Pokémon Legends: Arceus- The First 48 Hours.

I may have been expecting to do the Diamond and Pearl remakes first; but I might as well get to it. Here are my impressions on “Pokémon Legends: Arceus” from the first 48 hours of playing it. 

Without any major spoilers, I will be very direct about my experiences: I have managed to quell four of the “noble Pokémon” bosses that I need to clear the main quest, I’m currently preparing the fifth and final one. The game also sports quite the variety of monsters across the history of the series; including several unique to the setting of Hisui. Not only do the choices of starters make more and more sense as you progress; there’s even regional variants of the stage 2 forms unique to this game. I won’t be spoiling them here; which should give you an idea of how much of a curveball they are.

Speaking of which, the crafting system is quite intuitive; and thankfully so. Until you get enough XP and cash to expand your inventory; crafting Poké Balls and medicine is something you’ll need to do early and often. Even as someone who openly admits they’re not a fan of side quests and fetch quests for 100% completion, this is a game that does a good job of not making them feel like busywork. I will get into this in more detail in my full review of the game; but it’s fitting that a game centered around completing the very first Pokédex in history is the first that captures the feeling of filling in the details; no matter how otherworldly or absurd. The researchers and professors have always been my favorite characters in the series; and this gameplay loop is a key reason why.

Visually, the game is a delight. I was never going to be that bothered by the environments as someone who plays a lot of retro games and other titles with experimental graphics on their Switch; and there’s actually a lot of neat artistic details if you know where to look. The smokestacks on Galaxy HQ shaped like a Galarian Weezing, the “gear punk” aesthetic of the Poké Balls and other 17th century tech; even something as simple as your avatar’s shoes coming off as you enter your quarters and back on again as you leave is a nice touch. I’ve stated this before; but if the in-development Generation IX uses this game as a design blueprint, it wouldn’t surprise me, nor would I object to it. 

I’m also really liking the ambient music in the game: we’ve gone from chip tune music on the Game Boy to the in-game orchestration containing instruments like taiko drums and shamisen. Even though I’ve already spent considerable time with the game since I got it; I can easily see myself spending much more into the coming year. I am not at liberty to confirm or deny anything else about the future; but I can say that the game is a must-own title if you have a Switch; are a fan of the series, or both. That will be all for now, and I will get back to work on my other writing. You should see my full review later this year, after I clear the main story and complete the Pokédex. Take care, everyone.