Detective Pikachu US Release Confirmed With A Giant Amiibo

There's been a lot of buzz surrounding the upcoming Detective Pikachu movie, but today we're learning that those of us in the west will soon have a video game to go along with it. Nintendo revealed today that Detective Pikachu will soon make his way to the US in a new video game for the 3DS. When that game arrives, it'll be accompanied by an amiibo quite unlike any you've seen before.Detective Pikachu is a relatively new spin off for the Pokemon series. Thus far, there's been one game in the sub-series, which was the Japan-exclusive Detective Pikachu – Birth of a New Duo for the 3DS. This new game, which is simply called Detective Pikachu, will feature all of the content from Birth of a New Duo (along with new content as well), bringing western players up to speed on the story so far.

Detective Pikachu follows a kid named Tim Goodman as he tries to investigate his father's disappearance. Along the way, he meets Detective Pikachu, a unique Pokemon who can talk. That Pikachu could prove vital to cracking the case, as he claims to have worked with Tim's father in the past.

The first trailer for Detective Pikachu is certainly a little different. For fans who have followed Pokemon these past 20 years, it's a jarring change to see Pikachu talking with such a gruff voice. Still, consider our interest piqued – an adventure game featuring an English-speaking Pikachu is too weird to pass up.

Detective Pikachu will be launching in the US with a special new amiibo. This Detective Pikachu amiibo is quite a bit larger than normal amiibo, as you can see in the image above, and it'll let you see all of the Pika Prompts for in-game chapters you have completed. Both the amiibo and Detective Pikachu will launch on March 23, 2018.