History YMMV / PokemonLegendsArceus

* HePannedItNowHeSucks: Several IGN outlets from around the world came under fire for their low scores given to ''Legends: Arceus'', especially since many of these outlets gave the divisive ''VideoGame/PokemonSwordAndShield'' much higher scores:
** IGN Italia sparked a good amount of backlash with its 5/10 review, as most critics and long-time fans view ''Legends: Arceus'' as one of the better ''Pokémon'' games in an otherwise divisive period of the franchise. This is especially notable in that they gave ''VideoGame/PokemonSwordAndShield'' a much better score of 7.7/10 when ''Arceus'' is much better-reviewed by fans. Likewise, IGN France similarly came under fire for its 6/10 review.

** In competitive circles, Ursaluna. Despite not appearing in a game with a [=PvP=] mode for over a year after the game's launch, between its typing, stats, and DummiedOut Guts ability, fans have preemptively dubbed Ursaluna one of the best Pokémon to use in competitive play, as well as the ultimate counter to the [[HighTierScrappy annoyingly good]] Toxapex. Additionally, it has access to not just [=EdgeQuake=], but Ice Punch too, countering all but one of the types who resist both Stone Edge and Earthquake. Come the arrival of Pokemon Home for ''VideoGame/PokemonScarletAndViolet'', it lived up to the hype as a brutal force, 2HKOing even resists coming off STAB Guts-Boosted Facade with a monstrous Attack stat[[labelnote:note]]And with terastallizing into a Normal type boosting it even further[[/labelnote]], and actually making the otherwise gimmicky Trick Room strategies viable.

* WhatDoYouMeanItsNotPolitical: With the [[VideoGame/PokemonDiamondAndPearl future of Hisui]] and the effects of the actual Japanese colonization of Hokkaido in mind, it's actually very easy to read an anti-colonial subtext in the game. Hisui is presented as a harsh yet beautiful land with an indigenous population[[note]]Although despite being indigenous-coded, the Diamond and Pearl Clans were ''not'' the original inhabitants of Sinnoh, that being the Celestica people, the ancestors of Cogita and Volo.[[/note]] with a close connection to nature and the Noble Pokémon, which themselves are the direct descendants of the Pokémon companions of a legendary hero who managed to meet Arceus itself. By the time of the Sinnoh games however, the vast Hisuian wilderness has been largely tamed and developed, and most poignant of all, the regional variants and evolutions that the Noble Pokémon belonged to, as well as the Noble Pokémon themselves, are nowhere to be seen and possibly extinct. This can easily be read as commentary about how the colonization and development of Hisui into Sinnoh led to the extinction of multiple Pokémon species and severed the region of its living connections to the great myths of old. However, this is likely unintentional, given how little focus is given to the long-term effects of colonization and the game's neutrality towards its ethics. ''VideoGame/PokemonScarletAndViolet'' has also revealed that some of the Hisuian regional variants are still alive in the present day and even handwave some dex entries stating that they're usually found in very cold areas[[note]](though they're still all outside of Sinnoh, due to the nature of [=BDSP], giving the impression that they were all ''driven out'' of the region somehow)[[/note]].

** "Eerie Apparitions In the Night," because clearly collecting the 100 Zygarde Cells and Cores in ''VideoGame/PokemonSunAndMoon'' wasn't aggravating enough. This Request requires you to gather a total of ''107 wisps'' scattered across Hisui in every major area plus Jubilife Village. It's not helped by the wisps' visibility being drastically reduced during the day, meaning you have to either wait for nightfall or scour each area ''very'' thoroughly, and even then, have fun finding that [[LastLousyPoint last lousy wisp]] without a guide and a checklist. Not even the Massive Mass outbreaks introduced in the Daybreak update can help you bypass collecting wisps, as Spiritomb is ineligible to appear in outbreaks until the quest is completed.

* WhatDoYouMeanItsNotPolitical: With the [[VideoGame/PokemonDiamondAndPearl future of Hisui]] and the effects of the actual Japanese colonization of Hokkaido in mind, it's actually very easy to read an anti-colonial subtext in the game. Hisui is presented as a harsh yet beautiful land with an indigenous population[[note]]Although despite being indigenous-coded, the Diamond and Pearl Clans were ''not'' the original inhabitants of Sinnoh, that being the Celestica people, the ancestors of Cogita and Volo.[[/note]] with a close connection to nature and the Noble Pokémon, which themselves are the direct descendants of the Pokémon companions of a legendary hero who managed to meet Arceus itself. By the time of the Sinnoh games however, the vast Hisuian wilderness has been largely tamed and developed, and most poignant of all, the regional variants and evolutions that the Noble Pokémon belonged to, as well as the Noble Pokémon themselves, are nowhere to be seen and possibly extinct. This can easily be read as commentary about how the colonization and development of Hisui into Sinnoh led to the extinction of multiple Pokémon species and severed the region of its living connections to the great myths of old. However, this is likely unintentional, given how little focus is given to the long-term effects of colonization and the game's neutrality towards its ethics. ''VideoGame/PokemonScarletAndViolet'' has also revealed that the Hisuian regional variants are still alive in the present day and even handwave some dex entries stating that they're usually found in very cold areas.

