#arcanie

Akari and Her Team: Legends Arceus

Hisuian Decidueye, nicknamed Roothoot

Gardevoir, nicknamed Joan

Raichu, nicknamed Mjölna

Walrein, nicknamed Maru

Hisuian Arcanine, nicknamed Roscoe

Alpha Garchomp, nicknamed Hammerhead

I've been a fan of Pokémon all the way back since it first came to the US In that time, I've played every mainline series game that have come out over the years. My interest in the franchise has waxed and waned over the years, but it hasn't gone away completely.  Every so often, just when I feel like I've played my last Pokémon game or that I'm ready to move on, a new game will be released that will completely reinvigorate me and get me excited about Pokémon again. It happened not too long ago with the released of Sun and Moon back in 2016, and it happened again this year with the release of Legend Arceus.

If you're like me, you might not have been terribly excited by any of the entries in the series that have come out on the Switch. Let's Go was fine and Sword and Shield were ok, but I was incredibly disappointed in Brillant Diamond and Shining Peral and honestly think they are a strong contender for the title of Worst Games in the Series. So, after being let down by BDSP, I was not really looking forward to Legends Arceus. It was actually the first Pokémon game in years that I didn't pick up on its release day. It wasn't until a few weeks later that I started to tune into the buzz around the game and heard people talking about how fun it was. So, I decided to eventually give it a try and see if it lived up to the hype.

In the end, I put over 100 hours into it, so you can say that I enjoyed it. Is it a perfect game? No, far from it. There are so many issues with it, it makes it hard to believe this was released as a AAA game in 2022, made by a company that is part of the largest media franchise in the world.

Was it fun? I thought so. Sure, it might not have been the best game ever, but it really got me engaged and interested in the series again. After being satisfied with how much of the game's content I had completed, I knew I wanted to make something to commemorate my playthrough. I decided a portrait featuring my custom trainer and her team would be the most appropriate, though I wasn't sure on how to proceed. I considered just commissioning someone else to draw it for me. I follow a lot of talented artists and I know they could have delivered a final product that would have been leagues ahead of anything I could make. But, as good as those commissions could have been, they wouldn't have been personal, and that's what I really wanted.