Highlights
- Luxray, the final evolved form of Shinx, plays a prominent role in Detective Pikachu Returns as an ally to the titular Pikachu and Tim Goodman.
- Luxray's ability to see through walls may seem random, but it's a well-established piece of lore in the Pokemon series, mentioned in multiple Pokedex entries.
- Despite being overshadowed in previous games and media, Detective Pikachu Returns finally gives Luxray the spotlight it deserves, making it a must-play for Luxray fans.
Detective Pikachu Returns was a Pokemon spin-off release that a lot of fans didn't see coming this year. After the game was announced with very little fanfare, only to go quiet on updates for years afterward, the Switch sequel to the original 3DS game was re-introduced in the June 2023 Nintendo Direct, and released months later. Despite the lengthy time in development, though, Detective Pikachu Returns is being criticized for its simplistic nature that clearly kept younger audiences in mind above the loyal Pokemon audience that has been enjoying other Pokemon games like it for decades. However, it is a very easy game for older players to relax and turn their brain off with.
Despite Detective Pikachu Returns' flaws, there is one trait that stands strong with critics and fans alike, and it's that the sequel does a great job in pulling players into the world of Pokemon. There are quite a few iconic creatures for fans to meet during their playthrough, with some of them having an active role in the game's story. Luxray, the final evolved form of Shinx, becomes a helper Pokemon with the ability to look through walls and objects. While this may seem like a strange ability, it's actually a well-established fact from other parts of the series.
Luxray the Gleam-Eyes Pokemon
Truthfully, the fact that Luxray can see through walls is more of an obscure fact that fell to the wayside the more Pokemon's 4th Generation lost the limelight over the years. The ability is such a staple to the lion-like creature that it makes up its classification name as the "Gleam-Eyes Pokemon," and it's mentioned in a majority of its Pokedex Entries in every game it's available in.
While the ability may seem like a staple to Luxray, it's understandable as to why fans may have forgotten this ability and felt that it came out of nowhere in Detective Pikachu Returns. Despite Luxray and its lower evolutions being available in every Pokemon game even after the National Dex was cut, Detective Pikachu Returns marks the first time in a long time that Luxray has been properly relevant to a game's story as it hasn't had prominent focus since Generation 4.
Detective Pikachu Returns Featuring Luxray Feels Convenient, But It's Deserved
It can easily be said that Luxray being able to see through walls and other objects lends itself well to a game about sleuthing, but it isn't anything special to the Luxray in Detective Pikachu Returns, nor is it something thrown in just to make the stealth missions make sense. In fact, it's almost perfect, as Shinx, Luxio, and Luxray have been popular starting Sinnoh Pokemon for over a decade now, but they haven't had much spotlight to themselves in the series whatsoever.
Like many other creatures that have been in the franchise for quite some time, Luxray and its other lower forms have naturally had attention over the years, but nothing that truly stood out. Clemont in the Pokemon X and Y anime had a Shinx that evolved into a Luxray in the end, but despite the playful nature of the critter on his team, other characters such as Ash and Serena mostly took the spotlight for that series. A tribe of Luxray could be encountered in Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time and Darkness, but for the more popular and preferred Explorers of Sky version, they were replaced with a group of Manectric.
With how many times Luxray has been set up to play a bigger role, only to be upstaged by other Pokemon and characters, having such a presence in Detective Pikachu Returns feels overdue. There may be flaws with how Detective Pikachu Returns handles its gameplay, but at the very least, Luxray fans have a brand-new game to enjoy with their favorite Pokemon taking center stage at last.
Detective Pikachu Returns is available now on Nintendo Switch.
