Why Niantic may never introduce Arceus in Pokemon GO

Pokemon GO fans have awaited the arrival of the game universe's deity Arceus almost immediately after Sinnoh region Pokemon were added to the mobile title. While it's perfectly plausible that Arceus will eventually arrive in Niantic's game, and there are some leaks and mined data to support this, a possibility remains that Niantic may never see fit to introduce Arceus into GO.

While this is certainly something of an outlier view among Pokemon GO players, many Pocket Monsters have previously been hinted at or their data have been found in the game code but still haven't arrived. Arceus' addition to the game might be likely based on present information, but there are a few reasons why Niantic may stop short of adding this creator god Pokemon to the game as well.

Note: This article is speculative in nature.

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Why Niantic may never add Arceus to Pokemon GO's roster

Arceus' Type Changing Mechanic

Arceus can change into all 18 elemental types, which presents a problem in Pokemon GO (Image via The Pokemon Company)

In the main Pokemon series, Arceus has the ability to change into 18 different forms, each based on one of the game's elemental types. This is accomplished based on which Plate/Z-Crystal held item Arceus is currently holding. However, with no held items in Pokemon GO, Niantic may find it difficult to implement Arceus' ability to change to different elemental forms in a balanced way.

While Pokemon changing types due to mechanics like Mega Evolution isn't uncommon, a single monster capable of switching into any of the 18 elements on the fly would likely present a game balance problem if Arceus was permitted to enter PvP battles at the very least. Moreover, Arceus' ability to change types may obsolete many Pokemon of different types due to Arceus' strength.

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Arceus' Move Selection

Finding the right moves to give Arceus in Pokemon GO could be quite a task (Image via The Pokemon Company)

Like many mythical Pokemon, Arceus can learn a vast array of different moves in the mainline series spanning different damage amounts, effects, and elemental types. Since the learnable move pools in Pokemon GO are smaller than in the main series, finding the right moves to make Arceus effective without being overbearing could be a difficult task for Niantic to sort out.

This is further complicated by Arceus' signature move Judgment, which changes its type based on the elemental form Arceus is presently in. While adding Judgment to GO isn't a guarantee, adding it would require introducing a move that could change type based on Arceus' own multi-type capabilities, which could prove to be a challenge as well.

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Arceus' Lore-Based Rarity

Arceus' rarity may heavily restrict access to it in Pokemon GO (Image via The Pokemon Company)

As the creator of the Sinnoh region, the Pokemon Dialga, Palkia, and Giratina, and likely the entire known Pokemon universe, Arceus' lore is steeped in mystery due to the fact it is almost never seen, even when compared to other mythical species like Mew and Celebi. If Niantic introduced Arceus to Pokemon GO, making it an easily accessible Pokemon that trainers could find and catch would be a misstep.

Since Arceus is ostensibly the creator deity of the Pokemon universe, it simply wouldn't make much sense for thousands or millions of trainers to be running around with one. Instead, Arceus would likely be one of the rarest Pokemon in the game, even more so than the Galarian Legendary Birds. If Niantic can't add Arceus in a somewhat lore-appropriate way, they may not do so at all.

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It should be noted that Arceus could very well come to Pokemon GO in the future, especially as the mobile title continues to celebrate major landmarks like yearly anniversaries and GO Fest events. However, until Niantic confirms that Arceus is in its plans, trainers may not want to think that Arceus' arrival in the game is a guarantee, as many hurdles can prevent the arrival of the Alpha Pokemon.