By Tuesday, I could already tell I was going to have a week. A Platinum run of Sifu is still on the cards, but this wasn’t going to be the week to try it. And Animal Crossing New Horizons was being avoided, as chill as it is. So this opened the door for Pokemon Legends Arceus to get another look.
Monday, I had almost 9 hours of gameplay and I hadn’t tried to find the first ‘boss’ of the game. Now, I have not only defeated Kleaver, but I have two special Pokemon summons and I am making my way through a new area. I am also on 5 stars – halfway through the ranking system!
It’s been a good experience with Pokemon Legends Arceus. Personal goal wise, I not only have an Abra but I have evolved it into Kadabra. Owlsley has been fully evolved. My first Eeveelution has happened, and I am even catching Alpha Pokemon!
The first two nights all I did was explore the first area, catching Pokemon and work on my research levels. It was a good relax, nothing special game-wise. Very repetitive, but what I was looking for.
Then I wanted something a little more to do, so I took on Kleaver – the first boss. I thought this would open the next area, and I would rinse and repeat. Pokemon Legends Arceus instead opened up the next lot of gameplay options for me to look at.
To be clear, it’s not like there are a ridiculous number of different activities thrown at you. You can think of everything new offered as a kind of specialised long term side mission. These include collecting floating lights, popping balloons and scavenger hunting. All on top of the expanded side missions on offer.
The balance of ‘original’ simple gameplay and newer game elements is working for me. I was worried that Pokemon Legends Arceus would go too far in the Breath of the Wild direction. Instead, newer games such as Let’s Go Pikachu / Eevee have introduced the changes well.
Pokemon Legends Arceus is different, but not overwhelmingly so. If I spent a weekend playing only Arceus, I am sure I could not only beat it but put a large dent in Completing it. This likely won’t happen, but it does show the complexity of the game pretty well.