October 21 Hands-on Preview: Everything We Learned

A limited selection of news sites were able to play a demo of Pokemon Scarlet and Violet (SV) and provide a hands-on preview on October 21. Game8 has compiled all the information released by every news site here. Learn about all the new information released and everything we learned from the demo!

October 21 Full Trailer

In addition to the demo version of the game, each news source was provided with pre-recorded video footage of the game to use in their content. One source, the Dutch website Daily Nintendo, released the full video footage on their channel.

Note that not all of the content in the demo was shown in this footage, and additional details from the news sources' reports are compiled below.

October 21 Hands-on Preview: Everything We Learned

The following is a full list of the points we have gleaned from various hands-on previews. If you found anything we missed, let us know in the comments!

New Features

Trainer battles are optional

Curiously, I made eye contact with an NPC, but they didn’t initiate a battle. A Nintendo rep told me that in Pokemon Scarlet and Violet, NPCs break that age-old tradition, and instead have an icon above their head to signify that they are willing and ready to fight if you interact with them.
Source: IGN

True to the open world style, players are free to skip trainer battles and will not be forced into battle when another trainer spots them.

The Starmobile, Mela's vehicle, can battle like a Pokemon

After Torkoal, my next opponent was the Starmobile itself - which threatened to sweep my team with its Speed Boost Ability and powerful attacks. Luckily, Armarouge (a Scarlet-exclusive Pokemon) survived easily with its Flash Fire Ability, but it would have been a much tougher battle without it.
Source: IGN

Although details are still hazy on whether the Starmobile in itself is a Pokemon, it seems that players will fight with Mela, the boss of the Fire Crew of Team Star, like they would with a real Pokemon, with the Starmobile using attacks and even having the Speed Boost Ability.

This battle may be akin to the opponents from Pokestar Studios in Pokemon Black 2 and White 2, which acted like Pokemon in battle but could not be caught.

Customize Your Character At Any Time (Except Hair)

In Scarlet & Violet, you have the ability to change so much about your character's appearance except the hair at any time during your adventure. You can change the outfits, eye shape and more all without having to go to a Pokémon Center or Boutique.
Source: Serebii

With the exception of hair, which must be changed at a hairdresser, players can fully customize the appearance of their character at any time.

No Gender Restrictions on Clothing or Hair

This time, there are no restrictions. All players can have all hair styles or wear whatever clothes they want regardless of the look they started with at the beginning of the game; every trainer has access to everything.
Source: Serebii

Unlike previous games where the choices of clothing was limited to the player's gender, in Scarlet and Violet, any player can wear any clothing or choose any hairstyle regardless of gender.

More Clothing Options Other Than Uniforms

Outside of academy uniforms, there is a ton of clothing customization. It seems like the most in any Pokemon game so far. Players can purchase different shirts, shoes, gloves, hats, socks, backpacks, and even different phone cases for the Rotom phones.
Source: GameXplain

It was mentioned that Pokemon Scarlet and Violet will have tons of clothing customization for each player to enjoy! You can express yourself through in-game fashion and you can even style your Rotom phone!

Sandwiches can give boosts to Shiny spawn rates

I made my own sandwich while picnicking, which was novel enough, but I likely wouldn’t revisit the physics-based minigame often if it weren’t for the small buffs the meals provide. These buffs do a range of things, from increasing a specific type’s effectiveness to increasing spawn rates of specific groups of Pokemon - even Shiny Pokemon!
Source: IGN

Shiny hunters rejoice! A new buff from the Sandwiches made during Picnics increases the spawn rate of Shiny Pokemon. Given that Serebii was able to capture a Shiny Pokemon during a one-hour preview, it's also likely that Shiny rates are higher than previous games as well.

Pokemon gain EXP from Auto-Battles

The experience earned from an Auto-Battle is still spread across the entire party, but is largely decreased compared to what you’d earn from a normal wild Pokemon battle.
Source: IGN

A new potential avenue for EXP farming, Auto-Battles have been confirmed to reward EXP points as well, albeit severely reduced.

Titan Pokemon Encounters Come in Three Parts

Upon reaching the Titan questline marker, I encountered a massive Klawf. Nintendo told me that these Titan encounters contain three steps: track down and chase after them when they run, battling against them, and a third step I could not pursue based on preview parameters.
Source: Game Informer

Similar to the Noble Pokemon in Legends Arceus, the Titan Pokemon have multiple stages to each encounter. What could the third step of the encounter include that must be kept secret?

