Potential Pokemon Scarlet and Violet Clue Found in Pokemon Sword and Shield

Pokemon Sword and Shield may have a clue about Pokemon Scarlet and Violet hidden in plain sight. Last weekend, The Pokemon Company revealed Pokemon Scarlet and Violet, a brand new pair of Pokemon games that will introduce players to brand new region modeled after Spain and Portugal. While not much is known about this brand new (and so far unnamed) region, the first trailer showed off several shots of the region along with a look at a live-action room that contained what appeared to be hints about the themes of the new area. One noticeable motif that kept popping up in the trailer were oranges and grapes, with symbols based around both fruits appearing on a wall, as well as real-life oranges and grapes displayed throughout the trailer. 

While we don't know the significance of oranges and grapes to Pokemon Scarlet and Violet, eagle-eyed Pokemon fans believe that these fruits could be the "clue" hidden in Pokemon Sword and Shield about the future games. In the Hotel Ionia in Circhester, there is a closed-off area of the hotel with wallpaper that prominently features both grapes and oranges. The Hotel Ionia is also the building where players can meet the Pokemon world versions of Shigeki Morimoto and Shigeru Ohmori, two prominent Game Freak employees who work on the Pokemon games. 

The Pokemon Company has dropped teases about future Pokemon games dating back to at least Pokemon X and Y. In those games, players could pick up a souvenir modeled after a tiki statue, which referenced the Alola region in Pokemon Sun and Moon. Meanwhile, Pokemon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon teased the Rotomi replacement for the PC in Pokemon Sword and Shield, while a low-res version of Gigantamax Toxtricity appeared on a poster in Pokemon Sun and Moon. As more information about Pokemon Scarlet and Violet come out, we'll probably discover more clues hidden in past Pokemon games that ended up teasing the future. In the meantime, fans will keep combing through the games and speculating about what little details in those games could mean.

Pokemon Scarlet and Violet will be released in late 2022.