Thread by @Nintendokusou

This thread of tweets is an analysis of the Pokémon Legends Arceus Trailer and Screenshots released on 18/08/2021.

Pokémon Legends: Arceus takes place in the Hisui (ヒスイ地方) region, whose name derives from 翡翠, meaning Jade, a gem or semiprecious stone.
The name was chosen because all 5 of Hisui's areas likely reference some kind of "Jade", as is the case with the "Obsidian Fieldlands".

In the future, this land will be renamed to Sinnoh, much like the real life Ezochi was renamed to Hokkaido in 1896, after the Meiji Restoration.
For now, it remains a mostly unspoiled wild land of myth and wonder, in which the people of Jubilife Village are trying to settle.

However, Jubilife's inhabitants are but 1 of 3 distinct groups living near the region's 3 iconic lakes - Acuity, Verity and Valor - as 2 other Ainu-inspired groups of Dialga and Palkia worshipers can be seen.
Perhaps they are rivals with opposite ideals like Team Aqua and Magma.

If that turns out to be the case, and they sort of fill the role of this game's "Teams", it will be interesting to see if they will set their differences apart and come together as one by the end of the story, possibly leading to the creation of Eterna City's Dialkia Statue.

Back to the map, note how each of the 4 areas surrounding Mt. Coronet's central area are directly connected to 1 of the 4 Cardinal Directions, so it's possible that Game Freak is going to introduce 4 Legendaries based on the Shijin, with Arceus as the Yellow Kirin of the Center.

The Shijin would also help explain the 4 shots emphasizing the 4 Seasonal environments around Mt. Coronet during the 4 Times of the Day.
liuli.com/en-us/news/dir…
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Four_Symb…
yokai.com/?s=four+symbols
onmarkproductions.com/html/ssu-ling.…
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wufang_Sh…
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Four_Heav…

Besides that, as shown in the video linked below, it is common to find depictions of the Shijin in Jade artifacts, due to the gemstone's value and importance in ancient cultures, providing us with yet another reason for the name of the region to be Hisui.
news.cgtn.com/news/2020-01-1…

As each of the Shijin is linked with 7 of the 28 mansions and the Kirin (as Polaris) is linked to the 7 stars of Ursa Major, this fivefold tie to 7 could connect them to the 7 Rays as another legendary group.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_c…
stardate.org/astro-guide/ur…
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seven_rays

While on the topic of what the map can tell us, it's also worth noting that the Snowpoint Temple and Solaceon Ruins appear to be present in the same general locations as usual.
Curiously, the Snowpoint Temple looks a bit more like its anime counterpart for some reason.

Let's now shift our focus to Jubilife Village.
As I had pointed out back in February, the village will eventually turn into Sinnoh's Jubilife City, which makes sense because it's based on Sapporo, which was 1 of the first areas of Hokkaido to be heavily colonized by the Japanese.

Jubilife Village being based on Sapporo is also noticeable due to the Former Hokkaido Government Office inspiring the Galaxy Expedition Team's HQ and the village possibly drawing inspiration from the Historical Village of Hokkaido.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Former_Ho…
kaitaku.or.jp/en/en.htm

For some reason, the Galaxy Expedition Team's HQ has decorative Magikarp statues and chimneys that look like Galarian Weezing.
Perhaps these Pokémon hold significance to them...
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Longmen_(…

Much like with Hokkaido's Development Comission and following initiatives, the Galaxy Expedition Team brings together people from various other regions in order to study and develop Hisui.
The GET includes at least 3 Corps - Survey (Blue), Security (Red) and Medical (Pink) Corps.

Funnily enough, this GET abbreviation makes for a coincidental reference to the Japanese Pokémon slogan (Get Pokémon! -> Pokémon get da ze~! ポケモンＧＥＴだぜー！))
It's also worth noting that the GET is simply called Ginga-Dan (ギンガ団) in Japanese, the same as Team Galactic.

Some of the footage also shows other important buildings and facilities.
Pic 1 - Trading Post + Security Corps HQ
Pic 2 - Poké Mart (?) + Style Boutique (?)
Pic 3 - Herb Shop (?) (or Ingredients/Materials Shop?)
Pic 4 - Pokémon Ranch / Day Care (?) (Alternative to PC Boxes?)

