'Magikarp Jump' Release Date, News: The Pokémon Company Surprisingly Launches Spin-Off Game on iOS, Android
The Pokémon Company surprised the world with the release of a spin-off game called "Magikarp Jump" on iOS and Android devices.
It makes sense for The Pokémon Company to launch a game solely about Magikarp since it is one of the least liked Pokémon in every Pokédex. It has been criticized for being one of the weakest creatures in the franchise's roster. And now, as The Pokémon Company puts it, "The lowly Magikarp now gets its time in the spotlight."
"Magikarp Jump" also sports the familiar game mechanics of every "Pokémon" title, which means growing and training the character. In this particular game, the end goal is to make the Magikarp reach the League Champion level.
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Growing a Magikarp will not be easy, according to The Pokémon Company's announcement. A Magikarp can "retire" along the course of training, especially when it is about to reach level 20. If it happens, the player needs to start training and growing a new Magikarp from level 1.
However, The Pokémon Company explained that starting all over again will not entirely mean starting from scratch. "Not all progress is lost—your new Pokémon will start off a little bit stronger than your last," the developers explained.
Whenever players need to start training a new Magikarp again, the primary goal remains, and that is to train a Magikarp strong enough to reach the top of the "in-game tournament ladder."
Meanwhile, the game will also feature other Pokémon aside from Magikarp. Some Pokémon will show up along the way to help in training the player's creature. "For example, some Pokémon you encounter will give you food to keep your Magikarp nourished," The Pokémon Company explained.
Magikarp will also join Jumping Tournaments, thus part of the training is geared for increasing the Magikarp's Jump Power. Meanwhile, there will also be different Magikarp skins or patterns available when players go fishing.
Since "Magikarp Jump" was released on iOS and Android a few days ago, the game has already been downloaded by quite a number of people. It has also been receiving fairly good ratings. While the game is free-to-download and free-to-play, there will be some in-game purchases.
