When Pikachu put on his detective hat and began acting like Sherlock Holmes, everyone fell in love with his voice. His adventures in Great Detective Pikachu:Birth of a New Duo have begun, but the short length of the title appears to be just the beginning. It seems the game takes about five hours to complete, but Mewtwo doesn't want you to think Pikachu's adventures as a detective are over just yet. When players reach the end of the game, Mewtwo shows up and leaves you with a mysterious "To Be Continued..." screen.
Great Detective Pikachu launched yesterday in Japan for the price of 1200 yen, or about $10 USD, so the short length of the title makes sense for the small price tag. What we don't know is how many more episodes are planned and how much they'll cost. Nintendo has yet to confirm the title will indeed join the likes of the Final Fantasy VII remake or the upcoming Hitman title by becoming an episodic release, but the abbreviated length and to be continued screen seem to tell that story for us.
There are no currently announced plans to bring Great Detective Pikachu to the west. Nintendo may be waiting for the full series to be released in Japan prior to localizing the game for a single, full release in the west, or they may be working on localizing each part as they become available. For our Japanese readers, Great Detective Pikachu is available now on the 3DS eShop.
What they need to do is finish the rest of the episodes, then bring it to the west on eShop and retail. Then people will be happy.
However many episodes they decide to do, I have a feeling they'll eventually release them all on one cartridge for retail price. Can't wait to see where it's headed.