Ever since the initial announcement of Pokemon Legends Arceus, fans have been gitty with excitement over the game in which trailers appeared to show off an open world type experience different from traditional Pokemon games.
But closer analysis of promotional material suggests that Pokemon Legends Arceus is not a fully open world game on the level of The Legend Of Zelda Breath Of The Wild. It seems to be a more accurately features open areas that players can venture to and explore from a hub world, which can be compared to titles like Xenoblade Chronicle 2, Monster Hunter Rise and Monster Hunter Stories 2 to name a few.
It is coming increasingly clear that Pokémon Legends Arceus may not be full open world but rather segmented open areas like Xenoblade Chronicles 2, Monster Hunter etc. separated into different areas like the Wild Area/Crown Tundra did
I'm fine with this really. pic.twitter.com/llpCUUvQGx
— Joe Merrick (@JoeMerrick) September 30, 2021
The Pokemon Company has seemingly confirmed this is the case, specifically describing the gameplay as having players set out from Jubilife Village to study various open areas in the Hisui Region.
Kotaku highlight
In Pokémon Legends: Arceus, Jubilife Village will serve as the base for surveying missions. After receiving an assignment or a request and preparing for their next excursion, players will set out from the village to study one of the various open areas of the Hisui region.
After they finish the survey work, players will need to return once more to prepare for their next task. We look forward to sharing more information about exploring the Hisui region soon.
Is this a deal-breaker?
Although the difference might not be significant to some, this clarification will likely go a long way in managing expectations for Pokemon Legends Arceus as we get closer to its release.