Next, let's cover the characters.
As expected, we will get to see the ancestors of several characters from the Sinnoh games.
In addition to those shown, I think the ancestors of Barry/Palmer, Candice (Snowpoint Natives), Maylene (Veilstone Natives) and Cynthia are rather likely.

The first two characters of note are the Protagonist and his/her fellow Survey Corps senior, who seem to be the ancestors of Lucas/Kouki and Dawn/Hikari.
These two are called Rei (玲 Tinkling [sound of Jade]) / JP: Teru (照る Shine) and Akari (明かり Light) / JP: Shou (照 Shine).

Next we have the regional Professor, Professor Laventon (ラベン博士 Dr. Laven), whose name comes from Lavander plants. These are shrub-like, but can be trimmed and grown into small trees.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lavandula
He is part of the Survey Corps and specializes in Pokémon ecology.

Since Lavandula Angustifolia, a.k.a. English Lavander, is the most common species of the genus, it's possible that Professor Laventon is from the Galar Region and was inspired by someone from the UK like Bulbapedia suggested. See:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Bl…
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blakiston…

While we don't know if Professor Laventon has any family connections to other characters, his skin color is the same as Hop and Leon's, so perhaps they are related and the Croagunk statue in Hop's room is some sort of family heirloom he passed on to his descendants. Who knows...

Next in line we have Kamado (デンボク Denboku), the Commander of the Galaxy Expedition Team.
He is the ancestor of Professor Rowan (ナナカマド博士 Dr. Nanakamado) and his name comes from 雷電木 Raidenboku, an alternate name for 七竈, the Japanese Rowan.

After recognizing your knack for Pokémon research, Commander Kamado appoints you as a new member of the Survey Corps, allowing you to help them with their mission of completing the Hisui Pokédex.

Last but not least, we have Cyllene (シマボシ Shimaboshi), the Captain of the GET Survey Corps.
Her name comes from しまぼし, which refers to the Moon, while Cyllene is one of the Moons of Jupiter.
This is a reversal in relation to Cyrus, her descendant, who is linked to the Sun.

It's also possible that her name references the mythological Cyllene of Mount Kyllini in Arcadia, where a temple to Hermes Kyllenios once stood (said to be one of oldest ever built) but later fell into ruin.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyllene_(…
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_Kyl…

Cyllene's Arcadia was later romanticized into the utopic vision of Arcadia, which consists of a pastorial paradise where humans live in harmony with nature, similar to what Hisui appears to want to become.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arcadia_(…

Before Commander Kamado let's you join the Survey Corps, Captain Cyllene will allow you to take a trial in order to test your skills.
She is also said to be the Protagonist's biggest supporter, in spite of her harsh behaviour.

Before we move on, it's worth considering that Cyrus probably learned about the Galaxy Expedition Team through records Cyllene handed down their family line, later appropriating the name for his own Team.
Now the question is why and what kinds of shared ideals he saw in them.

Our next topic is the Survey Outings.
These are excursions undertaken by the Survey Corps in order to observe and catch Pokémon to progressively learn more about them and how they live in the Hisui region.

Before you leave Jubilife Village, Captain Cyllene will give you your orders.
You can then select which of the 5 areas of Hisui you want to go to, as seen in the shots below.
Your objectives are assigned to the Y button's Missions & Requests, which might be Main and Side Quests.

The UI also shows the local weather next to the area's name, together with Arceus' faded symbol to symbolize the region.
On the right side you have the Time of the Day icon and controls to Zoom In & Out of map areas using ZL & ZR.
The R button Shows & Hides the current objective.

Once the Survey Corps arrive at the intended destination, they will set up a Base Camp.
Here you will be able to check on the progress of you Pokédex research tasks, buy & sell basic items, craft items, heal yourself and your Pokémon, and maybe even store items and cook as well.

In some of the footage, we are even able to see the location of the "Eastern Area" Base Camp, which is set near the shore of the right side of the bay.

Items you can buy from the Security Corps NPC include Poké Balls, Potions, Revives and what looks like Wyrdeer Fur.
Even more items will become available over time, including Great Balls, Ultra Balls and Antidotes, among others.
You can toggle between Buy & Sell with ZL & ZR.

The 2 icons above the item description seem to indicate how much stock of an item your Satchel and Storage contain.
Not sure what the yellow hand symbol stands for, but the star next to it suggests it might be used to mark certain items as favorites or a similar functionality.

