2022 has officially come and gone and we are well on our way to the new year which is 2023. This means, there will be new Pokemon rules for the Video Game Championship Series (VGC) this 2023. There are other rules that will stay the same, of course – Pokemon VGC's Age Limit will still be the same throughout this year's scene as far as we're told.
As mentioned in our introduction for Pokemon VGC, the ruleset changes every year as the patches, and the new generation of Pokemon that are introduced into the games typically shake the meta and landscape of competitive battling. The latest video game rules, formats & penalty guidelines were announced last December 5, 2022, by Play! Pokemon. This officially states the Pokemon Rules in VGC.
New VGC Rules for 2023
Update: Details for Season 3 has been announced as shared by Serebii.net on their website.
Series 3 will begin on February 1 and will run until March 31, 2023.
Singles Ruleset is as follows:
Pokemon Restrictions – Paldea Pokedex
Pokemon Limits – Team of 3 to 6 Pokemon from Level 1 to 100. All Pokemon are then set to Level 50.
Match Time: 10 minutes
Team Preview: 90 seconds
Turn Time: 60 seconds
Doubles Ruleset is as follows:
Pokemon Restrictions: Paldea Pokedex
Pokemon Limits – Team of 4 to 6 Pokemon from Level 1 to 100. All Pokemon are then set to Level 50.
Match Time: 10 minutes
Team Preview: 90 seconds
Turn Time: 60 seconds
This will be the first Ranked Battle Series focused on the Pokemon of the Paldea Pokedex and adds the ability to use Paradox Pokemon.
The following Pokemon are banned from the competition for Series 3:
- Charmander
- Charmeleon
- Charizard
- Galarian Meowth
- Wooper
- Quagsire
- Froakie
- Frogadier
- Greninja
- Scorbunny
- Raboot
- Cinderace
- Perrserker
- Wo-Chien
- Chien-Pao
- Ting-Lu
- Chi-Yu
- Koraidon
- Miraidon
The 2023 Pokemon VGC rules are quite simple, not many changes have been done except for the following:
- Legendary Pokemon and Paradox Pokemon are banned; any other Pokemon with a Paldea Pokedex number is allowed
- Matches are exclusively double battles, with players choosing four of the six Pokemon in their party
- Each Pokemon on the team must be unique; you can't have a Pokemon of the same kind even with different variations (i.e. Pom Pom Style Oricorio and Sensu Style Oricorio)
- None of you Pokemon may hold the same item
- Pokemon below level 50 are untouched and remain at the same level but Pokemon that exceed level 50 are reverted back to level 50
- Battles are limited to 20 minutes including a 90-second team preview and 7 minutes per-player limit
- Players have 45 seconds each turn to select a move or attack
As the current 2023 VGC Pokemon rules state, Miraidon. Koraidon, together with the other Paradox Pokemon are banned from competitive play in the VGC scene. These bans are actually justified as they are a little bit overpowered at the moment and would definitely be too difficult to battle against. If you're having trouble with what held items should be considered for the Pokemon VGC scene this 2023, you can consider checking out our list of held items but it seems that held items like Lum Berries, Super Sitrus Berries, Focus Sash, Eviolite, Leftovers, Choice Items (Specs, Band, Scarf, etc), and protection items like Clear Amulet and Utility Umbrella, as well as Pokemon-switching items like Eject Button, are still the best options for competitive trainers.
Current Age Division
Other than the set of Pokemon VGC rules that were mentioned earlier, the Pokemon VGC Age Limit still remains the same and is as follows:
- Junior Division: Trainers born in 2010 or later
- Senior Division: Trainers born in 2006, 2007, 2008, or 2009
- Master Division: Trainers born in 2005 or earlier
In case your division is set to change this year towards the next division, the Pokemon VGC Age Limit will change your division the following year. So those who will jump from Junior to Senior, or Senior to Master will happen next year if they are set to be older for their age division.
The Pokemon VGC 2023 Season officially started last January 2, 2023. In case you still haven't started, this might be the best time for you to huddle your team and work on your best strategies in the competitive scene. More news, updates, and the latest events on the VGC scene will be covered here so make sure to check back around every now and then on ClutchPoints Gaming. Best of luck, Trainers!
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