What to expect in the upcoming game “Pokémon Legends: Arceus”

“Pokémon Legends: Arceus” dabbles in a new style of gameplay that players might grow to love.

The Pokémon franchise is taking a risk in their upcoming game, “Pokémon Legends: Arceus.” The game is much different than their traditional Pokémon, in which the story is linear and the world is set for you from the very beginning. “Pokémon Legends: Arceus” takes players back in time into a pre-Sinnoh region named Hisui to explore the world of Pokémon in their own way by making the game fully open world.

As this is a new experience for Pokémon fans, you might not know what the game will be like. Much different from its predecessors, “Pokémon Legends: Arceus” will not include any battle gyms in which players are accustomed. The Pokémon franchise has done this in the past with their generation-six games like “Pokémon Sun and Moon,” but it will be slightly different as this new game will also not include a Pokémon league to challenge the players to become the champion of the region. This new game will have a large focus on researching Pokémon and exploring the region rather than fighting to become the strongest. In this game, you will also receive missions which you complete in return for rewards that can aid you in future research excursions. 

As the game is set far off in the past, there will be limited technology found in the game. That means no PC to store your Pokémon, and Poké Balls will look much different from what we know and love. With no PC, the new form of storing the Pokémon you catch will be by using ‘Pastures’, which looks like a ranch similar to what farmers use to hold their animals in real life.

There are some returning functions in “Pokémon Legends: Arceus” that fans enjoyed in the past; regional Pokémon are back. As the Pokémon have grown in a different environment, they have changed to fit in. The game also brings back character customization which is now larger than ever! The Pokémon franchise has also brought back riding Pokémon, which will help you traverse the large region of Hisui. The Pokémon franchise has shown which Pokémon will be rideable. Wyrdeer will be able to be used to traverse through the lands at a much faster pace. Hisuian Braviary will allow you to soar through the skies which you can use to travel down a mountain. Basculegion, a new evolution of Basculin, will aid you in traversing through bodies of water found in the Hisui region such as rivers and ocean.

One final thing to share are the starter Pokémon of the new game. This game will include Cyndaquil from the Johto region, Rowlet from the Alola region and Oshawott from the Unova region. Although these Pokémon may not be found normally in the Sinnoh region we know, they appear in its past as the Hisui region.

There is so much more that has not been talked about, and if you want more information on the game, head over to the official Pokémon Youtube channel or Twitter page.

[The game launches exclusively on the Nintendo Switch on January 28th, 2022]