Pokemon Legends: Arceus Might Not be Fully Open World

As more details surface around Pokémon Legends: Arceus, it seems that the game might not be as much of an open world as previously thought.

Since its announcement back in February, Pokémon fans have been anxiously awaiting the release of Pokémon Legends: Arceus. First revealed as part of the Pokémon 25th Anniversary, this new game looks to take the beloved series in a different direction. With noticeable comparions to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Pokémon Legends: Arceus appeared to show an expansive world which allowed players to roam around and catch Pokémon out in the open.

From the few gameplay reveals that players have seen over the year, the game seemed to look like a fully open world game. Players could capture Pokémon without going into battle and, for the first time, would be able to take damage directly from wild Pokémon. It seemed that open world exploration would be a key part of Pokémon Legends: Arceus, but now some sources seem to think otherwise.

Pokemon Legends: Arceus May Not be Fully Open World

Serebii.net's Joe Merrick took to Twitter to explain their thoughts on why Pokémon Legends: Arceus might not be the open world game fans initially thought. Merrick posted screenshots to Twitter which showed the game's map segemented into areas.

"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."

Some fans begain looking a bit closer into the gameplay descriptions of the game. Underneath the section detailing how to complete the Pokédex, the website states that completing research tasks "will also contribute to your work with the Galaxy Expedition Team and raise your rank as a team member, granting you access to new areas." This suggests that parts of the world will only open up as players progress through the game. So, it's possible that the game will be going for a more traditional approach when it comes to world exploration, and not the BOTW-style that fans had maybe hoped for.

Pokémon Legends: Arceus is still gearing up to be a vastly different Pokémon experience, even if it does contain segmented areas. The freedom to roam around and catch Pokémon out in the open will still be an interesting feature, and one that we're certainly excited to see unfold.

Pokémon Legends: Arceus is set to launch on Jan. 28, 2022 for Nintendo Switch.