Pokemon: Hints That Point Toward a South-American Region For Gen 9

gamerant.com:

The release of new Pokemon games is always exciting for fans who get to start their journey in a new land and meet new Pokemon on the way. Mainline releases tend to include hints to where the next generation of titles is going to be set, or at least what sort of mechanics players can find in it. For example, Power Spots and Gigantamax Toxtricity were teased in Pokemon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon. Thus with Pokemon Sword and Shield players started looking for possible hints at what the setting for Gen 9 would be, but many clues have also came from Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl, as well as Pokemon Legends: Arceus.

Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl pointed to a potential Italy-based region for Gen 9 because of a painting found in several locations that seemingly depicts Venice. When players meet director Junichi Masuda in the game, they are also greeted by him saying «Ciao.» However, there are several clues outside the Gen 4 remakes that may be pointing at other regions for Gen 9 -namely some of Pokemon Legends: Arceus' events and Pokedex entries, as well asPokemon Sword and Shield's Zarude. Among the various possibilities, a popular theory is that a South America-based region is next in line, and it all starts with Zarude.

Predicting What the Pokemon Gen 9 Region Could Be Based On

Mythical Pokemon often hint at future releases through their design, main themes, and even their in-game abilities or moves. Such is the case for Zarude, according to many Pokemon fans, seeing how the critter's signature move — Jungle Healing — makes it specifically seem like something from a tropical rainforest. Primates with dark furs are often found in rainforests, where the sun is less dominant because of trees shading everything