Pokemon Pokopia: Bubbly Basin Review
Version Reviewed: Nintendo Switch 2
Pokémon Pokopia took the world by storm when it was released in March, introducing us to a bright and colourful world that we had to rebuild. It actually garnered a certified Exceptional score of 94/100 here at What’s It Like?, and I spent a lot of time completely absorbed in this wonderful game. Now, the first DLC has arrived in the form of Bubbly Basin, an underwater adventure where you can meet a whole new range of Pokémon friends and build some amazing creations, until you see what others are building online and realise you’re still very much a novice. But the seaweed is always greener in somebody else’s lake… or so I’ve been told. What’s It Like? Learn the Dive skill, take a deep breath, and try not to sing Under the Sea as we review Pokémon Pokopia: Bubbly Basin for Nintendo Switch 2.
Upon arriving at Bleak Beach, Professor Tangrowth tasks you with checking out a newly formed island, where you’ll learn the Dive ability and eventually cross paths with Popplio, a playful seal Pokémon who tells you about the place he calls home. After discovering a submerged gate, you’re introduced to Bubbly Basin, the ruins of the once-thriving Curellian City. Together with Popplio, Ditto and his new underwater friends, you’ll set out to restore the town to its former glory. It’s a familiar setup for anyone who has played Pokopia, but there’s something satisfying about watching another forgotten corner of this world slowly come back to life.
Bubbly Basin releases alongside a huge 2.0 update, which makes the Dive skill, underwater traversal and underwater building available for free to all players. For those who purchase the DLC, there’s an entirely new area to explore, complete with its own questline as part of the new adventure, along with new Pokémon, gameplay mechanics and plenty of new things to build. Bubbly Basin still follows the tried-and-true progression established in the previous chapters. You’ll recruit Pokémon by building habitats, fulfilling requests, restoring Pokémon Centres and buildings, before eventually taking on a huge construction project. To me, this isn’t a negative. These tasks serve as a great onboarding process, helping you familiarise yourself with the new Pokémon and abilities that come with them, while still giving you the freedom to do pretty much whatever you like. It’s a formula that works well, so there’s little reason to mess with it.
That said, the biggest departure from those familiar mechanics is that this time, you’re doing things underwater, and I was very pleased with how traversal and exploration are handled. Moving around while completing tasks feels surprisingly fluid, with B letting you move quickly and the shoulder buttons allowing you to rise and dive. You can even corkscrew your way down to the ocean floor if you’re in a hurry. This makes underwater exploration feel fun and fluid rather than slow and tedious, alleviating one of my biggest concerns going in. The last thing I wanted was to spend half my time swimming from A to B, but thankfully, that never became an issue. There are plenty of new habitats to discover, too, ranging from simple patches of seaweed to more complicated underwater arrangements that bring some familiar friends into the world of Pokopia.
And I think that’s what I enjoyed most about Bubbly Basin. It doesn’t feel like a slapdash package that simply throws a new town into the game; instead, everything feels well thought out and varied enough to give you a genuine reason to dive back in. Sure, it sticks to the blueprint that Pokopia knows best, but I found Bubbly Basin to be an almost zen-like and calming experience. There’s something incredibly relaxing about floating through the water, discovering hidden areas, meeting new Pokémon and eventually building a Sharpedo submarine. Most importantly, that sense of wonder I felt when playing Pokopia for the first time is still here, and I found myself wearing the same goofy smile I get when I’m thoroughly enjoying a game, almost like Ditto as he happily drifts from one task to the next.
Visually, Bubbly Basin captures what made Pokopia such a visual treat when it first released, while giving the underwater town a distinct style of its own. The bright colour palette works beautifully beneath the waves, with bright, luminescent coral lighting up darker areas, while sunshafts breaking through the surface create a relaxing and beautiful environment. The deeper areas of Bubbly Basin can become quite dark, with the luminescent coral often providing the only source of light. Thankfully, you can also place certain lanterns around the environment to light the way, which not only makes navigating these darker areas easier but also gives you another opportunity to put your own stamp on the world. Ditto continues its nonchalant dawdling around while completing tasks, which still has oodles of charm. Most of the new items stick with the underwater theme, offering seashell beds, couches, gates and plenty of other aquatic decorations to play around with. Meanwhile, Curellian City shows remnants of its past, including a visible Nugget Bridge and other notable buildings. These little details help Bubbly Basin feel like a place with a history of its own, rather than simply another area to build in.
For my Ditto’s look into accessibility, Pokémon Pokopia offers several options to make your time in Pokopia more comfortable. You can toggle and remap buttons, which works well with accessibility-specific controllers, slow down text speed, use mouse controls, adjust a variety of camera settings, and isolate certain audio sources. The game’s bright palette, even at night, means that contrast between objects, blocks, and Pokémon is easy to discern, which helps visually. As always, I recommend doing further research to ensure Pokémon Pokopia suits your specific accessibility needs.
As a part of the Expansion Pass for just under $55 AUD, I feel like there’s good value here. Bubbly Basin alone will offer countless more hours for dedicated Pokopia fans who want to meticulously rebuild Curellian City, with more content slated to arrive in March and September 2027.
Bubbly Basin is a rather pleasant surprise. Sure, it follows the established formula and doesn’t stray too far from it, but it’s clear that a lot of care has gone into making this underwater adventure feel like a natural extension of Pokopia. From the calming exploration and gorgeous environments to the new Pokémon, crafting opportunities and the remnants of Curellian City, there’s plenty here to keep you coming back for more.
In the interest of full disclosure, a review copy was provided by the publisher, but this doens’t influence my score.
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