Team Rocket’s Jessie and James have appeared in two events in Pokemon mobile games; Pokemon Go, and Pokemon Masters.
Serebii reports [1, 2] that as a tie-in with the delayed Pokemon The Movie: Coco, Team Rocket’s Jessie, James, and Meowth are coming to two Pokemon mobile games. It should be noted the movie is on a different continuity to the anime.
In Pokemon Go, the Team Rocket event has returned, compensating for the coronavirus pandemic by having Team GO Rocket hot air balloons floating nearby players (as oppose to on PokeStops). Players have a chance for one of these to be the classic Meowth hot air balloon the trio often used in the anime.
Players have a chance to obtain a Shadow Ekans or Koffing from battling them, which reportedly can be shiny. There are also free cosmetics to dress in Jessie and Jame’s white uniforms.
You can find the announcement trailer below.
In Pokemon Masters, a special Story Event is occurring called “Double Trouble.” Seemingly taking place just before the events of the movie, Team Rocket are on the trail of a shiny Celebi. Since Team Break are after it as well, they deceive the player into believing they are trying to protect it from them.
It should be noted there seems to be no voice acting for Jessie, James, or Meowth in Pokemon Masters. This is likely an issue caused by the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, inhibiting abilities for voice actors and actresses to record their lines. You can find the full rundown on the event and on Jessie & Arbok here [1, 2].
Other promotional events for the movie include the reveal of the Mythical Pokemon Zarude. It is likely it would have been obtainable for those who pre-ordered tickets for the movie. It seems events that were designed for when the film would have originally premiered in July are still going ahead.
Pokemon Go is available on Android, and iOS. Pokemon Masters is available on Android, and iOS.
Pokemon The Movie: Coco premieres in Japan Winter 2020. A western premiere has not been confirmed at this time.
