One of the most integral aspects of playing Pokémon is trading your catches with friends so you can complete the Pokédex. There are hundreds of Pokémon in the Sword and Shield Pokédex and several of them are exclusive to one version of the game or the other. So, in order to catch ’em all, you really need to trade with someone, either online or locally. We’re here to help you out. Here’s how to trade Pokémon in Sword and Shield.
How to Link Trade
This kind of trade allows you to see which Pokémon your friend or someone online wants to send you. If you don’t like the option they are suggesting you can cancel the trade. If you’re trading locally with a friend, you will both need to complete these steps on your own Nintendo Switch.
- Press the Y button on your right Joy-Con to bring up the Y-comm menu.
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Check the upper right hand corner to see what trading mode it’s in. If you want to trade with a friend make sure it says “Local Communication”. For anyone wanting to trade online with a random player, it should say “Internet”. If it doesn’t say the correct mode, press the + button to switch. Note that you need a Nintendo Switch Online membership in order to trade online.
- Select Link Trade.
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Select Start trading.
- Your Switch is ready to trade. Wait for it to search for someone nearby.
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Once both Switch consoles are ready to trade, a message will pop up reading, “A trade partner has been found! Time for a trade! Press the A button to continue**
- Select the Pokémon you want to send to the other person.
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Select Trade it.
- The image of the Pokémon the other person wants to give you will appear. If you’re ok with the trade, select Trade it.
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This notice will pop up. Wait for it to go away.
- A trading animation will play through showing the Pokemon getting sent to the other trainer. Some text will pop up Press A to get through it.
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You’ll then be brought back to your Pokémon Box. The game will ask if you want to recieve your friend’s League Card. Choose Yes or No.
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If you want to do more trading select another Pokémon. If you want to quit trading, Press B.
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Select Yes to continue playing your game.
How to Surprise Trade
These trades are a little more risky, you don’t get any say regarding which Pokémon you receive. To complete a local Surprise Trade, both players will need to complete these steps on their own Switch.
- Press the Y button on your right Joy-Con to bring up the Y-comm menu.
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Check the upper right hand corner to see what trading mode it’s in. If you want to trade with a friend make sure it says “Local Communication”. For anyone wanting to trade online with a random player, it should say “Internet”. If it doesn’t say the correct mode, press the + button to switch. Note that you need a Nintendo Switch Online membership in order to trade online.
- Select Surprise Trade.
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Select the Pokémon you want to trade.
- Click on Select.
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You’ll be brought back to the Y-Comm menu. Press Start.
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The game will tell you it will look for another person to trade with. Press A to get through these notices.
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You’re free to run and around and play your game. The Surprise Trade will continue working in the background.
- Eventually a blue notice reading “Trade completed!” will show up in the bottom left corner of your screen. Press Y to see what Pokémon you got.
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An animation will play showing the trade sequence. Press A to get through the text that pops up. Now you’ve successfully completed a local Surprise Trade.
There you have it. Now you know how to complete a Link Trade and a Surprise Trade either locally or online. Get out there and see if you can complete your Pokédex by trading with other trainers!
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Nintendo Switch Online 12-Month Membership
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In order to play online multiplayer games or to unlock a slew of classic Nintend games, you need a Nintendo Switch Online membership. This particular membership option provides 12 months of the service.
Source of the article – iMore