Back at a rather disappointing Nintendo Direct in February 2021, Nintendo pulled a sneaky one at the last moment and changed the tone of the whole conference with Pokemon Arceus Legends. Tagged as "A familiar region, a new story," Pokemon Arceus Legends is an open-world Pokemon game that's set in a feudal version of the Sinnoh region from Gen IV. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YUW1ZWAq09M We know for sure that the world is set in tantalizing new era with major changes to the gameplay.
First and foremost, unlike all other Pokemon games that are set in the modern time, Pokemon Arceus Legend is set in a 'time long gone' of feudal Sinnoh, so you can expect some steam-punk Pokeballs and other rustic elements. You'll have to observe and sneak around the Pokemon in order to catch them. Rumour has it that the game bids adieu to turn-based combat in the open world. Fans are anticipating that the fact that you can roll (as shown in the trailer) implies that wild Pokemon will attack you.
While previous Pokemon games had a semi-open world environment and the option to choose between a male or a female player, they never really felt free or open. This was a problem that plagued literally all the Pokemon games since the days of Pokemon Red and Green, the first Pokemon game. The graphics improved, the battle improved and so did the features, but the core gameplay was the same for over two decades. Not to say that it wasn't fun, we're just implying that it wasn't innovative.
Pokemon Arceus Legends aims to change all that. The upcoming game plans to retain the core gameplay that we've come to love over decades while infusing action and RPG elements. Basically, think of it as a Pokemon game set in a world akin to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. Pokemon Arceus Legends will bring a much needed fresh gust of air for the long-running series and thus serves as a crucial game for Nintendo as an organization.