The Pokemon Company will be conducting a bit of spring cleaning, as it will remove certain online features from Pokemon Sword and Shield on November 1, 2022. Players will still be able to trade with each other and participate in Max Raid Battles. However, there will be no more updates to the Wild Area News. Players will also no longer be able to participate in rank battles or online tournaments. [Thanks, Inside Games!]
The Wild Area News was vital to obtain certain rare and Gigantamaxed versions of Pokemon. An example of this is the Gigantamax Snorlax. Players who wish to continue playing Sword and Shield in the future and do not have certain Gigantamax Pokemon may want to log in before the final update. As for online battles, the ranked season in Battle Stadium will no longer update after November 1. You can still use all Y-Comm features or hold Friendly Competitions. However, Friendly Competitions will not appear in Pokemon Home starting on December 1, 2022.
Pokemon Sword and Shield originally came out in 2019 and make up the eighth generation of the Pokemon franchise. As of June 2022, the games have sold over 24.5 million copies worldwide, which makes it the second most successful generation behind Red and Blue. Some mechanics unique to the Galar region include camping (which is an evolution of Pokemon Amie from X and Y) and the aforementioned Raid Battles.
The newest games in the Pokemon series, Pokemon Scarlet and Violet will come out on the Nintendo Switch on November 18, 2022. Online features will become limited in Pokemon Sword and Shield on November 1, 2022.
