With Pokémon Legends: Arceus on the horizon, fans are beginning to wonder whether the titular Pokémon will be catchable. As the creator of the Pokémon universe, Arceus has long been a sought-after Pokémon because it has the highest base stats of all pocket monsters but has never been catchable in a traditional sense. Could Legends: Arceus be the first time the god of Pokémon becomes available in the games without a code or special event?

Legends: Arceus will join the line of Pokémon games in January 2022, but it will do so in a way no other game in the series has done. Based in the Sinnoh region during ancient times, Legends: Arceus more closely resembles Zelda: BOTW than other Pokémon games. Though Game Freak has confirmed Legends: Arceus will not be a fully open-world experience, the game's trailers have thus far presented it as having a large environment ripe for exploration. Being such a different game, Pokémon Legends: Arceus would be the perfect opportunity for Arceus to be available to catch.

Related: Legends Arceus Isn't The Pokémon BOTW Fans Wanted, After All

However, it is unlikely that Arceus will be catchable in Legends: Arceus. Though the much-anticipated game is centered around the deity, making Arceus catchable would present major world-building and chronology issues within the series. Namely, once Arceus is caught, the world of Pokémon may fall apart.

Pokémon Trainers Should Not Be Able To Catch A God In Legends: Arceus

Arceus has been a tricky Pokémon for Game Freak to handle in its games. In the Pokémon universe's origin story, it is believed that Arceus was the original Pokémon who created all life. This includes other Legendary Pokémon, namely those that Arceus joined the series with in Generation 4: Dialga, Palkia, and Giratina. These three Legendary Pokémon are deities in their own right, with Dialga controlling time, Palkia space, and Giratina antimatter. If Arceus is not around to create or control these Pokémon but is instead stuck inside of a Poké Ball, the fabric of space-time would dissolve long before the main series of Pokémon ever had the chance to begin.

Furthermore, Arceus was not made available in the Gen 4 remakes Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl. This is relevant when considering if Arceus will be available in Legends: Arceus, as the only time Game Freak considered making Arceus available was in Generation 4. Those games were intended to have an event centered around an "Azure Flute" that could be used to summon a staircase that led to Arceus. The event was scrapped, but players were able to find it in the game's files and hack their way into catching the Pokémon. That Game Freak did not bring back this event in Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl solidifies that they may not be interested in ever making Arceus available.

However, there could still be a chance that the Legendary Pokémon could be catchable in Legends: Arceus. After all, it is the titular Pokémon of the game, so not being able to have it as a part of one's team would be disappointing. Regardless of what Game Freak ends up doing with Arceus, the developer will have a lot answer for in terms of lore and gameplay in Pokémon Legends: Arceus.

Next: What Pokémon Legends: Arceus Means For Gen 9