Some small spoilers throughout*
Pokemon Violet is a classic-style Pokemon game and is incredibly fun to play. The starters are adorable - I chose Sprigatito. And it’s not just Sprigatito and the starters, there are tons of other outrageously cute Pokemon to be had in this generation. Fidough, a donut puppy? Yes! Whatever Pawmi is? Heck yeah!
Pokemon Violet and Scarlet take place in a facsimile of Spain. I didn’t know this until I played the game, and I had a bunch of fun discovering it. The last game that felt this way to me was Pokemon X, which took place in ‘France’. It may be more correct to say that Pokemon Violet’s world was inspired by Spain, but it really does feel so direct a reference that the game might as well be thought of as taking place in Spain. Characters will talk in partial Spanish - Nemona will say things like “Vamos” and other trainers seem to have Spanish-inspired looks and names. Being someone who has spent most of their foreign-language classes learning Spanish and who grew up in a 50/50 white/hispanic town, I personally love the Spanish language references, and I appreciate the Spain references as much as I can.
Can we also talk about Nemona for a bit? This character is thoughtfully made and just a delight to interact with. Instead of the game setting you up with a rival from the get-go, she’s your first friend. She’s competitive with you, but she’s inspirational. So let’s just say Nemona is way, way, way better than Gary!
I didn’t think it was possible, but Nemona has made this feel-good game series an even happier experience. Pokemon is and always has been a fantasy of good sportsmanship, and this fantasy is alive and well in Pokemon Violet. Nobody except the deepest villainy-villain is a sore loser. Sure, sometimes opposing Pokemon trainers cry or get upset when they get beaten, but nobody steals your lunch money over it or anything. Would-be criminals like Team Rocket and Team Star have the foible of matching themselves with Pokemon that might be considered to be ugly, but they will still give you money if you win a battle. Nobody does the Pokemon equivalent of doping or fighting dirty. The only person who comes close to doing this in Pokemon is the rival in some of the early games, who will always choose a Pokemon starter has type advantage over your starter, and this is still staying within the rules. Life in Pokemon is very fair, and the odds seem ever tilted in the protagonist’s favor as long as your Pokemon are a high enough level.
As far as battling, many of the core dynamics are still there, with so many new Pokemon to add to the existing Pokedex in Pokemon Violet, it’s unclear to me which new Pokemon will be competitive. I can’t wait to see which Pokemon become the best battlers this year! One of the wildest gaming events I’ve ever seen remains to be Pokemon world championships. For these championships, certain Pokemon seem to take a seat at the table as the best in class of the year, and careful breeding tactics, qualities like the Pokemon’s nature, and sheer luck figure in to who takes home the grand prize. I haven’t watched a championship in a while but it will be interesting to see how Scarlet and Violet figure in to the idea of what makes a battle-competitive Pokemon team in 2023.
As far as collecting Pokemon, it’s a dream to do this in Pokemon Violet. There are so many Pokemon in each area, it’s like a collector’s dream come true. It’s funny to see a crowd of Jigglypuff when Jigglypuff was so rare in Red/Blue (remember wandering around Mt. Moon for like 30 minutes looking for one?) but there are similar rare Pokemon in this game.
Overall I love this game! It’s so fun that I’ve made it a priority to play in my very limited free time each day, now that I’m a mom. I can’t wait to play more of it and find more Pokemon.