With the Pokemon franchise turning 26 years old, and Sword and Shield being out around three years this November, many fans were hoping for Generation 9 to be released in 2022. This came true when Pokemon Scarlet and Violet were revealed in February with a live-action trailer that showcased a few shots of the new region and Gen 9's starter trio: Sprigatito, Fuecoco, and Quaxly. Despite the excitement of the Pokemon community, The Pokemon Company has only released one trailer in the months since, revealing a total of five new pocket monsters - including Scarlet and Violet's version-exclusive Legendaries.
During this time, many alleged leaks have surfaced online about all sorts of features in Pokemon Scarlet and Violet, including the starters' final type combinations. Yet, nothing official has been released after the second trailer in June, and fans are wondering why this is the case when The Pokemon Company usually promotes new mainline games heavily throughout the summer before its holiday release dates. However, this silence about Pokemon Scarlet and Violet is actually beneficial to the company, even if leaks might undermine that.
Why The Pokemon Company May be Secretive About Scarlet and Violet
Pokemon Scarlet and Violet are likely having one of the driest reveal seasons of all modern Pokemon games, spanning from Gen 5 to Gen 8, as it's mid-July and there have only been two trailers. The only new critters that fans officially know about are the three starters, the Legendaries, and early Route Pokemon like Lechonk, Smoliv, and Pawmi. The likely battle gimmick for Pokemon Scarlet and Violet has only been rumored, too.
While leaks might hurt the upcoming release to a degree, it's also true that both leaks and a lack of official information lead fans to talk more about the games than if new trailers dropped frequently, which is probably one reason why The Pokemon Company has been quiet about it. If new images surfacing of The Pokemon Company filming a Pokemon Scarlet and Violet trailer in Spain are real, it's also possible that a trailer might arrive in the coming weeks. In fact, apart from a few dates in June, announcements related to new Pokemon games are often made during Pokemon Directs in August.
This approach is wildly different from what The Pokemon Company did with Pokemon Sun and Moon in 2016, when many of the features, characters, and available Pokemon in Gen 7 were officially revealed over the months ahead of release. Even with Gen 8, the promotional campaign prior to Pokemon Sword and Shield's release was much lengthier and more articulated than what is happening with Generation 9. For example, the official Pokemon Scarlet and Violet website has only been kept up-to-date with the trailers, whereas Generation 8 saw some interesting marketing techniques such as the reveal of Galarian Ponyta in a long livestream about the Glimwood Tangle forest and its creatures.
As such, it's only natural to think that what has changed with Pokemon Scarlet and Violet is The Pokemon Company trying something new marketing-wise, maybe only sharing trailers and details closer to the holiday season. It's unclear whether things like the Galarian Ponyta reveal event will come back, and official channels have been busy with other topics. Ultimately, this approach may be already working to a degree, considering that the news drought led fans to share every bit of speculation regarding Pokemon Scarlet and Violet they can online, which is seemingly giving Gen 9 more visibility than ever.
Pokemon Scarlet and Violet release for Nintendo Switch on November 18, 2022.
