Ask aPokemonplayer how Poke Balls work in-universe, and they’ll likely have a different answer from the next person asked. The inner workings of a Poke Ball have been kept ambiguous with intent, if only to conflict between the game franchise’s rules and lore. However,Pokemon Legends: Arceusappears to make a striking revelation regarding how Poke Balls are able to capturePokemon. The retcon is so surprising that somePokemonfans are even rejectingPokemon Legends: Arceus' canon. It’s a controversy, to say the least.
The new Poke Ball information comes via a conversation withPokemon Legends: Arceus’Professor Laventon. In a conversation with Professor Laventon, he describes how Poke Balls work to the player. Laventon starts with a major revelation, that “Pokemonpossess the odd power to shrink themselves down.” It’s through this power that Poke Balls are able to “make use of that power to catch them!” No further detail on the process is provided, but that’s already more than enough to shake the foundations of past understanding of how catchingPokemonworks.
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Prior to now, the canonized belief associated with catchingPokemonis thatPoke Ballswere able to convertPokemoninto a type of digital information or energy.Pokemonare still aware in this form, allowing them to struggle against capture or even leave a Poke Ball at will if they feel the need to. This new lore fromPokemon Legends: Arceuschanges that, however. Instead of being converted into a form of energy,Pokemonare simply shrunk to a very small size.
Since the issue isn’t elaborated on, it isn’t clear if this is The Pokemon Company’s solution forPokemon Legends: Arceus' taking place in a much earlier time, or if it’s intended to also replace “modern"Pokemonlogic as well.SummoningPokemoninPokemon Legends: Arceusstill looks similar to other games, withPokemonleaving their Poke Balls in a flash of blue light. The mystery ofPokemoncapture has grown all the more mysterious.
Even outside the complicated nature of Poke Balls and capturingPokemon, the revelations shared inPokemon Legends: Arceusare strange.Pokemonbeing able to shift their sizes is an all-but-absurd idea. After all,Pokemonbattleeach other constantly, yet never change sizes mid-battle even under extreme duress. Wars have been fought withPokemon, but they aren’t noted as shifting sizes in war, either.
In the end,Pokemon Legends: Arceus' retcon doesn’t make much sense. But then again,Pokemonbattling as a whole is best not looked too closely at, as it’s a video game series intended for an audience that includes kids. Not everything has to make sense, though this retcon may have gone a bit too far for somePokemonfans.