All Four Pokemon Can Terastallize in Tera Raid Battles

Unlike Max Raid Battles, there are also no shields to slow the battle down, but there was an element part way through the battle which adds a protection up. This protection can be taken down far easier with moves from Terastallized Pokémon. All Pokémon can Terastallize in these Raid Battles, but you have to have multiple moves hit the opposing Pokémon first.
Source: Serebii

Unlike Max Raid Battles, where only one Pokemon could Dynamax at a time, all four participating Pokemon can Terastallize in Tera Raid Battles as long as they fulfill the required conditions.

All Three Story Paths are shown on the map at once

As all the paths were available to us, they got flagged on the map so you can easily go towards the goal you desire, at a pace you desire. This makes the game feel like it is really giving the player the choice of where to go, rather than holding the hand and us just being passengers through the journey. That said, the characters do sometimes try to suggest you go do particular things such as check on some other characters to lead you to the other story points.
Source: Serebii

Similar to Legends Arceus, players are directed towards story beats on the mini-map, and have a choice of any of the three stories to go towards.

No Need to Select Potions to Heal

There's also a new feature where you can select the Pokémon and heal it automatically. This is done by it just automatically using the items in your bag to heal as required, streamlining the process from before.
Source: Serebii

While previous games allowed for easy selection of Potions from the menu, Scarlet and Violet will allow your Pokemon to heal with a one-click option that automatically uses Potions.

Returning Features from Pokemon Legends: Arceus

Shiny Pokemon are visible on the overworld

One of the things many of the Pokémon community would like to know is one we can confirm; Shiny Pokémon are back in this game. ... Continuing on from Let's Go and Legends: Arceus, Shiny Pokémon are fully visible on the overworld, which is a marked improvement over Sword & Shield.
Source: Serebii

Shiny Pokemon can be seen on the overworld, another huge win for Shiny hunters, allowing players to look for Shinies without having to start battle after battle.

Battles Take Place in the Overworld

I was surprised when I went to battle one, and instead of seeing the typical screen-break transition with a new bombastic battle theme song, the fight simply started. There was no pause, no change in camera – nothing other than the shift in music. ... You can move the camera freely while selecting moves and watching the battle play out, which gave me a sense of cinematic freedom I’ve never felt in Pokémon before. And when the battle was over, I was right back to riding atop Koraidon, again with no screen break or transition.
Source: Game Informer

Like in Legends Arceus, you'll fight Pokemon in the middle of the overworld instead of in a pocket dimension. However, the player can no longer run around freely in battle like they could in Legends Arceus. The camera is still freely adjustable however.

Pokemon spawns and behavior are similar to Legends Arceus

Pokémon are found sprawled the field. You no longer have to go for specific tall grass for random encounters, which no longer exist, or for there to be a specific spawn point between the grass like in the Wild Area. Instead, it's more akin to Legends Arceus where they can be just about anywhere. They're not always just standing around waiting for you either, but you can see them sleeping or moving around. At one point, I was gliding over on Koraidon and looked down to see two Pokémon racing underneath me. I walked across the field and saw two Deerling sleeping amongst the grass while some other Pokémon were flying by behind them. Sometimes, you will see a group of 4 or 5 of a species of Pokémon together, sometimes with one of its evolutions in the middle.
Source: Serebii

So long to the tall grass – Pokemon are found only in overworld encounters in Scarlet and Violet, and like Legends Arceus, their behavior mimics that of real wildlife rather than the random monsters of typical RPGs.

Sneak up on Pokemon to get a battle advantage

There is another way to start a battle too, if you're close enough to a Pokémon, you can aim with ZL and throw your PokéBall to get your lead Pokémon out and start the battle. Targeting will show you the level of the Pokémon and its name, and if you sneak up on the Pokémon by crouching, and catch it unaware, you'll get a small boost at the start of the battle.
Source: Serebii

Although Pokemon cannot be caught by simply throwing a Poke Ball at them, you will gain an advantage when you hit a Pokemon with a Poke Ball from behind. Although the exact details of the boost are not given, it's likely that the Pokemon will be slightly slower to act.

Day/Night Cycle is Not Based on Real Time

Another change to prior traditional games, but following on from Legends: Arceus is that the time of day and weather are no longer tied to a real-time clock, but instead runs its own day/night cycle
Source: Serebii

Unlike previous Pokemon games dating back to Gold and Silver, the day and night in the game are not based on the real time of day, but on a short in-game cycle.

Weather is Not Tied to the Date

Weather is also another randomised factor in the game, taking more inspiration from Legends: Arceus than the date based weather of Sword & Shield. For example, shortly after it became night and I got to Artazon, a rain storm hit and unlike Sword & Shield, the player character was constantly reacting to it.
Source: Serebii

The weather in the game changes randomly over time, and each area is not locked to a single weather pattern throughout the day like in Sword and Shield.

