Highlights

  • Some Pokemon fans are disappointed that the Battle Tower is missing from Pokemon Scarlet and Violet.
  • Despite some past leaks suggesting its return, the Battle Tower has not made an appearance in the latest games. The feature was last seen in the 2021 Gen 4 remakes.
  • While some players argue that the omission of the Battle Tower made rare items more accessible, many long-time fans considered overcoming this facility its own reward.

A vocal section of the Pokemon Scarlet and Violet fandom is upset that the latest entries in the series are missing the Battle Tower. Originally introduced in the 2000 Pokemon Crystal, Battle Towers have historically presented some of the toughest challenges in all of Game Freak's mainline RPGs, which is why many long-time fans were hoping to see them return in Pokemon Scarlet and Violet.

Like their shared name implies, these facilities require players to fight their way through many a floor, thus essentially working like a more difficult and repeatable gym. Overcoming their challenges usually rewards the player with rare items, or special currency that can be used for purchasing such scarce resources. Even many entries in the franchise that lacked a literal Battle Tower featured similar facilities, such as the Trainer Tower and Battle Maison found in the Generation 3 and Generation 6 games, respectively. The 2021 Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl are the latest Pokemon games with the Battle Tower.

Pokemon Scarlet and Violet The Hidden Treasure of Area Zero Indigo Disk Shiny Lucario
Related
Pokemon Scarlet and Violet DLC Feature Can Ruin Shiny Hunting

A new feature introduced in The Indigo Disk DLC for Pokemon Scarlet and Violet can ruin shiny hunting, as confirmed by one unfortunate player.

And while several past leaks suggested the Battle Tower could make a return in Pokemon Scarlet and Violet, that hasn't come to pass. Dissatisfied with this turn of events, some vocal fans have recently taken to social media to bemoan the feature's omission from the latest installments in the beloved franchise. That demographic also includes Reddit user heynoweevee, who labeled the lack of a battling facility in the newly released Indigo Disk DLC as "mind-boggling," not least because of the expansion's inherent focus on battling.

Several discussions on the matter that popped up on Reddit following the December 14 launch of The Indigo Disk saw fans conclude they'll never be getting another Battle Tower. Granted, not everyone who chimed in on the discourse was torn up about the possibility of this feature being permanently removed from the franchise, with some players pointing out how most of the traditional Battle Tower rewards are now more readily available in the new games without excessive grinding. Yet many long-time fans still feel that overcoming Battle Towers was its own intrinsic reward.

Some Pokemon Scarlet and Violet Fans Are Still Hoping For a Third DLC

Whether Game Freak is truly done with making Battle Towers remains to be seen, especially since the company is currently believed to be working on the remakes of the Generation 5 games, all of which offered this endgame activity. Some fans are even holding out hope that Pokemon Scarlet and Violet could still get a surprise third DLC that would introduce this series staple to the latest franchise entries, as unlikely as that might be.