Pokémon Legends: Arceus released recently, and although it has a lot of new and exciting action-RPG mechanics, they don't quite go far enough. The game is described on the box as "Action meets RPG," and it has many features new to the Pokémon series that reflect this, but there's still a little too much of the classic games for it to truly feel like a reinvention of the classic series action. As the series' first foray into new territory, it's made significant strides at modernizing its own format, but it needs to go further if the company plans to release more games in the same vein.
For as long as fans have remembered, Pokémon games have been more or less the same. Players journey throughout the region on a fixed path, defeat the Elite Four, thwart the evil Team, and become the Champion. The series has repeated the same mechanics over and over, with little innovation to keep things fresh. Until confirmation of Pokémon Legends: Arceus' leaks, it seemed like nothing would ever change, but Legends: Arceus promised an open world with new RPG elements, and it certainly delivered. Its new battle system and capture mechanics are a breath of fresh air for returning fans, but there's still (arguably) a little too much of the classic DNA in it.
Although Legends: Arceus has much better catching mechanics than previous games, they're almost a carbon copy when battling wild Pokémon. The open world looks stunning, and is a welcome change, but the relative lack of exploration options means that players can't fully enjoy it to the extent of something like Breath of the Wild. The battles have also been revamped, but the turn-based battle system hasn't changed enough to be fully distinct from the rest of the series. The game as a whole is still new and exciting, but it needs to do more in order to truly be the action RPG that the company styles it as. Filling Pokémon Legends: Arceus' Pokédex with every creature in the region would be easier and more fun than it is if the game had gone further with its new mechanics.
Catching Pokémon Is Still The Same In Legends: Arceus Battles
Catching Pokémon in Legends: Arceus is completely different from past games. Before, all players had to do was select a Poké Ball, and the game took care of the rest. Now, however, players need to stalk through the tall grass and get within range in order to manually throw a ball, and whether or not they're successful comes down to much more than just RNG. Since the game is much more focused on capturing Pokémon, new mechanics like this are on full display throughout players' adventures through Hisui. The various items and Berries for use create an element of strategy, and make fans feel like true Pokémon Trainers.
Of course, the new mechanics are only used when capturing Pokémon in the open world. Legends: Arceus' more complicated Pokémon catching is great, but it doesn't extend everywhere. When in battle, catching a wild Pokémon is the same as ever; players select a Poké Ball from their item satchel via a menu, and the rest is up to luck. The contrast between the two methods is immediately striking, and it feels jarring to suddenly go from manually throwing a Poké Ball to throwing it via a menu, made all the more strange since players still have full control over their character during battles. Giving players control over throwing their Poké Balls at all times would have made the more action-oriented feel of the game's revamped (but still turn-based) combat feel a lot more lively.
Legends: Arceus' Open World Is Limited
Legends: Arceus is the first game in the series with an open world. Although it's divided into segments, it's still open and expansive, which is a far cry from the old Routes of previous games or even the Wild Area of Sword and Shield. Instead of being corralled down a pre-determined path, players can explore Hisui unburdened by gyms and HM moves. Pokémon Legends: Arceus' flying mount and other Ride Pokémon give new exploration options once players reach certain milestones, and although they take some doing to get, they're well worth it. The untamed wilds make the game feel fresh and new, and the environments are a visual step up from what the series has shown in the past.
That said, the game's open world is somewhat limited by its lack of traversal options. Players can't even jump in Legends: Arceus, which can be no small source of frustration. The inability to swim across even a shallow stream is another missed opportunity that could disappoint fans, and dashing too is limited and underexplained. In all, the game's exploration is a big step up from previous games that still doesn't quite live up to its potential. When it was announced that the game would be a segmented world instead of a fully open one, players were disappointed. Pokémon Legends: Arceus is more like Monster Hunter than Breath of the Wild, but these limitations have arguably come less from the segmentation and more from the hamstrung movement players are saddled with.
Pokémon Needs To Move Away From Turn-Based Battles
The new battle system for Legends: Arceus was revealed prior to release, but certain details of it were kept quiet until it was in players' hands. The simplicity of the old games is abandoned in favor of a new mechanic that makes it possible for Pokémon to move multiple times in a row, and players can now move around the battle as it's happening, which adds a lot to the feel of things even if not to the gameplay. Pokémon Legends: Arceus' Bravely Default-like battle Styles add a new layer of strategy to combat as well, giving players the option to prioritize speed over power, or vice versa. They can also battle multiple wild Pokémon at once, which can be either good or bad depending on how much players have trained their partners.
However, the fact remains that the new system is still entirely turn-based, which means that Legends: Arceus hasn't quite broken free of the more repetitive nature of past games. Seeing a partner unleash a gout of fire or a torrent of water at a wild Pokémon is fun for players to watch, especially if that Pokémon had been attacking them directly beforehand (another new feature), but it's still just pressing a button and watching the animation. Pokémon Legends: Arceus means that Gen 9 may be farther from previous games as well, but hopefully the battles get another improvement in the future. The game's features don't go far enough to propel the game completely out of its old genre and into full action-RPG territory, and a future attempt could benefit from even more innovation around some of these limiting concepts. Pokémon Legends: Arceus remains a great experience, but needs to do more in order to show fans that the series is shedding its oldest tropes.