Pokémon Scarlet and Pokémon Violet are 2022 role-playing video games created by Game Freak and released by Nintendo and The Pokémon Company for the Nintendo Switch. These games are the first in the ninth generation of the Pokémon video game series. They were introduced in February 2022 and became available to players on November 18, 2022. Later, the games received a downloadable content (DLC) expansion called The Hidden Treasure of Area Zero. The first part of this expansion, The Teal Mask, was released on September 13, 2023, and the second part, The Indigo Disk, was released on December 14, 2023. A post-game expansion named Mochi Mayhem, which serves as the ending part of the DLC and the games, was launched on January 11, 2024.
The games are set in the Paldea Region, which is inspired by the Iberian Peninsula. Unlike earlier Pokémon games, Scarlet and Violet feature an open world where players can explore freely. Players can complete three different storylines. The games add 120 new Pokémon, two new regional forms, and special creatures called Paradox Pokémon. They also introduce the Terastal phenomenon, which allows a Pokémon to change into a unique type called its "Tera Type." The games include features from earlier Pokémon games, such as large open areas and Pokémon that appear in the world outside of battles.
Development of Scarlet and Violet began right after the release of their previous games, Pokémon Sword and Shield. The developers at Game Freak wanted to use a new art style for the games, creating a more realistic world while keeping character designs more stylized. Models and animations for Pokémon were updated to match this new artistic style.
Critics gave the games average reviews. Some praised the story and other aspects, while others pointed out technical issues. The games sold over 10 million copies in the first three days, making them Nintendo's most successful game launch ever. By December 2025, more than 28 million copies had been sold. A free update for the games on Nintendo Switch 2, which included better visuals, performance, and other improvements, was released on June 5, 2025.
Gameplay
Pokémon Scarlet and Violet are similar to previous Pokémon games, where players collect creatures called Pokémon mainly by catching and trading them. These Pokémon are used to explore the world and battle other trainers. A new feature allows players to battle trainers on special paths. The games add 112 new Pokémon, including three new starter Pokémon—Sprigatito, Fuecoco, and Quaxly—which are the first Pokémon players can get in the game. Two new legendary Pokémon, Koraidon and Miraidon, join players throughout the game.
Scarlet and Violet have open worlds that include both cities and open wilderness areas with no clear borders between them, unlike earlier Pokémon games. Players can use either Koraidon or Miraidon, depending on the game version, as a mount to move around the world. This allows players to use special abilities to travel across the region of Paldea. A new "Auto Battle" feature lets players send out their Pokémon to defeat other Pokémon without entering turn-based battles. Players can also choose from three different story routes, and tasks within each route can be completed in any order.
Each story route has a different style of gameplay. The first route, Victory Road, involves defeating Pokémon Gyms to earn badges from Gym Leaders. Gyms can be challenged in any order, unlike earlier games. After collecting eight badges, players can battle the Elite Four and the Top Champion, Geeta. The second route, Path of Legends, requires players to defeat powerful "Titan Pokémon" such as Klawf, Bombirdier, Orthworm, Great Tusk (in Scarlet), Iron Treads (in Violet), and Dondozo. Defeating these Pokémon gives players Herba Mystica items, which grant their mount new abilities like jumping higher or climbing walls. The third route, Starfall Street, involves defeating a group of rebellious students called Team Star. Players must defeat five of Team Star’s bases within a time limit to face the route’s final boss. Completing all three routes unlocks a fourth story route that concludes the game’s main story.
Scarlet and Violet introduce the Terastal phenomenon, which changes a Pokémon’s appearance to a crystalline form and alters its type, an attribute that affects its strengths and weaknesses. A special move called Tera Blast becomes the same type as a Pokémon’s Tera Type when used by a Terastallized Pokémon. Players can change their Pokémon’s Tera Type. Wild Terastallized Pokémon can be encountered and fought in "Tera Raids," where up to four players battle a Terastallized Pokémon under a time limit. Each player can use only one Pokémon, and if that Pokémon is defeated, the remaining time decreases. Players can catch the raid boss after defeating it. Online features allow players to team up in Tera Raids.
The games include new mechanics. A "picnic" feature lets players interact with their Pokémon, make sandwiches that provide in-game benefits, and breed Pokémon to get eggs. Up to four players can join picnics and sandwich-making online. Players can also connect with others over the internet through "Union Circles," where up to four players explore the game world together. Online features allow trading and battling with other players.
Plot
Pokémon Scarlet and Violet take place in the Paldea Region of the Pokémon universe. This region is loosely inspired by the Iberian Peninsula. Paldea has many different types of environments, such as lakes, wastelands, and mountain ranges. At the center of the region is a large crater called the Great Crater of Paldea. Inside the crater lies an area named Area Zero.
