Pokémon developer Game Freak has apparently been hacked and it’s seemingly resulted in a large amount of data – from source code to future project details – leaking online.
While we won’t be going into too much detail, according to multiple reports already doing the rounds, source code for DS titles like Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver as well as Black and White 2 have surfaced online.
It’s also believed some codenames for the tenth generation of the Pokémon series have been discovered. This new generation is being referred to as ‘Gaia‘ (including two versions ‘K’ and ‘N’) and it’s believed the Switch successor (codenamed “Ounce” according to this leak) is the target platform although there could be tests for the current Switch platform as well.
Pokemon Legends: Z-A is reportedly known internally as ‘Ikkaku‘ and is believed to be in a fully playable state.
There’s also seemingly some evidence of a Pokémon title codenamed ‘Synapse‘. It supposedly could be a collaboration with ILCA, and is rumoured to be a multiplayer game. Apart from this, a bunch of unused Pokémon pixel art beta designs from multiple generations are now beginning to pop up on social media and elsewhere online.
Pokemon Legends: Z-A is the next project from Game Freak and was officially announced earlier this year in February. Its initial trailer confirmed the game would be set in Lumiose City and would be arriving on “Nintendo Switch systems” in 2025.
Nintendo (who has hosted the Pokémon games on its platforms for almost three decades now) has previously been caught up in some massive leaks itself, including the infamous ‘gigaleak’ which saw multiple projects, games and source code leaked.