Pokemon Scarlet and Violet trainers won't force you to battle them

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Now you don't have to sneak past trainers you don't want to fight

Pokemon Scarlet and Violet preview screenshots
(Image credit: The Pokemon Company)

Pokemon Scarlet and Violet are doing away with auto-initiated trainer battles, which means you won't need to sneak around those you don't feel like fighting.

Previews of the upcoming Pokemon games are doing the rounds ahead of their November launch, with our own Sam Loveridge feeling torn on whether there's enough new stuff to make an impact. However, one departure we note in our Pokemon Scarlet and Violet gameplay preview is that trainers no longer have sight lines that auto-initiate battles, meaning you can just walk right past any trainer battle you can't be bothered with. In Loveridge's eyes, that's a welcome change.

"It makes exploring Paldea a lot more streamlined, because if you just want to get from A to B, you can do that without every random person you meet wanting to immediately fight you," Loveridge writes.

Probably the biggest departure from the series' past is Pokemon Scarlet and Violet's fully open world and far less linear design. It's an evolution we've been able to experience in the making over the years, with Sword and Shield's Wild Area hinting at the series' open world future and then this year's Pokemon Legends Arceus bridging the gap between linear and open world. Still, our preview notes that Scarlet and Violet's sandbox isn't entirely seamless, as some towns will interrupt your game with loading screens.

While it sounds like trainer battles are mostly optional, you'll still have to face off against all of the Pokemon Scarlet and Violet gym leaders if you want to earn your Champion rank.

Jordan Gerblick
Jordan Gerblick
Staff Writer

After earning an English degree from ASU, I worked as a corporate copy editor while freelancing for places like SFX Magazine, Screen Rant, Game Revolution, and MMORPG on the side. I got my big break here in 2019 with a freelance news gig, and I was hired on as GamesRadar's west coast Staff Writer in 2021. That means I'm responsible for managing the site's western regional executive branch, AKA my home office, and writing about whatever horror game I'm too afraid to finish.