Pokémon Scarlet and Violet facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
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Cover art for Scarlet and Violet, depicting Koraidon (left) and Miraidon (right)
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| Developer(s) | Game Freak |
| Publisher(s) |
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| Director(s) | Shigeru Ohmori |
| Producer(s) |
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| Designer(s) | Hiroyuki Tani |
| Programmer(s) | Katsuhiko Ichiraku |
| Artist(s) |
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| Writer(s) | Ryota Muranaka |
| Composer(s) |
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| Series | Pokémon |
| Platform(s) | Nintendo Switch |
| Release date(s) | 18 November 2022 |
| Genre(s) | Role-playing |
| Mode(s) | Single-player, multiplayer |
Pokémon Scarlet and Pokémon Violet are exciting role-playing games released for the Nintendo Switch on 18 November 2022. Developed by Game Freak and published by Nintendo and The Pokémon Company, these games are the first in the ninth generation of the popular Pokémon video game series. They introduced players to a brand-new adventure in the Paldea region, which is inspired by the Iberian Peninsula (like Spain and Portugal).
Unlike previous Pokémon games, Scarlet and Violet feature a truly open world where you can explore cities and wild areas without any loading screens between them. Players can choose from three main storylines to follow, offering lots of freedom. The games brought 120 new Pokémon into the world, plus special forms and unique creatures called Paradox Pokémon, which are like Pokémon from different times. A cool new power-up called the Terastal phenomenon, lets your Pokémon change its type and get a sparkling, crystalline look.
Pokémon Scarlet and Violet quickly became very popular. They sold over 10 million copies in their first three days, making them Nintendo's biggest game launch ever! By March 2025, over 27 million copies were sold. While some players experienced technical issues when the games first came out, these were addressed with updates. A free update for the games, including improved visuals and performance, was released for the Nintendo Switch 2 on 5 June 2025. The adventure continued with a downloadable content (DLC) expansion pass called The Hidden Treasure of Area Zero, which added new stories and Pokémon. The first part, The Teal Mask, came out on 13 September 2023, and the second part, The Indigo Disk, was released on 14 December 2023. A final story, Mochi Mayhem, which wrapped up the DLC and main games, was released on 11 January 2024.
Contents
Exploring the Paldea Region
Pokémon Scarlet and Violet keep the fun of catching, trading, and battling Pokémon that fans love. But they also add new ways to play and explore! You'll travel across the vast Paldea region, meeting many different Pokémon and trainers.
Catching and Battling Pokémon
In these games, you'll find 112 new Pokémon, including your first partner Pokémon: Sprigatito, Fuecoco, or Quaxly. You'll also meet two special Legendary Pokémon, Koraidon (in Scarlet) and Miraidon (in Violet). These powerful Pokémon will join you on your journey and help you travel across Paldea.
The world of Paldea is completely open, meaning you can go almost anywhere you want! Koraidon or Miraidon can be ridden like a mount, giving you special abilities to climb walls, glide, and jump higher. There's also a new "Auto Battle" feature. This lets you send out your Pokémon to battle wild Pokémon on their own, making exploration even faster.
Three Exciting Story Paths
Instead of just one main story, Scarlet and Violet offer three different paths you can follow in any order you choose.
Victory Road: Become a Champion
This path is all about challenging Pokémon Gyms, just like in many other Pokémon games. You'll battle powerful "Gym Leaders" and earn a badge from each. Once you collect eight badges, you can face the "Elite Four" and the "Top Champion," Geeta, to become a Pokémon Champion yourself! Your rival, Nemona, will also challenge you to battles along the way.
Path of Legends: Seek Out Titan Pokémon
On this adventure, you'll team up with your friend Arven to find five special "Titan Pokémon." These are extra-large and super strong Pokémon! Defeating them helps you get rare items called "Herba Mystica." These items will make your Koraidon or Miraidon even stronger, giving them new ways to help you explore. Arven wants to use these items to help his injured pet Pokémon, Mabosstiff.
Starfall Street: Confront Team Star
This path involves helping a shy schoolgirl named Penny deal with a group of students called Team Star. Team Star has five different bases, each led by a powerful boss. You'll need to defeat a certain number of Team Star members within a time limit before battling their leader. You'll learn that Team Star actually started to help students who were being picked on, and Penny has a secret connection to the group!
