Pokémon Pokopia’s Bubbly Basin DLC further builds on what was already one of the best games of the year by adding an entirely new and unique area alongside several Pokémon and mechanics. Setting the first DLC underwater was a creative choice, allowing for plenty of interesting exploration, lore, and water Pokémon. If this sets the standard for the other two DLC areas, then we should be eating good.
I was enormously impressed by Pokémon Pokopia when it released earlier this year, and upon completing the story, I thought a lot about the sort of areas and monsters that could be added down the line. After what felt like a pretty quick wait, the first installment has arrived. Dubbed Bubbly Basin, this one takes the player Ditto into the deep waters beyond Bleak Beach, and as someone who loves a lot of water Pokémon, I went into this DLC pretty hyped. Even then, I’ve come out of it incredibly pleased with the overall package.
Bubbly Basin starts with you learning the HM Dive after finding a stranded Manaphy, allowing you to head to the titular sunken city. Visiting another iconic Kanto locale in this post-apocalyptic world is just as intriguing and memorable as all of the locations in the base game, and the new lore tidbits strewn about continue to paint an enthralling picture of this version of the Pokémon world. Essentially, those who were heavily invested in Pokémon Pokopia’s story will be pleased with this additional area, as it continues the narrative and further shows just how much the Pokémon and people of the planet miss one another.
Swimming through the surprisingly large town is easy enough, as you’ve got pretty limitless freedom to go up, down, and in any direction you can imagine. There are deep, dark crevasses and hidden caves and ruins to explore, and even after around 8-10 hours, I’m pretty sure there’s a solid amount of stuff I haven’t found yet. A lot of the explorable spaces have all sorts of new objects and furniture to collect, meaning you can even redecorate past areas with some new flair thanks to Bubbly Basin. There’s even another type of Dream Island to visit if you want to amass resources from the DLC, providing players with another daily activity to take part in.
Bubbly Basin comes with plenty of new content.
The main story content of Bubbly Basin isn’t excessively long, clocking in at around four hours, but there are 50 new Pokémon to recruit and 36 habitats to make – many of which use the DLC’s new decorations and furniture – so you’ll certainly be kept busy beyond the story segment.
The selection of new Pokémon is excellent, providing you with a wide range of Water-types from Kanto to Paldea. Of course, I might be a bit biased as the Totodile line is my favorite of all-time, and all three – Totodile, Crocnaw, and Feraligatr – are present here, but it didn’t feel as though any specific generation got preference over any other.
Continuing the work of the main game, Bubbly Basin has some absolutely delightful remixes of classic Pokémon Red and Blue tracks. They’ve all got this floaty, oceanic sound that makes it incredibly easy to zone out and build to, while also feeling just the slightest bit melancholic, in line with the overall tone of Pokémon Pokopia and its narrative.
Excellent
The Final Word
Pokémon Pokopia just keeps getting better with the release of Bubbly Basin – the first of three DLC areas that has set an exceptional standard for those yet to be released. There’s lots to explore and more charming narrative content, as well as a strong selection of Pokémon to befriend. If you enjoyed Pokémon Pokopia’s base game, you’d be missing out by passing on Bubbly Basin, and I can’t wait to see what the next area is like.
