Pokémon Legends Arceus just dropped a new six-minute trailer ahead of its release at the end of the month. Amid the majestic graphics and the terrifying attacks from wild Pokémon, fans also got a hint of something else brewing in the new game. Apparently, the semi-open world RPG set in the Hisui region could involve changes to how to evolve Pokémon normally done by leveling up. Here's everything we know so far about evolutions in Pokémon Legends Arceus.

Pokémon Legends Arceus gameplay trailer

In the 25 years that Pokémon has been around, we've seen plenty of changes to the game mechanics over time. A trip down memory lane, fans will recall the division between physical and special attacks, the addition of mega evolutions, the Fairy type, and various ways to evolve Pokémon through new items or reaching a certain happiness level. But for the most part, the “regular” way of evolving Pokémon has never changed throughout the 25 years: by gaining experience (through battles, or through catching ‘mons in Let's Go Eevee/Pikachu), leveling up and then hitting that necessary level.

But now, that age-old mechanic could change. (Not necessarily for the better, the way we see it). When Nintendo Japan dropped the gameplay trailer for Pokémon Legends Arceus, fans spotted that a Cyndaquil had not evolved even though it was already beyond level 14, the level at which it would normally evolve into Quilava. Of course, maybe the clip just wanted to show the starter ‘mon and it was intentionally kept as a Cyndaquil and prevented from evolving. But you could also argue the opposite, and wonder why the developers didn't just use a lower level Cyndaquil.

New Pokémon evolution mechanic?

Popular French insider Kelios responded on social media, saying that the evolution mechanic has changed in PLA. “They don't evolve by leveling, but by completing tasks,” the tweet read. That's a huge change in the eight generations of Pokémon so far, especially for it to come in the midst of the origin story of Sinnoh.

We don't know for sure yet what those tasks might involve, but it could be things like catching Pokémon to fill up the Pokedex or completing certain missions. It would make a bit of sense, considering that Legends Arceus is not like the other titles in the franchise, because it doesn't have the Pokémon League. Trainers aren't on a journey to beat gym leaders and become the champion, but instead it's a more exploratory RPG. It even introduces a new battle system, so it might not be such a surprise after all that we might also get a new progression system or evolution mechanic.

Nevertheless, Kelios' statement plus the insight from the trailer does pose an interesting prospect for the Pokémon franchise. Whether this applies to all Pokémon available in PLA or just starters—and whether it is legitimately a leak or just speculation on Kelios' end—or even if this mechanic will apply to future Pokémon titles, we'll just have to wait for the game to drop by January 28.