I’m convinced that there’s no force in the universe that moves faster than Pokémon leakers. As we move into release week for Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, those who managed to get an early copy of the game are posting screenshots and game information on social media.
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The entire Pokédex is out
Though we don’t have all the in-game sprites, leakers claim to have posted the entire Pokédex to Twitter. Be careful, though—there are a lot of fake Pokémon floating around, so take every image with a grain of salt.
Paradox Pokémon
Nintendo previously revealed Great Tusk and Iron Treads in a trailer. Last week, the publisher explained that these mysterious Pokémon are rare creatures from the uncharted areas of Paldea. Leakers have called these “Paradox Pokémon,” and have pointed out that some look prehistoric while others appear to be more futuristic. But this isn’t just an aesthetic difference. If the leaks are reliable, Paradox Pokémon have different elemental typings and abilities than their normal counterparts. There’s good news for shiny hunters out there: These special Pokémon can be encountered in the wild in their shiny forms like the other monsters out there.
The Paradox Pokémon include Donphan, Volcarona, Amoonguss, Jigglypuff, Misdreveus, Magneton, Salamence, Gardevoir, Hariyama, Delibird, Hydreigon, and Tyranitar.
Bisharp is going to be a heavy hitter in competitive
The competitive scene is shaking in its boots. The next generation will include new evolutions for old Pokémon, which has terrifying gameplay implications. Bisharp getting a new evolution means that he can now effectively utilize Eviolite, which is a held item that greatly boosts the offensive abilities of Pokémon that are not fully evolved. Fans are shook at its new place in the meta, as Bisharp was already fairly competitive. RIP to anyone who’s still thinking about running Gengar. Stay safe out there.
The legendary trio is a legendary quartet
This isn’t the first time that Pokémon has had four sub-legendaries. That honor goes to the Musketeers of the Unova region. But it’s still unusual enough to warrant a shoutout. Leakers also claim that the four of them will have a signature attack that halves their opponents’ HP (Like Super Fang or Nature’s Madness).
None of the names seem to have been leaked yet, but I’m not in a hurry to get to know them. These are some of the worst designs I’ve seen since the Ultra Beasts, so I’ll probably end up catching them out of narrative obligation and then boxing them.
You can bring Hisuian Pokémon to Paldea
It seems that you can use Pokémon Home to transfer Pokémon Legends: Arceus exclusives to your new adventure. White Zoroark is going to look so good in this game without the ass textures.
Flying Pokémon are now grounded
According to one prominent Scarlet and Violet leaker, flying Pokémon are no longer hovering awkwardly in battle. Unless they’re standing on terrain like water, they will stay grounded.
You can’t reload for shiny starters
This is one of the leaks that doesn’t have video verification, but it’s too important to leave off the list. Leakers have tweeted that you can’t get a shiny Pokémon when you pick a starter. They were likely locked to prevent dedicated fans from reloading the game until they obtained one. Instead of turning your Switch on and off, you’ll have to get them the “legitimate” way—by breeding hundreds of eggs until RNG decides in your favor. Um, maybe this has some pretty unfortunate ethical implications?
Pokémon Scarlet and Violet will be released on November 18.