As suggested by the Base Camp artwork and some other shots, you will also be able to collect the usual berries. These seem to be obtained from the colored fruit trees, while the leaked half golden trees might be Apricorn or Honey Trees, as we will figure out at a later date.

In this game you are able to craft your own items through the Base Camp workbench using materials you have found while adventuring.
The pictures below illustrate the process.
You can toggle between Crafting and Storage via the ZL & ZR buttons.
Materials can apparently be stored.

Items you can craft using the workbench include Poké Balls, Heavy Balls, Smoke Balls, Potions and Revives.
This time around, it seems like the type of Poké Balls you can craft will be determined by the color of the Tumblestone used instead of the color of the Apricorn as before.

While Heavy Balls share their name with the Heavy Balls made from Black Apricorns, instead of helping you catch heavy Pokémon it's the ball itself that is heavier, making it easier to catch unsuspecting Pokémon at the cost of a shorter range due to being harder to throw at them.

Curiously, while TPC initially said that Poké Balls from this era are made from wood, they all seem to be made from Apricorns.

Finally, Smoke Bombs can be used to create a smokescreen, allowing you to conceal your presence from Pokémon in order to approach or run away from them.

Stopping by the Base Camp to rest up seems to be even more important than visiting Pokémon Centers in previous games since this time around the Player can also black out from taking too much damage from wild Pokémon attacks or falling from high places while "Rock Climbing".

After completing a survey assignment, you can then return to Jubilife Village and report the results to whoever requested the job.
Based on the screenshot below, "Wurmple Can Evolve" could be a Job with several Requests, as it has not evolved and catching it completed Request 1.

It's also worth taking a look at the UI options you have while exploring.
X allows you to use an item and you can cycle through them using L & R (probably).
The icons of the left seem to be connected to Mission & Request Objectives, Menu (Id, Pokémon, Items, etc.) and Pokédex.

Next we have Pokémon catching, which has stayed mostly the same, requiring you to look for Pokémon in different habitats and to weaken them through battling before trying to catch one using a Poké Ball.

As in previous games, some Pokémon will only show up under certain weather conditions or times of the day and depending on their disposition they will approach you, run away from you or try to attack you, so you will have to adapt your strategies to the Pokémon you want to catch.

One of the main strategies to deal with Pokémon that run away or try to attack you on sight seems to be to hide in the tall grass to avoid being detected.

While catching Pokémon has barely changed, battling with them has undergone a plethora of changes, making for a more seemless and enganging battle system.

To start a battle with a wild Pokémon you only need to throw a Poké Ball containing your own Pokémon near it and the game will seemlessly transition into battle.
Take note of how the aiming reticle is now half red in comparison to fully white when trying to catch a wild Pokémon.

Like in previous games, the battle UI gives you the option to Fight, Run, use Items or check your Pokémon.
You can switch Pokémon by pressing X after selecting who to switch in through L & R.
Y controls the visibility of the Action Order, while + seems to control a Zoom function.

In previous games, Pokémon would take turns using their moves, with faster Pokémon going first.
In this game, Pokémon can execute multiple actions in a row instead, with their stats and other factors determining how many actions each Pokémon gets to take and in what order.

One way to alter this Action Order is through the use of priority moves like Aqua Jet, as can be seen in the screenshots below.
Another way is to unleash moves through the new Strong and Agile Styles.
Strangely, only Tackle has a Style Scroll in these screenshots for some reason.

As exemplified below, a move unleashed in the Strong Style will have its power increased but will lower the Pokémon's action speed.
Meanwhile, the reverse is true for a move unleashed in the Agile Style, as its power will be lowered but the Pokémon's action speed will increase.

Below we can see that resistances are marked with a triangle, while regular effectiveness is marked with a dot, so weaknesses might be marked with a circle, while immunities might be marked with a cross.
Hex doesn't have a Style Scroll again, perhaps implying usage limitations.

Moving on to the next topic, the Hisui Pokédex that Professor Laventon aims to complete with the help of the Survey Corps.

To complete the Hisui region's Pokédex, the Player will need to complete various research tasks and regularly present his/her results to Professor Laventon in order to update it. This process is somewhat similar to checking your Pokédex's gradual progress in previous games.

In the Pokédex's cover you can check how many Pokémon you have seen and caught overall and in each area of Hisui.
You can also keep track of the Research Points you have amassed by completing tasks and how many you still need to reach the next Galaxy Expedition Team member rank.

