“Pokémon Legends: Arceus” maybe the closest the series has ever come to being the game the concept deserves. Ever since the originals, I had hoped that the games would abandon the top down, fixed camera perspective. Becoming a fully realised three dimensional world, where one could adjust their view to better experience the environment around them. Where encounters with the titular creatures weren’t limited to random interactions in patches of grass along linear pathways. Where the Pokémon could be identified before an encounter could take place. “Arceus” does this with reasonable aplomb, though with a few notable caveats that do somewhat detract from the overall immersion you should feel from a game that does eschew from the established trajectory of the series, outside of their tangent efforts. But “Arceus” defies the conventions by diversifying the format with changes Pokémon has needed for years!

The story itself is something seperate from the customary “child leaves home to persue the insipid dream of becoming a Pokémon master”, or at least a variation of that aspiration. Instead you are hurtled through a rift in time space, with no understanding of who you are. You awake in a bygone time where these newly discovered creatures roam the sparse and expansive lands, as animals that have not yet been studied, let alone become potential companions. Your job is to research and catalogue these creatures to better understand the behavioural qualities and abilities. Compiling data for what is one of the introductory varieties of the now principal encyclopedias of these games: the Pokédex. To append the very rudimentary Pokédex requires you to not only capture a Pokémon, sometimes multiple times, but also complete other specific objectives before their data can be added. This may require battling the creature, observing specific moves during encounters or capturing them at certain times of the day. By doing so the institute that has recruited you to aid in the accumulation of data, will reward you with star ranks. With each additional rank rewarding you with benefits that are almost the equivalent of defeating gym leaders, such as Pokémons obedience levels increasing.

It really leans heavily into what a Pokémon game should be about: capturing em all! Though the “Arceus” emphasis on the capturing of various Pokémon, as opposed to the competitive concept of the mainline entries does mean that battles are somewhat neglected. But I find this to be a refreshing change of pace. Having to travel around various area’s, tracking specific Pokémon for research, rather than building a team capable of challenging another powerful team is a satisfying distinction. Another aspect I appreciate is something often mocked by fans, in jest mostly, is the very concept of imprisoning these creatures for the benefit of enforced servitude for their masters. Dealing with the moral concession of ensnaring these creatures for our own amusement. Whether the concept of possessing them is really the only way to study them. In much the same way as we debate the consignment if animals in zoos. It’s an interesting discourse that is often hinted at, but never really addressed. And though it doesn’t wrestle with these quandaries with any meaningful nuance, it is nice to recognise the inherent flaws in such a ostensively brutal existence.

Despite many positive directions “Arceus” however is a game held back by hardware. Most Pokémon games are bolstered by a vibrant, often dynamic aesthetic, that really lends itself well to a game about capturing larger than life creatures. But the demands of such a spatially robust terrain, seemingly negates the flourishing colours that make these games so alluring. Instead Arsceus settles for an aesthetic that on the surface could be considered a stylistic choice, but honestly feels more like a decision based on graphical suppression. Like it was trying to look gritty and edgy but ends up rather…bland. Almost as though it wanted to be “The Dark Knight”, but ended up looking like “The Amazing Spider-Man”. It isn’t game breaking, as graphics are not necessarily a priority for an entertaining game, but it is however disappointing that it does feel so cheap looking. Like a game that hasn’t fully rendered yet.

With that blanch aside, and with a few minor quality of life alterations, “Pokémon Legends: Arceus” is the most ambitious this series has been for quite some time. It truly awakens that dormant part of your subconscious that relished the lidea of exploring, capturing and taming these diverse and dangerous beasts. If the Switch follow up can add additional clout, or at the very least “colour” to a potential mainline follow up, we could be looking at the evolution this series has so desperately needed.