Post-game in Pokemon has always been a major topic of discussion. Once the player has finished collecting all eight badges, foiled the villain team's plans, and become the Pokemon League champion, there are still a few tasks left. Completing the region's Pokedex by obtaining a copy of every Pokemon from a given region is one thing, and this is quickly followed up with the National or Living Dex for players to store all of their Pokemon entries from across the series. Grinding up Pokemon for online competition is also a frequent pastime, and there's usually some sort of bonus area that offers particularly strong trainer battles like Gold and Silver’s Mount Silver or Emerald and Platinum’s Battle Frontier.
Recent games have sparked some controversy regarding the quality of post-game content. Fans would like to see the Battle Frontier return, but Game Freak seems more interested in adding other attractions. Pokemon Sword and Shield’s post-games were particularly sparse at launch, and it took their paid DLC to introduce both new areas, more raids, and a new tournament mode. Pokemon Legends: Arceus trailed off similarly, but that has been fortunately remedied by its free Daybreak update. Several new quests and attractions have been added to it, and among them is a special new mode called Eternal Battle Reverie. This is great news for Pokemon Legends players, especially since it strongly resembles an old Battle Frontier facility that fans have been hoping to see again.
Pokemon Legends' Eternal Battle Reverie Is a Great Post-Game Addition
Eternal Battle Reverie is accessed from the player's bed in Jubilife Village after they have finished Pokemon Legends' main game and the Daybreak request. Arceus warps the trainer to a special battlefield and offers them a challenge: A gauntlet of Pokemon opponents that gradually increase in strength. Players can choose from a list of three vague descriptions, all of them tied to specific pools of Pokemon.
These battles can produce Pokemon ranging from level 60 to 100, and while they usually just contain one opponent, certain categories will summon multiple. Some of those fights include Sinnoh’s local legendaries, so players should think hard about taking ominous-sounding challenges. Every Pokemon and Pokemon form in Legends shows up somewhere, so teams need to be prepared for anything.
Things will ramp up after a while, as every Pokemon will become level 100 after twenty battles, and Arceus itself will step in as the 50th opponent. This is a true test of the player's Pokemon skills, but fortunately, the odds are not entirely stacked against them. Every battle has a point value assigned to it, with those points claimed upon a victory. The player then has the option of exchanging those points for anything from complete HP restoration, to forcing opponents to start with a status condition. HP can even be sacrificed to double point gain. Smart use of a well-rounded team will take a player far, and this mode also makes for a great way to level up Pokemon quickly.
Pokemon Platinum's Battle Castle is a Clear Inspiration for Battle Reverie
It's always nice to see Pokemon give players a real challenge, and that is one of the main reasons why Pokemon Emerald and Pokemon Platinum’s Battle Frontiers are so celebrated. Each game offers its own set of facilities with special rules, and one of Platinum’s is called the Battle Castle. Run by the Frontier Brain Darach, players will have to decide on a one-on-one or two-on-two battle format, and then take on seven battles in a row before they are given a chance to exit.
Where this facility differs from the rest is its lack of free healing between fights, forcing players to make use of points they earn to heal and examine their upcoming opponents. They also cannot take their held items into the facility, meaning they will need to purchase the ability to buy items and then spend points to do so. Darach himself will face trainers after twenty-one and forty-nine fights, and beating him is the only way to get the Battle Castle’s medals.
The similarities between the Eternal Battle Reverie and Battle Castle are too obvious to be ignored. While one has players fighting Pokemon directly and the other uses trainers, they operate under the exact same rules. Aside from Legends’ lack of held items necessitating different rules, the Battle Reverie is largely a recreation of the Battle Castle. After so many years spent without a true sequel to the Battle Frontier, it’s great to see an equivalent in another game. Hopefully, this is a prelude to the full suite of post-game attractions returning in a new Pokemon game, and if not, then it at least has acknowledged the value held within those old facilities.
Pokemon Legends: Arceus is available now on Nintendo Switch.
