BODY: Kanto is coming to the cloud. The Pokémon Company has announced that the Nintendo Switch versions of Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen will begin linking with Pokémon HOME in October, giving trainers a way to move their creatures beyond the boundaries of the games themselves.
Pokémon HOME is the series' cross-title cloud storage and management service, accessible on both Nintendo Switch and mobile devices. Once the integration goes live, players will be able to deposit Pokémon caught in the Switch remakes into HOME, withdraw them, and — crucially — connect them to the wider Pokémon ecosystem that spans generations of games.
For a pair of titles rooted in the original Kanto adventure, the HOME link is more than a convenience. It transforms these remakes from a nostalgic standalone experience into a fully connected entry point, letting long-time collectors funnel classic first-generation favorites into their living Pokédex alongside catches from Scarlet and Violet and beyond.
The Pokémon Company has confirmed the October timing but, as is typical for these staggered rollouts, finer details — such as any restrictions on which species can transfer, or premium HOME features — are expected closer to launch. Trainers eager to shuttle their Charizards and Venusaurs across titles should keep an eye out for further guidance from the developers.
The insider take
From Tokyo, the pattern here is familiar and deliberate. The Pokémon Company almost never ships HOME compatibility at a game's launch; it arrives weeks or months later, once the servers have absorbed the initial rush and the competitive metagame has settled. It's a soft-launch strategy that also gives Game Freak a window to patch exploits before rare or shiny Pokémon start flooding the cloud. For Japanese fans, October integration signals that the FireRed/LeafGreen remakes are being treated as a permanent fixture of the franchise's connected future — not a one-off throwback — which is exactly the reassurance the dedicated collector base was waiting for.
Originally reported by GAME Watch (Japanese).