Much like in previous installments, Pokémon Scarlet and Violet feature a day-and-night system for players to consider while exploring. Certain Pokémon will show up more often depending on the time of day, so players looking to complete their Pokédex or simply catch their favorite Pokémon will have to engage with this system. Some may want to approach the system honestly and simply wait for the right time of day, while others will want to manipulate the day-and-night cycles in some way to maximize the chances of their preferred outcomes occurring. The latter group may wonder: can players manually alter the date and time in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet?
Unfortunately, neither game allows players to adjust the date and time themselves, and this has to do with a major change in how the day-and-night cycles work. In past games, the exact time of day was determined by the console’s internal clock, so players could simply tinker with the system settings to change the in-game time to their liking.
Days now last a fraction of what they used to
Scarlet and Violet, on the other hand, scrapped this console-based day-and-night system in favor of a 30-minute global timer that stays consistent no matter what. This means that if players want to catch certain time-dependent Pokémon, they have no other choice but to wait until the right time of day as intended. Additionally, this means players have no control over the random weather events that crop up during exploration.
This new time cycle in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet may disappoint diehard fans of the series, but at the very least, they will not need to wait any more than half an hour to access certain times of the day. Of course, those looking to speedrun the games may find these new time restrictions even more disruptive, although they only make up a small subset of players.
