The Pokémon series is famous for its motto, "Gotta catch 'em all", and the upcoming Pokémon Legends: Arceus takes it to heart, making completing the Pokédex a major goal for the first time. This task will likely be more involved than it was in past games and will necessitate capturing many Pokémon in a great variety. Catching each species, and multiple times at that, looks like it will be an integral part of the game, if not the ultimate goal.
One of the major objectives in the Pokémon games is to complete the Pokédex. Players start off their Pokémon Journey by getting their starter from the Professor, along with the digital encyclopedia that will record information on every species they capture, with the promise that they will fill it completely by catching each one, but this sometimes goes unfulfilled. Legends: Arceus' Pokémon catching is vastly different from past games; however, it promises to change how players make captures and turn it into a core element of the game, so they truly will need to catch 'em all.
It's almost never been strictly necessary to catch one of every Pokémon in the mainline series. Although it doesn't hurt to do so, and many choose to in order to fully complete the game, only one good team is actually necessary. In Legends: Arceus, on the other hand, it would appear that catching each one will be necessary in order to advance the game's story and grow as a member of the Galaxy Team. New details about the different Pokémon species of Hisui are also available, which gives extra incentive to fill the Pokédex.
Why Catch 'Em All In Pokémon Legends: Arceus?
In most Pokémon games, there's no real reason to catch every species, whereas in Pokémon Legends: Arceus, the Pokédex is an important part of the game. Although it's nice to do, there aren't usually any rewards or penalties in place to encourage players to catch more than is necessary. Especially in more recent games, it's become secondary to the more pressing goals of defeating the Champion and stopping the evil Team in whatever sinister plot they've concocted. Players typically catch enough Pokémon to have a full party - along with perhaps a few alternates- and then use them throughout the whole game.
The entire premise of Pokémon Legends: Arceus is that players are completing the first-ever Pokédex. As a part of the Galaxy Team's Research Corps, they will brave the wilds of the Hisui region and capture the Pokémon that inhabit it in order to study and catalog them. Pokémon Legends: Arceus' gameplay preview has revealed that this is a much more complicated process than it was in past games, which makes the Pokédex even more of a challenge. New details about the different species, ones not in previous games, are included in each entry, such as favorite foods and recommended catching methods. Learning about every Pokémon will also require a lot of repeat captures, as revealed by the new Pokédex format that the trailers have shown.
In addition to studying the various Pokémon that the people of Hisui share the region with, players will also need to make captures in order to advance in rank. It was recently revealed that catching new types of Pokémon, and in different ways, will earn players points towards their next rank in the Galaxy Team, so doing so will be crucial to unlocking new areas and advancing the story. Combined with the new catching mechanics, it would appear that Pokémon Legends: Arceus is finally making capturing Pokémon the key element that the series always promised that it would be.