Pokémon Legends Arceus looks like the open-world Pokémon RPG we’ve been waiting for

Pokémon Legends Arceus has been announced, a new open-world Pokémon RPG which looks inspired by Zelda: Breath of the Wild. 

Revealed during the Pokémon Presents showcase to mark the franchises’’s 25th anniversary, Pokémon Legends Arceus shifts perspective behind the shoulder of your trainer, as you roam around a vast open-world to freely catch Pokémon and battle with trainers. 

The game acts as an origin story for the Sinnoh region, the setting for Pokémon Diamond and Pearl, where you’re tasked with creating the first Pokedex by exploring the region. 

• Read more: Pokemon Diamond and Pearl remakes officially revealed

The starter Pokemon in Arceus (Picture: Nintendo) 

The starter Pokémon are also a weird mix, with trainers picking from Rowlet from Alola, Cyndaquil from Johto or Oshawott from Unova, before setting out on the adventure.

The trailer indicates you can catch Pokémon without battling them, showing the trainer hide behind terrain before throwing Pokeballs. There is battling too, although it's unclear if that's restricted to just other trainers. 

Mythical Pokémon Arceus is also shown in the trailer, who was introduced in Generation IV and is known as the creator of the Pokemon world.

While it certainly looks inspired by Zelda: Breath of the Wild's open-world, it also looks like a natural extension of the Wild Areas in Sword and Shield — which were developed upon in the DLC expansions. 

Here's Arceus (Picture: Nintendo) 

It’s interesting how this seems to be launching a new branch of Pokémon video games, instead of being a sequel to Sword and Shield. While there was little information about mechanics, it’s certainly an exciting vision of Pokémon’s future.

Pokémon Legends Arceus will release on Nintendo Switch worldwide in early 2022.