As the Japanese Presents revealed, the Player will start as a No Star Member of the Galaxy Expedition Team and slowly climb his way to become a Ten Star Member.
Increasing this rank will grant the Player access to new areas, meaning it's probably essential to complete the game.

Inside the Pokédex, you can list Pokémon based on the Entire Hisui Region or just 1 of its 5 Areas via ZL & ZR and then click Y to order the list in different ways.
The Poké Ball icons let you know how many Pokémon you have seen, caught and completed all main research tasks for.

Each Pokémon's profile is divided into Info, Research Tasks and Habitat pages.
A Pokémon's Entry will be unlocked once you complete all the Research Tasks marked with a red square at least once.
Doing so will make the colored Poké Ball icon show up next to that Pokémon's profile.

Completing all of the Research Tasks the designated maximum amount of times will allow you to reach Research Level 100 and unlock all of the information in that Pokémon's profile.
A seen Pokémon's picture will remain greyed out until it's caught.

A Pokémon's fully unlocked profile will include the following information:
- No.
- Name
- Category
- Types
- Forms
- Entry
- Weight Range
- Height Range
- 5 Preferred Foods
- 4 or 5 Held Items

The fact Pokémon have Preferred Foods suggests that a cooking mechanic might exist.

Finally, let's talk about the Pokémon of the Hisui region and their relationship with humans.

The first Pokémon on our list is Wyrdeer (アヤシシ Ayashishi), the Normal/Psychic-type Hisuan evolution of Stantler.

Wyrdeer = Wyrd/Weird + Deer/Reindeer

Ayashishi = Ayashii (妖しい: mystical, mysterious) + Shishi-Odoshi (鹿威し: a device used to scare away birds and animals)

Wyrdeer has long been treasured by the people of Hisui, for whom it is indispensable due to the highly prized fur it sheds, from which garments with top-notch protection against the cold are made.

The black orbs at the bases of its antlers generate and unleashe psychic energy powerful enough to distort space.
By running at the head of its herd, it leads young Stantler while using its antlers like antennae to search out safe paths.

It's possible that Wyrdeer was inspired by the Yezo Sika Deer and the Japanese Reindeer, wich are important to the Ainu people.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yezo_sika…
en.wiktionary.org/wiki/%E9%A6%B4…

Next we have Basculegion (イダイトウ Idaitou), the Water/Ghost-type Hisuan evolution of Basculin (at least for the Red-Striped Form, since its design only has red).

Basculegion = Basculin + Legion

Idaitou = Idai (偉大: great) + Itou (イトウ: Sakhalin taimen, a.k.a. Stringfish)

Basculin evolves into this Pokémon when it is possessed by the souls of other Basculin from its school that could not withstand the harsh journey upstream.
It fights together with these souls, which attack opponents as if they had a will of their own.
See:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legion_(d…

When Basculegion senses animosity, it will become enraged and attack relentlessly until its enemy is defeated. It gains power from the souls possessing it, letting it tirelessly swim on and on.

The next Pokémon is the Psychic/Flying-type Hisuian Braviary.

This form of Braviary seems to be inspired by the Steller's Sea Eagle, known in Japan as O-washi (great/large eagle), since it shares a similar coloration.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steller%2…

This Pokémon flies in from somewhere farther north in the Winter. It’s larger than the previously discovered form of Braviary and tends to live alone rather than in flocks.

It can imbue its eerie screeches with psychic power to generate powerful shock waves to weaken its prey and then use its sharp talons to tear at and seize it.
It can also use its psychic power to sharpen its sixth sense and enter a trance that boosts its physical abilities.

The last Pokémon is the Fire/Rock-type Hisuian Growlithe.

This form of Growlithe seems to be inspired by the Komainu, Shisa and Shishi, since they guard their territory in pairs, much like these statues do.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Komainu
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shisa
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_g…

This form of Growlithe has longer, softer and more voluminous fur, with heat-retaining properties that help it thrive even in the frigid Hisui region.
The sharp horn on its head is made of rock, but breaks easily, so Growlithe only uses it when it’ll have the greatest effect.

Hisuian Growlithe are highly vigilant and tend to be seen watching over their territory in pairs.
Apparently, they have lived apart from humans for a long time and are unused to being around people, which makes building trust with them take time and effort.

