It has been a long time coming, butPokemon Legends: Arceusis set to be the very first fully open-world game in the series.Pokemon Legends: Arceusis very different from most other installments, mostly because it is set in the past when PCs and the digitalization players know from otherPokemongames don’t exist yet. On the one hand, this is a very interesting premise that will allow players to explore the world differently, more like pioneers than fully realized Pokemon trainers. On the other hand, this can also be problematic because many things that players grew accustomed to over the years won’t be possible inPokemon Legends: Arceus.
A good example is asking what will happens if players catch more than six Pokemon, considering technology isn’t there to automatically transfer them to PC boxes. In this same vein, it’s easy to see how the first-ever Pokedex of Sinnoh can suddenly become an issue because it would be hard to catalog critters and gather information on their habits with pen and paper. There is no official information about whatthe Pokedex inPokemon Legends: Arceuswill look like, but a trailer for the game does show a Poke Ball near a notebook illustrated with daily life in Sinnoh.
RELATED:How Non-Binary Pokemon Could Change the Series Forever
The First Pokedex of Sinnoh in Pokemon Legends: Arceus
It seems very likely thatPokemon Legends: Arceuswill have its players collect data by filling a journal with drawings and annotations, which could be the plausible explanation for another Pokedex-related issue in the series. SomePokemongames havebizarre entries in their Pokedexfor a few specific critters, like Malamar’s entry inPokemon Shieldbeing about how its hypnotic powers were part of events that changed history. This sort of description can seem false or exaggerated, maybe coming from hearsay or word of mouth, and this may be caused by the lack of technology to verify data across the various regions and Professors.
This is not so different from the real world, where the Internet made information more accessible, but also able to be confirmed factual by plenty of people worldwide.Pokemon Legends: Arceus' Pokedex may be inaccurate, but being the first of its kind (at least in the region of Sinnoh) can justify that, and probably that’s the point in the first place; to create a basic collection of data that will grow in time. There are several moremysteries forPokemon Legends: Arceusto explain, including why some Pokemon species found in the region in the past are not living there in the present Generation 4 remakes.
It’s peculiar, to say the least, thatPokemon Legends: Arceuscomes so soon after these remakes do, withPokemon Brilliant DiamondandShining Pearlreleasing this NovemberandLegends: Arceusin January 2022. With these games being both based in Sinnoh, it’s plausible that the series' lore is about to get something new to chew on. Considering how little is known aboutPokemon Legends: Arceus, players will probably have to wait a few months to learn more about the basics of the story and what the game tries to achieve.
RELATED:Pokemon Legends: Arceus Might Not Be A Typical Pokemon Spin-Off
Pokemon Legends: Arceus' National Pokedex and Pokemon Home
There is another potential issue linked to the lack of advanced technology in the era ofPokemon Legends: Arceus, and that is the fact that the Pokemon captured in the game are likely not going to beavailable inPokemon Home. This can be an issue because the game will potentially be a standalone title with little to no actual connection to the main series, if not for its available critters and lore. What this means is that, forPokemon Legends: Arceusto be successful, the game should have quite a varied Pokedex for players to catch and train their favorite species, even if it means not being able to transfer them to other games viaPokemon Home.
BothPokemon Homeand the National Pokedex are very important topics for modernPokemongames. As a matter of fact, they became the newest way to have a massive critter collection.Pokemon Homecame not too long afterPokemon SwordandShield, the most recent mainline installments in the series, and it offers the opportunity to transfer Pokemon from different games all on the same server. This also applies to those critters that are not present in the Pokedex of the Galar region, wherePokemon SwordandShieldand their DLCs take place, which helps bring them all in one place.
However, withPokemon Legends: Arceusbeing an atypicalPokemongame, this may result in the experience feel incomplete. It is more plausible forPokemon Brilliant DiamondandShining Pearlto grant access toPokemon Homefor all the critters caught in these games, both because some are in the National Dex ofPokemon SwordandShield, and because they use the same technology as the originals. WithPokemon Legends: Arceushaving a mixed Pokedex, including Pokemon from several different regions, things get more complicated.
It should be noted that among the main reasons for criticism atPokemon SwordandShield’s release there was the fact that the National Pokedex was not available compared to previous games.Pokemon Legends: Arceusfaces a similar issue because it is the first fullyopen-worldPokemontitle, and as such, its Dex should reflect this by featuring more Pokemon. Still, here’s to hoping that the Pokemon Company has bigger and better plans for this prequel, and that it learned its lessons fromSwordandShield.
