Pokemon Sword And Shield's 1.3.1 Update Now Live, Fixes A Few Bugs

Pokemon developer Game Freak has rolled out a new update for Pokemon Sword and Shield. This patch appears to be very minor, however, primarily resolving a handful of bugs.

According to the patch notes on Nintendo's support website, Sword and Shield's 1.3.1 update "fixed some issues for a better gameplay experience." The notes don't delve into any more detail beyond that, so it's not quite clear what has been fixed. If the update is not automatically installed, you'll need to highlight your game's icon on the Switch home screen, press the Plus button, and select Software Update to manually download the patch.

This marks Sword and Shield's first update since October's 1.3.0 patch, which added the games' Crown Tundra expansion. That is included alongside the titles' first DLC, The Isle of Armor, in the Sword and Shield Expansion Pass.

In other news, another special Max Raid event is currently underway in Sword and Shield. Until December 27, certain Ice- and Fire-type Pokemon like Alolan Vulpix, Jynx, Delibird, Chandelure, and Frosmoth will appear in Max Raid dens in both games, and you'll even have a chance to encounter a Shiny Alolan Vulpix in five-star Raids. This event ends at 3:59 PM PT / 6:59 PM ET / 11:59 PM UTC.

The Pokemon Company has also begun distributing download codes for Zarude, the brand-new Mythical Pokemon featured in the latest Pokemon movie, Secrets of the Jungle. Players in the US will find a Zarude code in this month's Pokemon Trainer Club email newsletter if they signed up for it by the cutoff date last month. The Pokemon Company will also distribute Zarude codes to players in Europe via the Pokemon Trainer Club newsletter next month.

Pokemon Sword And Shield Ver. 1.3.1 Patch Notes

• Fixed some issues for a better gameplay experience.