After all of the anticipation and hype, Pokémon Legend’s Arceus is finally here. With excitement, I preloaded my digital copy and booted it up for the midnight release and finally got some quality hands on time with this game.
Story
I went into Pokémon Legends Arceus as blind as I could, avoiding all the info. I saw a few trailers and knew it was going to be an open world game set in the past. Without going into too much detail, the game takes place in Pokémon’s version of feudal Japan and you are tasked with creating the first Pokédex in the land of Hisui region. I found myself paying much more attention to the story than I did in previous installments.
It’s not going to win any awards for its writing, but it served it’s purpose and kept me interested. You find plenty of side quests to do that will have you tracking down Pokémon of specific gender, size, and different types of resources. The rewards for doing the quests are usually items or recipes. They don’t add much to the story, but they are fun to do if you like exploring the zones. I often found myself wandering away from the main quest to complete Pokédex challenges and hunt down items for the many side quests.
Mechanics
Shortly after beginning, you have to capture three Pokémon that have fled. The game gives you a quick rundown on how to select and aim Pokéballs. This is where Pokémon Legends Arceus really starts to shine. You’re able to crouch, walk and aim with Pokéballs equipped. While you are aiming, crosshairs will appear on the screen, allowing you to lead the moving Pokémon.
Once you get that down, the game explains to you that if you crouch in the grass, the Pokémon won’t see you, allowing you to get an advantage on catching them. Furthermore, you get an additional advantage if you hit them in the back. Game Freak did a great job developing personality for the Pokémon. Some of them will flee the moment they see you. So beware, if you want to catch them, you have to be stealthy.
Other Pokémon are so aggressive they will attack you and the only way to catch them is to lower their health in battle. Getting hit by a water pulse from a Psyduck you didn’t see in the water felt like something right out of the original cartoon. You’re given the ability to sprint and roll to get out of harms way. If you take too much damage, you’ll end up fainting and waking up in the nearest camp.
At first, it seems trivial, but after the first few zones you start coming up against much more aggressive Pokémon and stealth plays a bigger role. Another option you’re given is tossing food at Pokémon that can distract or make them drowsy. All of this added together makes this the most enjoyable time I’ve had catching Pokémon since Go launched on mobile. Trainer battles rarely happen in this game since so few people have Pokémon, which is unfortunate because battles are where Pokémon games have always shined. I would have liked having a few more of them peppered in the zones.
Boss Battles
In this game, Noble Pokémon have been added and are a big part of the story. They are great to battle against. Noble Pokémon are basically boss battles in the usual action role playing style, but instead of attacking them, you have to dodge their attacks and throw items to calm them. Once they are in a calmed stun like state, you throw out a Pokémon and have them do damaging attacks to lower their health. The fights are super refreshing and an entertaining break from the turn-based battles that you do to catch Pokémon. I really hope that in the future Game Freak will use the mechanics from Noble Pokémon and apply them to The Legendary Pokémon in Gen 9.
Pokédex
The update to the Pokédex is fantastic. Instead of just catching one of each Pokémon to complete your Pokédex, you get a set of objectives. For instance, with Psyduck, you have to capture up to twenty-five of them and defeat the same amount. You also have to witness Psyduck use confusion twenty five times. You get research levels at various steps along these challenges. Example being, after catching three Psyduck, you are rewarded with two research levels.
Once you reach ten research levels on a single Pokémon, you complete its Pokédex entry. With Psyduck, there are seven objectives with twenty six research levels available. So you can choose which objectives you want to do. If you would like to catch twenty five Psyducks and get the five research points for doing it, you can. If you would like to catch one and then defeat twenty-five, that’s an option as well. It’s nice to have the freedom to complete the Pokédex entry how you prefer.
It also stops you from getting stuck if you can’t find a rare Pokémon. I only found one Onix at first and was able to complete my Onix research solely by battling wild Pokémon with it. Collecting research levels let you rank up, which in turn will let more powerful Pokémon listen to you. It acts as a replacement for the gym badges. Every star rank you achieve for filling in the Pokédex will reward you with the ability to use and craft better versions of Pokéballs.
Crafting
Which brings us to another new feature, crafting. Throughout Pokémon Legends Arceus, you get crafting recipes for items like Pokéballs, potions and revives. You also get recipes for items that will help you in the field. You can craft smoke bombs that will make it harder for Pokémon to spot you, or stealth spray that muffle your footsteps. These items are still available for purchase, but they are expensive and crafting is so easy to do.
You collect resources by picking plants or throwing your Pokémon at trees or rock fragments. The Pokémon will hop out of its Pokéball and collect the berries from the trees and ore from the rocks. Early in the game, you get a mobile crafting station that easily lets you craft on the go. I often found myself filling my pack with resources. Stopping along the way and crafting as many items as I could with the resources, and then continuing. It’s not the most in depth crafting system out there but it is enjoyable enough.
Zones
The zones feel like they are the wild area from Pokémon Sword and Shield on steroids. The first couple of zones are big and beautiful, but the further you go on, they start to look worse. This is where the game really starts to falter for me.
When you have games like Zelda BOTW and Xenoblade chronicles on the switch that look beautiful and are massive open worlds full of life and discovery, it’s disappointing that this game feels so bare boned and empty of wonder. The world of Pokémon Legends Arceus sometimes feels like it’s trying to be too large for its own good. I love getting lost in open world games and enjoy wandering around trying to find secrets and dungeons. But sadly, there is not much to discover here.
Graphics
The graphics have issues. While some moments look great, with the art style working very well, other moments leave the details and textures looking blurry and grainy, almost like the N64 days. The Pokémon are well animated and when you’re not moving the scenery looks like a beautiful watercolor painting. Pokémon, trees, and rocks will often randomly pop up when you are moving quickly. The frame rate will drop and sputter when turning too quickly. The color choice is great but the longer you stare at spot the more you realize just how plain it looks. When compared to Zelda BOTW you can see the obvious influence in Pokémon Legends Arceus but the latter looks a hundred times better which is disappointing.
Verdict
Pokémon Legends Arceus left me feeling conflicted, on one hand I’m disappointed by the empty shell of an open world we get combined with an art style and graphics that leave much to be desired. It pulls you out of the game experience. But on the other hand, Game Freak really broke the mold with this game in a good way. The Pokédex is wonderful and gives you so much more to do. The updated catching mechanics are fantastic, and the noble boss battles are very enjoyable. All in all, I would give this game a 75%. The game has so much going right for it. Unfortunately, it has a couple of flaws holding it back from being outstanding. If Game Freak takes these mechanics and refines them and really improves upon the open world concept, I think they have the potential to release a masterpiece in the future.
Pros
- Refreshed Capture Mechanics
- Noble Battles
- Pokédex
Cons
- Lack of Textures and Frame rate issues
- Shell of an open world
- You cant disable EXP share