How to Update Pokémon Scarlet and Pokémon Violet
In this article, you'll learn how to update Pokémon Scarlet and Pokémon Violet.
Important: Approximately 5.2GB of memory must be available in your Nintendo Switch console's system memory or on your microSD card to download the update data for version 3.0.1. Please see this page for details about checking memory and managing data.
Note
- This update must be applied in order to use the game's online features.
- A Nintendo Switch Online membership is required to use the game's online features.
- Save data will still be available for use after downloading the update.
- The update will download and install automatically if the console is connected to the internet and the Automatic Software Updates setting is enabled. If there is not enough space in the system memory or on a microSD card to download the update, you will first need to expand or free up memory space and then follow the steps below.
- All players must be using the same version of the software to play together. Please make sure you have the same update version as the person you are playing with.
On 1 February 2024, a new software update for Pokémon Scarlet and Pokémon Violet became available for download. Please take a moment to download and install this update while your Nintendo Switch console is connected to the internet.
Complete these steps
- Connect the Nintendo Switch console to the internet.
- From the HOME Menu, highlight the icon for the software you wish to update without actually starting the software.
- Press the + or - Button on your controller, then select Software Update followed by Via the Internet.
- Once the update is installed, the newest version number will be displayed on the title screen.
Update history
Click the version number below for information about the update. Each update also includes all previous updates.
- Ver. 3.0.1 (Released 1 February 2024)
- Ver. 3.0.0 (Released 14 December 2023)
- Ver. 2.0.2 (Released 12 October 2023)
- Ver. 2.0.1 (Released 13 September 2023)
- Ver. 1.3.2 (Released 29 June 2023)
- Ver. 1.3.1 (Released 25 May 2023)
- Ver. 1.3.0 (Released 20 April 2023)
- Ver. 1.2.0 (Released 27 February 2023)
- Ver. 1.1.0 (Released 2 December 2022)
- Ver. 1.0.1 (Released 11 November 2022)
Ver. 3.0.1 (Released 1 February 2024)
Bug Fixes
- If the player used items to level up an Inkay to Lv. 29 or lower, the game would stop responding to button input. This bug has been fixed.
- Some materials needed to craft TM223 (Metal Sound) were previously dropped by a Pokémon that appears in only one version of the game. This issue has been resolved. Shieldon Claws are no longer required to craft TM223 (Metal Sound).
- After players installed the Item Printer in the League Club Room, under certain circumstances they could get stuck between the Item Printer and the wall. This bug has been fixed. Affected players can now get unstuck by speaking to the character next to the Item Printer and selecting “I want to print something!”
- When a Pokémon under the effect of Dragon Cheer was switched out of battle and then re-entered that battle, its attacks would still have a heightened chance of landing critical hits. This bug has been fixed.
- Certain moves that Calyrex could learn via TM only while united with Glastrier or Spectrier would remain in Calyrex’s moveset even after Calyrex separated from Glastrier or Spectrier. Furthermore, even if those moves were forgotten, Calyrex could then remember those moves without being united with Glastrier or Spectrier. This bug has been fixed.
- Other select bug fixes have been implemented.
Ver. 3.0.0 (Released 14 December 2023)
Release of The Hidden Treasure of Area Zero Part 2: The Indigo Disk for Pokémon Scarlet and Pokémon Violet
Trainers who have purchased The Hidden Treasure of Area Zero will now be able to enjoy adventures in Part 2: The Indigo Disk. Please click here for more details on Part 2: The Indigo Disk.
Additional Pokémon
For Trainers who have not purchased The Hidden Treasure of Area Zero, additional Pokémon may appear via local or online communication modes.
Feature Adjustments
- The difficulty of the Ogre Oustin' minigame has been adjusted.
Bug Fixes
- We have fixed a bug that resulted in the Hospitality Ability causing unintended behaviour in certain situations.
- The effects of the Protosynthesis and Quark Drive Abilities will no longer occur while the Neutralizing Gas Ability is in effect.
- Other select bug fixes have been implemented.
