The Battle Institute is a facility in Mauville City that, like the Battle Maison, will be opened up after the Elite Four is beaten. It parallels the one in previous games; it’s on the northeastern portion of 1F.

The purpose of this building is to test yourself against a variety of Trainers - many much harder than those you’d find in normal gameplay, exhibitng tactics you’d see more commonly in official competitions. Strategy becomes much more important here than probably any area of the in-game experience.

Firstly, there are restrictions on the battles paralleling those of the Battle Maison and general competitions.

Flat Battles : All battles will be Flat Battles. That is to say, Pokémon not at Level 50 will not play at Level 50 but their own level. Some strategies, such as F.E.A.R., do require such after all.

If they are higher than Level 50, they will be reduced to Level 50: their stats will be adjusted properly, but their moves and items will not be affected in any fashion.

Banned Pokémon : Most mainstream Legendary Pokémon are not allowed; it’s an easy enough rule of thumb. Specifically, the following Pokémon are not allowed in any fashion:

Banned Items : Only one item is banned, the Soul Dew for Latios/Latias.

Banned Moves : None – anything goes!

Duplication : Hold items (beyond having no items) and Pokémon species may not be repeated. That includes having multiple formes of the same Pokémon; for example, you cannot have Rotom-Wash and Rotom-Heat on the same team.

Quantities : For Single Battles, you need three Pokémon; for Double, you’ll need four. There are only these two such Battle Tests initially, though it seems some may be made available at a later time through download.

Once you’ve spoken with the receptionist at the front of the area, between the PC and record-tracking machine, you can choose your team.

You will successively fight five Trainers - winning or losing is somewhat irrelevant. You will continue on to the next battle, but your score is mostly based on how many Pokémon you beat, how many of your Pokémon were beaten, how easily you won, how well you counteracted their tactics, and so forth.

After having finished, you’ll receive a certificate, naming your rank, test type, and score. The scores are below:

Additionally, you will receive items and BP for winning. They both increase in quantity and quality as you do better. The most notable awards are the PP Ups for Master Rank; aside from the ID Lottery in Lilycove - and, even then, that’s mostly for those who trade a lot - it is the only quick way to easily earn PP Ups.

Skillful performance in the Battle Institute will hugely rely on having a competitively-ready team. Most competitive teams will require EV training and idealized IV/Nature breeding, so beware that it does play a relevance in the Battle Test scoring, even if the actual strategy and execution take precedence.