* MagnificentBitch: [[DefrostingIceQueen Cyllene]], Captain of the Galaxy Team's Survey Corps, is responsible for the study of wild Pokémon. Upon meeting the player, she tests them by sending them out on a dangerous mission to collect wild Pokémon, with the threat of banishment and death in the wilderness, from Jubilife Village in the event of failure. Once the player passes, Cyllene regularly sends them out to research wild Pokémon. When Commander Kamado banishes the player, Cyllene discreetly aids them against his orders and eventually reinstates them into the Galaxy Team.

* HilariousInHindsight: During the climax of this game, the cast is briefly sidetracked to mine some Origin Ore to make the Origin Ball and catch Origin Palkia/Dialga. Later in 2022, ''VideoGame/XenobladeChronicles3'' would have the party run erratically around the world to collect enough Origin Metal to reach Origin. Even better, ''Legends Arceus'' is essentially ''Xenoblade Chronicles: The Pokémon Game.''

* InferredHolocaust: Hisuian Pokémon exist in Hisui's uninhabited wilderness, but do not show up in any capacity in the modern-day Sinnoh (or at all, until [[VideoGame/PokemonScarletAndViolet the next series entry]] released). As a result, a common fan speculation at the time of ''PLA''[='s=] launch day was that every Hisuian Pokémon went extinct between this game and ''VideoGame/PokemonDiamondAndPearl'', with the most obvious cause being the habitat destruction that would happen between ''PLA''[='s=] untouched wilds and ''DPP''[='s=] large cities. This ended up being proven wrong as far as total extinction goes with the Scarlet and Violet DLC, which showed that many of the Hisuian Pokémon survive in the modern day in places outside of Sinnoh. This still suggests that for one reason or another they were forced to leave Sinnoh or died out there.

* InferredHolocaust: Hisuian Pokémon exist in Hisui's uninhabited wilderness, but do not show up in any capacity in the modern-day Sinnoh (or at all, until [[VideoGame/PokemonScarletAndViolet the next series entry]] released). As a result, a common fan speculation at the time of ''PLA''[='s=] launch day was that every Hisuian Pokémon went extinct between this game and ''VideoGame/PokemonDiamondAndPearl'', with the most obvious cause being the habitat destruction that would happen between ''PLA''[='s=] untouched wilds and ''DPP''[='s=] large cities.

* GameBreakingBug: Giratina has a unique animation for using Shadow Force in its Origin Forme, but said animation isn't programed for Giratina's shiny form despite shiny variants of signature move animations being present in past games. Consequently, using Shadow Force with a shiny Origin Forme Giratina will always cause the game to crash mid-attack.

* HilariousInHindsight: During the climax of this game, the cast is briefly sidetracked to mine some Origin Ore to make the Origin Ball and catch Origin Palkia/Dialga. Later in 2022, ''VideoGame/XenobladeChronicles3'' would have the party [[spoiler:run erratically around the world to collect enough Origin Metal to reach Origin.]] Even better, ''Legends Arceus'' is essentially ''Xenoblade Chronicles: The Pokémon Game.''

** A number of fans guessed that [[spoiler:Kamado and/or Volo would be antagonists in some capacity while Cyllene would remain a heroic figure, as a twist on their descendants' roles in ''Diamond and Pearl'' (Kamado explicitly being Professor Rowan's ancestor and Cyllene being Cyrus' ancestor, while Volo is heavily implied to be Cynthia's ancestor). Sure enough, Kamado and Volo turned out to be the game's major human antagonists, while Cyllene stays heroic from start to finish.]]

** The PowerCreep that Arceus suffered over the years since its debut (most notably by the likes of Mega Mewtwos, Mega Rayquaza, Ultra Necrozma and Zacian-Crowned) spawned a theory that the obtainable "Arceus" is not the true Arceus, or at least not its true form. [[spoiler:The conclusion of ultimately final quest where "Arceus" joins the player's team after "defeating" it pretty much confirms that the "Arceus" you can use in battles is merely a fragment or avatar of the real Arceus, whose true form is highly likely to be [[YouCannotGraspTheTrueForm incomprehensible by mortals]] and far, ''far'' more powerful than any other being in existence, even the aforementioned legendaries.]]

* HilariousInHindsight: During the climax of this game, the cast is briefly sidetracked to mine some Origin Ore to make the Origin Ball and catch Origin Palkia/Dialga. Later in 2022, ''VideoGame/XenobladeChronicles3'' would have the party [[spoiler: run erratically around the world to collect enough Origin Metal to reach Origin.]] Even better, ''Legends Arceus'' is essentially ''Xenoblade Chronicles: The Pokémon Game.''