Ver. 2.0.2 (Released 12 October 2023)
Bug Fixes
- Under certain conditions, victories against the NPC Trainers scattered across the game world may not have been recorded. As a result, the rewards players could earn by winning a certain number of battles - such as from Pokémon League representatives in the Paldea region or Ogre Clan members in the land of Kitakami - were not obtainable. This bug has been fixed, so players who experienced this issue can now challenge affected NPC Trainers again to record their victories and subsequently receive any eligible rewards.
- It was not previously possible to transfer certain special Pokémon to Pokémon Scarlet or Pokémon Violet via Pokémon HOME if those Pokémon were brought into Pokémon HOME from Pokémon GO, even if a Pokémon of the same species had already been obtained in Pokémon Scarlet or Pokémon Violet prior to version 1.3.2. This bug has been fixed, and the issue has been resolved.
- Other select bug fixes have been implemented.
Ver. 2.0.1 (Released 13 September 2023)
Release of The Hidden Treasure of Area Zero Part 1: The Teal Mask DLC for Pokémon Scarlet and Pokémon Violet
Trainers who have purchased The Hidden Treasure of Area Zero DLC will now be able to enjoy adventures in Part 1: The Teal Mask. Please click here for more details on Part 1: The Teal Mask.
Additional Pokémon
For Trainers who have not purchased The Hidden Treasure of Area Zero DLC, additional Pokémon may appear via local or online communication modes.
Newly Added Features
- You will now be able lock the mini map that appears while you are out in the field so that up is always north. You can do this by pressing the Right Stick twice while you have the map app open to select the App and mini maps locked setting.
- Camera settings have been added to the Options menu. These settings will let you adjust how the camera works while you are out in the field.
- We have added a feature that allows you to signal a Pokémon accompanying you in the field to stop and wait where it is. To give this signal, press the Left Stick.
- You can now take pictures by pressing the A Button in the camera app.
- You can now play music by pressing the ZL Button or ZR Button while the camera app is open. You may find that Pokémon accompanying you in the field and people around you will react to the music.
- While using the Union Circle, Trainers can now share photos they have taken with the camera app during that Union Circle session with the friends they are playing with.
- We have added a feature to TM Machines that allows you to filter for moves your Pokémon can learn. By interacting with a TM Machine and selecting the option to filter for learnable moves, you will be able to display only TMs containing moves that a specific Pokémon can learn.
Bug Fixes and Feature Adjustments
- Incorrect descriptive text for the moves Ceaseless Edge, Dire Claw and Stone Axe has been corrected. The descriptions for these moves previously included the words “aiming to land a critical hit”, but these moves do not increase the critical-hit ratio in Pokémon Scarlet and Pokémon Violet. This wording has been removed from these descriptions.
- We have fixed a bug where the Itemfinder Mark would not be applied to a Pokémon even if the conditions were met.
- Wild Pokémon that have the Titan Mark will now reappear in the field after a certain amount of time if they have been defeated.
- We have made adjustments to the way Pokémon icons are displayed in the Boxes.
- Other select bug fixes have been implemented.
Ver. 1.3.1 (Released 25 May 2023)
- Fixed a problem that caused unintended behaviour in private official tournaments that certain users were invited to participate in.
Ver. 1.3.2 (Released 29 June 2023)
- Made mechanic adjustments for upcoming Live Competitions.
Ver. 1.3.1 (Released 25 May 2023)
- Fixed a problem that caused unintended behaviour in private official tournaments that certain users were invited to participate in.
Ver. 1.3.0 (Released 20 April 2023)
Support for Trainers Who Caught an Egg Instead of Walking Wake or Iron Leaves in Tera Raid Battles
Trainers who caught an Egg instead of Walking Wake or Iron Leaves in a Tera Raid Battle before updating to Version 1.2.0 of Pokémon Scarlet or Pokémon Violet were affected by a bug that prevented them from catching either of these Pokémon.
This bug has been fixed, and Trainers who caught such Eggs instead of Walking Wake and Iron Leaves will now be able to catch these Pokémon.
In addition, the Tera Raid Battle events for these two Pokémon will return around the same time as this game update. Visit this page for details on the Tera Raid Battle events.
