Pokémon Legends: Arceus reviews roundup – a breath of fresh air
Critics reckon Pokémon Legends: Arceus is a keeper
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Reviews for Pokémon Legends: Arceus are out in the wild, giving us an idea of whether Game Freak’s latest entry in the pocket monster series lives up to the hype – and from what we’ve read so far, it certainly sounds like it does.
Pokémon Legends: Arceus is currently sitting at a respectableMetacritic score of 86,with a few critics giving the game full marks. The next mainline title in the Pokémon series, Arceus marks a major change in direction for the franchise.There are no Badges to collect, Gym Leaders to battle, or random encounters to work through. Instead, you’ll explore an open world in search of wild critters to add to your Pokedex.
Here’s a roundup of what the gaming press are making of the latest Pokémon release.
InPolygon’s review, Ryan Gilliam recommends the game, and says it finally gives Pokémon fans something new, even if it “stumbles often on its way to innovation… and brings equal parts brilliance and frustration in its updated systems”.
Pokémon Legends: Arceus review: A messy, worthwhile experiment https://t.co/8IhHxSEzvC pic.twitter.com/dXgutZQF09January 26, 2022
Chris Scullion atVGCsays the new game is “the series’ best game in years”, and refines nearly every element of the Pokémon formula for ”a smoother and more satisfying experience”.
Review: Pokémon Legends Arceus is the series' best game in years.⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐https://t.co/lFcx1I2pCV pic.twitter.com/o1BRZCR8pyJanuary 26, 2022
Eurogamer’sChris Tapsell also recommends Pokémon Legends: Arceus and describes it as “exhilaratingly new”, even if it clumsily cribs ideas from Pokémon Go and TheLegend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild.
Budget bare-minimum, or the series distilled to its purest form? Our Pokémon Legends: Arceus review: https://t.co/vMTsELLUdNJanuary 26, 2022
Jordan Middler says Pokémon Legends: Arceus “feels like the result of Game Freak learning lessons for 25 years, refining the formula, and finally taking the franchise in a new, incredible, exciting direction” inNintendo Life’s review.
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Review: Pokémon Legends: Arceus - One Of The Greatest Pokémon Games Ever Made https://t.co/Vz92aPs9eY #Reviews #NintendoSwitch #Pokemon pic.twitter.com/E8Umh6DkBVJanuary 26, 2022
Sam Loveridge atGamesRadarawarded the game 4.5 stars out of 5 and said: “problems with the performance are the one thing holding Pokémon Legends: Arceus back from perfection. But when you’re having such a great time with the actual gameplay, it’s not enough to hold back this otherwise impressive swing into a new Pokémon generation”.
Our #PokemonLegendsArceus review is here and it’s truly the game where you’ll want to catch ‘em all https://t.co/ReShjny1JoJanuary 26, 2022
VG247’s Alex Donaldson gave the game 4 out of 5 stars,summarizing: “minor issues with the technical presentation and pacing be damned, Pokémon Legends: Arceus is the best Pokémon adventure in 20 years”.
#PokemonLegendsArceus review – the best Pokemon in 20 yearshttps://t.co/Gvrnkc4pc9 pic.twitter.com/6n2pC31r48January 26, 2022
Change for the better
Pokémon Legends: Arceus has launched to glowing reviews, then, with critics in agreement that Game Freak’s attempt to upturn the staple Pokémon formula has landed smoothly. It’s not only a game of discovery and adventure, it offers fans of the series something that’s genuinely new.
While the game isn’t as visually impressive as Breath of the Wild, from which it draws much of its inspiration, and apparently suffers from the very occasional performance dip, it’s a bold step forward and charts a new path for the series.
Callum is TechRadar Gaming’s News Writer. You’ll find him whipping up stories about all the latest happenings in the gaming world, as well as penning the odd feature and review. Before coming to TechRadar, he wrote freelance for various sites, including Clash, The Telegraph, and Gamesindustry.biz, and worked as a Staff Writer at Wargamer. Strategy games and RPGs are his bread and butter, but he’ll eat anything that spins a captivating narrative. He also loves tabletop games, and will happily chew your ear off about TTRPGs and board games.
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