Pokemon Scarlet & Violet were released for the Nintendo Switch in November 2022, closing out the fifth year of the console. These games marked the start of Generation 9, with all sorts of brand-new Pokemon and areas to explore and find.

Related: Pokemon Scarlet & Violet: How To Get Every Vivillon Pattern

Before Scarlet & Violet, the previous mainline titles to be released on Switch were Pokemon Sword & Shield. Which pair of Pokemon titles are better for fans ready to jump in and experience a new adventure, and which titles represent the best that Pokemon has to offer on the Switch? From graphics to story and game design, which of these pairs of mainline titles are the best?

Updated September 29, 2023 by Jacqueline Zalace: It's been nearly a year since the release of Pokemon Scarlet & Violet. If you are still looking at which Nintendo Switch Pokemon game is right for you, you're in luck. We've updated this list with even more criteria. Additionally, you can now find information related to the DLC of both games.

9 Graphics - Pokemon Scarlet & Violet

In-game photo of Cortondo

Pokemon Scarlet & Violet drastically improved the graphics and resolution found on the Nintendo Switch. In the previous titles, Sword & Shield, the world looked incredibly dull and also had a very low resolution to go with it. The textures overall are much sharper in Scarlet & Violet, with small details brought out much more without the jagged edges.

The overall graphics and details found in Scarlet & Violet are quite impressive and stand out as the best in the series thus far. Foliage is much improved from Sword & Shield, with numerous additions in the number of trees, plants, and bushes.

8 Performance - Pokemon Sword & Shield

Spiky Eared Pichu from distribution event

Now changing to performance, Sword & Shield have Scarlet & Violet beat in this category. While there are some technical glitches and bugs here and there, Sword & Shield offers solid performance without many outlandish bugs. The same cannot be said with Scarlet & Violet, however.

Related: Generation 9 Pokemon That Don't Have Evolutions

These games are plagued with performance issues, some of which can be quite funny. There are plenty of times in battle when your character's Poke Ball will practically freeze on screen and show a frame-by-frame of the Pokemon being caught. Things like this are not found in Sword & Shield at all, which is why it wins this category.

7 World Design - Pokemon Scarlet & Violet

Magical Torque being used by Ruchbah Starmobile against Gyarados in Pokemon Scarlet and Violet

The world design of Pokemon Scarlet & Violet easily beats out Sword & Shield. The latter was the first to introduce the Wild Area, a concept where you could free-roam and choose which Pokemon you'd like to battle or run away from.

In Scarlet & Violet, the entire world adopts this concept and perfects it. You now have the ability to roam around the entirety of the map and make real-time decisions on whether you'd like to engage in battle with certain Pokemon or not. This concept drastically improves the Wild Area and makes Scarlet & Violet our clear winner in world design.

6 Characters - Pokemon Sword & Shield

Pokemon Gym Leaders Sword Shield Galar LEon

Overall, the Pokemon Sword & Shield characters are much more memorable than those found in Pokemon Scarlet & Violet. Characters like Hop, Leon, Nessa, and more allowed the cast in Sword & Shield to shine and are some of the most popular Pokemon characters to date.

Related: Pokemon Scarlet & Violet: Academy Classes Complete Guide

While Scarlet & Violet had some good characters, they did not live up to the characters found in Pokemon Sword & Shield.

5 Story - Pokemon Scarlet & Violet

blue sky during day time

Pokemon Scarlet & Violet offers a narrative that excels in spots its predecessors, Sword & Shield, did not. While the Pokemon titles have never really been praised for their storytelling or narratives, Scarlet & Violet create an exciting story to play through from start to finish.

Some of this is due to world design, with the open world allowing you to pick off anyone you choose from the get-go. This creative freedom means there is no set gym order you must play through to beat the game.

4 New Pokemon Designs - Pokemon Sword & Shield

 Galarian Weezing

The new Pokemon designs for Generation 8 and returning Pokemon found in Sword & Shield are the best new Pokemon. The designs were fresh and exciting, with all sorts of vibrant colors and interesting features. The exclusive variants were also neat, with new features and distinctions that aren't found in other Pokemon titles.

Scarlet & Violet didn't hit the same highs that Sword & Shield did in this area, with some of the new Pokemon designs for Generation 9 being quite bland. While there are some underrated designs found in Scarlet & Violet, the highs of Sword & Shield beat them out. There are still some cool designs here and there, but it is nothing like what we had with Sword & Shield.

3 Post-Game Content - Both!

player taking selfie with a tera raid location

Post-game content refers to pretty much everything after the end of the game. Both games have DLC, with the second part of the DLC for Scarlet & Violet not being released just yet. Still, DLC aside, Scarlet & Violet has slightly better post-game content.

The Tera Raid battles add a new element to the game, allowing you to battle against a giant, crystallized Pokemon. While Sword & Shield had Pokemon Dens, it was incredibly hard to beat these Pokemon when NPCs populated your team.

In terms of DLC, Sword & Shield introduced Dynamax Adventures, which provided replayable rogue-like content. Overall, post-game content for both games are pretty similar, so don't let this be a deciding factor for you.

2 Shiny Hunting - Pokemon Sword & Shield

a Shiny Palossand from Pokémon Sword and Shield

Shiny hunting is a must if you are playing Pokemon. Whether you are looking for Pokemon in the wild or hatching eggs, finding a shiny Pokemon can be an exciting experience. In Sword & Shield, we had the familiar Daycare, which is essential to egg hatching.

Related: Pokemon Scarlet & Violet: Complete Picnic Guide

Unfortunately, Scarlet & Violet did away with the Daycare. Eggs can now only be acquired while picnicking, which can be a long process. Thankfully, shiny Pokemon are visible in the overworld, unlike in Sword & Shield. A lot of Scarlet & Violet Pokemon have barely-changed shiny versions, which can still make them difficult to spot, especially with the lack of any shiny effect.

1 Conclusion

A cutscene showing area zero

So, which games are better? Overall, we know that this all comes down to personal preference. Below, you can check out the pros of each game.

Game

Key Points

Pokemon Sword & Shield

Fewer Bugs


More memorable characters


More character customization (such as clothing)


Better Pokemon designs


Easier to Shiny Hunt

Pokemon Scarlet & Violet

Better Graphics


Paldea is more dynamic and interesting


Varied ways to go about battling gyms/completing content


A more meaningful story


Better Gimmick (Terastallization)

While Sword & Shield are fun Pokemon games, Scarlet & Violet wins as the better pair of games between the two. The gameplay improvements make the titles much more enjoyable than their predecessors, leading to hours of enjoyment past the credits rolling.

Pokemon Sword & Shield have things that are better about them when compared to Scarlet & Violet; however, the newer mainline titles offer many features and resources that are just not found in Sword & Shield.

Next: Pokemon Scarlet & Violet: Tera Raid Battle Events Guide