Fans have wondered if Pokemon Legends: Arceus will inspire new trends in the spin-off Pokemon games as well - most notably, Pokemon Mystery Dungeon. It is one of, if not the most, popular spin-offs Pokemon has. The series started in 2005 with its latest release being a remake of the original titles in 2020. The remake was well received and fans are wondering what a future title will be like. Pokemon Legends: Arceus could provide an answer.
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A Possible Open-World Pokemon Mystery Dungeon
The biggest change of Pokemon Legends: Arceus was the open world. For Pokemon Mystery Dungeon, this would also be a huge game-changer. The series always limited players to claustrophobic dungeons with long hallways and rooms. If it changed to an open-world setting, it would be an interesting change. It would get rid of the dungeon aspect, but also have players actually feel like they are Pokemon in a natural environment.
Rather than just find items in a dungeon room, they can be harvested from trees, bushes, and special areas. Instead of fighting enemies in a room or hall, players can be out in open environments with more chances to run away or sneak around. Playing as different Pokemon would also be far more interesting with the abilities to fly, swim, dig, and so on in an open world.
Open worlds encourage exploration, and that is a huge theme in Pokemon Mystery Dungeon, with tons of environments and the characters attempting to get deeper and deeper into these forests, oceans, and mountains. It’s possible that the game could even have both dungeons and an open world, a little like Elden Ring, where the player must find the dungeons in the open world and then dive in for a mission.
Sneaking In Mystery Dungeon
Being able to sneak around a horde or very powerful Pokemon would be a welcome addition to a future Pokemon Mystery Dungeon title. Without a sneak mechanic, players have only been able to run away in the previous games. Sneaking Pokemon Legends: Arceus was a popular addition, allowing for players to catch Pokemon without necessarily battling them and also just sneaking by strong ones that they didn’t want to mess with.
If this was put into Mystery Dungeon, it would provide a new approach to players. Sneaking as a Pokemon could prove interesting, as it may open doors for mechanics around sneak attacks. Having sneak attacks would be a very cool mechanic that would allow players to possibly do more damage when unknown by other Pokemon. Pokemon crouching and hiding from others seems natural anyway. It would especially be fun as a mechanic players can use to get through dungeons higher than their level.
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Pokemon Villages And Shops
Pokemon having little villages is a charming part of the Mystery Dungeon series, but it was limited typically to just one village outside the player’s home base. In an open-world version, developers could explore making more Pokemon villages and shops. There could even be wandering shops like with Beedle from Breath of the Wild but through the iconic Kecleons from previous Mystery Dungeon games.
Villages could also provide housing for the Pokemon the player puts on their rescue team. This would work a lot like how Jubilife Village collects Pokemon in Pokemon Legends: Arceus, but instead it’s Pokemon collecting other Pokemon to help each other. Fans also love how Jubilife develops as more Pokemon are collected, and that could also be accomplished in a Mystery Dungeon game.
This would leave a ton of room for creativity in terms of the shop and building designs. Pokemon are creatures that are very close to the environment they live in, so it would be fun to see a house built for Trubbish or a seaside shack run by Wingull. It would encourage players to explore all the more, and additionally, villages and shops could each have different side quests.
Including Alpha Pokemon
Alpha Pokemon were introduced in Pokemon Legends: Arceus as large, more hostile, and more powerful Pokemon. Fans fell in love with them, as unlike other elements like Mega Evolution and Gigantamaxing, Alpha’s remain special at all times. They don’t ever shrink down to normal size. Being Alpha is a natural state of being, uninfluenced by items.
Having Alpha Pokemon appear in a Mystery Dungeon game, or playing as one, would be very fun. In a Mystery Dungeon game, they would be more than Pokemon but also act as characters who can talk. Having the plot revolve more around them rather than legendary Pokemon would also be a breath of fresh air in the series. They can be villains, heroes, friends, shopkeepers, and more.
Pokemon Legends: Arceus And Mystery Dungeon Already Are Alike
It is worth noting that Pokemon fans have been comparing Pokemon Legends: Arceus to the Mystery Dungeon series more than they have for any other main Pokemon title. This is because the story and the village aspects of Legends: Arceus was already quite like the story and village of the Mystery Dungeon games. Just like the protagonist in Mystery Dungeon, the Legends: Arceus player character is transported to another world and quickly adopted by a village to go on missions.
The comparison has made fans wonder if developers were inspired by Mystery Dungeon in creating Pokemon Legends: Arceus. If so, then it is possible the inspiration will go both ways. However, fans will likely want a different story now that Legends: Arceus has already done the typical Mystery Dungeon plot blueprint. While it would be amazing to have a Mystery Dungeon game like Arceus: Legends, its usual story of a human thrown in from another world should definitely be avoided.
Pokemon Legends: Arceus is available now for Nintendo Switch.
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