Pokémon Legends: Arceus is the latest installment in the Pokémon franchise, released in early 2022. In many ways, it represents a fundamental reworking of everything that makes a Pokémon game. From the region to the gameplay loop to the world structure, lots of familiar Pokémon features are changed completely.
RELATED: 10 Legendary Pokémon That Should Get Their Own Games
But Legends: Arceus hews close to the model of other Pokémon games just as often as diverges. Despite not really being a main series release, it is a lot more similar to the main games than most other spin-off games like Pokémon Unite or Pokémon Mystery Dungeon.
10 Different: No More GymsOne of the most iconic features of a Pokémon game is the gym structure. Starting all the way back in Generation I, Pokémon games have had the player taking on a series of eight challengers of increasing difficulty. The Generation VII games, Sun and Moon, slightly diverged from this formula, but replaced it with a similar set of four island Kahunas and four powerful Pokémon. Legends: Arceus continues to alter this structure, with its eight bosses all being Pokémon.
9 The Same: The Player Must Complete The PokédexThe Pokédex has been present in various forms since the begining. It is an electronic record of all the Pokémon the player has encountered, complete with type information and a short description. Pokémon Legends: Arceus also has a Pokédex, and it is fundamentally the same as in previous generations with some simple cosmetic quirks.
RELATED: 5 Starter Pokémon We Wish Existed (& 5 We’re Happy That Don’t)
The conceit of the game is that the player is the first one to fill out all the information, but this is pretty much the same task every professor has given the player since Professor oak.
8 Different: Totally Open ExplorationPokémon games usually feature towns separated by mostly linear routes. These routes offer some ability for exploration, as they often have multiple paths to take. But for the most part they are narrow, bumpers-on paths from point A to point B. Pokémon Sword and Shield introduced the wild areas, which were more expansive regions that allowed for free exploration. Legends: Arceus essentially makes these wild areas the whole game. The player is not limited to a narrow path, and is instead able to explore at their own pace.
7 The Same: A Fairly Straightforward, Linear StoryDespite its open environment, Legends: Arceus adhears to a fairly linear campaign structure. Like most main series Pokémon games, the plot unfolds with various characters approaching the player and explaining the situation and giving them a destination, then usually just reappearing at that destination. Some fans hoped for a little more of an open experience with Legends: Arceus, especially as a lot of the marketing material tried to evoke The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild.
6 Different: Effort Levels Are Much More VisibleSince the begining of the franchise, Pokémon has used hidden values to determine a Pokémon’s stats. This ensures that every Pokémon is different, leading to a feeling of individuality. As the years progress, these values have been made more and more visible. Legends: Arceus continues this trend by introducing effort levels, essentially a combination of previous generations’ individual values and effort values. Players can view these levels at any time and raise them with items, making it easier than ever to train powerful Pokémon.
5 The Same: Catch Pokémon, Hold On To Six Of Them, Head Into BattleLegends: Arceus takes place in a world where humans are not nearly as familiar with Pokémon as in other games. But even among the newly-arrived Galaxy Team, there seem to be some established rules that will be familiar to Pokémon fans everywhere.
RELATED: 10 Pokémon That Could Have A Third Type
The player is limited to carrying six Pokémon at any given time, and excess are sent automatically to a box, or pasture in this case. Everyone who engages in Pokémon battles in the game seems to all observe the same rules as well, despite being from different cultures.
4 Different: Tons And Tons Of CraftingSome Pokémon games in the past have included rudimentary crafting systems, but nothing Legends: Arceus. Rather than simply buying them at a Pokémon center or shop, players can create their on Pokéballs, potions, lure items, and more. The materials used to craft these classic items can be found throughout the world, and usually must be harvested with the help of Pokémon. As they upgrade Jubilife Village’s various offerings, the villagers will produce crafting materials as well.
3 The Same: Pokémon Are Used To Traverse The WorldPokémon have always helped people move through the world, and the games use this as a convenient way to seal off certain areas until the player makes the necessary plot advancements. Generation I had certain areas blocked by water, with the player needing to obtain Surf to access them.
RELATED: Pokemon: 10 Hardest Battles In The Games, Ranked
Future games actually showed the player riding these Pokémon in free exploration. Legends: Arceus continues this development, with several Pokémon carrying the player up cliffs, across plains, or even through the sky.
2 Different: Direct Intereaction With The WorldLots of the core gameplay of a Pokémon game is filtered through menus. Players use menus to select their Pokémon, throw Pokéballs, etc. But Legends: Arceus puts the players a little closer to the action. It allows players to actually toss Pokéballs through the air to capture wild Pokémon without battling them. They can also throw their own Pokémon out into the overworld to gather resources or engage in battle. Perhaps most notably, wild Pokémon can attack the player directly, potentially causing them to black out.
1 The Same: Turn Based Battles, Just Like AlwaysThe core of a Pokémon game is always the Pokémon battles, and Legends: Arceus’s battles are largely familiar stuff. Trainers take turns giving orders to their Pokémon. With some small exceptions, each one can have one Pokémon active at a time. Pokémon only target each other and never try to hurt the opposing trainer. Legends: Arceus departs from the formula in a lot of ways, but most of the skeleton that makes a Pokémon game a Pokémon game remains perfectly intact.
NEXT: Pokemon: The 10 Best Legendaries Featured In The Movies, Ranked
By: Declan Lowthian
Title: 5 Things Legends: Arceus Does Differently From Other Pokémon Games (& 5 That Are The Same)
Sourced From: www.cbr.com/things-legends-arceus-does-differently-from-other-pokemon-games-that-are-the-same/
Published Date: February 15, 2022
Did you miss our previous article…
https://expertsguys.com/paramount-announces-sonic-the-hedgehog-3-knuckles-spinoff-series/
