What type of game is Pokémon Pokopia described as being the first of in the Pokémon franchise?

Pokémon Pokopia is described as the Pokémon franchise’s first slow-paced life simulation game.

Instead of centering on gym battles, competitive progression, or a conventional journey through a region, Pokopia focuses on gathering materials, crafting objects, building homes, restoring habitats, and spending time with Pokémon. Its world includes a real-time day-night cycle and weather that changes the environment.

The game also contains sandbox elements, so descriptions may call it a life simulation, a social simulation, or a slow-life sandbox game. The canonical description used by Nintendo identifies it specifically as the first slow-paced life simulation game in the franchise.

It is still a Pokémon spin-off rather than a main-series role-playing game. Players interact with familiar Pokémon and learn their moves, but the primary goal is to create a welcoming environment and rebuild a desolate world.