Well, folks, it looks like Pokémon Winds and Waves may have finally broken the series’ bad graphics curse. At least, that’s what it looks like based on the first trailer, which appears to be a marked visual improvement over Scarlet and Violet, which have become a poster child for the series’ poor technical performance.
Scarlet and Violet, released in 2022, were the last Switch-exclusive Pokémon games, and were heavily derided for not only being a buggy mess, but for looking like a GameCube tech demo. They had a big map that had no real texture or life to it. When they got a Switch 2 update, they ran at a buttery smooth 60 frames-per-second, but they still looked really rough and old. Winds and Waves, meanwhile, have a notable technical and graphical leap, with much more dynamic lighting, shading, and water physics. The Pokémon themselves have a bit of texture to them similar to Scarlet and Violet’s models, but beyond that, any direct comparisons we might make work in Winds and Waves’ favor. I’d still argue that it doesn’t look incredible by any stretch, but it definitely is the most dynamic-looking Pokémon game we’ve had in a while.
It was WILD comparing the new trailer, to the first real trailer of Scarlet and Violet. I’m flabbergasted! pic.twitter.com/FIKnM4ueq0
— Ron (@Truegreen7) February 27, 2026
Um comparativo gráfico entre a água renderizada na nona e na décima geração de Pokémon (em desenvolvimento): pic.twitter.com/1dmMxLvVH6
— ‘Necro’ Felipe #UnivNintendo (@necrolipe) February 27, 2026
HOW DID WE GO FROM POKEMON SCARLET/VIOLET TO THIS??? pic.twitter.com/SJBVafeFA6
— Yisuno ⚝ | GECQUA ENJOYER (@TheYisusOne) February 27, 2026
pokemon pic.twitter.com/HrEmYWb4KU
— gooompy (@Gooompy) February 27, 2026
water has always been a huge part of Pokémon’s worlds and it’s SUCH a relief to see Winds and Waves fix the gross flat plains that have plagued every 3D release thus far pic.twitter.com/dcirZnFeT9
— Lewtwo (@Lewchube) February 27, 2026
notice how pokemon started looking good the minute we got out of europe
— lil (@adifying) February 27, 2026
I’m ready to move on pic.twitter.com/grP5QlH7m2
— Ant (@antdude92) February 27, 2026
i love how they showed us various windmills rotating smoothly to demonstrate that they learned how to animate them properly this time pic.twitter.com/3qiByBPNMx
— jamie ▴ (@linkkling) February 27, 2026
Para los que dicen que Winds & Waves se ven iguales que S/V…
¿¿¡¡ACASO ESTÁN CIEGOS?!??
Escarlata parece un juego de la 64 comparado con la décima generación pic.twitter.com/Z5WGVSnP9A
— JV (@JVindahouse) February 27, 2026
Is it enough to wash off the stink of older, uglier games? We’ll have to see how the game holds up when it eventually launches, but critics of the series’ past technical performance aren’t about to back down just because Game Freak is taking the time to polish its games after years of poor performance and visuals.
“All the haters need to apologize now for-” No. The ‘hate’ was totally earned and valid. People are happy they’re finally making the effort and hopefully will keep holding them to this higher standard.
I just hope they remember to put in an interesting story this time. Voiced… https://t.co/etXw9KZVw7
— LA/ENDER (@LavenderGhast) February 27, 2026
Pokemon Winds and Waves looks technically good but I still don’t like them going in a realistic direction with the series
— Jade (@The_Teal_Mask) February 27, 2026
once monolith reveals their switch 2 rpg, the fucking comparisons are gonna come back 😭 https://t.co/UjFa7ok7mV
— jin (@jingercookiee) February 27, 2026
Hey guess what, if nobody complained they wouldn’t look any better. Yes they look better, so please don’t stand there on your pedastal belittling the people that were pushing for this improvement in the first place.
In any case: looks p good GameFreak, not bad. https://t.co/Sy2yL1gd47— TidyWire🍿 (@TidyWire) February 27, 2026
If nothing else, as folks comb through the footage, it’s nice that loud complaints about trees or windows aren’t the primary point of discussion on day one. Pokémon Winds and Waves are coming to Switch 2 next year.
