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The Hidden Treasure of Area Zero - DLC Speculation & Discussion Thread

Ophie

Salingerian Phony
The most I’m expecting for Pokémon Day are an announcement for the DLC, new additions coming to Go & Masters, and a trailer for the new anime featuring Riko & Roy
I think there is an update planned too, one that will address more bugs and glitches, as well as what sounds like a partial balance patch.
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Speaking of updates, I'm probably weird, but as far as post-release updates go, I want them to allow the remaining Battle Courts to be used at Battle Stadium. I don't know if I mentioned it before, but currently, only 4 are available: Cabo Poco, the Academy (Naranja and Uva look exactly the same from the point of view of its Battle Courts), Medali, and the Pokémon League Interiors. I understand they are the ones least processor-intensive, as two are indoors, one has a limited field of vision, and one has steep hills on one side and the ocean on the other. But not only are there 13 other Battle Courts in the game, three were never used in the story (the one in Mesagoza in the alley, the one in Cortondo on someone's yard, and the one in Zapapico). I'm sure they were intended to be used for Battle Stadium, as otherwise they wouldn't have been put into the game. There is also the empty lot by the observatory in Alfornada that was used as part of Tulip's gym trial, which is about the size and shape of a Battle Court, though without the standard markings. There are also some raised platforms in each of the Team Star bases, though they are smaller and can't fit, say, a Dondozo vs. Dondozo battle.

I am also guessing that, if we have any DLC not set in Area Zero/Great Crater, there will be at least one new Battle Court added in. If we're getting a new Battle Frontier (though I won't expect it to happen), we'll get several new Battle Courts.
 

Mr.Munchlax

Great Ball Rank Trainer
Speaking of updates, I'm probably weird, but as far as post-release updates go, I want them to allow the remaining Battle Courts to be used at Battle Stadium. I don't know if I mentioned it before, but currently, only 4 are available: Cabo Poco, the Academy (Naranja and Uva look exactly the same from the point of view of its Battle Courts), Medali, and the Pokémon League Interiors. I understand they are the ones least processor-intensive, as two are indoors, one has a limited field of vision, and one has steep hills on one side and the ocean on the other. But not only are there 13 other Battle Courts in the game, three were never used in the story (the one in Mesagoza in the alley, the one in Cortondo on someone's yard, and the one in Zapapico). I'm sure they were intended to be used for Battle Stadium, as otherwise they wouldn't have been put into the game. There is also the empty lot by the observatory in Alfornada that was used as part of Tulip's gym trial, which is about the size and shape of a Battle Court, though without the standard markings. There are also some raised platforms in each of the Team Star bases, though they are smaller and can't fit, say, a Dondozo vs. Dondozo battle.
Yeah, I’ve been watching your YouTube videos and you’ve mentioned that a couple of times in your descriptions. It would be nice if all of the battle courts are included, but knowing Game Freak I’m worried that the only things that will be fixed with their updates are removing ways to glitch pokémon & items since those were the only things they fixed with the BDSP updates
 
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Ophie

Salingerian Phony
Yeah, I’ve been watching your YouTube videos and you’ve mentioned that a couple of times in your descriptions. It would be nice if all of the battle courts are included, but knowing Gale Freak I’m worried that the only things that will be fixed with their updates are removing ways to glitch pokémon & items since those were the only things they fixed with the BDSP updates
I'm guessing there will be balance updates (such as nerfing either Booster Energy or Protosynthesis and Quark Drive), which would take priority over allowing more Battle Courts. That being said, if they do make them available gradually, the next one up would likely be the one in Montenevera, as mountains surround it on all sides, and the only other things visible are the Pokémon League building and a few rooftops. The hangup here, I'm guessing, is in how the floor lights up under certain conditions.

I was getting sick of all of the stadiums in Galar being essentially palette swaps of each other, which is why I feel so strongly about it.

