Pokemon Scarlet and Violet might have made a subtle appearance in Sword and Shield

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Oranges and grapes appear to be a recurring theme in Pokemon Scarlet and Violet

Pokemon Scarlet and Violet
(Image credit: Nintendo)

Pokemon Scarlet and Violet may have been subtly referenced in Sword and Shield back in 2019. 

As shared in the Pokemon subreddit (via IGN), it looks like developer Game Freak may have made a subtle reference to its upcoming game Pokemon Scarlet and Violet in previous game Pokemon Sword and Shield. In the post, we can see a photo of what looks like the Hotel Ionia from Sword & Shield where a roped-off room appears to have wallpaper that’s decorated with oranges and grapes. 

Although a seemingly random interior design choice, this wallpaper may actually be a not-so-subtle reference to Scarlet and Violet. As pointed out by @CentroPokemon (via VGC) the orange and grape imagery appears quite frequently in the announcement trailer in the form of a bowl of fruit (containing only oranges and grapes) as well as two crests decorated with the two fruits in the live-action segment. 

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The references don’t stop there either, as you can also see in the new trailer that the playable characters will be wearing primarily orange or primarily purple outfits - another potential reference to the orange and purple fruits. 

Fans have already uncovered tons of hidden details from Pokemon Scarlet and Violet since its reveal during the Pokemon Presents presentation last weekend. In fact, one fan went as far as making a Twitter thread explaining how the trailer heavily hints towards the upcoming Pokemon game being set in Spain.

There’s also been a bunch of fan theories surrounding the three new Pokemon Scarlet and Violet starters, with one fan explaining how they believe they are a reference to a famous Spanish novel. Some fans aren’t entirely happy with the new Gen 9 Pokemon though as the fire-type Fuegococo appears to debunk a decades old fan theory. 

We won’t have to wait too long to find out more about Game Freak’s next Pokemon adventure as Pokemon Scarlet and Violet are due to release later this year - that’s two Game Freak developed Pokemon games in one year following the release of Pokemon Legends: Arceus. 

Can’t get enough of Scarlet and Violet? Here are all the Pokemon in the Pokemon Scarlet and Violet trailer, including the starters.

Hope Bellingham
Hope Bellingham
News Writer

After studying Film Studies and Creative Writing at university, I was lucky enough to land a job as an intern at Player Two PR where I helped to release a number of indie titles. I then got even luckier when I became a Trainee News Writer at GamesRadar+ before being promoted to a fully-fledged News Writer after a year and a half of training.  My expertise lies in Animal Crossing: New Horizons, cozy indies, and The Last of Us, but especially in the Kingdom Hearts series. I'm also known to write about the odd Korean drama for the Entertainment team every now and then.