In the games, players attend either the Naranja (Scarlet) or Uva (Violet) Academy. The academy holds an annual event called the "Treasure Hunt," which encourages students to explore the region and find something they value. During the game, players meet either the Legendary Pokémon Koraidon or Miraidon. These Pokémon join the player, even though they can no longer battle. The player is then encouraged to complete three storylines: Victory Road, Starfall Street, and Path of Legends.
In Victory Road, a Champion-ranked Trainer named Nemona challenges the player. Nemona asks the player to complete eight Gyms across the Paldea region. After defeating each Gym leader, the player can become a Champion by beating the region’s Elite Four and the Top Champion, Geeta. Once the player achieves Champion rank, Nemona challenges them to a final battle, which the player wins.
In Path of Legends, a character named Arven asks the player to help find five legendary items called Herba Mystica. To obtain each Herba Mystica, the player and Arven must defeat large Pokémon called "Titan Pokémon," which are powered by the Herba Mystica. Arven explains that he wants to use the Herba Mystica to heal his injured pet Mabosstiff, who was hurt by a Pokémon in Area Zero—the workplace of his parent, either Professor Sada (Scarlet) or Professor Turo (Violet). After defeating all five Titans, Arven and the player use the Herba Mystica to heal Mabosstiff and restore Koraidon or Miraidon’s lost abilities. Arven then challenges the player to a final battle before being called by the professor to go to Area Zero with either the Scarlet or Violet Book. Arven decides to recruit more allies before entering Area Zero.
In Starfall Street, the player helps a shy student named Penny confront Team Star, a group responsible for bullying at the academy. Penny’s secret identity is Cassiopeia, the founder of Team Star. Cassiopeia asks the player to join "Operation Starfall," a mission to stop Team Star by defeating its five squad bosses. The player is assisted by Clavell, the academy director, who disguises himself as a student named Clive to investigate Team Star’s origins, and Penny, who wants to guide the player as Cassiopeia. The player learns that Team Star was formed to stop bullying, not cause it. A past confrontation with bullies caused the bullies to leave the academy and some staff members to resign. After defeating all squad bosses, Penny reveals her identity and challenges the player to a battle. After her defeat, Clavell exposes his disguise and offers a peaceful resolution with Team Star, though he requires the group to perform community service as punishment for breaking rules.
After choosing Nemona and Penny as allies, Arven and the player travel to the Zero Lab, the professor’s laboratory in Area Zero. This unlocks the final storyline, The Way Home. Inside the lab, the player encounters Paradox Pokémon, which are related to Pokémon from either the ancient past (Scarlet) or the distant future (Violet). Koraidon and Miraidon are revealed to be Paradox Pokémon, closely related to a Pokémon called Cyclizar. They were driven out of Area Zero after losing a territorial battle to a more aggressive Koraidon or Miraidon. At the laboratory, the professor reveals that they are an AI substitute for the real professor, who died in a past laboratory accident. The AI explains that the original professor built a time machine to retrieve Paradox Pokémon and insists on maintaining it to protect Paldea’s environment. The AI urges the player to shut down the time machine but forces a battle to stop them. After the player defeats the AI, the time machine’s security system disables Poké Balls not registered under Professor Sada or Turo’s ID, leaving the player with only Koraidon or Miraidon to fight the AI. This causes the time machine to fail, and the AI travels to another time to allow its destruction. Before leaving, the AI apologizes to Arven for the original professor neglecting him as a child.
After returning to the academy, Nemona, Clavell, and Geeta organize a Pokémon battling tournament between faculty and students. The player evaluates all previous Gym challenges and wins the tournament.
Development
Pokémon Scarlet and Violet began development in late 2019, around the same time as Pokémon Sword and Shield. During development, Game Freak, the game’s developers, aimed to create a more realistic and stylized look. This included using more detailed textures and unique character designs. Keiichi Maezawa, a member of Game Freak, explained at a conference that this approach was meant to make the games feel more connected to the real world. To improve realism, natural sounds were added to the game’s overworld. While this feature existed in earlier games, the team wanted to expand the variety of sounds and create a large collection for future games. They developed a program called "PokeSynth" to generate sounds using Pokémon cries. Team members tested these sounds in forests by using speakers and studied animal vocalizations at zoos. They also grouped Pokémon based on their sounds to determine how each species would communicate.
Pokémon models in these games were completely redesigned. Game Freak created detailed plans and sent them to the model team, who built the models based on these instructions. After models were created, meetings were held to finalize details like facial expressions and emotions in animations. Artists adjusted shading and textures to reflect different Pokémon personalities, with special crystalline effects used to show a Pokémon’s Terastallized state. Lighting and camera angles were carefully chosen to highlight these features. Once models were approved, test versions were made, and movements were finalized. Many animations were changed based on feedback from artists. Animations were created using an in-house program.
