Did you catch a Pokémon that refuses to obey you? Did your starter pokémon suddenly start ignoring your commands?
This is a recurring thing in the Pokémon franchise, and Scarlet & Violet is no exception to this.
That said, there are a few things that might cause this situation. Luckily, there’s a solution as well.
This guide will teach you how to make your Pokémon obey you in Scarlet & Violet.
How to Get a Pokémon to Obey You
The most straightforward solution is to get gym badges.
In Pokémon Scarlet & Violet, like in any other Pokémon game, the player is able to catch and train the wild Pokémon they encounter in the wild.
Obviously, the only Pokémon that will follow your orders are the ones you caught. That said, there’s an item that will help you increase your chances of getting a well-tamed party member as soon as you capture it.
Some items can make taming a Pokémon easier — the Friend Ball — and some others that make it much less troubling to capture them.
You can check more information about the Friend Ball and other special Poké Balls in our Poké Ball Guide.
However, there’s a more effective solution. Although it might require some work, it will guarantee that captured Pokémon will obey you no matter what.
Once you finally end the tutorial part of the game and are set free in the open world, you are given three routes to take — Victory Road, Path of Legends, and Starfall Street. They are the three main quests of the game.
One of them revolves around getting gym badges to become the best Pokémon trainer in the region of Paldea. That’s what you need to do to guarantee a Pokémon will obey you.
Gym badges make Pokémon obey you up to a certain level. The actual level will depend on the badge or the number of badges you have.
Each time you defeat a gym leader and get a gym badge, you will receive a message saying that Pokémon will obey you up to a certain level.
This means you can go to higher-level areas and capture strong Pokémon. As long as you have gym badges that make them obey you, you won’t have to worry about Pokémon not using the attacks you want them to.
This also shows that getting gym badges from time to time is essential, no matter what story route you decide to complete first. Pokémon trainers that can’t make Pokémon obey them are clearly not good trainers.
I particularly like going around and doing everything I can in an area, no matter what route the quest belongs to. That way, I can level up my party and do everything I need to complete all missions in an area without grinding much.
There’s so much to do in this game and so many tasks to conclude that you can possibly have a strong Pokémon party just by completing story missions.
Also, please note that not only recently captured Pokémon can disobey you. Even your starter Pokémon and others that you have with you from the very beginning can start ignoring your commands. When that happens, it means you urgently need to get a gym badge.
The best way to keep your Pokémon under control is to go after the gym leaders from time to time. If you let your Pokémon get to such a higher level that they won’t obey you, chances are you won’t be using them to get the gym badges you need.
This is bad because you need them to be reliable so you can use them in the gym fight and many other important situations that the game might throw at you.
What to Do Next
Once your Pokémon are at the right level and obeying your commands, it’s important to look over their move set and make sure you’re using the best moves possible. There are so many moves in the game that it can be overwhelming to pick at first, but spending some time reading about the best TMs in the game can help a lot.
Make sure to check out your Friendship level with your Pokemon, too, as this can affect how they perform in battles as well.