I do think there will be more detailed updates of various sorts though, as this is a game that kicks off a generation, and those almost always get the most attention. For Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl, the most likely reasons it didn't get much for updates were because Sword and Shield remained the focus (unlike in previous generations, the VGCs remained in the Galar games rather than any of the Sinnoh remakes) and to avoid pulling attention away from Pokémon Legends: Arceus.
 

RedJirachi

Veteran member
Do we actually have confirmation there will be DLC, or is it just an assumption given the last games. I mean X and Y had a bunch of loose threads but it didn't even get a third version, much less DLC
 

bruhidk

LARRY SUPREMACY
Do we actually have confirmation there will be DLC, or is it just an assumption given the last games. I mean X and Y had a bunch of loose threads but it didn't even get a third version, much less DLC
As funny as it would be to shove the little crown dude into a gen 10 game like Zygarde the hints are very obviously pointing to something more and X/Y had planned sequels that were cancelled for the 20th anniversary of the franchise to make a new gen, they have plenty of time for this
 

BCVM22

Well-Known Member
X and Y were also on hardware that couldn't really support full-scale DLC, and X and Y were also not preceded by a pair of titles that *did* receive full-scale DLC that was very well received. Not quite the same.
 

Captain Jigglypuff

Leader of Jigglypuff Army
I think that DLC is to be expected for all future Gen games that are to be the main focus from now on. XY has obvious signs that sequel/updated games focusing on Zygarde was planned and a lot of this can be found in the leftover data in ORAS such as Thousand Arrows and Thousand Waves being programmed into the games completely but unused and non corrupted as they will work perfectly fine if hacked into the games and the Power Plant doors that remained locked but gave a message when interacted with which is very strange as every other door/entrance that are just for show have no message pop up when you try to interact with them. Zygarde’s connection to Xerneas and Yveltal is also unexplained and there has to be some sort of connection between all three given Zygarde’s Ability in XY was one that negated all effects of the other two’s Abilities much like how Rayquaza’s Air Lock disabled the effects of Groupon and Kyogre’s weather changing Abilities.
 

Smeargle-Sketch

Sketcher of Smeargles
Do we actually have confirmation there will be DLC, or is it just an assumption given the last games. I mean X and Y had a bunch of loose threads but it didn't even get a third version, much less DLC
Yes as stated about, we only have the word of a reliable leaker to confirm this as well as going off of Swsh's handling of future content for a new generation.

Riddler Khu, as much of an asshole as he is, is authentic in his information. Having so far reliably leaked 3 total games in almost their entirety through information.

At the end of the gen 9 leaking, he stated some of the assets were pushed back for DLC, which was confirmed even more with the 3 pages in the Scarlet/Violet Book that showed Pokemon not in the game but were leaked to be and the the part of the map we can't access.
 

PsychoLogical

Black and White, Yin and Yang, Light and Dark.
Do we actually have confirmation there will be DLC, or is it just an assumption given the last games. I mean X and Y had a bunch of loose threads but it didn't even get a third version, much less DLC
It was heavily hinted that DLC is coming. Mainly from Riddler Khu, who as much as he is a giant megalomaniac, is unfortunately extremely legit.

And there have been some rumors circulating that it's said to be very big of a DLC. But its just a rumor and has no basis. At least for now.
 

Captain Jigglypuff

Leader of Jigglypuff Army
There is way too many hints in the games for there to be no DLC specifically the Legendary Paradox Pokémon and the strange dome Pokémon shown in the Book. Also the time machine was never fully destroyed or taken apart after you shut it down so it could easily start up again on its own.
 

Akashin

Well-Known Member
There is way too many hints in the games for there to be no DLC specifically the Legendary Paradox Pokémon and the strange dome Pokémon shown in the Book. Also the time machine was never fully destroyed or taken apart after you shut it down so it could easily start up again on its own.
Even just from a story perspective there’s a lot of unanswered questions for DLC to explore. We have Arven explicitly questioning why the discovery of Paradox Pokemon predates the creation of the Time Machine that brings them to Paldea in the first place, for one. And Heath’s notes in the book hint at a very interesting story surrounding the third legendary. There’s also the symbols from the corners of the game logo appearing throughout Area Zero to possibly answer.

