Pokemon Scarlet and Violet are the first games of the ninth generation of the epic franchise, but Pokemon Legends: Arceus really stole the show in 2022. While several fans eagerly await the release of each new generation of Pokemon games in order to discover the new creatures added to the series, Pokemon Legends: Arceus did something completely different.
Pokemon Legends: Arceus introduced several new features to the series and really did reinvent the wheel when it comes to Pokemon games. There is plenty to love about Pokemon Scarlet and Violet as well, including some unique features of its own. Sadly though, there are a handful of great features that were introduced in Pokemon Legends: Arceus and have suddenly been abandoned with the next entry to the series.
8 Crafting Everything
Pokemon Legends: Arceus brought a staple RPG feature to the Pokemon universe; crafting. It allowed players to gather a ton of different materials from various locations, learning recipes to combine them into the items used throughout the game.
There is something similar in Pokemon Scarlet and Violet, as players can now craft TMs in order to teach their Pokemon new moves. This is significantly stripped down from what was in Pokemon Legends: Arceus though, and it would've been better to allow players the ability to craft everything they need.
7 Agile Style And Strong Style
Pokemon has always been a turn-based game, but Pokemon Legends: Arceus introduced a new element that effects the turn-order. Originally players took it in turns to act in the order of their speed attribute, but this game allowed players to change the order they act in and even act twice in a row.
This was done by introducing the option to use Agile Style or Strong Style attacks. This acted as a modifier on the attack that made Pokemon focus on maximum damage, or maximum speed. It was an interesting feature that changed the way battles were won and lost.
6 Changing Cities To Reflect Story
The environment surrounding players has experienced minor changes in several Pokemon games, usually thanks to the story progressing. This was magnified in Pokemon Legends: Arceus though, where several side quests changed the way Jubilife village looked permanently by adding Pokemon or changing the scenery.
This helped make the village feel more alive and although Pokemon Scarlet and Violet has over ten towns, it would have been fantastic if it could have incorporated the same feature. Giving Pokemon to NPCs and seeing them run around after helps players to feel as though they are truly part of the world.
5 The Player Fainting
When a Pokemon runs out of HP, it faints and cannot be used in battle. When all Pokemon in a party faint, they're no longer able to continue and are returned to a safe area. Pokemon Legends: Arceus added another element for players to worry about, as now the trainer could faint as well.
This made navigating the world feel more dangerous and moved the game in line with the anime, where wild Pokemon regularly attack people. In Pokemon Scarlet and Violet, players are safe once again and moving through the open world feels much less tense as a result.
4 Instant Catching
Pokemon Legends: Arceus introduced a mechanic to the Pokemon games that has been sorely missing for some time. Up until its release, Pokemon could only be caught by weakening them through battle and eventually throwing a pokeball when ready.
In Pokemon Legends: Arceus, players could now throw pokeballs at unsuspecting Pokemon from a distance and potentially bypass the battle phase altogether. This went a long way towards improving both the immersion and the overall flow of the game, but it is sadly absent from Pokemon Scarlet and Violet.
3 Completing The Pokedex With Research Tasks
Completing the Pokedex is one of the main goals in any Pokemon game, and for many players it is more important than the story itself. Pokemon Legends: Arceus was set in the past and gave players the task of completing the very first Pokedex, so it changed the way it worked on a fundamental level.
Instead of catching a single Pokemon, players had research tasks to complete centered around catching and battling them. This breathed new life into a classic feature from the series, but Pokemon: Scarlet and Violet saw a reversion back to the old ways.
2 Easy Escaping
In any Pokemon game, it's very easy for players to find themselves trapped in a battle against a wild Pokemon too powerful for them to handle. As a result, players need to have the ability to run away from a battle when things start to go south.
In Pokemon Legends: Arceus, the ability to run away from battles was made easier. Instead of selecting the 'run' option and hoping that they were successful, players simply moved away from the scene of the battle instead. This made the process much simpler and helped make the game feel more immersive too.
1 Bulk Releasing Pokemon
Releasing Pokemon is a necessary evil of the series. Whether through breeding or catching, over-zealous players can quickly find themselves drowning in Pokemon that they don't have any use for. As they only have a finite amount of space, sooner or later some of them are going to have to be released back into the wild.
Pokemon Legends: Arceus introduced a simple quality-of-life update by allowing players to release large quantities at once rather than forcing them to go one at a time, and for some reason this is missing from Pokemon Scarlet and Violet.
Pokemon Legends: Arceus and Pokemon Scarlet & Violet are available now for the Nintendo Switch.