Hiding incredible story or gameplay content on optional paths has been a long-honoured tradition in video games, and we’ve only been getting an increasing amount of it as time has gone on. As games get larger and denser, often, some of their best content ends up being entirely optional- which, many might argue, makes it that much more special. Here, we’re going to talk about a few such cases of optional scenes and sequences in games that many players may not have experienced at all.
NOTE: There are spoilers ahead for every game in this feature.
MEETING ARCEUS (POKEMON LEGENDS: ARCEUS)
Yes, it’s a bit strange that meeting and battling Arceus is an optional sequence in a game that’s named after it, but if you do invest all the time you need to in order to do so, it turns out to be worth the wait. Appropriately enough given Arceus’ stature and importance in Pokemon lore, it’s a suitably dramatic and monumental moment, as is, of course, the battle that follows. The fight against Arceus is easily the most difficult fight in the entire game- but at the end, you get to catch the Pokemon without whom the Pokemon universe wouldn’t exist. And then you get to put it in the ranch with a dozen Bidoofs.