After Sword and Shield just kinda gave us its trio (and they’re basically a duo with a shared adversary, honestly) and did essentially nothing with them beyond the bare minimum, I’m really excited to see more of the mystery they’ve given us with Heath and Area Zero.
 

Mr.Munchlax

Great Ball Rank Trainer
As funny as it would be to shove the little crown dude into a gen 10 game like Zygarde the hints are very obviously pointing to something more and X/Y had planned sequels that were cancelled for the 20th anniversary of the franchise to make a new gen, they have plenty of time for this
They also got cancelled & replaced wi OR/AS because of the high demand for Hoenn remakes
 

masdog

What is the airspeed of an unladen Swellow?
They also got cancelled & replaced wi OR/AS because of the high demand for Hoenn remakes
I don't think they got cancelled for ORAS so much as they got cancelled so they could accelerate work on SM.
 

Ophie

Salingerian Phony
After Sword and Shield just kinda gave us its trio (and they’re basically a duo with a shared adversary, honestly) and did essentially nothing with them beyond the bare minimum, I’m really excited to see more of the mystery they’ve given us with Heath and Area Zero.
You could argue that the dynamic between Solgaleo/Lunana and Necrozma are the same as well, as the two are alternate-universe full evolutions of Nebby and Necrozma happens to threaten the same region as them, though we did have Lillie there to flesh out Nebby as a character (alongside herself, of course). Zacian and Zamazenta do get a good amount of story importance though, being historical heroes of Galar who come to the aid of the player character and Hop when Eternatus threatens the region. (And Eternatus is treated as a force of nature rather than something malicious like Necrozma or Deoxys.) That you don't see them much through the story I think is part of the point: they're elusive and mysterious, and they don't appear except as a last resort. It fits the pattern with other generations' Legendary Pokémon as well: you read journals about Mewtwo, then find it in Cerulean Cave; you hear about the towers in Ecruteak, then find Ho-oh or Lugia; Team Aqua and Team Magma talk about Kyogre and Groudon, then you find them in Origin Cave; etc. It's Nebby and Koraidon/Miraidon who are the exceptions, whom you meet towards the beginning and stay by your side the whole story through.

Thinking about it, the dynamic between Kyogre/Groudon and Rayquaza, story-wise, is nonexistent. There are thematic ties, such as the Jewish folklore origins and that of the land/sea/air grouping, but Rayquaza interacts little with Kyogre/Groudon, if any, and instead its adversary is Deoxys (which wasn't touched upon until Omega Ruby/Alpha Sapphire). And, as mentioned, prior, there is Zygarde, who was just...there (but also has a folkloric theming, though Norse for this one).
 

UltimateNinja

Praying for the holy relics
A wild guess since an announcement will probably happen soon.

No early January announcement and Khu and other leaker mentioning it being a large scale DLC plus the mysterious stuff from Area Zero + 3rd legendary etc. makes me believe we're going for BW2 in form of one single DLC added to the main game being handled as one main game release in November 2023 (Imagine the BW2 content slapped onto the BW1 cartridge). Sequel story held in both the new areas plus the old world. The tournament of the post-game plus that bizarre survey at the end from Geeta makes it feel like the game what we got was part 1 of 2 of the game. Maybe they'll pack Main Game plus DLC in one cartridge again and slap the third legendary on the boxart.

Also I always felt like the Battle Tower was hold back because of a return of the Battle Frontier with the tower being one facility. Would at least explain why there was no facility and the tournament being held in Mesagoza.
 

