Despite there being several weeks remaining until Pokemon Legends: Arceus, players know surprisingly little from official sources and trailers. The first "open-world" Pokemon game, even if Pokemon Legends: Arceus won't be fully open world, is going to be quite revolutionary in its game mechanics as well. Pokemon Legends: Arceus will be set in Sinnoh's past when the region was known as Hisui, and it will feature all-new evolutions or regional forms for some Pokemon, making it all the more compelling from a lore perspective.
Nintendo and The Pokemon Company also released remakes of the Generation 4 Pokemon games in November, also set in Sinnoh. Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl are a great way to explore Sinnoh in modern times, whereas Legends: Arceus will be a great view into what life was like back when humans and Pokemon didn't live side-by-side as much. Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl possibly tease Pokemon Legends: Arceus with a new book in the Canalave City library, which mentions an ancient Qwilfish with huge spikes. This has left fans wondering whether there will indeed be a Hisuian form of Qwilfish to come.
Pokemon Legends: Arceus' New Typings and Hisuian Qwilfish
The fact that there could be a regional form for Qwilfish in Pokemon Legends: Arceus has been a recurring theory for some time now, with rumors stemming from some of leaks that appeared online over the past few months. Thus, Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl mentioning a different form of Qwilfish is enough to help prove there may be an Hisuian form of the pufferfish Pokemon, but also that many other leaks might also be true.
As far as Qwilfish is concerned, its regular form is Water/Poison-type, and aptly so considering the fish it draws inspiration from. A Hisuian form of Qwilfish should have a different typing than the original, with a focus on the huge spikes mentioned in this recent teaser. There are only a handful of Steel-type Pokemon confirmed so far in Pokemon Legends: Arceus, so huge spikes could mean the Pokemon is a Steel-type. If it retains its poisonous aspect, considering there are no Poison/Steel-type Pokemon in the series so far, it would be fun to see a Hisuian Qwilfish take that title first.
Qwilfish is known to swallow water to inflate itself and then attack enemies with its spikes, but a Poison/Steel Qwilfish could be more akin to Ferrothorn - though remaining a fish. There are already Pokemon based on species that dwell in the water which are not Water-types themselves, such as Clobbopus and Grapploct from Pokemon Sword and Shield, so this wouldn't be unreasonable.
Furthermore, Pokemon Legends: Arceus is already introducing an first typing combination with Hisuian Zorua and Zoroark, whose Normal/Ghost typing has never been done by any other game in the series. Thus, while a regional form for Qwilfish seems to be a certainty, its typing could be as revolutionary as Normal/Ghost, providing the ultimate counter to Fairy-type Pokemon in terms of both defense and offense. Ultimately though, this remains speculation for the time being, and more information is expected to come over the next month.
Pokemon Legends: Arceus will release for Nintendo Switch on January 28, 2022.