Do you think Pokémon Scarlet and Violet have eye problems?

Eyes. Yes, this is the latest controversy among Pokemon fans. We’ve left behind the five-frame-per-second Gyarados and Magnezone flying through Hisui’s skies in Pokémon Legends: Arceus already because there’s a brand new Pokémon game to talk about.

Pokémon Scarlet and Violet introduced us to a sparkling, sunny new landscape, three utterly adorable entries in the form of Sprigatito, Fuecoco, and Quaxly, and two new trainer models. And it is this last thing that motivates people.

Kotaku recently reported that many aspiring Gen 9 Pokémon Masters are troubled by one particular part of the new male and female trainer models – their eyes.

The designs of the trainers themselves are quite different from previous generations. Most notably, male and female coaches wear the same attire – a white collared, short-sleeved shirt, tie, blue hat, and a pair of shorts. This is the first time the pair have (initially) been dressed identically, although Legends: Arceus’ pair were pretty close as well. We think it’s great that The Pokémon Company is standardizing these designs, regardless of gender. And besides, who actually keeps their trainer in the default outfit once you’ve unlocked shops and customization?

But it’s the eyes that people are obsessed with, especially their roundness. Just comparing them to previous trainer models, the pair of Scarlet and Violet have smaller, more realistic eyes, as opposed to the larger oval eyes we’ve grown accustomed to. Some Japanese fans even said that the eyes made the characters look like dolls!

It seems like a logical leap forward though. Since the series’ move to the Switch, trainer designs, particularly their in-game character models, have been proportionately much more accurate. Even the 3DS games, and Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl, were experimenting with this by just using full models in battle and chibi-fied models on the ground, or using a slightly larger character model at all levels.

We’ve barely seen them in action at this point, and there may even be options to change the eyes in-game, so if this is a bit of a reaction to bigger design changes, that we’ll see.

The trainers aren’t the only thing about Scarlet and Violet that’s been subjected to eye-related analysis. Our little Pokémon Grass Cat also has a case of the old Scarlet and Violet eye problems if you watch really closely…

Do you see any problem? No, we couldn’t originally either, although various fans have taken to correcting perceived issues with official art. For example:

Still can’t see? The eyes were leveled in the edited versions, and one was rotated slightly. The ears have also been modified very slightly.

It might just be the angle he’s looking at, or it might even be deliberate (a dazed, grassy cat looks quite endearing, doesn’t it?), but that doesn’t change Sprigatito in our eyes. Who said Pokémon had to be perfectly symmetrical, huh?

What do you think of those piercing eyes? And do you still like the Sprigatito despite their off-centered eye? Cast your vote below, and leave us a comment if you’d like too!