13 things I wish I knew before starting Pokemon Pokopia

As this is a very different kind of Pokemon game, you might want to arm yourself with some Pokemon Pokopia tips before you head into the wilderness looking for new pals. From building tips to habitat hacks, here are the 13 top tips for Pokemon Pokopia I wish I'd known before starting. Unlucky for some, but not for you.

1. Lots of Pokemon - and recipes - are linked to story quests

Don't fret if you've not discovered a recipe or Pokemon that you really want or need to complete your set in Pokemon Pokopia. There are plenty of both that are specifically unlocked by progressing through the game's story missions, so tick off the requests as they come in to see what they have to offer.

2. Talk to your Pokemon often to get free items or guidance on what would make them happier

It's well worth talking to your Pokemon often, especially if they have any kind of speech bubble above their head or visible emotion. They'll often give you gifts like items or resources just for being their pal, but they'll also let you know if there's something wrong. I've lost count of the amount of times I've accidentally destroyed part of a Pokemon's home while I've been tidying or building. Sorry pals, thanks for letting me know, I'll put that grass back right now.

3. Make multiple versions of the same habitats where you can

It's tempting when you first get started to almost work through creating known habitats like a checklist, making one and then moving onto the next while you wait for a new 'mon to appear. However, it's very much worth making multiple versions of each habitat, if you want to maximise your chances of getting someone specific.

Most habitats are capable of attracting at least two (or more) Pokemon, so it's worthwhile making multiple versions of the same habitat if you can.

4. Don't forget that relocating can maximise habitat effectiveness

Following on from above, if certain items are a little more scarce to buy or make, then it can be easier to move your Pokemon rather than making a second or third version of a specific habitat. Once a Pokemon has spawned on a habitat, you can ask them to follow you, and then take it to an alternative home. It could be a home you've built yourself out of blocks or a kit, or just a collection of objects you've gathered together on the ground. They're not usually that fussy about where they move to, but they will want a house with at least three pieces of furniture to relocate.

Once a Pokemon's moved elsewhere, it opens that original habitat up for another Pokemon to spawn.

5. Never miss a Pokemon trace sparkle

You'll spot the sparkling spots all over the various regions of Pokemon Pokopia, and it's pretty darn important that you interact with as many as you can find if you want guidance on what kinds of habitats to build to attract the full roster of Pokemon. Even if the trace guides you towards a habitat you've already discovered, the likelihood is that it'll give you the silhouette of another Pokemon that habitat will attract. It's a great way to build out your habitat list without messing around with furniture and grass placements – and trust me when I say that there are hundreds of habitats to discover.

6. Use the habitat filters to better flag what you still need to build in each region

In your Pokedex you'll know there's an entire section dedicated to habitats you've discovered, and the Pokemon attached to those habitats. But, there's also a great filter functionality that gives you more insights into what you've discovered vs what you've built in each area. Head into the Habitat Dex of your Pokedex (+ button), then press Y to see the filters. Keep registration ticked as 'full', but then only tick 'in this area'.

This lets you see what habitats you have discovered for this area specifically. If you have any that have green Pokeballs next to them, there's nothing left to discover there, but any with grey Pokeballs next to them or that are greyed out, you know you've got Pokemon to find. So get building!

7. You can have up to five Pokemon following you at a time

Getting things done in Pokemon Pokopia is a lot easier when you enlist the help of your resident Pokemon. Each of them has one of the special abilities available in the game, from burn, grow, or water, to more complex abilities like crush, hype, or litter. Having your Pokemon follow you around means that they can help out with anything that's nearby that requires their attention – like lighting fires, generating electricity, watering, clearing, or other jobs that only they can do. With the option of having up to five Pokemon following you at any point, it's a really handy way of keeping additional abilities at your disposal (alongside Ditto's own of course) for whenever you need them.

8. Tips and Tricks section of your Pokedex is great for flagging what Pokemon specialities actually do

Because there are a lot of Pokemon specialities, it can be tricky to keep track of exactly what the perks are for each one. Thankfully, Game Freak has thought ahead and put a cheat sheet in the Tips and Tricks section of the Pokedex. Use R to move across to the Specialities tab, and then you can scroll down to read more about each speciality. It's a handy recap.

9. Building can take a long time and will occupy all the Pokemon you assign to it until it's finished

You'll be doing a lot of building in Pokopia, from small homes for your Pokemon pals to restoring the Pokemon Centres in each area. These builds take time – like real-world time – and it's often useful to plan ahead, because any Pokemon you assign to a build will be unavailable until they've finished building. This isn't especially helpful in the early stages, when your population is still small and you really need their abilities.

Small dens or homes only take around 15 minutes to build, bigger builds might take 30 minutes or an hour, but Pokemon Centers and very large builds will most likely take "until tomorrow" – regardless of when you start building. Now, what that means is I tend to set off bigger builds just before I turn in for the night, rather than wasting day play time by losing Pokemon to a building site. Even if you set a Pokemon Center off at midnight, it'll still be done by the time you start playing again in the morning.

10. You don't have to bring the specific Pokemon builds ask you for, outside of specific abilities

There are only a handful of builds in Pokopia that require specific Pokemon to be in attendance, but from the way the game presents it that's not entirely clear. Usually you'll need a Pokemon with the build ability, and maybe a few other specific abilities like water or chop, but you only need to bring Pokemon with those abilities – not the specific Pokemon pictured. The slots outside of the specific abilities can be filled with any Pokemon that are nearby, just have them follow you and when they get close enough their picture will be added to the lineup so you can assign them from there.

11. Make the most of Security Cameras, but be aware of their limitations

Security cameras are an item you unlock fairly early in the game, but I initially didn't appreciate how useful they are. Placing a security camera in an area lets it sweep for any movement across any habitats it can see from where it's placed. You'll then get a notification that the camera has detected something, and you can head back to check out what it is. It's super handy for keeping an eye on a prize habitat without you having to just stand there and wait for a Pokemon to pop up. You can carry on with whatever other tasks you want to do, and just let the camera ping you when there's something to see. It's really helpful.

However, it's worth noting that you'll only get notifications when a camera spots something from the area you're in. So if you move on from Withered Wasteland to Bleak Beach, for example, you will only get notifications for cameras you've placed in Bleak Beach, and not anything you've left behind in Withered Wasteland.

12. Always keep your eyes peeled for Pokeballs, water splashes, or human relics for recipes, clothes, and more

As you explore, you're going to want to gather up any Pokeballs (specifically golden ones), dive into any water splashes, and collect any human relics you'll find. While some of them will just gift you small items like berries or sticks, others will give you really useful information like new crafting recipes, lore drops, and even clothing linked to Pokemon lore.

13. Watch out for photo ops for cute new photo frames

Sometimes you'll get alerts that there's a new nearby photo op available. You should definitely take advantage of these when they happen, so press - to grab your camera and scan around until you get the photo op in frame. They're handily marked with a little square focus point, and snapping them will get you a cute new frame pattern that you can use in camera mode.