Soft resetting Pokémon games has been an integral part of the series for some time now for certain people in the community. But Game Freak has removed it from Sword and Shield.
“Soft resetting” as fans knew it only existed because there was no way to close a Pokémon game on a handheld Nintendo system without turning off the power entirely. But with the Nintendo Switch, that’s no longer an issue.
So while there might not be soft resetting as we know it in Sword and Shield, there is at least a way to reset the games quickly and reload them if you plan to shiny chain or find a Pokémon with specific IVs or EVs out in the wild for competitive play.
All you need to do is make sure you save the game. Then, press the Nintendo Switch home button to bring you to the Switch’s main menu.
Then, press X on Sword or Shield’s icon and close the game. You can then reload the game by clicking on it and choosing the profile to load quickly back to where you last were.
