A recent update to Pokémon Scarlet and Violet has improved performance, but this has come with a more negative side effect. Scarlet and Violet have been known to have various gameplay-affecting glitches since launch, which have generally been met with a mixture of amusement and dissatisfaction. More recently, updates have sought to resolve these issues, sometimes to mixed results.
Bugs in Scarlet and Violet have included bizarrely distorted character models and issues with the music during the Elite Four battles. Although these issues have been viewed with humor at times, it cannot be denied that they also badly impact the gameplay experience. As a result, there have been several updates to Pokémon Scarlet and Violet aimed at giving the games some much-needed polish. For the most part, these updates have provided nothing but positive benefits. However, there have been some instances where the updates have actually had some undesirable effects of their own in turn. The most recent update is, unfortunately, a perfect example of this.
Scarlet & Violet’s New Update Depopulates Paldea
The recent 1.2.0 update for Pokémon Scarlet and Violet has sought to address the many performance issues that have affected the games, including crashes and poor frame rates. To do so, the numbers of Pokémon and NPCs alike have been limited to far fewer than before. As a consequence, Paldea often seems devoid of life, making the region a much lonelier place. This has also affected Shiny hunting in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet due to the lowered spawn rates of Pokémon. On the other hand, the games do indeed run smoother now. This is obviously a preferable state for Scarlet and Violet, but the downsides are still striking.
Pokémon Scarlet & Violet 1.2.0 Creates New Problems
It seems that the sheer number of entities inhabiting Paldea’s overworld are at least partly to blame for Pokémon Scarlet and Violet’s poor performance, which does make this a natural solution. However, as Scarlet and Violet had these high spawn rates to begin with, there is still the question of why the games were released in such a state anyway. In addition, a new and much more serious problem has also arisen in the wake of the 1.2.0 update – players are now reporting that Pokémon Scarlet and Violet are deleting save files under various circumstances, with no clear cause for the glitch other than the update itself.
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Until this latest patch Paldea was bursting with life. But now, the region is a far more solitary place. It is a shame that this is apparently the best solution to the games’ performance issues, but for the most part it appears to have worked. However, the consequences, both intentional and otherwise, have had a serious impact of their own; in addition to the diminished atmosphere, smaller Pokémon populations also means rarer Shinies. Moreover, the new save file glitch is a significant issue. It seems at least one more major update for Pokémon Scarlet and Violet will be needed in order to fully resolve the games’ continuing problems.