Relearn and Forget Moves Directly From the Pokemon Menu Screen

Some changes from Legends: Arceus have made it through. While you learn moves in a similar way to Sword & Shield where if your Pokémon hits a level, it asks if you want to learn it, Scarlet & Violet continues Legends: Arceus method of relearning and forgetting moves – you can do it just from the menu at any time.
Source: Serebii

A welcome returning feature, Pokemon's moves can be quickly and easily swapped in and out from the menu, removing any need for a Move Relearner or a Move Deleter.

Returning Features from Pokemon Sword and Shield

IVs are still present in some form

I did try to investigate if Pokemon still have Individual Values in a traditional sense, and they seem to. I caught two of the same Pokemon with the same Nature and the same level, but they still had different stats.
Source: IGN

IVs seem to be back, as two of the same Pokemon with the same level and the same Nature can still have different stats. That said, it's still possible that a different feature with the same effect has been swapped in.

TMs can be found on the ground as normal items

It's worth noting I also found a TM on the ground as you normally would, too, but we don't yet know if some TMs are exclusively obtainable one way or the other.
Source: IGN

While TMs can now be crafted using the TM Machine, this is not the only method to obtain them, and they can still be found around the world like in previous Pokemon games.

Box Link Confirmed

You can also pull Pokémon out of your boxes at any time, just like in Sword & Shield.
Source: Serebii

Like in Sword and Shield, players can access the Box at any time to swap out their Pokemon, a great quality of life feature to have back after being unavailable in Legends Arceus.

All News Sources with Demo Information

The following sites were given access to the Scarlet and Violet Demo and have full writeups on the content. Feel free to check them out for more details (but don't forget about your old pal Game8 while you're away)

News Articles

• Serebii
• IGN
• Polygon
• Game Informer
• Nintendo Life
• The Washington Post
• Engadget
• VG247
• tom's guide

Youtube Videos

• PhillyBeatzU
• GameXplain

Pokemon Scarlet and Violet Related Links

Latest News and Game Info

DLC Epilogue

DLC Story Epilogue
DLC Story Epilogue The story epilogue for Pokemon Scarlet and Violet's The Hidden Treasure of Area Zero DLC is now live!
How to Start	・Complete Base Game, Teal Mask, Indigo Disk ・Complete Academy Ace Tournament ・Get Mythical Pecha Berry Mystery Gift

Current & Upcoming Tera Raid Events

5☆ Corviknight and Bellibolt Tera Raid Event is LIVE!
Start Date	Nov 29, 2024 (Thu) at 00:00 UTC
End Date	Dec 05, 2024 (Thu) at 14:59 UTC
Other Tera Raid Events
Event	Description
5-Star Azumarill and Clodsire Tera Raid Event	Featured Pokemon: Azumarill and Clodsire 5-Star Raids Duration: 12/06/2024 (12:00 AM)~ 12/12/2024 (11:59 PM)
5-Star Annihilape and Kingambit Tera Raid Event	Featured Pokemon: Annihilape and Kingambit 5-Star Raids Duration: 12/13/2024 (12:00 AM)~ 12/19/2024 (11:59 PM)
5-Star Shiny Rayquaza Tera Raid Event	Featured Pokemon: Level 100 Rayquaza with the Unrivaled Mark Duration: 12/20/2024 (12:00 AM) ~ 1/06/2025 (11:59 PM)

Current & Upcoming Mass Outbreak Events

Mass Outbreak Events
Event	Description
Chansey Mass Outbreak [LIVE]	Duration: 11/29/2024 (12:00 AM) ~ 01/05/2025 (11:59 PM) Location: Paldea
Tinkatink Mass Outbreak [LIVE]	Duration: 11/29/2024 (12:00 AM) ~ 12/05/2024 (11:59 PM) Mark: Ferocious Mark Location: Paldea
Wooper Mass Outbreak	Duration: 12/06/2024 (12:00 AM) ~ 12/12/2024 (11:59 PM) Mark: Absent-Minded Mark Location: Kitakami
Girafarig Mass Outbreak	Duration: 12/13/2024 (12:00 AM) ~ 12/19/2024 (11:59 PM) Mark: Intellectual Mark Location: Terarium
Black-Colored Shinies Mass Outbreak	Duration: 12/20/2024 (12:00 AM) ~ 01/05/2025 (11:59 PM) Pokemon (Boosted Shiny Rates): ・Cetoddle (Paldea) ・Carbink (Kitakami) ・Fraxure (Terarium)

Current & Upcoming Tournaments, Online Competitions and Ranked Battle Season

Event	Description
Ranked Battle Regulation H [LIVE]	Ruleset: Paradox, Legendary, and Mythical Pokemon are banned in Regulation H!