Once you complete all three of these exciting stories, a final adventure will unlock, bringing the main plot of the games to an amazing conclusion.
Terastal Phenomenon: Power Up Your Pokémon
A brand-new feature in Paldea is the Terastal phenomenonTerastal phenomenon, . When a Pokémon Terastallizes, it gets a cool, crystalline look and its type can change to a special "Tera Type." This can make your Pokémon much stronger in battles! For example, a Pikachu might become a "Water Tera Type" Pikachu, changing its strengths and weaknesses. You can even change your Pokémon's Tera Type.
You can find wild Terastallized Pokémon to battle in special "Tera Raids." Up to four players can team up online to fight these powerful Pokémon within a time limit. If you win, you can catch the raid boss!
Fun Activities with Your Pokémon
Scarlet and Violet offer many ways to interact with your Pokémon and friends.
- Picnics: You can set up a picnic almost anywhere to play with your Pokémon and make sandwiches. Eating sandwiches gives your Pokémon special boosts in the game. During picnics, your Pokémon can also lay eggs, which can hatch into new Pokémon!
- Union Circles: You can connect with up to three other players online in a "Union Circle." This lets you explore the Paldea region together in real-time, trade Pokémon, and even battle each other.
The Story of Paldea
The games take place in the beautiful and diverse Paldea region. This area is inspired by the Iberian Peninsula, which includes countries like Spain and Portugal. Paldea has everything from sparkling lakes to tall mountains. In the very center of the region is a huge hole called the Great Crater of Paldea, and deep inside it is a mysterious place known as Area Zero.
Your Academy Adventure
Your journey begins when you enroll at either Naranja Academy (in Scarlet) or Uva Academy (in Violet). The academy holds an annual "Treasure Hunt," encouraging students to explore Paldea and find something special to them. Early on, you'll meet either the Legendary Pokémon Koraidon or Miraidon, who joins you and helps you travel, even though it has lost some of its battle power. This is when you're encouraged to start your three main story paths.
Victory Road: Becoming a Champion
Your friend Nemona, who is already a Champion-ranked trainer, asks you to complete Paldea's eight Gyms. After defeating all the Gym Leaders, you'll challenge the Elite Four and the Top Champion, Geeta. Once you become a Champion, Nemona will challenge you to a final, exciting battle.
Path of Legends: Helping Arven
Arven needs your help to find five legendary Herba Mystica. To get them, you and Arven must defeat powerful "Titan Pokémon." Arven reveals he wants to use the Herba Mystica to heal his pet Mabosstiff, who had an accident in Area Zero. This is where Arven's parent, either Professor Sada (in Scarlet) or Turo (in Violet), works. After healing Mabosstiff, Koraidon/Miraidon also gets its full powers back. Arven then challenges you to a battle before being called to Area Zero.
Starfall Street: Understanding Team Star
You'll help Penny stand up to Team Star, a group of students who were causing trouble at the academy. Penny, who has a secret identity as Team Star's founder, Cassiopeia, asks for your help to disband the group by defeating its five squad bosses. You'll learn that Team Star actually started to help students who were being picked on. A big event happened a while ago where they stood up to bullies, and some students left the academy. After defeating all the bosses, Penny reveals her identity and battles you. The academy director, Clavell, then offers peace to Team Star, but they must do community service.
The Final Journey: Area Zero
After completing all three paths, Arven asks Nemona and Penny to join you on a journey to the Zero Lab, the professor's lab in Area Zero. Here, you'll encounter "Paradox Pokémon," which are special Pokémon from either the ancient past (in Scarlet) or the far future (in Violet). It's revealed that Koraidon and Miraidon are also Paradox Pokémon!
Inside the lab, you discover that the professor you knew is actually an AI (Artificial Intelligence) copy. The real professor had an accident in the lab before the games began. The AI explains that the original professor created a time machine to bring Paradox Pokémon to Paldea. The AI asks you to shut down the time machine to protect Paldea's nature, but its programming forces it to battle you. After a tough fight, the time machine's security disables your Poké Balls, leaving you with only your Koraidon or Miraidon to win. The time machine then fails, and the AI travels to another time, apologizing to Arven for the original professor's neglect. Back at the academy, a special Pokémon battling tournament is held, and you emerge victorious!
