Pokemon Legends Arceus could have another new form

A screenshot from Pokemon Legends Arceus has gone viral after fans spotted what could be a new playable Pokemon form. 

After eight generations of titles, the Game Freak franchise is finally going open-world with Pokemon Legends Arceus. The 2022 Switch RPG is set to introduce a flurry of features to the series.

One of them is is the Frenzied Nobles and Alpha forms. A viral screenshot, however, has convinced players that a new ‘mon variant has more to it than meets the eye and can be added to your team.

Game Freak / The Pokemon Company

Alpha Pokemon might be more extensive than first thought.

Pokemon Legends Arceus to introduce another new form?

During the August Presents, Game Freak gave us our first look at Alpha Pokemon in Legends Arceus. According to the official website “during your expeditions, you’ll sometimes run into alphas: Pokémon that are larger than normal and have glowing red eyes. Alphas will chase you down and attack you when they notice you. They’re tough opponents, but they’ll become great allies if you manage to catch them.”

• Read More: Who is Kleavor in Pokemon Legends Arceus? 

While it’s been known that you can technically catch them, up to this point there hasn’t been much information about how they work when battling with them on your team. Eagle-eyed fans over on the r/PokeLeaks forum spotted a screenshot that may hint at the characters being playable in their Alpha form.

User ‘Wlsgarus’ uploaded a screenshot of Rowelt in the game that shows the Alpha Pokemon symbol grayed out next the Gender symbol. This kicked off speculation as to whether all monsters can enter the Alpha state, or whether Alpha Pokemon stay in their form permanently even after catching them.

“I think it could actually be a type of gimmick like Mega Evolution or Dynamax. Maybe when that is filled in it means that The Pokemon is an Alpha Pokemon where they gain increased stats upon entering battle,” one fan theorized. Another wrote, “I wonder if our current Pokemon can evolve into one.”

The topic creator exclaimed, “Not going to lie, if we can keep Alpha Pokemon on our team, it’d be cool even if it only affects she, cause I wanna find a big, hopefully true to scale Onix, even if the only way for that to be the case is it being an Alpha mon.”

While it is purely speculation, it’s pretty interesting to see the Alpha symbol listed next to Gender in each character’s profile. It really does beg the question whether Alpha ‘mon are unique, or a state that can be achieved (similar to Sword & Shield’s Dynamax mechanic.

• Read More: 7 things we now know about Legends Arceus

Another interesting fact is that Alpha ‘mon are more likely to drop rare items should players be able to bring them down while exploring the map. Only time will tell what happens after you catch them, but the possibilities are certainly exciting.