Some animations from earlier games were reused for new Pokémon models and rigs, but this caused challenges. The team had to find cost-effective ways to reuse animations. Unlike previous games, all Pokémon now had 3D models with detailed facial features instead of using textures. The team focused on ensuring each model accurately reflected a Pokémon’s personality and fit the game’s artistic style. Pokémon inspired by real-world objects or animals incorporated elements from their sources in animations. Artists researched the best ways to represent each species. Pokémon resembling inanimate objects were designed to look more lifelike. New lighting was added to enhance visuals, and idle animations were adjusted to be visible and interesting during battles. Developers ensured Pokémon looked consistent across different camera angles.
The games’ soundtrack was created by multiple composers. Teruo Taniguchi, who worked on Pokémon Black 2 and White 2, composed music for Team Star. Go Ichinose, a longtime series composer, created music for the Path of Legends story and a battle track against the Ruinous Quartet. Junichi Masuda composed the Victory Road music, while Minako Adachi and Hitomi Sato created other tracks for the route. The soundtrack was officially released in February 2024 and later became available on Nintendo Music in October 2024. Toby Fox, known for Undertale, also contributed music.
English singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran collaborated on the song "Celestial" for the games. He has been a fan of the series since childhood and previously worked with Pokémon Go in 2021. "Celestial" is the first song in the series with lyrics. Its music video, released on September 29, 2022, was directed by Yuichi Kodama and featured Ed Sheeran with sketch-style Pokémon, including a Snorlax and a Lapras. The Pokémon designs were created by art director Yu Nagaba, who used a style similar to how Ed Sheeran drew Pokémon as a child. "Celestial" plays in the end credits of the games and was later remixed by Toby Fox for the DLC expansions. However, the song is not included in the official soundtrack release.
Marketing and release
Pokémon Scarlet and Violet were announced on 27 February 2022 during a Pokémon Presents presentation. A trailer that mixed real people and animation showed the three starter Pokémon: Sprigatito, Fuecoco, and Quaxly. On 1 June 2022, a second trailer was released. It officially introduced Koraidon and Miraidon, more gameplay footage, and new Pokémon: Smoliv, Lechonk, and Pawmi. It also revealed characters Nemona, Sada, and Turo. On 3 August 2022, a third trailer and an overview trailer were shown during a Pokémon Presents event. These trailers introduced two new Pokémon, the name of the region, Terastallization, and other details. A fourth trailer, released on 7 September 2022, explained the three story routes players could choose, as well as three new Pokémon. Characters Mela, Brassius, and Geeta were also officially revealed.
During the closing ceremony of the 2022 Pokémon World Championships on 21 August 2022, a new trailer was shown. It introduced a new Pokémon, Cyclizar, and new items and abilities for competitive play. On 29 September 2022, singer Ed Sheeran released a song titled "Celestial" in collaboration with The Pokémon Company. The song appeared in the game credits. On 6 October 2022, a 14-minute trailer was released. It highlighted how four players could take different story paths and showed Farigiraf, the evolution of Girafarig. Before the games launched, The Pokémon Company shared in-universe videos to reveal Pokémon like Grafaiai, Wiglett, Bellibolt, and Greavard. On 4 November 2022, a special edition Nintendo Switch OLED model with themed artwork was released. On 11 November 2022, a Splatfest themed around the three starter types was held in Splatoon 3, one week before the games launched.
Before the games released, some in-game content was leaked. Leaks began as early as July, with low-quality images of unrevealed characters and Pokémon shared online. The Pokémon Gimmighoul was leaked in early November through a datamine of the game Pokémon Go, after it was accidentally shown in a pre-release trailer. About 72 Pokémon were leaked a few days before the games launched, and the leaks spread quickly on social media platforms like Instagram and TikTok. ROMs of the games were leaked on the forum 4chan, and players livestreamed the games before their release. Nintendo tried to remove these leaks, but other accounts reposted the information after it was taken down.
Pokémon Scarlet and Violet were released worldwide on 18 November 2022. The games had many technical issues, including bugs and glitches that affected gameplay. On 1 December 2022, Nintendo apologized for the problems and released the 1.1.0 update to fix some bugs. Update 1.2.0, released in February 2023, fixed more bugs but also introduced a rare bug that corrupted save files. Update 1.3.0, released on 19 April 2023, fixed additional bugs.
Pokémon Scarlet and Violet are among the Nintendo Switch games that will have a free upgrade for the Nintendo Switch 2. On 2 June 2025, the Nintendo Today! app showed gameplay footage of the Switch 2 upgrade, revealing improved image quality and a 60 FPS frame rate.
