The Pokémon series has been a part of peoples' lives since its debut in 1996 with Pokémon Red Version and Green Version. In the nearly twenty-five years since then, the series has constantly adapted and changed, from the introduction of the new Dark and Steel types in Generation 2 to the introduction of Regional Variants in Generation 7. The newest Generation, Generation 8, brought us Pokémon Sword and Shield, the first core RPGs to appear on a home console. And while the games initially came under fire for Gamefreak's decision to ultimately remove the National Pokedex due to the sheer number of Pokémon, Pokémon Sword and Shield have since become the third-best selling Pokémon RPGs of all time. These games have only further increased their longevity by adding paid DLC, a first for the series that adds two new explorable areas to Sword and Shield's Galar region, the Isle Of Armor and the Crown Tundra, the latter of which I will be covering. And while the Isle Of Armor gave us a small glimpse into what a truly open-ended Pokémon game could look like, Crown Tundra took that concept and more fully realized it, and it gives me hope for the future of Pokémon.
The main story of Crown Tundra is a simple one. The game introduces you to Peony, a man who came to investigate the various legends of the Crown Tundra with his daughter Peonia. Unfortunately, Peonia would rather battle Dynamax Pokémon in the Max Lair than spend time with her old man, so you have to aid Peony in her stead. Form there, Peony set up shop in the nearby town of Freezington, which then acts as your home base for the rest of the DLC. From there, he gives you three legends to explore. The first is to investigate the legends surrounding the DLC's mascot Calyrex, the King Of Bountiful Harvests. The second tasks you with finding various temples scattered throughout the Crown Tundra and investigating the various Legendary Titans living inside. The final one has you investigate the Kanto's Legendary Birds which have been spotted around Dyna Tree Hill. And from here the DLC splits into three parts.
The first investigation, the legends of Calyrex, ultimately leaves you face-to-face with the Legendary Pokémon, which you might have expected. What you may not have expected is that Calyrex actually speaks, sort of. After your initial battle with the Legendary, Peony comes along to investigate, leading to Calyrex hijacking his body to converse with the player. From there, Calyrex frequently offers aid to the player, helping to explain some of the legends surrounding it before revealing how to catch its once-noble steed. from here, the game gives you a choice. You can either go after Calyrex's Ice Rider form, which will net you the Ice-Type tank Glastrier, or you can go for Calyrex's Shadow Rider form, which will net you the Ghost-Type sweeper Spectrier. Either way, Calyrex regains his full power, and challenges you to one last battle. Should you defeat and capture him, he will serve as your Partner for the rest of the story. Calyrex's story is fun for the simple fact that Calyrex himself is a generally amusing character, having several one-liners and goofy scenes that help play him up as an eccentric but well-meaning Pokémon, and its a rare instance where we actually get to see inside the head of a Pokémon and learn what they're thinking, something that I'm hoping the games do more of going forward.
The second investigation, the Legendary Titans, tasks you with scouring the Crown Tundra and locating the temples scattered across it and capturing the Legendary Pokémon within. This story, while not as complex as the one with Calyrex, serves to let the player explore the Crown Tundra and grants a sense of discovery that the first investigation didn't have. In addition to the return of the original three Titans from Hoenn, Regice, Regirock, and Registeel, the Crown Tundra also includes two new Titans to the group, Regieleki and Regidrago. These Pokémon aren't version exclusive, but choosing one prevents you from encountering the other, so be sure you know which one you want before entering the temple. As to how you actually obtain each of these Titans, there is a hint inscribed on each of the temple doors that ask you to perform a specific task related to that Titan. I would describe what those hints are, but figuring them out is half the fun, so happy hunting!
And for the final investigation, the player must go and catch Kanto's own Legendary Birds, which are encountered for the first time at Dyna Tree Hill. But there's a catch. First is that while these Legendary Birds, start off in the Crown Tundra, two of them don't stay there, with Zapdos and Moltres moving around the Wild Area and Isle Of Armor respectively while Articuno stays behind in the Crown Tundra, meaning you have to hunt them down if you want to capture them. Second is that these aren't the Legendary Birds you're familiar with, as snacking on the fruit of the Dyna Tree has granted them Regional Forms, complete with a new ability, type combination, and signature move, so these Legendaries have some new tricks to keep you on your toes as you try and capture them. This investigation serves to take you on a literal wild goose chase across Galar in order to give you a better appreciation of the game's open-world mechanics, particularly where it concerns Roaming Legendaries and how well-suited they are to an open environment. This is something I hope the developers continue to nurture going forward, because in a few years time we could very well see other Roaming Legends use this concept to equal effect.
Overall, The Crown Tundra pleasantly surprised me. It was fascinating seeing how much work went into the DLC and how well it interacts with the rest of the game. It gives the player a reason to revisit the older areas and gives them a much better appreciation for the world of Pokémon. If Gamefreak continues to build on the ideas they've introduced here, it could lead to Pokémon evolving in a way it never has before, which can lead to the next games being radically different. Here's hoping Pokémon can continue to surprise people for many years to come.