How to Breed Pokémon in Scarlet and Violet

There’s a lot of work required to “catch ’em all” in Pokémon, and that fact has not changed in Scarlet and Violet. Even with new ways to catch special Pokémon through Tera Raid battles and strange mimicries of pre-existing creatures, there are still many familiar methods players must use if they want to simplify their journey towards Pokédex completion. One such method, breeding, returns in these latest titles, but it’s a bit different this time around when compared to previous games. It’s still possible to breed Pokémon in Scarlet and Violet, though players won’t be able to do so using a daycare.

How can Players Get Pokémon to Breed in Scarlet and Violet?

In these games, breeding is done through having a picnic with your Pokémon. Once you find a good spot to have a picnic and you have two compatible Pokémon in your party, all you need to do is wait. Eventually, the basket on the ground next to your table will end up with an egg inside. You can make sandwiches or clean your Pokémon to pass the time, and if you’re having trouble finding eggs, there are methods and sandwich recipes you can use to speed up the process. You don’t actually need to do any of this, though. Eggs will appear on their own regardless of player input, so you can leave the game running as long as you like to farm for them that way.

It doesn’t seem to matter which Pokémon you bring along as long as you have two compatible types. Additionally, you aren’t limited to just a single egg. By waiting long enough, you can find multiple eggs inside the basket without having to constantly grab each one as it appears. This does seem to make the breeding process a lot more streamlined, but it can still take a very long time for eggs to show up at all without the proper boosts. Still, picnics can be used for a lot more than just eggs, so it might be good to switch up your party more often than usual to make full use of these new breeding mechanics.

Pokémon Scarlet and Violet are Nintendo Switch exclusives.