Just because a player has defeated the Elite Four and become a Pokemon Champion doesn't mean that there aren't still plenty of things for them to see and do in Pokemon Scarlet & Violet. In fact, the Gen 9 games are packed so full of post-game content that players can expect to still be playing them long after the end credits have finished rolling.
As in a lot of the previous Pokemon games, some of the endgame content in Pokemon Scarlet & Violet is difficult to measure when it comes to exact time requirements, but twenty or so hours seems like a pretty conservative estimate. What's more, with plenty of post-release content planned and promised for the future, that number is only going to go up.
Complete the Main Story
For series veterans, completing a Pokemon game means beating the Elite Four and becoming a Pokemon Champion. However, things are a little different in Pokemon Scarlet & Violet. As well as the more traditional Victory Road storyline, players will also have access to a few others; namely the Path of Legends, which sees them defeating powerful Titans, and Starfall Street, which has players take down five Team Star bases.
Only after completing all three storylines will players unlock The Way Home, which serves as the final main story quest in Pokemon Scarlet & Violet and introduces players to the games' newly-added Paradox Pokemon. Upon completing this somewhat challenging mission, the end credits will roll and players will truly be able to say that they have completed the main story in Pokemon Scarlet & Violet.
Get a Master Ball from the Director
After the credits roll, players will be returned to their dorm room at the Academy and then summoned to the director's office. After a short conversation with Director Clavell, he'll give players a Master Ball, which can be used to give players a 100% chance of catching any wild Pokemon. As it seems that this is the only way to get a Master Ball in Pokemon Scarlet & Violet, players should think carefully about which Pokemon to use it on.
Catch Legendary Pokemon
At launch, there are only six Mythical and Legendary Pokemon in Pokemon Scarlet & Violet; two of which are version-exclusive Pokemon. One of these two can be found by returning to the Great Crater of Paldea after completing The Way Home, while the other four Legendaries can be obtained in either version by pulling out the 32 Ominous Black Stakes that are scattered throughout Paldea and then catching the Legendary Pokemon at their respective shrines.
Complete the Paldean Pokedex
There are 400 Pokemon in the Paldean Pokedex, though not all of them are available within one particular version of the Gen 9 games. This means that players will need to trade with friends if they're going to fully complete it, but the rewards for doing so are arguably well worth it. Among a few other things, players can get the Shiny Charm by speaking with the academy's biology teacher after completing the Pokedex, and, in doing so, significantly increase their chances of running into shiny Pokemon out in the wild.
Re-Challenge the Gym Leaders
After receiving the Master Ball, Geeta will ask players to help her to evaluate Paldea's gyms by battling the eight Gym Leaders once again. This time, however, the Gym Leaders will all have much stronger teams, with their regular Pokemon being at level 65 and their Tera Pokemon being at level 66. They can once again be tackled in any order, so players should think carefully about which gym to return to first.
Take Part in the Academy Ace tournament
Upon successfully defeating all eight Gym Leaders for a second time, players will unlock the Academy Ace tournament. To emerge victorious from this new challenge, they'll need to win four consecutive rounds against talented trainers and teachers, all of whom are packing powerful Pokemon that are level 65 or higher. The tournament is repeatable, making it a great way to level up Pokemon.
Unlock Five and Six-Star Raids
Players will unlock Five-Star raids simply by completing the main story and watching the credits role. However, those hoping to unlock Six-Star Raids will need to go a step further. First, they'll need to unlock the Academy Ace tournament by beating all eight gym leaders for a second time. Next, they'll have to keep hosting Five-Star raids until Jacq calls to let them know that Six-Star raids have become available.
Tackle Limited-Time Tera Raid Events
As well as regular raids, players will also be able to take part in special time-limited raid events featuring rare and powerful Pokemon. The first two Tera Raid events feature Charizard and Eevee, with many more likely to follow over the coming months. As well as catching rare Pokemon, players can get a whole host of special items by completing Tera Raids. This includes Herba Mystica, which can be turned into sandwiches that increase the chances of players running into shiny Pokemon.
Catch Shiny Pokemon
With the help of Shiny Sandwiches and the Shiny Charm, players should find themselves running into shiny Pokemon fairly frequently. They can further improve their chances of doing so by using Auto Battle, as a player's Pokemon will never Auto Battle a shiny Pokemon. This makes it much easier to clear an area of non-shines, which, in turn, can make any remaining shiny Pokemon much easier for players to spot.
Breed the Perfect Pokemon
Granted, it's possible to learn Egg Moves using other methods these days and players have been able to change the nature of their Pokemon using mints for quite some time now. However, long-time fans of the series will likely still take a lot of pleasure from breeding their own Pokemon and putting together the perfect team for high-level Tera raids or competitive battling. Breeding is also a good way to get shiny Pokemon, not to mention a great way to kill time.
Pokemon Scarlet & Violet are available now for the Nintendo Switch.