In retrospect, Pokemon Legends: Arceus was a brilliant way for Game Freak to kick off a new kind of sub-franchise. Legends: Arceus has been lauded for its changes to the Pokemon formula, sending players into open environments with a greater focus on capturing monsters to complete their Pokedex than on battling to become a Champion. By setting the game's story in the past, Game Freak also took an opportunity to flesh out the lore of its universe by introducing the ancestors of recognizable characters.
Generation 4's Sinnoh region is the perfect playground to test out this idea. The original DS games Pokemon Diamond and Pearl centered a people who treasured their history, exemplified by Champion and archeologist Cynthia. Arceus the creation deity also makes sense as a box art Legendary for more philosophical reasons than in Koei Tecmo's combat-heavy Pokemon Conquest a decade prior. Pokemon Legends: Arceus' sales all-but guarantee more games in this style, and traveling to the past ensures every region has more stories to tell. Pokemon Sun and Moon's Alola region has some of the more interesting potential to dig into.
Alola's Ultra Wormholes Present Familiar Opportunities
Given Pokemon Legends: Arceus offered Game Freak the opportunity to revisit an older region, it would make sense for that pattern to continue. Pokemon fans have expressed interest in a Legends game about Johto for example, as that region is also steeped in history and could tell traditional tales about Ho-Oh and Lugia - such as the destruction of Ecruteak's Burned Tower and the creation of Johto's Legendary beast trio. One could also make a strong argument for a Generation 5-themed Legends game about Reshiram and Zekrom's split, especially if Game Freak creates this title in place of its next traditional remakes.
Alola is comparatively modern, only one Generation removed from the most recent Pokemon Sword and Shield. Yet its regional lore and archipelago design present a great opportunity to imitate Pokemon Legends: Arceus' formula and improve upon that foundation.
Pokemon Sun, Moon, Ultra Sun, and Ultra Moon introduced Ultra Wormholes, which in practice were similar to the Space-Time Rift that opens over Mount Coronet in Hisui. Ultra Wormholes were often torn open by interdimensional Pokemon-like creatures dubbed Ultra Beasts, notably Cosmog and its final evolutions Solgaleo and Lunala. People who pass through these Wormholes are known as "Fallers," with the most prominent example being Anabel. Similar to Ingo, the Gen 5 Battle Subway boss who is pulled back in time to Hisui and loses his memory, Anabel was a former Frontier Brain in Gen 3's Battle Frontier who loses her memory and becomes part of the International Police.
Ultra Wormholes could just as easily set up a time-travel narrative as Hisui's Space-Time Rift, and the region overall could be re-imagined to match. The Hawai'i-inspired Alola is split into four islands: Melemele, Akala, Ula'ula, and Poni. Even disregarding the "fifth" island - a massive floating structure designed by the Aether Foundation - these could be turned into large open-world areas akin to Pokemon Legends: Arceus' five locales. Nintendo also just announced it will shut down the eShop for 3DS and Wii U consoles, meaning Sun and Moon (as well as their Ultra sequels) have a limited shelf life.
Alola's Royal Family and Tapu Are Ripe to Explore
If Game Freak does repeat its time-travel conceit, it will need to create a new narrative that avoids Legends: Arceus' focus. Luckily, there are numerous teases regarding Alola's history that offer an interesting place to kick off a tale surrounding its Polynesian culture. One key figure to dig into is Acerola, the Ghost-type Trial Captain-turned-Elite Four member. At one point in Generation 7's narrative she offers Lillie a book not available at the library, crediting this access to her position as the last living member of Alola's ancient royal family.
What exactly the royal family was isn't examined very thoroughly, but a Pokemon Legends game could do exactly that. Whether it be set in a far distant past or within the last few hundred years, a queen who appears to be an older Acerola could guide the player's hand; perhaps based on figures like Queen Lili'uokalani. This could lead to a story about the colonization of Alola that riffs off real-world history between Hawai'i and the United States, but Game Freak could also just have players quell the wrath of the Tapu similar to Hisui's Noble Pokemon.
The Alola region's four guardian deities; Tapu Koko, Lele, Bulu, and Fini; are all half Fairy-type beings that protect the four islands. Generation 7 games allude to wars for supremacy between the Tapu, battles that would inspire the wrestling-themed Battle Royal matches in Alola, and the player could be caught up in one of these bouts. However, a more likely storyline would revolve around an invasion of the Ultra Beasts and the creation of Z-Crystals. While Lillie and Gladion's father Mohn is credited with confirming the existence of Ultra Wormholes, the Tapu are said to have a history of beating back invaders like Solgaleo and Lunala. Focusing on Ultra Beasts also gives Game Freak the chance to introduce new, unique creatures.
Alola and Kanto Region Ancestors Deserve Some Love
As one of the most inspired elements of Pokemon Legends: Arceus, it would be silly for an Alola-themed game (or any other Legends title) to not present more ancestor characters. While exploring Hisui, players also encounter numerous individuals who make reference to other regions existing - including a Galaxy Team member who gives out Alolan Vulpix. Pearl Clan Warden Calaba is likely the ancestor of Alola's Trial Captain Mina, and Wally's ancestor Beni references moving to a more tropical climate during the post-game, so this region-hopping trend can continue.
A past Alola would likely feature a number of Kanto region ancestors, as the two locales are said to be close by one another: Sun and Moon's player character is from Kanto, Lillie and Lusamine travel there in the post-game, and Alolan Forms are all based on Kantonian Pokemon. This would help fill in gaps left by Pokemon Legends: Arceus, which primarily seems to draw from Sinnoh, Galar, and Unova characters for its ancestors.
Whatever Game Freak decides to do next, it's sure to be interesting. While the developer doesn't seem intent to drop its traditional formula entirely, and probably shouldn't if it wants to maintain a competitive scene, the innovations of Pokemon Legends: Arceus should carry forward. Creating more games in this new sub-franchise is a surefire way to iron out its kinks, and Alola feels like a solid option to experiment with next.
Pokemon Legends: Arceus is available now on Switch.