a good and big one, because now the Pokémon of the seventh generation from the region of Alola are available for play. Actually, the seeds of this update had been sown a few weeks earlier as the game itself had a major update (that required downloading from the eShop) to display the starters of Alola on its preview image and splash screen, in addition to a few fixes. However, the Pokémon denizens of Alola were nowhere to be seen in the game itself... until today, when the check-in extra data brought forth new stages with the seventh-generation Pokémon.

And there are lots of those new stages. In addition to 30 new main stages, half of which are repeat Pokémon for boosters, plus one new expert stage, all the special stages are for Alolan denizens, including new Daily Pokémon and a new Pokémon Safari. The good thing is that you have the course of two weeks for most of these special stages, so you can take time for some of them, but I still suggest that you use up as many of your Hearts as possible since they're all new stages for all players. That's what I am doing right now even as I write this.

Now that the Pokémon of the seventh generation are in, I'm intrigued if the game will later on update to allow Z-Crystals to be used, as they have some semblances (and are analogous, as a major new game mechanic) to Mega Evolution, which is already in the game from the very start. Mega Evolution is already implemented in a unique way - using a gauge - so Z-Crystals might have either something similar or completely different. Regardless, the expectation is that should they make it in, Z-Crystals could be obtained in the same way as Mega Stones: through specific stages or by competitions. Also, it's not too far of a stretch for this to happen, since Pokémon Enhancements had been added in an early form between major updates and refined since. So this remains to be seen.

This is the first time that I've seen a Pokémon game with a direct generational update; most games tend to stick to Pokémon up to the generation when it was introduced and are never updated, though in the past that was because the system didn't allow games to be updated. With the 3DS, updates are possible for games, so anything could happen, even generational updates like this. It's hard to foresee if Shuffle will survive into a future eighth generation, but it's at least a fancy thought. For now I'm just glad that Shuffle has taken things into the seventh generation, and it really makes me feel I'm "Shuffling" in Alola. ☺