Pokémon Legends: Arceus Reviews

Pokémon Legends: Arceus is ranked in the 91st percentile of games scored on OpenCritic.
9 / 10.0
Jan 26, 2022

Pokémon Legends: Arceus is an adventure that is charming, surprising, and above all else, wonderful to play.

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8 / 10.0
Jan 27, 2022

While it might not provide the visual fidelity and exploration we might wish for in an open-world-esque Pokémon game, it does provide a satisfying and addicting gameplay loop, alongside a surprisingly enjoyable narrative to boot.

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8 / 10.0
Mar 10, 2022

After 20 years, Pokemon finally changes up the formula with great results... if you can forget about the graphics.

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8 / 10.0
Feb 15, 2022

It’s nice to play a Pokémon game that feels like it was made with love. Pokémon Legends: Arceus sure is not perfect, but it’s a loving attempt to take the series in a different direction, and it mostly nails it.

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4.5 / 5.0
Feb 10, 2022

Journey back in time to when Pokemon and humans didn't live in such close harmony and get to know all the inhabitants of Hisui (later to be known as Sinnoh)

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8.5 / 10.0
Feb 2, 2022

Pokémon Legends: Arceus is a well-needed breath of fresh air into the Pokémon franchise. It's exciting and entirely brand new, and has introduced several elements players will want to see in future releases. There's enough content to see you through until the next big title, and a large enough world to find yourself not getting bored easily. It's a stunning game and stays true to everything gamers love about Pokémon.

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Gamersky
奕剑者柴王
Top Critic
8.8 / 10.0
Jan 30, 2022

Generally speaking, the Pokemon Legends: Arceus is a work with outstanding plot and depth, excellent open world design and interesting new battle mode. Although there are many deficiencies in explicit aspects, it still creates the most ideal form of Pokemon world in my mind, and thus becomes the best series of Pokemon works in five years, worthy of the suffix of "Arceus" in the name.

Review in Chinese | Read full review

8.8 / 10.0
Jan 26, 2022

Pokemon Legends: Arceus takes a lot of risks but manages to be enjoyable and fun. It feels like something fresh and different from previous entries, and despite no one knows what the future will bring to the next Pokemon's games, we felt that Game Freak knows where to lead their franchise for the first time in a while.

Review in Italian | Read full review

gameranx
Top Critic
Unscored
Jan 29, 2022
Pokémon Legends: Arceus - Before You Buy - YouTube video thumbnail
8 / 10 stars
Feb 9, 2022

Pokemon Legends Arceus is the most imaginative and absorbing Pokemon to date, though Hisui itself is disappointingly bare.

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8 / 10.0
Feb 5, 2022

If they took the time to flesh out the graphics, Pokemon Legends: Arceus would be considered a must-have. Excluding the game’s lack of voice acting, the story is still an enjoyable tale that gives a deeper look at certain Pokemon’s legends.

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Krista Noren
Top Critic
9.3 / 10.0
Jan 28, 2022

It's easy to sound trite by saying that Pokemon Legends Arceus is a breath of fresh air that the Pokemon series desperately needed, yet it's also entirely true. For the first time in ages, I'm excited by, and fully invested in a Pokemon game.

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A-
Apr 11, 2022

I wouldn’t have put 50 hours into this game if I didn’t love it. While not perfect, this is the most fun I’ve had with a Pokémon game in many generations and really reignited my love for the series. I’m hoping Nintendo and Game Freak make another game in this style with another compelling story that embraces the more serious elements of Pokémon. But for now, I’ll just have to make due with the post-game content.

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5 / 10.0
Mar 20, 2022

Pokémon Legends: Arceus is close to being the Pokémon game I've always wanted, but falls short of perfection in ways that other games in the franchise have gotten right in the past. The sequel could very well be the best Pokémon game released so far.

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Nintendo News
nintendojam
Top Critic
8.5 / 10.0
Feb 26, 2022

Pokémon Legends: Arceus is not a perfect game, but it certainly comes close. It’s a fantastical innovative RPG that’s suitable for both longtime Pokémon fans and those that are brand new to the series. While it doesn’t come without its faults, containing graphical issues, a predictable plot, and too low of a difficulty level for my taste, the positives abundantly outweigh the negatives. .

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Rudy Lavaux
Top Critic
7 / 10
Feb 26, 2022

Pokémon Legends Arceus is a successful attempt at making something new and fresh with the same concepts and ideas that have driven the franchise for thepast nigh on three decades. It is addictive, has charming characters and scenes, and has plenty of content to savour for fans of collectathons. It is a cohesive package on every front. This game is, however, embarrassingly clumsily put together from a graphical standpoint. This does not make it less enjoyable on a pure gameplay level, but during quiet times when little action is happening and players will want to take in what is presented on screen at face value, it is especially jarring. We loved the gameplay loop of Pokémon Legends Arceus, it has been one of the most engaging experiences to come out of Nintendo or Game Freak of the past few years, but it is well past time for either of those actors to finally take the right steps to solve this recurring lack of technical finesse from the series.

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75 / 100
Feb 14, 2022

Pokémon Legends: Arceus is far from perfect. The visual issues and boring opening stretch make that clear. However, the title is still a majorly fun and exciting evolution of the franchise. Getting out there in the world and interacting with the Pokémon has never felt better. I'm excited to see where Game Freak goes from here, which is not something I would have necessarily said after prior entries.

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8.5 / 10.0
Feb 8, 2022

Pokémon Legends: Arceus proves that the franchise can evolve and experiment for the better. It's a solid game that breaks the mold, and despite its visual simplicity, it doesn't detract from Game Freak's attempt to revamp a classic. Pokémon Legends: Arceus could have been better, but it is an important step towards the future of the franchise.

Review in Spanish | Read full review

9 / 10.0
Feb 8, 2022

It is a significant step forward in the whole series. Replacing the classic pilgrimage across the world on designated paths with your freedom is fresh.

Review in Slovak | Read full review

8.5 / 10.0
Jan 30, 2022

Not only has it been sprinkling water on what's been burning as a different Pokemon game for years, it's become an ointment, Arceus. We are now waiting for the seeds laid here to sprout in the new games.

Review in Turkish | Read full review