How the Games Were Made
Development for Pokémon Scarlet and Violet began in late 2019. The creators at Game Freak wanted to give the games a new look, combining realistic world designs with stylish character designs.
Bringing Paldea to Life
Developers aimed for a "real and deformed" art style. This meant making the world feel more realistic while keeping the characters and Pokémon looking unique. They even went into forests to record natural sounds and studied animal vocalizations at zoos to make Pokémon sounds more expressive. They created a special program called "PokeSynth" to help make a wide variety of Pokémon cries.
Creating New Pokémon
Every Pokémon in Scarlet and Violet received new models and animations. The team worked hard to make sure each Pokémon's personality shone through, even with new textures and lighting. When a Pokémon Terastallizes, it gets a unique crystalline effect. The developers also made sure that Pokémon's idle animations looked interesting from different camera angles during battles.
The Music of Paldea
The games' soundtrack features music from many talented composers. Teruo Taniguchi created the music for Team Star, while Go Ichinose composed tracks for the Path of Legends story. Junichi Masuda, along with Minako Adachi and Hitomi Sato, worked on the music for the Victory Road path. Famous composer Toby Fox, known for Undertale, also contributed music. The official soundtrack was released in February 2024.
Famous Artists Join In
English singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran collaborated with the games for his song "Celestial." Ed Sheeran has been a big fan of Pokémon since he was a kid! "Celestial" was the first song in the series to feature lyrics. Its music video, released on 29 September 2022, shows Ed Sheeran interacting with sketch-style Pokémon. The song plays during the end credits of Scarlet and Violet and was later remixed by Toby Fox for the DLC expansions' credits.
Game Updates and Expansions
Pokémon Scarlet and Violet were first announced on 27 February 2022, with trailers revealing the starter Pokémon and new features.
Launch and Early Updates
The games were released worldwide on 18 November 2022. Some players experienced technical issues and bugs when the games first came out. Nintendo apologized for these problems on 1 December 2022, and released several updates (1.1.0, 1.2.0, 1.3.0) to fix many of the issues. A free upgrade for the games, offering improved visuals and a smoother frame rate, was released for the Nintendo Switch 2 on 5 June 2025.
The Hidden Treasure of Area Zero DLC
On 27 February 2023, an expansion pass called The Hidden Treasure of Area Zero was announced. It included two big DLC expansions:
- The Teal Mask: Released on 13 September 2023, this part is based on the Japanese legend of Momotarō. You go on a school trip to the land of Kitakami, where you uncover the truth behind a local legend and meet the Legendary Pokémon Ogerpon.
- The Indigo Disk: Released on 14 December 2023, this part sends you to Blueberry Academy as an exchange student. You eventually travel back to Area Zero to finish the main story. Here, you'll meet the Legendary Pokémon Terapagos.
- Mochi Mayhem: This epilogue to the DLC and main games was released on 11 January 2024. You return to Kitakami to catch a new Mythical Pokémon, Pecharunt.
These expansions brought over 230 returning Pokémon, plus new Pokémon like Poltchageist and new evolutions for Applin and Duraludon.
Connecting with Other Pokémon Games
Scarlet and Violet are compatible with Pokémon Home, a cloud-based system where you can store Pokémon and transfer them between games. They also connected with Pokémon Go in 2023. This allowed players to send postcards from Go to Scarlet and Violet, which could lead to special Pokémon encounters in both games.
The anime series Pokémon Horizons: The Series also featured many tie-ins, showing locations, characters, and Pokémon from the games. A special 4-episode web series called Pokémon: Paldean Winds was released on YouTube from September to December 2023. It focused on different students at the Academy.
To celebrate the games' first anniversary, pop duo Yoasobi and The Pokémon Company released a song called "Biri-Biri" on 18 November 2023. The song and its music video were inspired by a short story and focused on Nemona and a new student's adventure.
Images for kids
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The Paldea region, the games' setting. It greatly resembles the Iberian Peninsula.
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Concept artwork depicting an early version of Scarlet and Violet, illustrating the new artstyle Game Freak wished to incorporate into the games
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The Teal Mask, one of the game's DLC expansions, is based on the Japanese myth of Momotarō.
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Yoasobi created the song "Biri-Biri" to celebrate the first anniversary of the games' release.
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See also
In Spanish: Pokémon escarlata y Pokémon púrpura para niños
