Although many had hoped for it, the reveal ofPokemon Scarlet and Violetat the latest Pokemon Direct still came across as a major surprise. Part of this is because the trailer undeniably hadDetective Pikachuvibes, but it quickly became apparent that it was the new mainline games. Almost immediately, the new starters—Fuecoco, Sprigatito, and Quaxly—stirred up some attention online.
Since then, many have combed over thePokemon Scarlet and Violettrailer and subsequent revealsto glean as much as they can from the upcoming games. This has led to some discussion ofPokemon Scarlet and Violet’s open-world design, potential directions for the evolutions, the use of traditional catching mechanics, and more. However, the latest comes from a keen-eyed Redditor named Wlsgarus.
RELATED:Pokemon Fan Creates Their Own Scarlet and Violet Starter Final Evolutions
In looking over the shots of one ofPokemon Scarlet and Violet’s cities, Wlsgarus made an interesting observation about a Pokemon Center. The castle-like Pokeball area can be seen in the background, while there are many normal buildings in the foreground. Hidden behind another building is what clearly looks like a Pokemon Center, but its shape is unusual—less of a building and more of a kiosk.
It’s undeniably unusually shaped, standing out against all Pokemon Centers in earlier franchise entries. This is interesting, because it may very well lend itself toPokemon Scarlet and Violet’s open-world design. If the Pokemon Centers have become kiosks, then there would be no loading screen from the world to the store. In other words, players may be able to heal theirPokemon in Scarlet and Violetvery quickly and continue on their journey.
This does pose one interesting conundrum, though. While this sounds like a great addition and twist to the formula,Nurse Joy has been a mainstay of thePokemonfranchise. It’s unlikely she stands outside at a kiosk, so how the game resolves this remains to be seen. Assuming this is a kiosk, it is possible that there are other, more traditional Pokemon Centers elsewhere in the game, but at the end of the day, it’s hard to imagine Game Freak giving Nurse Joy the boot.
Nonetheless,Pokemon Scarlet and Violet’s reveal was kept pretty simple. Outside a few glimpses of the map, the debut ofPokemon Scarlet and Violet’s starters, and theconfirmation of a handful of Pokemon, very little is known. However, if the games do intend to release at the end of 2022, players can reasonably expect to learn more as summer draws near.
Pokemon Scarlet and Violetare scheduled to release in 2022 for Nintendo Switch.
MORE:Pokemon Scarlet and Violet’s New Fire Starter Breaks a Series Long Tradition
