Pokemon Scarlet and Violet players want one thing: refunds

Pokemon Scarlet and Violet buyers are requesting refunds, after running into numerous bugs and performance issues. Some of them, applying for their money digitally, are urging others to join them.

This development, first reported on by The Gamer, has largely been spurred on by unpleased customers on social media. Reddit, a hub for Pokemon discussion, has been a particular hot spot for complaints and refund requests, with several users posted their anecdotal stories of financial recovery on the forums.

“If you genuinely are disappointed with the game, I'd strongly urge you to do this instead of complaining or trying to raise awareness of the game's issues.” writes user Sellouthipster. They posted their a guide for successful refunds on the Reddit, noting that although these situations are rare, it seems Nintendo is accepting complaints of the game’s quality as adequate cause for a refund. “I highly doubt any kind of fixes are coming - especially before Christmas - and I have zero urge to play a broken game.”

Some have ran into barriers however, seemingly dependant on their region. Australian user BecciCP claims they’ve been told to use their regional support service, which requires them to wait seven days for a response. Others like German user Memuench have had their requests denied, indicating that despite the success stories told by certain users, it’s not a surefire thing.

All in all, it’s not a good look for the latest release in Game Freak’s monstrous franchise. While the community have been vocal about their frustrations before, it’s easier than ever to empathise with where they’re coming from. Players looking to do all the exciting stuff — be it battling gyms, team star bases or titans and getting their grabbing eevee as fast as possible — are having a frustrating time of it. There’s a level of quality expected from this kind of pedigree, and there’s only so much you can blame on hardware limitations and development time before legitimate questions have to be asked.

But tell us what you think about this whole situation. Are you put off by the bugs, or even requesting a refund. Let us know below, as well as your reasoning for doing so. If you’re looking for an opposing take, check out our Alex Donaldson’s op ed here: Pokemon Scarlet & Violet’s performance is truly awful – but if it’s really fun, how much does it matter?. Alternatively, if you're looking for a handy guide, here's our write up on how to evolve Pawmo into Pawmot.