Luthor

Well-Known Member
You could argue that the dynamic between Solgaleo/Lunana and Necrozma are the same as well, as the two are alternate-universe full evolutions of Nebby and Necrozma happens to threaten the same region as them, though we did have Lillie there to flesh out Nebby as a character (alongside herself, of course). Zacian and Zamazenta do get a good amount of story importance though, being historical heroes of Galar who come to the aid of the player character and Hop when Eternatus threatens the region. (And Eternatus is treated as a force of nature rather than something malicious like Necrozma or Deoxys.) That you don't see them much through the story I think is part of the point: they're elusive and mysterious, and they don't appear except as a last resort. It fits the pattern with other generations' Legendary Pokémon as well: you read journals about Mewtwo, then find it in Cerulean Cave; you hear about the towers in Ecruteak, then find Ho-oh or Lugia; Team Aqua and Team Magma talk about Kyogre and Groudon, then you find them in Origin Cave; etc. It's Nebby and Koraidon/Miraidon who are the exceptions, whom you meet towards the beginning and stay by your side the whole story through.

Thinking about it, the dynamic between Kyogre/Groudon and Rayquaza, story-wise, is nonexistent. There are thematic ties, such as the Jewish folklore origins and that of the land/sea/air grouping, but Rayquaza interacts little with Kyogre/Groudon, if any, and instead its adversary is Deoxys (which wasn't touched upon until Omega Ruby/Alpha Sapphire). And, as mentioned, prior, there is Zygarde, who was just...there (but also has a folkloric theming, though Norse for this one).


Is Necrozma really malicious? to quote Lillie "I think Nebby should be with Necrozma. From what I've heard, Necrozma would not suffer as much or ache so for the light if it can remain close to Nebby.." While lillie could be wrong if she is right then Necrozma is less malicious and more desperate.
There's also its Pokedex entries
"It looks somehow pained as it rages around in search of light, which serves as its energy. It's apparently from another world" &
"Light is the source of its energy. If it isn't devouring light, impurities build up in it and on it, and Necrozma darkens and stops moving."
Which again implies it's in pain. It's the villain of the story but its not doing it because it wants to but more it needs to feed. If the DLC legendary is villainous I suspect it will again be similar and have reasons behind what they do.

A wild guess since an announcement will probably happen soon.

No early January announcement and Khu and other leaker mentioning it being a large scale DLC plus the mysterious stuff from Area Zero + 3rd legendary etc. makes me believe we're going for BW2 in form of one single DLC added to the main game being handled as one main game release in November 2023 (Imagine the BW2 content slapped onto the BW1 cartridge). Sequel story held in both the new areas plus the old world. The tournament of the post-game plus that bizarre survey at the end from Geeta makes it feel like the game what we got was part 1 of 2 of the game. Maybe they'll pack Main Game plus DLC in one cartridge again and slap the third legendary on the boxart.

Also I always felt like the Battle Tower was hold back because of a return of the Battle Frontier with the tower being one facility. Would at least explain why there was no facility and the tournament being held in Mesagoza.


I could easily see an announcement soon. Anytime in the next few months. There's definitely story potential.

I'd like there to be at least be a battle tower or similar facility as I always found that a fun way to try out certain Pokemon and certain battle types. I'm skeptical whether they will ever do a full battle frontier ever again considering we haven't had one in a long time (though happy to be wrong) but a lone tower facility would be enough for me (even if i'm not wild about it being restricted to DLC)
 
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Mr.Munchlax

Great Ball Rank Trainer
Zacian and Zamazenta do get a good amount of story importance though, being historical heroes of Galar who come to the aid of the player character and Hop when Eternatus threatens the region. (And Eternatus is treated as a force of nature rather than something malicious like Necrozma or Deoxys.) That you don't see them much through the story I think is part of the point: they're elusive and mysterious, and they don't appear except as a last resort
Plus, they get more focus in the postgame, though that could be seen as a negative factor since most fans hate Sordward & Shielbert and find the plot even weaker than the main story
 
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