By pre-ordering the game you will be able to download the Hisuian Growlithe Kimono Set via Mystery Gift until May 9th 2022, wich means it will be possible to customize your character with different costumes.

As you might have already noticed by now, Wyrdeer and Hisuian Braviary were previously leaked in shadow form and, together with Basculegion, will be able to help you traverse the Hisui region through an expanded version of previous games' systems.

In addition to that, it seems now clearer that the new Pokémon seen in the other leaked screenshot is probably an Hisuian evolution of a known Pokémon, with Farfetch'd seeming like a reasonable possibility.

It also seems somewhat possible that the three Starter Pokémon could end up getting an Hisuian Form, but only time will tell how that will turn out.

I would also like to bring up the Abra at the Galactic Expedition Team's office, since if could be used for Teleporting between locations or perhaps influence the Natures of wild Pokémon like the Celadon City Fortune Teller allowed you to do in LGPE. See:
bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Celadon_C…

Finally, I would like to briefly discuss the relationship between people and Pokémon, and the mysteries surrounding the game's plot.

The game takes place in an era when the lives of humans and Pokémon were still separate, implying they might join forces by the end of the story.

Moreover, the characters seem convinced that Pokémon are terrifying creatures, not only because they are dangerous but possibly because something has been causing them to go berserk and humans have no idea that is happening.

These Pokémon have glowing red eyes and seem to relentlessly assault the Player, possibly acting as boss battles.
Several Pokémon are shown in this state, including Ursaring, Gyarados, Luxray, Tangrowth...

...Drapion, Garchomp and Probopass.

The trailer tries to convince us that the portals opening above Hisui, including above Mt. Coronet, have something to do with this phenomenon.
However, the portal's animation references the one that plays when Dialga or Palkia are awakened in DP.
See:

This seems to suggest that temporal and spatial distortions are being caused by Dialga and Palkia, or by some other legendary on their level, such as Arceus.
Lightning comes out of the portal and strikes the ruins in front of the big tree, suggesting those will be plot relevant.

It also seems that after the lightning strikes the big tree area the Player is sent to investigate, but he/she then ends up stumbling on a Pokémon or something else that is causing bright yellow energy to flow up in the area. Perhaps it's a side effect of the lightning itself.

So overall it seems like the plot will deal with figuring out the relationship between the portals and ruins, plus why certain Pokémon are going berserk, while learning to live together with Pokémon and in harmony with Nature and the cycles of Heaven and Earth.

And that's it for now.
If other ideas or details come up later, I will be sure to update the thread with new tweets below this one.
Feel free to share your own thoughts and ideas as well.

I didn't mention it earlier, but it's rather likely that the small volcanic island in Eastern Hisui will eventually become the Pokémon League island in Eastern Sinnoh.
Not entirely sure, but doubting it is related to Stark Mountain for now, since that should be further North.

The Japanese Presents has a better view of the island.
Probably is a reference to Ushishir, an island sacred to the Ainu that was the home of their Thunder God, Kanna Kamui.
Kanna was depicted as a flying dragon, so would fit the Azure Dragon of the East.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ushishir

Hisuian Growlithe seems to be primarily based on the Komainu, since those are the ones that have an horn on their heads sometimes.

Someone lies here... sleeping for evermore...

Seems like the Ice Rock might also be back like the Moss Rock in the previous trailer, meaning that Eevee's evolution process is back to what it was before for this game in particular.

The Ainu inspired groups might come from the Menas-Un-Kur and Repunmosir-Un-Kur.
Those approximately translate to "the people of eastern Hokkaido" and "the people of the sea island / country".
@KaihatsuYT will probably better explain all of this one day.😂

Good observation. Adding it to the thread.

This could also be a Rice Ball like @Guzzwhole
mentioned to me.
I thought it might be Wyrdeer fur because of how it is used to make clothes, but maybe simple common food would make more sense in this kind of inventory.

Btw, if this comes to pass, then GF might cover the Heaven and Earth theme in this game.
If we get more clues in favor of this, I might recover a diagram I made before but did not publish that explains how Tian and Di relate to the Shijin and other groups.

Speaking of Hisui having 5 areas, that's perfect for the Regis, I guess.
So they might be distributed like this, unless they want to keep Regieleki and Regidrago together in the East and move Regirock to the West, but this isn't a paired game so makes more sense to separate them.