Current Mystery Gift Codes

All Mystery Gift Codes
Code/Method	Reward	Start / End
ELEMENTST0NES	Evolution Stones Set 1	Nov 18, 2024 - Dec 31, 2025
C0SM1CST0NES	Evolution Stones Set 2	Nov 18, 2024 - Dec 31, 2025
V1TAM1NS	Vitamins Set	Nov 18, 2024 - Dec 31, 2025
Collect Serial Codes From Merchandise	Mythical Pokemon Campaign	Nov 22, 2024 - April 30, 2025
Pokemon HOME Dex Completion Reward	Pokemon HOME Shiny Meloetta	Permanent
909TEAMUP06	Roy's Fuecoco	July 25, 2024 - Jan 31, 2025
D0T1STPARTNER	Dot's Quaxly	May 19, 2024 - Nov 30, 2024
Y0AS0B1B1R1B1R1	YOASOBI Pawmot	Mar 13, 2024 - Feb 28, 2025
NE0R0T0MC0VER	Neo-Kitakami Rotom Phone Case	Jan 15, 2024 - TBD
Select Get via Internet	Mythical Pecha Berry	N/A
G0TCHAP0KEM0N	Quick Ball	Dec 26, 2023 - Feb 28, 2025
SUPEREFFECT1VE	Expert Belt	Dec 26, 2023 - Feb 28, 2025
WEARTERASTALCAP	Terastal Symbol Cap	Dec 22, 2023 - Nov 30, 2024
SEEY0U1NPALDEA	Upbeat 1IV Gimmighoul	Dec 13, 2023 - Nov 30, 2024
Connect to Pokemon HOME	Gen 9 HA Starters	May 3, 2023 - No Expiration

