Scarlet and Violet are literally the same game with a coat of paint and a handful of swapped exclusives — your choice boils down to which legendary lizard sparks joy and whether you prefer the past or the future aesthetic.
Violet's exclusive Iron Bundle is essentially a futuristic robot Delibird — a previously laughingstock Pokémon — that became so broken it got banned. Delibird finally had its revenge.
You love ancient, dinosaur, and prehistoric aesthetics
Scarlet's paradox Pokémon are all wild paleo-beasts and Koraidon looks like an actual kaiju.
→ Pick Pokémon ScarletYou want the cooler legendary or care about competitive play
Miraidon edges out in design polls and Violet housed the most notoriously powerful exclusive in recent VGC history.
→ Pick Pokémon VioletYou want Ceruledge specifically (ghost-fire samurai armour Pokémon)
Ceruledge is a Violet exclusive and it is genuinely one of the best-designed Pokémon in the generation.
→ Pick Pokémon VioletYou have a friend with the opposite version
Grab Scarlet so between you both versions are covered — trading exclusives is half the fun.
→ Pick Pokémon Scarlet