How Pokémon Legends: Arceus Can Give You The Charms of The Good Old Days

With the Pokemon Legends: Arceus the thrill of those early adventures has now been restored, more than a quarter-century after the cuddly beasts were first ordered into fight

Screenshot from the Game Pokemon Legends: Arceus

We've all fantasised about embarking on a sprawling 3D Pokémon adventure since the monochromatic thrills of 1996's Pokémon Red and Blue. While 2019's Sword and Shield attempted to carry the series' time-honored formula into the third dimension, a lack of genuine innovation left the franchise's legions of old school fans bemoaning their Pikachu plushies. More than two years later, in Game Freak's ambitious Pokémon Legends: Arceus we find the series' designers aiming to really modernise the concept.

Legends opens with your teenage avatar tumbling through a doorway to the past, sent on a time-traveling mission by none other than Pokémon God, Arceus. Fortunately, the titular deity isn't altogether unreasonable — you're sent on your way with a fully charged smartphone.

It's difficult not to get caught up in the novelty of it all as soothing flute tunes drift around your ears and dramatic feudal-Japanese lettering engulfing the screen. At least until you take a closer look about what are surrounding you. 

While the Nintendo Switch is not a technological powerhouse, it has provided a bevvy of huge spectacles, from game-changing launch hit Breath of the Wild to niche role-playing game Xenoblade Chronicles 2. It has continually outperformed its stated specifications. However, Pokémon Legends seems to be a total arse(eus).

While the colourful animals move and respond more authentically than ever before, the environment surrounding them is startlingly bare, with indistinct rock textures and vast fields dotted with anaemic-looking Christmas trees. Visually, it's difficult not to feel betrayed especially if you are sceptical and have high expectations from the newer version as you extrapolate while viewing all the pokemon games in order.

Beauty, however, is more than just skin deep. Fortunately, Pokémon Legends: Arceus has a great personality. After a few hours, we will begin to warm to its allure. The good news is Gym bouts, obstacle-clearing special techniques, and even the necessity to combat monsters before throwing a ball at them are all gone. Of Course, one can always send a Pokémon into combat to weaken one’s target, but if one doesn't want to, he or she may just avoid the fight completely by launching a well-timed Pokéball at one’s prey.

Curiosity will naturally get the best of you as your adventure broadens and you see new places. Gigantic and thrilling monsters are too much to overlook while free of linear restraints and roaming Legends' vast plains.

While Arceus may be a sight for sore eyes, this ambitious revamp launches Pokémon on an exciting new path, recapturing a long-lost feeling of adventure. What made the first Pokémon games so memorable was the way they embraced a childish attitude of exploration. The issue was that its developers struck gold on the first try — and then spent decades repeating the same technique. Now, 26 years after its first release, the franchise is brand fresh, and the joyous sensation of anticipation has returned.

You can get Pokémon Legends: Arceus from pre-paid gamer card or mx2games at a cost between 4499 to 4999 INR.

(Sponsored Feature)