6 Pokémon Regions That Need To Be Revisited

Published Aug 16, 2026, 10:00 AM EDT

Tom Wilson is a Gaming Features Writer at Screen Rant. Over the past five years, Tom has worked as the Editor-in-Chief at The Game Crater, as a Staff Writer for GamingIntel, a List Writer at TheGamer, and, of course, as a Senior Writer at ScreenRant. Tom has experience writing reviews, guides, news, and features, and has been responsible for teams of writers, training them and editing their work.

Tom graduated with a Masters in Multimedia Journalism, and has since gone on to build up his portfolio of games journalism work.

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Across the many mainline Pokémon games, fans have been treated to a variety of richly detailed, excitingly vibrant, and utterly diverse regions to explore. While the Pokémon one catches within said regions serve as the compelling reward worth chasing, the region itself is often the star of the show, its stunning biomes and history providing a fascinating backdrop within which one can truly immerse themselves.

However, as great as many of the best Pokémon regions have been, some simply haven't quite gotten the chance they truly deserve. Whether it is due to a botched initial execution or hardware limitations (or occasionally both), there are a handful of Pokémon regions that should absolutely be revisited, either in a new mainline game, remake, or spin-off. As we all eagerly anticipate the next major Pokémon region, it is worth looking back on the series' history and seeing which locations it should return to.

6 Kalos

Game Freak

Technically, Kalos has appeared more than once beyond its original presence in Pokémon X and Y. The spin-off game Pokémon Legends: Z-A was set in Lumiose City, the major hub of the Kalos region and an explorable location in X & Y. Of course, for Legends Z-A, the Paris-inspired city was expanded significantly, making it a game-sized sandbox to explore. However, not only was Legends: Z-A significantly disappointing, but its portrayal of Lumiose City was underwhelming at best.

Copy and pasted buildings, flat textures, and a lack of innovation made Lumiose City feel like a far less interesting place in Legends: Z-A than the far smaller version was in Pokémon X and Y. Additionally, there is so much more to the Kalos region than its massive city, and all of it deserves another shot in the spotlight. Perhaps a spin-off more akin to Legends: Arceus that explores the region in a completely different time period would better suit Kalos than a dull interpretation of one small part of it.

5 Galar

Galar, for those who've understandably forgotten, was the region featured in Pokémon Sword and Shield. Considering it was the first region not to be locked to an exclusively handheld device, expectations of it were rather high. When Game Freak teased its semi-open-world area, many, naturally, got excited thinking about all of the possibilities. However, it is fair to say that Galar never quite managed to live up to our lofty expectations and fell a little flat.

That isn't to say, however, that there is nothing redeeming about Galar. In fact, its England-inspired region design is rather charming, as too is its approach to variety and diversity in its biomes. Pokémon Sword and Shield has some of the most creative region design in the series' history, but it is let down by the limitations of the hardware it was running on and Game Freak's ambitions. A more ambitious remake or sequel set within Galar would be able to do the gorgeous design of the region justice.

4 Alola

Alola took the mainline series in a completely different direction, and, for that, it will always be appreciated. While other spin-off titles had tried a multi-island approach to region design in the past, Alola's attempt was incredibly impressive and ambitious, with each island players explored offering something completely new. It worked wonders for Pokémon Sun and Moon's unique structure, and looks set to be repurposed for Winds and Waves.

However, Alola shouldn't be trapped on the Nintendo 3DS forever. Pokémon Sun and Moon are easily some of the best-looking games on the platform (and potentially even some of the best Pokémon games of all time), but they're still held back by the limitations of Nintendo's handy handheld. It could absolutely do with the type of glow-up only the Nintendo Switch 2 can provide, especially after seeing just how impressive Winds and Waves' water physics are.

3 Unova

Unova, the region of Pokémon Black and White, is my personal favorite, and easily one of the best in the series' long history. Much like Kalos, it sports an impressively designed city that absolutely deserves the home console remake treatment, as well as a smattering of beautiful and incredibly diverse areas surrounding it that similarly need a graphical overhaul. That isn't to say that what Game Freak achieved visually in Black and White isn't impressive, but more that there is undeniably scope to enhance it further.

As incredible as Castelia City is in Pokémon Black and White, and as much as Game Freak's attempts at making it feel truly alive were impressive, the sense of scale is completely off. Unova is far too special to be left to just two entries, so a remake or even a spin-off should be considered. While Black and White is often overshadowed by Diamond and Pearl, there was so much it did better, region design being one of them, that it deserves credit for, and a spin-off highlighting those achievements would help tremendously with that.

2 Almia

Many may be unfamiliar with the Pokémon region Almia, and that is absolutely understandable. It belongs to one of the very best Pokémon spin-off games, Pokémon Ranger: Shadows of Almia, and is thus far less recognizable, by name at least, to those who stick with the mainline series. What made it, and the series as a whole, so special was its approach to Pokémon themselves, as it envisioned a world in which they walked side by side with humans, and were looked after by the titular rangers.

It is a shame that The Pokémon Company has all but abandoned the majority of its greatest spin-off series, Ranger included, as this concept of Pokémon roaming wild, even in cities, has a lot of room and potential for growth and exploration (something that Legends: Z-A should have dealt with but barely scratched the surface of). It would also be nice to see the spin-off games get a bit more recognition and a chance at stepping back into the limelight, if only tangentially through their respective regions.

1 Paldea

Paldea had the potential to be something truly special. It was the very first open-world Pokémon region, a concept that has inspired and excited fans for generations, and is largely based on Spain and Portugal, two countries known for their vibrant culture, history, and gorgeous countryside. Sadly, Pokémon Scarlet and Violet's well-documented technical woes meant that Paldea never had a chance to shine, a problem that was further compounded by Game Freak's poor approach to open-world design.

Paldea never felt open, at least not until the end of the game after the player has unlocked every movement ability. Each segment of the map is locked behind the aforementioned abilities, which makes it feel more like a traditional linear Pokémon region with some open space. Towns were bereft of life, the wastes between each one similarly feeling static, and the level of diversity was far more simplistic than previous titles. Paldea deserves a second chance in another Pokémon game, ideally one with a lot more ambition that can make the most of its culturally rich and diverse roots.