A lot of people are excited about Pokemon Legends: Arceus, partially because its unique place in the Pokemon timeline. It focuses on the days before humans and Pokemon lived together; on the contrary, it paints a picture of a world where humans fear the terrible power of Pokemon. Pokemon Legends: Arceus sees players assemble a very early version of a Pokedex, playing a crucial role in unifying humans and Pokemon. It's pretty exciting to see the Pokemon world from a new place in time, but interestingly, Pokemon Legends: Arceus isn't the first game to do so. Pokemon Conquest took fans into the past first.
Pokemon Conquest was a spin-off from the main franchise, crossing over with the tactical RPG franchise Nobunaga's Ambition. Beyond the tactical twist on Pokemon, it introduced the Ransei region, as well as many warlords who warred for control with their Pokemon armies. Pokemon Conquest and Pokemon Legends: Arceus both pair Pokemon with medieval Japanese aesthetics, but more importantly, they share an emphasis on the Mythical Pokemon Arceus. The way that Pokemon Conquest discusses and depicts Arceus could say a lot about how Pokemon Legends: Arceus treats it.
Pokemon Conquest's Emphasis on Arceus
Arceus got off to an unfortunate start in the Pokemon franchise. It was supposed to be available in Pokemon Diamond, Pearl, and Platinum through the Azure Flute, but Nintendo never distributed the Flute, which meant Arceus could only be found and caught through cheats in its earliest days. Thankfully, Nintendo made up for it, giving Arceus a leading role in Pokemon Conquest. The spin-off's plot sets off when a legend claims that whoever conquers and unites the Ransei region will get a chance to meet Arceus, who supposedly created Ransei. As soon as this legend arose, Ransei was plunged into war, with each of the 17 Ransei kingdoms vying for control.
In other words, Pokemon Conquest tells a story about humans being interested in finding out how a Mythical Pokemon can benefit them personally, rather than working as a team with Pokemon. Nearly everybody in the Ransei region gets consumed with a vain desire to be the one to fulfill the legend of Ransei. This is a common thread in the Pokemon franchise; tons of villainous teams in the Pokemon franchise, from Team Rocket to Team Galactic, let their selfish fixations on Pokemon get ahead of their common sense and morality.
The way that people clamor to control Arceus' power — even when it's described as a godlike creator — gives a good indication of where Pokemon Legends: Arceus' story could go. The wars in Ransei to control a Pokemon of myth aren't a new idea, but Pokemon Conquest does send an important message: No Pokemon is too great to claim in the eyes of humans. On the contrary, some humans will always want to control Pokemon, rather than treat them as equals.
Pokemon Legends: Arceus could very well discuss another early version of humanity's hubris in trying to control Legendary and Mythical Pokemon. Maybe humans fearful of Pokemon will decide they can only be controlled, rather than befriended.
Pokemon: Arceus Remains Misunderstood
The ending of Pokemon Conquest says a lot about how Arceus itself might be depicted as well. Most Pokemon can't speak, but Arceus is famously one of few Pokemon who can communicate with humans, which is something that comes up in Pokemon Conquest. In the final act of the game, the protagonist meets Arceus, who encourages the protagonist to link with it. Later, Arceus promises to return to Ransei when the time is right. In the face of Arceus' gentleness and good nature, though, Nobunaga remains determined to destroy Arceus and prove that the legend about it is meaningless.
Pokemon Legends: Arceus is already largely based on humanity fearing and misunderstanding Pokemon. It could enhance that theme by introducing an antagonist similar to Pokemon Conquest's Nobunaga: Someone who takes drastic, aggressive action because of a misconception that they hold about Arceus. In other words, Pokemon Legends: Arceus might paint a picture of Arceus as the most dangerous Pokemon of them all due to its godlike nature. Arceus' power is hard to top, so it'd be the perfect scapegoat for another antagonist's schemes.
Pokemon Conquest is liable to influence the true personality of Arceus as much as it might influence a false, frightening version of Arceus. In Pokemon Conquest, Arceus is depicted as a gentle, benevolent being with faith in humanity. When it sees how much Nobunaga and the protagonist alike care about the Ransei region, it leaves Ransei, entrusting the region to their care. In other words, Pokemon Conquest showed Arceus as a gentle being that wants to cooperate with humans. Pokemon Legends: Arceus could very well give Arceus the same role, making its relationship with the protagonist pivotal to integrating Pokemon into human life and vice versa.
Pokemon Conquest Should Inform Pokemon Legends: Arceus
The plots of Pokemon games always boil down to a reflection on the bonds between humans and Pokemon. Players are rewarded for loving and befriending their Pokemon, while antagonists are punished for their callous treatment of Pokemon. Because of that, Pokemon Conquest's plot is overall pretty familiar.
In the end, selfish warlords fall, and Arceus praises the player and Nobunaga for their good hearts. What sets Conquest apart is that Arceus, a Pokemon, makes the final judgment about humans and their companion creatures, rather than a particularly talented Pokemon trainer like Cynthia or a police officer like Looker. It emphasizes the Pokemon side of the relationship in a very special way.
Pokemon Legends: Arceus should aim to do the same thing. Arceus will surely play a major role in the plot, so ideally players will get to interact with it extensively. Multiple instances of dialogue with Arceus exploring its perspective on the Hisui region and the humans that live in it would serve as a fantastic contrast to any human fears about Pokemon. Because Pokemon Legends: Arceus has so much to do with the early human-Pokemon relationship, it should make just as much room for the thoughts and feelings of Pokemon to those of humans. Based on the complicated way that Pokemon Conquest represents Arceus, there's already some good precedent for that.
Pokemon Legends: Arceus releases for Nintendo Switch on January 28, 2022.
