Everything We Learned From the New Pokemon Legends: Arceus Preview Trailer
By Jack O'Dwyer
We've compiled an overview of everything we learned from the brand new Pokemon Legends: Arceus Preview trailer released earlier today.
The trailer was uploaded to the official Pokemon YouTube channel on Thursday, Jan. 13. Clocking in at just over 13 minutes long, the video covers several features of the game from Pokemon battles to the player's work in the Survey Corps, and the vendors inside Jubilife city to crafting, customization, and more.
Below, we've explained everything revealed in the trailer.
Pokemon Legends: Arceus Preview Trailer Released
We've broken down the biggest takeaways from the Pokemon Legends: Arceus (PLA) trailer into their own subheadings, including interacting with Pokemon, trainer customization, and life in the Hisui region.
Exploring Hisui, Jubilife Village, and the Galaxy Team Corps
Welcome to Hisui, trainers!
The story begins in the massive "home base" town of Jubilife Village, home of the Galaxy Team Corps. This settlement operates as the player's haven where they can return, put up their feet, trade some items, and pick up new missions before heading back out into the wild.
Like any bustling hub of research and commerce, Jubilife Village has a host of vendors beyond the nomadic Gingko Guild Merchants. There will also be a Trading Post for trainers looking to swap Pokemon with their friends—an integral, social part of every Pokemon game.
Players eventually end up joining the Survey Corps whose job it is to study Pokemon, the region, and to fill their PokeDex. Hisui is a vast landscape that trainers will unlock sections of as the game progresses. Fortunately, they won't be traversing the landscape alone.
Life in Hisui: Pokemon and You
Most of the core mechanics of a Pokemon game are intact—trainers will still be able to encounter, capture, and battle with Pokemon. They just have a few more variables to keep track of in PLA.
Trainers enter sections of Hisui in the same way they entered the Wild Area in Pokemon Sword and Shield. Wild Pokemon will be roaming free and available for an encounter as well as potential capture. Now, however, trainers have the opportunity to sneak up on their targets and attempt to catch them before they even notice they're around.
This may seem a bit odd, but, failing a surprise catch, considering Pokemon can outright attack the offending trainer, a sneak attack may be the safer option in quite a few cases. Trainers who don't manage to catch their chosen Pokemon on the first try will need to throw the PokeBall containing one of their partner Pokemon to initiate a Pokemon battle.
Battles happen in the overland rather than in a separate screen of the game. While directing their partner Pokemon, Trainers will have the choice between two combat styles: Agile and Strong. Agile increases the Pokemon's attack speed while Strong increases the power behind the move. Both use varying amounts of PP so trainers are encouraged to be careful and plan out their strategies before calling for an attack.
Additionally, different Pokemon will react differently to a human's presence. As seen in the trailer, some more docile species like Bidoof will ignore the trainer or shrug off their appearance whereas skittish species like Starly will attempt to flee.
"Alpha" Pokemon are a much stronger variant of the typical spawn in Hisui. These members of their species are larger, stronger, and have bright, glowing red eyes. They are also denoted by a red face icon to the left of their name. Trainers who decide to take on an Alpha will need a real strategy in order to survive the encounter.
As part of the Survey Corps, trainers may be charged with calming Noble Pokemon. These massive, important species have been thrown into a frenzy for reasons no one has been able to discern. To calm, them, trainers are given balms made from the Pokemon's favorite food to throw at them. They'll need to be careful, of course, as getting to close to a Noble or tunneling too hard with their balms may put them in danger.
Lastly, as revealed months ago, trainers won't have to travel the open terrain of Hisui on foot. They'll have the option of riding Wyrdeer on land, Braviary in the skies, and Basculegion through the water.
Crafting is Coming to Pokemon
While exploring Hisui, trainers may find resource nodes that they can ask their partner Pokemon to break open for them. These contain materials that can be used to craft a variety of important items from Potions to PokeBalls.
Yes, you read that right. Crafting is coming to Pokemon—beyond the typical culinary sphere.
Missions, Tasks, and Advancing the Story
The primary way to advance the story and unlock new sections of Hisui is by completing Missions given by the Survery Corps. However, this isn't the only thing trainers are challenged to accomplish in PLA. There are also less significant quests known as "Tasks" that trainers may be asked to complete by the townsfolk. One such highlighted example from the trailer is the capture and showing of a Shinx so the recipient can "remember what its ears look like."
Tasks can be anything from bringing Pokemon somewhere to catching a certain amount of a select species and more.
The PLA PokeDex
As always, trainers are given a PokeDex by the local Pokemon professor and asked to fill it up with research regarding the Pokemon who inhabit Hisui. To do this, trainers will have to encounter, study, and catch various numbers of wild Pokemon throughout the region and bring their findings back to the professor in the form of a Survey Report. Completing these reports will advance the trainers' rank within the Corps and open up new opportunities in-game.
Trainer Customization is Back
Last, but certainly not least, players can customize their trainer avatar while in Jubilife Village. Both a clothier and hairdresser are available for business. Trainers can change specific aspects of their outfit pieces, colors, hair color, and hairstyle. It's unclear whether the only options are the ones shown in the trailer. Additionally, it's unclear whether players will be able to have some customization control over their lodgings.
Pokemon Legends: Arceus will release on Jan. 28, 2022 for the Nintendo Switch.