How to Breed Pokémon and Hatch Eggs in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet

Breeding Pokémon is a feature in a fair few Pokémon games, including the latest: Pokémon Scarlet and Violet. But unlike other Pokemon games that include a daycare center where you can leave your pocket monsters until they magically hatch an egg, Scarlet and Violet is a bit more interactive — and weird.

Here’s what you need to know about breeding your Pokémon in Scarlet and Violet and how to hatch your eggs.

How to breed in Pokémon Violet and Scarlet

The first step would be to find the Pokémon you want to breed together to create the strongest possible pocket monster. The easiest way to guarantee an egg that you specifically want is by using a Ditto. Breeding a Ditto with any Pokémon will give you an egg with that other Pokemon in it, without any sort of speculation. Ditto is also the only way to breed Tauros and Braviary, as those Pokemon can only be male.

If don’t have a Ditto, you will need to pay attention to the egg group of the Pokemon and their gender. There are 16 egg groups in total, which you can sort of guess by their looks. Dragon-looking Pokemon belong to the Dragon Egg Group, for example, while dog-looking Pokemon belong to the Field Egg Group. There are some strange Pokemon that feel a little out of place in their egg group, but it’s mostly visuals. You will gain an egg that contains the female Pokemon that you breed with, so you will know who is in your Egg.

Now that you have your two Pokemon in mind (and in your party), you need to throw a picnic! If you want to help the chances of you gaining an egg, you should eat a sandwich with an Egg Level to it, to better the odds. Once you have started your picnic, you need to wait some time for your Pokemon to get to know each other, then check the picnic basket for eggs! Yes, there can be more than one egg in the basket.

How to hatch eggs in Pokémon Violet and Scarlet

Now that you have your egg, you will need to place your egg into your party and then walk around the map until it hatches. Each Pokemon hatches at a different rate, and you will need to walk that number of steps for them to hatch. If you find walking to be a bit of a slow method, you can gain steps fast by riding on Koraidon or Miraidon instead of walking. Alternatively, you can also put a Pokemon in your party that has the Flame Body or Steam Engine, which will cut your needed steps in half due to its warmth.