Server Maintenance Status

Latest News

• 2025 Grand Challenge I - 09/09
• Summer 2024 Mass Outbreak and Tera Raid Events - 7/08
• How to Do the Item Printer RNG Exploit - 4/17
• Pokemon Day Tera Raid Event Predictions - 2/21
• Pokemon Presents February 2024 - 2/20
• Pokemon Scarlet and Violet DLC Epilogue Coming January 11! 1/11
• Pokemon HOME Version 3.2.1 Maintenance - 12/11
• Indigo Disk Trailer Release Time: December 7 - 12/07
• Blueberry Academy: Everything We Know - 11/29
• The Indigo Disk DLC Release Time and Countdown - 11/29
• Terapagos Website: Possible Indigo Disk DLC Easter Eggs - 11/24
• Indigo Disk DLC Early Preview New Details - 11/22
• Hisuian Samurott Tera Raid Event - 11/20
• Normal Tera Eevee Tera Raid Event - 11/17
• NAIC Dragapult Mystery Gift Distribution - 11/17
• Halloween Mismagius Tera Raid Event - 10/23
• Crafty Mark Ghost-Type Pokemon Mass Outbreak Event - 10/23
• Trick Magic Online Competition - 10/23
• Tier List Prediction for Regulation E Singles and Doubles VGC - 9/22
• Teal Mask New DLC Pokemon Tier List - 9/22
• Report on the Treasure Hunt Video Details - 9/07
• Paldean Winds Cetitan Mystery Gift Code - 9/06
• Catch Paldean Starters in Pokemon GO - 9/05
• The Teal Mask DLC Release Time and Countdown - 8/24
• August 22 DLC Trailer : New Sinistea Form? - 8/22
• August 13 The Indigo Disk Trailer: Everything We Learned - 8/13
• August 8 Pokemon HOME Maintenance - 8/04
• Pokemon Music Collective: All Songs and Artists - 08/03
• Ogerpon and Pikachu in Aomori Nebuta Festival - 08/01
• Summer Tokkun Sandwich Ingredients Mystery Gift Code - 07/27
• Dark Tera Charizard Anime Mystery Gift Code - 07/21
• Pokemon World Championships Fantasy Team - 07/19
• Pokemon World Championships Gastrodon Mystery Gift Code - 07/15
• 2024 Pokemon Championship Series Details - 07/03
• 1.3.2 Live Tournament Patch Update - 06/28
• Ancient Traveller's Team in Pokemon Horizons Anime - 06/23
• Lacey: New Indigo Disk DLC Character - 06/22
• Blueberry Academy Director Cyrano: New Indigo Disk DLC Character -06/22
• Terarium: Artificial Undersea Park in Indigo Disk DLC - 06/22
• Mossui Town: Teal Mask DLC Base Town - 06/22
• Friend Ball Mystery Gift Code - 06/21
• Shiny Gimmighoul Tera Raid Event: Shiny Odds and Rewards - 06/21
• Best Pokemon Tier List Prediction for Regulation D Singles and Doubles - 06/20
• Hisuian Moves Patch Update - 06/19
• Special South Korean Gastrodon Mystery Gift Distribution - 06/17
• Chesnaught and Paradox Tera Raids Rerun! - 06/07
• Ranked Battle Regulation D Rules - 06/01
• Pokemon HOME Version 3.0.0 - 05/30
• Pokemon HOME Coming May 30! - 05/26
• Chesnaught, Paradox Tera Raids, and Pokemon HOME Compatibility Cancelled! - 05/22
• Pokemon HOME Move Reset and Stored Movesets Details
• Get All 3 Hidden Ability Starters in Pokemon HOME! - 05/18
• Gold Bottle Cap Mystery Gift Code - 05/18
• JP/KR Patch - 05/18
• Shiny Tera Rayquaza in Pokemon Horizons: Hatless New Tera Form? - 05/12
• Liko's Pendant and Roy's Pokeball: Hints for the DLC - 04/29
• Server Maintenance Status (March 16) - 03/16
• Iron Leaves Tera Raid Event: Best Counters and Rewards - 03/10
• Pokemon HOME Maintenance on March 13 - 03/10
• Corrupted Data Bug: Causes and Fixes - 03/09
• Save File Not Recognized Bug: How to Fix - 03/03
• 1.2.0 Tera Raid Bad Egg Bug - 03/01
• Walking Wake and Iron Leaves Tera Raid Event - 02/27
• The Hidden Treasure of Area Zero DLC
• The Teal Mask DLC Part 1 - 02/27
• The Indigo Disk DLC Part 2 - 02/27
• DLC New Legendaries - 02/27
• How to Get Roaming Form Gimmighoul - 02/27
• Chinese Journey of Dreams Animated Short - 02/24
• My Nintendo Rewards Pokemon Day - 02/24
• Pokemon Day 2023 - 02/22
• Competitive Garganacl Code Distribution - 02/14
• Love Ball Mystery Gift Valentine's Campaign - 02/14
• How to Get Battle Bond Greninja (Ash Greninja) - 01/16
• Pokemon HOME Ranked Battle Data Feature Update Details - 01/13
• Pokemon 1008 Encounters Video Details - 01/12
• Japanese Pokémon Information Bureau Twitter Campaign: Chance to Win 1,000,000 LP - 01/06
• Toby Fox Shares His Music Contributions - 12/22
• Is Play Rough Bugged? - 12/16
• What Is Past the Northeast Border? - 12/06
• Bugs and Errors: How to Fix - 11/20
• How to Get the Flying Tera Type Pikachu - 11/14
• Black Crystal Tera Raid Battles - 11/08
• How to Link with Pokemon GO and Rewards - 11/06
• Limited Edition Scarlet & Violet Switch OLED - 11/04
• All Mystery Gift Codes and How to Get - 11/02
• Version Differences: Scarlet vs. Violet - 10/27
• Play Time: How Long is the Game? - 10/27
• Official Guidebook Details - 10/17
• Does Pokemon Scarlet and Violet Have HMs? - 10/12
• Does Pokemon Scarlet and Violet Have Voice Acting? - 10/12
• The Profile App Replaces the Trainer Card - 10/06
• New Features and Changes from Previous Versions - 10/04
• How to Preorder and Preorder Bonuses - 09/27
• Is There A New Eeveelution? - 09/08
• Is The Game Open World? - 09/08
• Is There Mega Evolution? - 09/08
• Available Platforms - 08/25
• All Game Editions and Double Pack Features - 08/25
• Is the National Dex in the Game? - 08/25
• Is There Exp. Share? - 08/22
• Will There Be DLC? - 08/19
• Naranja and Uva Academy - 08/19

Pre-Release News

• 10 Pokemon Who Should Return and 10 Who Should Not - 11/15
• New Coin Pokemon Appears in Pokemon GO - 11/05
• Preload Date and Guide: How to Preload - 10/12
• Will the Arceus System Make a Comeback? - 09/08
• Will There Be A Demo Or Beta Version? - 08/25
• Release Date and Time - 08/25
• Will Battles Be Real-Time? - 08/25

All Gen 9 Pre-Release Trailers