Gaming

‘Pokémon’ Fans Are In Love With Gym Leader Nessa, Our New Water Queen

"Drown me in my sleep!"

by Amanda Yeo  12 June 2019
E3 Nintendo Direct Pokemon Sword Shield Nessa

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Pokémon‘s new Water-type Gym Leader Nessa has arrived to rule the oceans and our hearts.

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Nintendo Just Announced A Sequel To 'The Legend Of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild' At E3 2019

This morning, Nintendo’s E3 Direct dropped a ton of information about the company’s upcoming video game projects.

A sequel to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is in the works. Seiken Densetsu 3 will finally arrive in the West after 25 years, renamed Trials of Mana. A turn-based Dark Crystal tactics game will be released later this year.

We also got more of a look at upcoming games Pokémon Sword and Shield, the next main titles in the much beloved Pokémon series. The new games introduce the Galar region, which appears to be based on Great Britain. They have the new Pokémon Wooloo, which is a straight up sheep that literally rolls away from its problems.

And as Nintendo revealed in today’s E3 Direct, Pokémon Sword and Shield also has Nessa, a Galar region Gym Leader and PokéBritain’s new queen.

The official US Pokémon website describes Nessa as having a “calm and collected attitude [that] hides a competitive spirit and indomitable will”. A master of Water-type Pokémon, Nintendo’s footage showed Nessa using the new Dynamax mechanic to grow her Water/Rock-type Drednaw to the size of a large house.

Nessa’s undeniable sense of style and cool confidence has immediately captured the hearts and loyalties of many Pokémon fans. We may have only gotten a short glimpse of her, but people are already declaring both a willingness and desire to die for their newly crowned aquatic queen.

The universal admiration HRH Queen Nessa has been spurred on but a number of factors. Not only is she beautiful, self-assured and powerful enough to kick the arses of you and your entire extended family, but she’s a dark-skinned woman in a series that historically hasn’t included very many.

Fortunate E3 attendees can get a private audience with Gym Leader Nessa now, battling her as part of the Sword and Shield demo at Nintendo’s booth. The rest of us can only admire her from afar, lowly peasants unworthy of entering her presence.

Some fans have also taken note of Nessa’s outfit which, while undeniably stylish, appears to include floaties attached to her ankles.

This may seem highly impractical and even potentially dangerous, but I 100 percent believe Nessa can breathe under water because she is a perfect water goddess.

Sadly, it will still be a few months before fans can pledge their loyalty. Pokémon Sword and Shield is scheduled for release November 15 on Nintendo Switch.