A Cautionary Tale for Switch 2 Owners: Pokemon Scarlet Player Loses Over 1000 Hours of Gameplay

Alright, here goes nothing. So, picture this: a die-hard Pokémon fan — I’m talking 20 years deep into this obsession — decides to jump on the latest gadget wave, grabbing a shiny new Nintendo Switch 2. Pretty exciting, right? Except, disaster strikes while they’re transferring all that precious Pokémon data. It’s like losing an old friend, only worse, because we’re talking about critters collected since the days of Pokémon Diamond and LeafGreen. Yikes.

Anyway, this whole data drama isn’t exactly the norm for everyone migrating from Switch to Switch 2. Yet, it seems like a bit of caution can’t hurt if you’re planning to dive headfirst into the console world. Seriously, who wants to risk losing hundreds of hours of gameplay? That’s like… way too much time, gone in a blip.

Can we talk about how wild the Switch 2 release has been, though? The thing sold like 3.5 million units — in just four days! No new Pokémon games right off the bat, but hey, Pokemon Legends: Z-A is dropping in October. Folks are hyped for that, probably because they can keep playing their old games thanks to the backward compatibility. Nice move, Nintendo, gotta give it to you.

Back to the story. So this fan, pressing all the right buttons — or so they thought — realizes their saved Pokémon data is toast. First, it’s just the usual screens, language selection, character setup, blah blah. But then, boom. Everything’s wiped clean. Talk about a nightmare, especially when those little creatures have been with you longer than some friends!

Some other gamers chimed in with their stories — like, how they managed to retrieve their data after a similar scare. One person even shared this trick of pressing up, B, and X simultaneously, searching for a backup. Didn’t work this time, though. Bummer, right?

And then there’s this idea of reaching out to Nintendo support. Good luck with that, what with their hands full dealing with heaps of other issues. Some clever folks suggested moving save files one game at a time — might be a hassle, but better safe than sorry if you don’t want to start from scratch.

Thankfully, not all is lost. Our Pokémon enthusiast still has some magic left with Pokémon Home, able to transfer some beloved monsters around. But honestly, after losing the cream-of-the-crop, would you feel like playing anymore? Offers to trade Pokémon came flooding in from the community, but it’s just not the same, is it?

Man, what a rollercoaster. Moral of the story: if you’re holding a treasure trove of digital memories, maybe think twice before hitting that transfer button. Or just cross your fingers, I guess.