In a surprise Pokémon event on May 28, the Pokémon Company announced multiple new products. Some of them are pretty out there, like the Pokémon Go Plus + — it's an activity tracker that includes sleep tracking — which is supposed to help you train Pokémon in your sleep... weird.
An exciting piece of news though is the talk of a new Pokémon game, designed for mobile phones. Pokémon Masters, made by DeNA — the makers of Mario Run and Mario Kart Tour — is a battle game that you play in portrait mode and features a lot of familiar faces.
What's the game about?
Pokémon Masters is set on the man-made island of Pasio, and was built with only one purpose, to house the Pokémon Masters League. The PML is designed to pit one Trainer with their favorite Pokémon — called Sync Pairs — against another Sync Pair in teams of 3v3.
The story has you traveling around the island looking for Sync Pairs to team up with so you can become the ultimate champions! A lot of Sync Pairs come to you in the process of the story, but there are more to be purchased in the store for Gems you can either buy for cash or win in the game.
What's new in Pokémon Masters?
Update August 27, 2019: Pokémon Masters release date revealed
We finally have a confirmed release date for Pokémon Masters and we don't have long to wait at all, It's coming on August 29, just two days from now. We hope you are all ready because this is going to be your next big time sink.
We have been playing the game on the Canadian access for a while now and even created a beginners guide for you so you can be prepared for the launch. It's happening gang so be ready!
Update August 7, 2019: Pokémon Masters is available for Early Access in Canada!
DeNA has opened the game for Early Access in Canada, though only for Android devices right now. We have no timeframe on when, or if, it will go into TestFlight for iOS but as the game is due for release in September, it seems likely that it will stay Android only.
The game does require you to be in Canada and it checks every time you load it to make sure. It is possible to use a VPN to get around this but be careful if DeNa catches you it could mean a ban! We are going to spend some time with the game over the coming days and start writing some helpful guides so we are all ready for the iOS release.
What's the gameplay like?
From what little we have seen the gameplay is a fairly simplistic battle system where you choose three Trainers and their partner Pokémon to face off against three others. This sounds like each Trainer only gets to use one Pokémon rather than having a selection for each Trainer. This means Misty will only ever use Togepi, Ash will always Pikachu, and Brock will always use Onyx. I think this has been done so they can create signature attacks for each team.
In terms of combat, it looks fairly simple. each of the Trainers has three different things they can do in battle; the main attack, a potion, and what looks to be the signature attack move. This signature is likely to need charging as you fight with the main attack. Potions could be used for healing your Trainers or for buffing them, though if Pokémon Masters is like other games like this then some of the Trainers may have a healing move as their special ability.
By the looks of the screenshots, you have a power meter at the bottom. This suggests that your power is shared across Trainers, so you will have to pick which Trainer you want to use for their special attack. We don't know if the game is turn-based or not but it looks like it will be. If it isn't, then it would end up being a button mash game which wouldn't be fun. That's really all we know so far from the gameplay, but we will update it as we know more.
Will it be a free game?
It seems likely. DeNA has already made two games for Nintendo, both of which are free-to-play but contain microtransactions. It seems likely this will be the same. Microtransactions are the preferred method for mobile gaming now so we are all prepared to have to buy pokécoins or something similar, aren't we?
When will we be able to play?
The release date is currently extremely vague. All we know is that Pokémon Masters is due for release in 2019 and that we will hear more about it in June. We don't know if they will share information on June 5 at the Pokémon Sword and Shield event but it seems likely they will do a separate event later in the month.
Pokémon Masters has a lot of people excited. It's always great when a new Pokémon game arrives and it's even more exciting when it's a completely new way to play. Watch this space for more news.
Get ready for Pokémon Masters
We may not be able to get you the game early but we can help you get ready for the gaming sessions that are to come.

Finex Pokemon Finger Ring ($14 at Amazon)
Get a firm grip on your iPhone while you play Pokémon Masters with these cute little Pokémon ring holders. You even get three in the pack so you can choose your favorite.

HecKia 10000mAh Pokéball charger ($23 at Amazon)
Sure, this may be a little more inconvenient to walk around with but it's a phone charger that's also a Pokéball! That's just too awesome to pass up.
We may earn a commission for purchases using our links. Learn more.

Gorgeous new Pride Apple Watch bands are now available at some Apple Stores
Apple's latest Pride Apple Watch bands are now available to buy in some Apple Stores, although whether you can walk into a store and pick one up yourself will very much depend on where you happen to be.

Rare Steve Jobs check for $9.18 goes under the hammer, could fetch $25k
A rare check signed by Steve Jobs dated July 23, 1976, has just gone up for auction and could be worth a lot more than it was originally written out for...

Apple store workers get surprise pay rise as union pressure grows
Apple plans to give U.S. workers a pay rise in the face of growing pressure from unions that are emerging in some retail locations.

Get the rarest gift for the Nintendo Switch amiibo collector in your life
Nintendo's amiibo lets you collect all of your favorite characters and gain some in-game benefits for having the figures. Here are some of the most expensive and hard-to-find Nintendo Switch amiibo figures on the market.