A lot of changes have been coming to thePokemonfranchise of late.Pokemon ScarletandVioletmark the series' jump to a full open world, and coming with that is a whole new structure to replace its rigid formula. The story ofScarletandVioletwill split into three paths, each one marked by a different friend from the central academy. With no walls beyond those found in the natural geometry, players are free to pursue whichever story they want from the back of their bicycle-like legendary.
All of this change didn’t happen at once, it was gradually built up across several games.Pokemon SwordandShieldtook advantage of their jump to consoles by introducing giant Wild Areas alongside the standardPokemonroutes.DLC maps were entirely set in Wild Areas, and this trend gave way toPokemon Legends: Arceus, which consisted of several wide-open maps.Pokemon ScarletandVioletseem to stand on the back ofLegends: Arceus, and not just in the sense of being fully open world. The crafting introduced inLegendshas returned, and one small directional change has made it so much more exciting than before.
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Pokemon’s History With Crafting
Much like the open-world genre trend, item crafting has exploded over the past decade. The two tropes often go hand-in-hand, encouraging players to scour the world for ingredients. How well open worlds and crafting elements are implemented can vary, but they are both popular.Pokemonhas a focus on exploration, although its exploration is mostly meant for finding the Pokemon themselves.Pokemon’s items have traditionally been boughtat Poke Marts or found at set locations, and the closest mechanics the series had to regular crafting elements were using Berries to create Contest-centric items.
Curry cooking was introduced inSwordandShield, once again using Berries alongside purchased ingredients. However, it took untilPokemon Legends: Arceusto implement a true crafting system. Players gather materials from the environment using their Pokemon, shaking down trees and smashing ore clusters. Fighting and catching Pokemon also yields materials on victory, incentivizing quick battles and captures late into the game.Crafting is important inLegends: Arceus, as it is the main way to gain access to Poke Balls. Other useful items for prolonging field trips can also be crafted, but the different types of Poke Balls are definitely the most prominent reason to keep up with this system.
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How Crafting Has Changed in Pokemon Scarlet and Violet
It’s unclear whetherPokemon ScarletandVioletwill allow players to craft traditional items like inLegends, but what it does instead could be game changing. Players still go out into the field and use their Pokemon to collect items, but now the focus is on gathering materials directly from wild monsters. This can be done quickly and easily by using the newAuto Battle feature to defeat weaker wild Pokemonen masse, keeping follower Pokemon prominent and not bogging the player down if they start item gathering.
Trainers are going to be incentivized to keep gathering materials from Pokemon across the Paldea region, as the main focus of crafting is more enticing than even theLegends: Arceus’ Poke Balls. At every Pokemon Center pit stop, players can find a Technical Machine crafting machine alongside the Poke Center and Poke Mart attendants. By accessing this device, players are treated to a list of available TMs, offering what may be their most prominent appearance yet.
The Ramifications of Pokemon Scarlet and Violet’s TM Crafting
Dating back to the originalPokemongames, Technical Machines have been used to teach powerful moves that they may not learn otherwise. Because of that, they are often gated as items the player must obtain in the wild, from NPCs, after beating Gyms, and at certain stores in the mid- or late-game.Pokemon ScarletandVioletwill still have TMsin the open, and may also have them as rewards from Gym Leaders, but they now place the onus of gaining valued TMs on the player.
If a particular TM is desired, they will need to trade scavenged items or progress through the story to get enough League Points. Only with sufficient points and possibly specific spare materials will a TM be available. In these ways, TMs and the TM machine have been made relevant forthe entirety of thePokemon ScarletandViolet, even into the post game. The process incentivizes engaging with the game’s mechanics and exploring Paldea to find different species. It almost serves as a fusion ofPokemon Legends: Arceus’ Pokedex and crafting systems, encouraging catching and exploration at the same time.
The largest difference is thatScarletandVioletplayers will not be able to craft TMs wherever and whenever they want, but it’s a reasonable trade-off for the amount of power on offer. Ultimately, earning a new ability through effort and exploration is more satisfying than just collecting materials to craft single-use items in bulk. It’s good to see that thePokemonseries is innovating on past mechanics, and it will hopefully continue to do so.
Pokemon ScarletandVioletwill release on November 18, exclusively for the Nintendo Switch.
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