The Game Theory of Competitive Pokémon

Strategic Element 3: Imperfect InformationURL copied

In chess, both players see all pieces. In rock-paper-scissors, you know the three possible choices. Pokémon usually guarantees neither.

What do you know at the start of a ladder battle?

On the public ranked ladder (Scarlet/Violet), you see only your opponent's six Pokémon species. No moves, no items, no stats, no tera types.

At official tournaments (Regionals, Worlds), you see everything except stats - and you still don't know which two Pokémon are benched until they're revealed.