Feature Adjustments
A change has been made to the deadline for entries for Friendly Competitions, which are found in the Online Competitions section of the Battle Stadium.
Before this change: Entries were allowed until the Friendly Competition began.
After this change: Entries will be allowed until the Friendly Competition ends.
Bug Fixes
Link Battles
- Fixed a bug in Link Battles where selecting “Swap in” just before the selection timer reached 0 could fail to switch in the selected Pokémon and subsequently cause both the switching feature and the battle itself to act abnormally.
- Fixed a bug in Link Battles where, once the remaining time for the battle was under one minute, it would no longer be displayed where it was supposed to.
- Fixed a bug that occurred in Link Battles where, depending on the move being used at the time a Pokémon fainted, the time a Trainer received to select their next Pokémon would be reduced.
Battles
- Fixed a bug where the Cud Chew Ability would trigger again once every two turns after it triggered the first time, contrary to what is written in the Ability description.
- Fixed a bug that occurred when Zoroark Terastallized while using its Illusion Ability to disguise itself as another Pokémon. On the Check Status screen, the Terastallized Zoroark's type would display as the original type of the Pokémon it had disguised itself as, rather than Zoroark's Tera Type.
- Fixed a bug that occurred when Zoroark used its Illusion Ability to disguise itself as another Pokémon that had already Terastallized. This bug caused Zoroark's type on the Check Status screen to incorrectly display as the Tera Type of the Pokémon Zoroark had disguised itself as.
- Fixed a bug in Double Battles affecting moves that cause stat changes for the Pokémon using the moves. This bug caused the stat changes to incorrectly happen twice if the user hit two opposing Pokémon with the move while an opposing Pokémon was behind a Substitute.
Pokémon GO Connectivity
- Fixed the main issue causing the game to crash on the screen used to pair with a Pokémon GO account.
Other
- Fixed a bug affecting Trainers who received Hisuian Zoroark from the Mystery Gift screen as a special early purchase bonus for The Hidden Treasure of Area Zero for Pokémon Scarlet or Pokémon Violet without first having seen Zoroark in their game. This bug caused Zoroark to be incorrectly displayed as registered in these Trainers' Pokédexes.
- Other select bug fixes have been implemented.
Ver. 1.2.0 (Released 27 February 2023)
Thank you for playing the Pokémon series.
On Monday 27 February, we released the version 1.2.0 update for the Nintendo Switch exclusive software titles Pokémon Scarlet and Pokémon Violet.
With this update, we have added new features, new functionality for Pokémon Boxes and fixes for bugs that affected game progress, among other changes. We will continue to take your feedback very seriously and take measures to improve your gameplay experience.
Newly Added Features
- The Nintendo eShop page for The Hidden Treasure of Area Zero DLC for Pokémon Scarlet or Pokémon Violet can now be accessed via the main menu. For more details on The Hidden Treasure of Area Zero DLC, please visit The Pokémon Company.
- Trainers can now enjoy Online Competitions and Friendly Competitions in the Battle Stadium, and entries are now open for an official Online Competition: Paldea Prologue.
- Players can now connect their games to Pokémon GO.
Feature Adjustments
- Additional functionality has been added for Pokémon Boxes:
- From a Pokémon's summary, players can now change its nickname, markings, held item and mark- or Ribbon-related title, as well as reorder moves, have Pokémon remember or forget moves and use TMs.
- Players can also now swap out held items by pressing the Y Button when in the Held Items view.
- Players are now able to select All Boxes while moving Pokémon or items in the Party and Boxes view and Held Items view.
- When in the Battle Team view, Pokémon in your Boxes that are assigned to a Battle Team will now have their icons displayed in a darker hue if those Pokémon are members of the Battle Team that is currently being displayed.
- The News screen will be displayed when you connect to the internet from the main menu, just as it is when connecting to the internet from the Poké Portal.
Bug Fixes
Tera Raid Battles
- A bug could prevent an opposing Tera Pokémon's HP gauge from visually reflecting damage dealt by certain moves (such as Play Rough) or damage dealt at the same time that certain status conditions are applied, causing the Tera Pokémon's HP gauge to fluctuate in an unusual manner. This has been fixed.
