Pokemon Champions

Pokémon Champions Review: VGC on a Phone, Free, With a Membership for Box Space

Just the Battles: Doubles, Ranked, Casual, Private

There is no region, no gym and no story — Champions is the online battle mode of a Pokémon game as its own app. You recruit Pokémon rather than catch them, one free each day plus more from quests — about three a day, per a July 25, 2026 App Store four-star — train them in a snap from a menu, and fight doubles in Ranked Battles with tiers named after Poké Balls, Casual Battles, and Private Battles with friends; Pokémon HOME links Pokémon you already own, and the pool runs from generation one to nine plus Legends Z-A Megas. The reviewers are competitive players, and they mostly approve: a June 25 five-star calls it the best Pokémon game for online battle; an August 6 five-star calls it a great VGC game that brings new and old players into competitive play; the July 25 review credits the low-tier opening regulations for teaching doubles. Rated 4+ and Everyone, in nine languages.

Stalled Battles, a Meta at Ultra Ball, No 6v6 and No Report Button

The complaints are the ones a ladder produces. A July 22 three-star calls the game functional with seemingly endless flaws — battles that stall, performance issues unaddressed across patches; a September 2 Play five-star hit a Game Has Already Ended error in the standby phase, later fixed, and then hit the wall every ladder has: at Ultra Ball tier everyone runs the same meta team. A September 18 Play review waited on Waiting for Communication with excellent Wi-Fi and was told the game never received its input, and is sad to hear there is no plan for a 6v6 mode. September App Store one-stars ask where the report button is and complain that 90-accuracy moves miss like Fissure; a September 19 four-star wants Backbone controller support. Ratings: 4.8 from 32,385 on the App Store, 4.7 from 234,000 on Play with five million installs.

No Ads, a $4.99 Membership, a $9.99 Pass — and Box Space Behind the Paywall

The shop is short and specific. Neither store shows an advertising badge or a loot-box flag; the App Store's three purchases are Membership at $4.99 a month or $49.99 a year and a Premium Battle Pass at $9.99, with Google Play's range the same. What the membership buys is the argument: a September 10 Play three-star with seven votes has been pulled into competitive Pokémon by the game and refuses to pay a subscription for more box space, asking for a one-time purchase or an earnable ticket; the July 15 review would give five stars if very good Pokémon were not locked behind purchases. Google's data-safety card lists Personal info and Financial info collected and shared. The install is 2.4 GB on iPhone, iOS 16 or newer; Google Play lists no Android floor. Prices are regional.