Pokemon Legends: Arceus Is About To Be Spoiled For Everyone

Although a handful "Pokemon Legends: Arceus" spoilers have already leaked onto the internet, a whole mess of players have apparently gotten their hands on early copies of "Pokemon Legends: Arceus," and so leak season has truly begun. Many fans have reported spilled details all over the internet, including major plot points, character sprites, and screenshots. Most of the leaks have been posted to social media over the past several hours, so those who plan on playing the game spoiler-free should mute keywords on Twitter and Reddit and watch their step in online spaces. 

Nintendo seems to be trying its best to scrub the internet of spoilers, but some of them are still available online. Onlookers can see the "unavailable" media messages up and down the Twitter feeds of PoryLeeks and other popular Poke-leakers, presumably because of Nintendo copyright strikes. For example, PoryLeeks still has sprites of unofficially revealed Hisiuan Pokemon posted on their timeline and has retweeted information related to leaks. Some Pokemon communities will likely continue posting information about the game, even as Nintendo scrambles to remove all traces. 

However, all the leaks raise the question: Where did these copies come from? Here's what we know about these wild copies of "Pokemon Legends: Arceus."

It's unclear how each person received their early copy of "Pokemon Legends: Arceus." However, many of them appear to be physical copies meant to be sold in stores rather than digital codes. PoryLeeks still has some photos of people holding physical copies in their hands. Similar photos continue to circulate around social media.

"Investigating for more information. Will keep you updated," PoryLeeks noted in their tweet about the physical copy.

According to various reports, these shady copies of the latest "Pokemon" adventure are being sold on eBay and other reseller sites, too. PoryLeeks called out an eBay listing that seemed to indicate at least 15 users had paid $75 each for early copies (with overnight shipping) from a seller based in New Jersey — and that's just one of the alleged leakers. Those who paid for copies and those selling them haven't revealed much about themselves, most likely to avoid legal trouble.

As such, it's difficult to confirm the credibility of these leaks. However, Nintendo's swift action implies that at least some of them are real. For now, those who have come across spoilers should take them with a grain of salt and figure out the truth for themselves when they finally play the game. "Pokemon Legends: Arceus" releases for the Nintendo Switch on January 28, 2022.