Right off the heels of releasing new information on Pokémon Sun and Moon, the current version of Pokémon Global Link will cease most of its operations in October.
In a press release by Nintendo, the Global Link service will be updated to work with Sun and Moon, meaning several features for the 6th Generation of the games will cease operation.
"You won't be able to link Pokémon Omega Ruby, Pokémon Alpha Sapphire, Pokémon X, or Pokémon Y with the PGL, or see data from these games reflected on the PGL." states the press release. This includes Game Sync functionality ending, along registering your games onto the Nintendo server. Global Link will also eliminate rated battles, the Global Link logbook functionality, Finally, transferring Poké Miles from Generation VI to Generation VII will not be allowed.
Despite the loss of several functions for the current generation, other functions will still be available; wonder trades, random free battles, and GTS trading, and mystery gift will still be active.
The news comes a day after Nintendo releases some information on the new changes to Pokémon Global Link, which is scheduled to launch with the game in November. The biggest change is the ability to create custom-hosted competitions both on the internet and live, using QR code sharing to get trainers to participate.
Quick Take
This is kind of expected, in the end. The momentum for Sun and Moon is starting to gain a lot of traction, and the swift success of Pokémon Go is also boosting the profile of the franchise. We knew Nintendo would revamp Global Link in the end, so losing some of the functionality was more or less a given at this point.
Thankfully, players are given time to prep for the change, and gear up for Sun and Moon and the new Global Link functionality.
What do you think about this though? Do you think games should have a longer online support span? Leave your comments below.
