Pokémon Arceus Redesign Is A Huge Hit With Fans

Published Jul 30, 2026, 8:25 AM EDT Nicholas Becher is a gaming journalist with an MFA in Creative Writing from FAU. With extensive experience playing video games, he covers all forms of gaming content at Screen Rant, from breaking news to the latest fan theories. Most-played games range from Clair Obscur to Civ to Elden Ring to Halo 2 and beyond. Sign in to your ScreenRant account Since debuting in Pokémon Diamond and Pearl back in 2006, Arceus still remains one of the franchise's most unique Pokémon, standing as a fan-favorite after all these years as the true creator deity. Said to have emerged from an egg before the universe existed, Arceus is credited with shaping the Pokémon world and creating legendary beings such as Dialga, Palkia, and Giratina. Beyond its importance to the series' mythology, Arceus also remains one of the most original Pokémon ever designed. Its signature Ability, Multitype, allows it to change into any Pokémon type by holding different Plates, making it one of the most OP battlers in the series and earning it the nickname "the Original One." Over the years, Arceus has continued to play a central role in games, movies, and most recently Pokémon Legends: Arceus, which further expanded its mythology for a new generation of fans. Now, long-time Pokémon players are absolutely losing it over a newly surfaced Arceus redesign that shows how the Mythical Pokémon might have looked if things had gone differently (via X). In a recent post from renowned Pokémon leaker Centro LEAKS on X, one of the original Beta designs for Arceus was posted for fans to gawk at and dream about what could have been had things gone a different direction. User Ryan reposted the image, saying that "the unused Beta Arceus design kinda tuff ngl," with thousands of fans agreeing. "Beta Arceus looking cleaner than half the final designs we actually got," says fity.eth, while Kwazii points out there could have been an overlap in design with Giratina at some point, saying they "could've been fused in the past since you can see parts of Giratina in this design." You can take a look at the Beta Arceus design here: Other gamers are pointing out how the Beta design gives Arceus a heavenly vibe, with Saqlain Subzwari saying that this Beta Arceus is the "Biblically accurate" version and steelmindcore pointing out that "Arceus with four eyes woulda been sick. Really adds an eldritch, biblically angelic vibe." Further, fans such as the_littz are baffled as to why we never got a primal or origin form for Arceus in Pokémon Legends: Arceus when the design for it was literally right there for the taking, pointing to a huge missed opportunity for the franchise. While most fans are still satisfied with the final version of Arceus we ended up with, this Beta design is certainly drumming up a wave of "what-if" possibilities and making players rethink what could have been. Pokemon Diamond and Pearl Released April 27, 2007 ESRB E For Everyone Developer(s) Game Freak Publisher(s) Game Freak Engine Unity Franchise Pokemon