This article contains Detective Pikachu Returns spoilers.Detective Pikachu Returnsis an intriguing game for many, serving as a sequel to the 3DS gameDetective Pikachu, taking place two years afterward. First impressions from both fans and critics have sat at being either mixed or average, as the game has caught negative attention through flaws such as its lack of lighting in certain settings and the wayDetective Pikachu Returns' deductionshold players' hands throughout the adventure. Despite it’s flaws, though, it offers a heartfelt story in which players get to experience and strengthen the bond between Tim Goodman and his partner Pikachu by playing as either character at different points of the game.
Taking place in the world ofPokemon, the cases that Tim and Detective Pikachu have to solve have limitless possibilities, and the game manages to showcase this by putting them in a fair few situations. One case in Detainee Pikachu sees the Electric-Type behind bars for a crime he didn’t commit. This leads to players finding evidence as both Tim and Detective Pikachu separately to prove the critter’s innocence. However, as the case unfolds, a situation crops up that could have made the case far more interesting.
RELATED:Why Detective Pikachu Returns Fans Should Check Out The Murder of Sonic the Hedgehog
Detective Pikachu Returns' Detainee Pikachu Case
As Pikachubefriends a few fan-favorite Pokemonin prison, Tim Goodman investigates the scene of the crime to understand how and why Pikachu was framed. While the evidence clearly suggests that an Electric-Type creature did the damage, there’s a hole in the accusation with the fact that Detective Pikachu can’t use any moves due to his strange amnesia. However, the number of critters detained by the Pokemon Protection Bureau only grow in number, and it’s clear something else is going on as many of the “crimes” seem rather petty and overblown.
Even though it’s clear that Detective Pikachu is innocent, many witnesses say they saw at leastanother Pikachucommit the crime. As Tim goes to several citizens to find the truth, the PPB arrests other Electric-Type Pokemon in the meantime, namely a Morpeko for supposedly stealing someone’s food, and a Dedenne, who insists that it was arrested because of Detective Pikachu’s crime. As hilarious as the Dedenne’s claim is, it shows what the Detainee Pikachu case could have been - a game of Whodunit with several ofPokemon’s “Pikachu Clones.”
Throughout the franchise’s many generations, there have been a number of electric rodents that have been added to the series that aim to have the same appeal as Pikachu. Dedenne, for example, is meant to resemble a gerbil to Pikachu’s “Mouse Pokemon” classification, and Morpeko is the hamster of the line-up. The idea oftaking all the Pikachu Clonessuch as Pachirisu, Plusle, Minun and more and lining them up to discover who the culprit is sounds like an incredibly funny case, especially since the true culprit in the game was a Ditto Transformed into Pikachu.
Unfortunately, Morpeko and Dedenne are the only Pikachu Clones arrested alongside Detective Pikachu, as well as the only other Electric-Type rodents seen in thisPokemonspin-off title. The Detainee Pikachu case instead revolves around a rather random group of Pokemon teaming up with the detective to lead to a prison break, which helps lead into the final interrogation of theDetective Pikachu Returnscase. The fact that players can instigate and be a part of a bunch of Pokemon breaking out of prison is certainly fun, but compared to what could have happened with the Pika-Clones, it seems like an opportunity was missed to call all of their likenesses into question in a truly hilarious way.
Detective Pikachu Returnsis available now for Nintendo Switch.
MORE:Detective Pikachu Returns’ Local Jobs Needed More Than a Pat on the Back
