Game Freak says Pokémon Champions was created to preserve the series’ traditional turn-based battles, even as future Pokémon games may experiment with different battle systems. In a new developer video, Game Freak explained that the team didn’t want players who have enjoyed the classic system for decades to lose it as the series evolves. The idea behind Pokémon Champions is to keep the traditional battle system available “indefinitely,” while allowing other Pokémon games to try new ideas.

Masaaki Hoshino, co-director of Pokémon Champions, says he wants turn-based battles to be preserved “forever,” even if the mainline games continue experimenting with different combat styles. Champions co-director Kazumasa Iwao suggested that Pokémon’s battle rules could gradually change as Game Freak looks for new ways to evolve the series. So Champions could become the game that keeps traditional Pokémon battles alive, especially since it will be used for official VGC competitions while Pokémon can try new things in the main games