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Image via The Pokémon Company

How did Pokémon Legends: Arceus shape Pokémon Scarlet and Violet’s open world and mechanics?

Paldea is going to blow your mind.

We are rapidly approaching the Nov. 18 release date for Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, which means The Pokémon Company and Game Freak have finally given players outside of the companies working on the game a chance to try a little bit out and share first impressions. 

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Within the impressions videos and articles spreading across social media, a few key themes have become apparent—one of which being that SV is going to be the culmination of every Pokémon game that has been released on the Nintendo Switch thus far. 

Whether it be implementing certain improvements to things introduced in Sword and Shield or bringing altered versions of the fittingly different gameplay mechanics from Legends: Arceus to a more traditional game, it really feels like there is something special brewing based on this early build. 

Expect more information as we continue getting closer to release, but for now, here are some of the confirmations and bigger pieces of information shared via the dozens of impressions floating around. 

Biggest confirmations and reveals from first Pokémon Scarlet and Violet impressions

Shiny Pokémon mechanics

We obviously won’t know just what elements and factors have been updated or added when it comes to Shiny Pokémon in SV until the games are out and players can begin testing, but at least one key mechanic is making a return. 

Shiny Pokémon will appear in the overworld just like in Legends: Arceus, meaning you won’t miss one by simply choosing to ignore a wild Pokémon that appears on your screen. But it is still unclear if there will be an indicator like the distinct noise that played when one spawns nearby in Legends: Arceus

You can also reportedly boost your Shiny encounter rates by using the Sandwich mini-game in the Picnic mechanics, according to IGN

Truly open-world exploration

Everything surrounding these early impressions puts SV’s open world as the original trailers and PR material claimed. 

Multiple players noted that the area of the map they were allowed to explore and interact with was filled with more content and was much bigger than they were expecting. This includes interesting differences in how Pokémon interact with things in the overworld and much more. 

Koraidon and Miraidon swap modes automatically

All of the players who were worried that Game Freak was going to copy and paste the Pokémon traversal mechanics from Legends: Arceus can relax now. Once you get ahold of your Legendary Pokémon mount and access to the open world, the Pokémon will transition between traversal modes automatically depending on your location. 

If you are near a rockface, your Legendary of choice will begin climbing. Open fields? You’ll see your Pokémon galloping or jetting across the grass. Flying is the same way, though there might be some way to trigger a boost of sorts to jet yourself into the air too. 

Seamless battles

Another mechanic making a return from Legends: Arceus, players will not have to go through a loading screen to get into most battles. Simply throw out a Poké Ball or interact with an NPC for a battle and it will transition seamlessly into a fresh-looking combat screen. 

Exceptions will be made of course when cutscenes or other external factors are involved, but for simple wild battles, you won’t need to waste any time to get into the action.

Battle and catching mechanics

The battle mechanics have obviously reverted back to the traditional version that has been used in the franchise since Red and Blue. The UI looks slick and flashy, with plenty of little changes that really pop—such as the animation effects on the battle menu when you decide to Terastallize.  

The Let’s Go mechanic works seamlessly too, though you will receive reduced XP when battling wild Pokémon this way. This is probably to avoid accidentally becoming over-leveled and to put more emphasis on this being the main method of collecting Pokémon Material needed to craft items like TMs. 

It is unclear if that reduced XP gain applies to trainer battles where you can use the feature too. 

If you walk into a wild Pokémon, a battle will start automatically, though they won’t attack you like in Legends: Arceus. You can also throw a Poké Ball by holding down the ZL button, and hitting a wild Pokémon from behind using this method will give your Pokémon a boost during battle. 

You can catch them in the traditional way through battle, not through just throwing Poké Balls at them in the overworld. 

Trainers aren’t as tedious

For the first time in a more traditional Pokémon title, you won’t simply be forced to battle every NPC trainer that looks at you while you wander past them. 

Most trainers will require you to interact with them first before prompting a battle to start, according to Serebii. An NPC who wants to battle will have small word bubbles over their head so you won’t be taken by surprise and forced into a fight when you aren’t expecting it—though there will probably be exceptions for this too. 


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Author
Image of Cale Michael
Cale Michael
Lead Staff Writer for Dota 2, the FGC, Pokémon, Yu-Gi-Oh!, and more who has been writing for Dot Esports since 2018. Graduated with a degree in Journalism from Oklahoma Christian University and also previously covered the NBA. You can usually find him writing, reading, or watching an FGC tournament.