- A bug that caused all Pokémon on your side to faint at once despite their HP gauges indicating that they still have HP could occur in black crystal Tera Raid Battles against Pokémon with the Mightiest Mark. This has been fixed.
- A bug that temporarily prevented a player from entering any input into the game could occur if a Tera Pokémon took certain actions while the player was choosing the target of their move. This has been fixed.
- Errors could occur when someone connecting to a Tera Raid Battle saw a different Pokémon displayed on their screen than what the host saw. This has been fixed.
- A bug could occur that caused players joining a Tera Raid Battle from the Tera Raid Battles search screen to be brought to a Tera Raid Battle against a Pokémon different from the one they saw displayed. This has been fixed.
- A bug that caused Tera Raid Battle crystals to stop appearing for a set amount of time could occur under certain circumstances. This has been fixed.
Battles
- Type matchups against Pokémon that have fainted will no longer appear when selecting a move or target during Double Battles.
- We have fixed a bug in which a Zoroark that had Terastallized and was disguised as another Pokémon via its Illusion Ability could have been identified as a Zoroark by using the Check Target option.
- We have fixed a bug in which the type matchups of moves targeting a Zoroark that had Terastallized and was disguised as another Pokémon via its Illusion Ability would display based on the type of the Pokémon that Zoroark was disguised as, rather than Zoroark’s Tera Type.
- We have fixed a bug in which the stats of a Dondozo with a Tatsugiri in its mouth increased when Dondozo used Order Up when the move should have been negated (for example, by an opponent using Protect).
- We have fixed a bug in which the effects of Destiny Bond failed to activate if a Pokémon Terastallized the turn after using Destiny Bond and then fainted.
Other
- We have addressed an issue that made the game prone to forcibly closing at certain locations. As a result of this fix, there may be fewer Pokémon and people displayed in certain towns or in the wild.
- We have fixed a bug in which a Pokémon that is not a part of the Paldea Pokédex was displayed as being registered to the Paldea Pokédex after being obtained through a Link Trade.
- Certain actions prevented the main character's expressions from changing until the game was closed and reopened. This has been fixed.
- A bug occurred for some players after Ranked Battles Season 1, wherein visiting the Ranked Battles screen immediately after the season’s results had been calculated caused an error right after these players received their rewards. Following this error, players were unable to participate in any further Ranked Battles. This has been fixed.
- We have fixed a bug in which a player may not have received the Master Rank Ribbon if they had registered several Battle Teams but had not used the Battle Team in the first slot when winning Ranked Battles in the Master Ball Tier.
- We have fixed a bug in which a Pokémon you caught may not have listened to your commands in accordance with what is written in the profile app (“Pokémon caught at Lv. XX or below will listen to your commands”) if that Pokémon was Link Traded back to you from another player.
- We have fixed a bug in which new information may not have been added to your Pokédex after you received a Shiny Pokémon or a Pokémon caught by a Trainer who plays in a different language via Surprise Trade if you already had that species registered to your Pokédex.
- Objects such as Poké Balls could be displayed in certain areas unintentionally. This has been fixed.
- Passersby are no longer displayed during certain battles that take place in towns during the main story.
- A number of other bug fixes have been implemented.
Ver. 1.1.0 (Released 2 December 2022)
- Following the start of Ranked Battles season 1, you can now enjoy Ranked Battles from the Battle Stadium.
- Please check the in-game notice for more details about Ranked Battles Season 1.
- An issue has been fixed that caused the music to not play correctly during the battles with the Elite Four and the Top Champion in the Victory Road path.
- Various other issues have also been fixed.
We are thankful that Pokémon Scarlet and Pokémon Violet are being played by so many consumers, but we are also aware that players may encounter issues that affect the games' performance. Our goal is always to give players a positive experience with our games, and we apologise for the inconvenience. We take the feedback from players seriously, and are working on improvements to the games.
Ver. 1.0.1 (Released 11 November 2022)
- Various bug fixes and adjustments have been made to make your gameplay experience more enjoyable.
- NOTE: In order to enjoy Mystery Gifts and features using online play, you will need to have downloaded the latest data.