Pokemon Legends: Arceuswill release in less than two weeks, and there is a lot of hype surrounding the game. It has open world-style gameplay where huge segments of the map will be visible at different times, and somenewly introduced Hisuian Pokemonwill accompany Trainers on their journey across the region on water, land, or in the skies. One of the most interesting aspects ofPokemon Legends: Arceusis that it plays out differently from any otherPokemongame, as players are supposed to engage in battles or capture attempts with more strategy.
Strategy isn’t absent from mainline games, where players can build their own team by choosing wisely among type combinations that are currently available. However,Pokemon Legends: Arceusseems to delve more into strategy through sneaking and dodge-rolling, resource management, and alternating between Agile and Strong Style during battle. These changes are not only fantastic forPokemon Legends: Arceus, but could be the catalyst for a huge revolution in thePokemonseries as a whole, perhaps starting as soon asGeneration 9 games.
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Strategy is More Important in Pokemon Legends: Arceus
MainlinePokemongames are known for their turn-based combat in which Speed an essential stat that determines who goes first. While this staple makes for more balanced games where players and their adversaries all have a fair chance at doing some damage,Pokemon Legends: Arceus' approach has the potential to be even better. While battles are still turn-based, the turns themselves can also be influenced by other factors and player decisions.
For example, players caninitiate a Pokemon battle against a wild Pokemonby surprising it, which means sneaking behind it and then launch their own Pokemon to give them an extra turn - or at least the chance to go first. Players can use strategy to tackle a difficult fight by all the means necessary, even though an enemy Pokemon might normally outspeed the Trainer’s. More importantly, players can actively use their agency via choosing Agile Style or Strong Style based on their needs, with the former providing the active Pokemon a chance to go first or even perform another action before the opponent, and the latter giving up extra speed for damage.
Pokemon Legends: Arceuswill be more similar to real-time strategy games, as players do have the freedom to make their Pokemon faster or more powerful if they need to. From the recent13-minute gameplay trailer forPokemon Legends: Arceus, it became apparent that players will also be able to use the Agile Style on status moves, for example, making them a useful tool when paired with strategic thinking. On the other hand, Strong Style moves consume more PP when used, but the trailer shows how powerful they can be - with a regular move dealing about 30-35 percent of the enemy Pokemon’s health, and a Strong Style move depleting the rest on its own.
This means prioritizing speed is not always the most beneficial course of action one can take inPokemon Legends: Arceus, but the game lets players decide for themselves what they want their Pokemon to do. Overall, the game’s strategic approach may be extremely rewarding once players learn to master it, and it’s not impossible that mainlinePokemongames will see a change in how they tackle turn-based combatdepending onPokemon Legends: Arceus' reception.
Pokemon Legends: Arceuswill release January 28, exclusively on Nintendo Switch.
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