On 27 February 2023, a Pokémon Day presentation announced a downloadable expansion pack, The Hidden Treasure of Area Zero, which included two DLC expansions: The Teal Mask and The Indigo Disk. The Teal Mask, focusing on the Legendary Pokémon Ogerpon, was released on 13 September 2023. The Indigo Disk, focusing on the Legendary Pokémon Terapagos, was released on 14 December 2023. The DLC introduced over 230 returning Pokémon not in the base game, including new Pokémon like Poltchageist and new evolutions for Applin and Duraludon.
In The Teal Mask, players go on a school trip to the land of Kitakami, where they uncover the truth behind a local legend. In The Indigo Disk, players study at Blueberry Academy, an exchange school, and later return to Area Zero to finish the story. On 11 January 2024, the DLC's epilogue, Mochi Mayhem, was released. It lets players return to Kitakami to catch a new Mythical Pokémon, Pecharunt.
After their release, Pokémon Scarlet and Violet became compatible with Pokémon Home, a cloud-based storage system that allows players to store Pokémon from the games and send Pokémon from older games into Scarlet and Violet. The games were also made compatible with Pokémon Go in 2023, allowing players to send postcards from Go to Scarlet and Violet. This lets players in Go encounter a special form of Gimmighoul, and players in Scarlet and Violet encounter special forms of Vivillon. Special promotional videos featuring characters from the games discussing Gimmighoul and its lore were released before the compatibility announcement.
The anime series Pokémon Horizons: The Series included tie-ins to Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, with locations, characters, and Pokémon from the games appearing in the series. In August 2023, a limited 4-episode web series titled Pokémon: Paldean Winds was announced during a Pokémon Presents presentation. It premiered on YouTube on 6 September 2023 and ended on 13 December 2023. Produced by Wit Studio, the series is based on the Paldea region and is not part of the main anime series. Each episode follows a different student at the Academy as they solve a problem.
On 16 November 2023, pop duo Yoasobi and The Pokémon Company announced a collaboration to celebrate the games' first anniversary. The song "Biri-Biri" was released in both Japanese and English on 18 November 2023, along with a music video. The video focuses on Nemona and a transfer student named Anna as they search for a treasure. The song was inspired by a short story titled Kimi to Ameagari o by novelist Ayano Takeda. Yoasobi performed the song live at various locations.
Reception
Pokémon Scarlet and Violet received "mixed or average reviews" from Metacritic, a website that collects game reviews, making them the lowest-rated mainline Pokémon games. Another review site, OpenCritic, said the games had fair approval, with 48% of critics recommending them.
GameSpot writer Jake Dekker said the games' non-linear structure was a positive feature. Nintendo Life compared the experience to the first Pokémon games, Red and Blue, calling it "real magic" and praising the story as "wholesome" with "genuinely tender moments." IGN writer Rebekah Valentine enjoyed the open-world gameplay and new mechanics like Tera Raids and online features. However, she criticized the games for lacking polish and depth in areas like online play and exploration.
GamesRadar+ writer Joel Franey said the open-world design felt aimless and lacked clear goals, but praised the music and user interface. Polygon writer Kenneth Shepard liked the Terastallization feature, which improved battle strategy, and the game's writing. However, he felt the games were less advanced than their predecessor, Pokémon Legends: Arceus, and did not clearly guide players through major story events.
The Guardian's Tom Regan found the games fun but criticized their technical and graphical issues, which limited their potential. GameRevolution's Jason Faulkner criticized poor textures, performance, and awkward progression, despite the open-world design. 4Players' Lea Irion said the games showed the Pokémon franchise becoming less ambitious and felt unfinished. Nintendo World Report's Willem Hilhorst noted that while glitches could be forgiven due to the franchise's history, the removal of long-standing features and lack of polish made the games hard to enjoy.
Critics and fans alike pointed out graphical glitches and poor performance. The graphics were compared unfavorably to other Nintendo Switch games, like Xenoblade Chronicles 3. The Washington Post's Jhaan Ekler said the graphics had not improved from the franchise's past issues. Eurogamer's Oliver Mackenzie called the games graphically low quality, calling them worse than Pokémon Legends: Arceus and "comprehensive technical failures." IGN's Rebekah Valentine said the games' innovative design was weakened by technical problems. Some players requested refunds due to performance issues, which Nintendo granted in most cases. As a result, The Pokémon Company's COO, Takato Utsunomiya, said the company would review the series' release schedule.
According to The Pokémon Company, Scarlet and Violet were the most pre-ordered Pokémon games in history. Within three days of release, the games sold over 10 million copies worldwide, including 4.05 million in Japan. This was the highest three-day sales record for any Nintendo platform and the best launch for a console-exclusive game. The games were the best-selling video games in Japan in 2022. By June 2025, the games had sold 27.15 million copies, making them the second-best-selling Pokémon titles and the sixth-best-selling Switch games. As of 2026, the games had sold 8.66 million copies in Japan, placing them second behind Red and Green.