September 22 is a big day for free-to-play online arena-battler Pokémon Unite. It’s the day Unite launches on mobile platforms (with cross-play and cross-progression!), and the start of the second season, along with a new battle pass. Which is apparently themed around space. Pokémon! In! Space!

The trailer teases the addition of two more Pokémon: Mamoswine and Sylveon. They were announced previously, but so far the developers have not announced release dates for the characters prior to launching them.

By linking your Nintendo Account or Pokémon Trainer Club account, players can access their same Unite account on Switch and mobile devices. Mobile players and Switch players can freely play together.

There’s a big incentive for existing players to fire up the mobile version. With five million pre-registrations, every trainer who completes the in-game event in the mobile version will receive 1,000 Aeos tickets, the Pikachu Unite license, and a Festival Style Holowear. You have until October 31 to complete the mobile event and earn the rewards.

The new season brings in a new battle pass. The season two pass is themed around space, such as a new Holowear astronaut outfit for Gengar. Players can complete daily and weekly missions to advance through the ranks and earn goodies. You’ll need to purchase the optional pass to earn the choicest rewards, however.

The big patch also introduces player guilds in the form of Unite squads. Players can form their own squads or join existing squads by choosing their preferred squad tags.

Finally, trainers will have another chance to earn Zeraora if they missed out on the lighting wolverine during Unite’s launch on the Switch. A new special mission starts on September 22 that will reward the Unite license. If you already own Zeraora, you can receive Aeos coins instead.

Other updates include new in-game events that rewards super item enhancers, bringing held items up to level 30, and new spectator mode features.

Pokémon Unite is available on Switch and releasing on iOS and Android mobile platforms on September 22. It’s rated E10+.


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Eric has been writing for over nine years with bylines at Dicebreaker, Pixelkin, Polygon, PC Gamer, Tabletop Gaming magazine, and more covering movies, TV shows, video games, tabletop games, and tech. He reviews and live streams D&D adventures every week on his YouTube channel. He also makes a mean tuna quesadilla.