After spending the last 25 years steeped in tradition, the Pokémon game series is now swept away by a breath of fresh air. The highly anticipated Pokemon Legends: Arceus comes to invigorate the saga, suddenly laying the foundations for an evolution as amazing as it is full of promise.
Let’s be frank, fans of the famous saga were ripe for new, unpublished adventures. Of course, the reissues New Pokémon Snap, Pokémon Sparkling Diamond and Pokémon Glittering Pearl, launched last year, have proven to be quite successful. But they were not enough to really satisfy our appetite.
In short, we were almost salivating (metaphorically, of course!) at the idea of discovering Pokemon Legends: Arceus, launched yesterday. And it did not disappoint. Far from it, even. We also irritated our thumbs for many hours – about fifteen, to be exact – exploring its green hills, muddy marshes and bucolic valleys in order to fill our Pokédex.
Because this new game does not abandon the mechanics or the concept of the previous chapters. We must, roughly speaking, go hunting for Pokémon – these little colorful creatures – in order to capture, list and observe them. On the sidelines of his research, the player builds his stable which he leads through battles, just to see his little monsters evolve. So nothing has changed here.
open world
However, it is in its form that the saga is evolving today, deploying a first fully open world. The more conservative may choose to stick to the main plot and its central quests. The others, on the other hand, will take pleasure in undertaking the various secondary missions that they can complete at their own pace in order to improve their inventory and their abilities.
Breaking with a more linear plot tradition, Pokemon Legends: Arceus today grants the player a feeling of freedom and adventure exhilarating, yes, but above all unprecedented. We will never have had so much fun taking our time to explore the different areas populated by Pokémon, even if they sometimes turn out to be poor in textures or nuances.
By laying new foundations, this new episode suddenly rallies first-time fans and novices who will see it as the perfect opportunity to learn about this universe and its codes. We are thus served a plot not relying excessively on those of previous episodes and in which the learning of its ins and outs fits perfectly. Different types of Pokémon, combat mechanics, strategies and techniques are thus approached in a way that is a little too talkative, but all in all organic.
A cousin of Breath of the Wild ?
As we know, the comparison with the famous The Legend of Zelda : Breath of the Wild – quickly elected the immutable reference in terms of open worlds – becomes easy, even inevitable. There is indeed a similar process of inventory management, personalization of our character through various costumes and techniques for designing potions, stimuli and various accessories.
But it would be a pity – and above all frankly reductive – to see Pokemon Legends: Arceus as a variation on the same theme as The Legend of Zelda : Breath of the Wild or vulgar layer. Because it is nothing. It is indeed a unique and different entity, simply borrowing a similar model. We would be remiss if we did not underline this adequately.
- Pokemon Legends: Arceus ★★★★☆
Available on Nintendo Switch