The Pokéshi Doll in Pokémon Legends: Arceus may seem like a simple item, but it’s actually based on a real Japanese doll. In Pokémon Legends: Arceus, players can learn how to craft a Pokéshi Doll during one of its many quests. Although only three pieces of wood are required to craft it, wood isn’t always so easily found around the Hisui region, so players’ inventories likely won’t be overflowing with Pokéshi Dolls.
The only purpose Pokéshi Dolls serve in Pokémon Legends: Arceus is to be sold for money, similar to items like Nuggets and Star Pieces. The item itself has a cylindrical “body” that’s painted pink, with a round “head” with ears and facial markings like Clefairy, the evolution of Pokémon Legends: Arceus’ rare and elusive Cleffa. Close inspection of the item’s icon shows a cute detail: the Clefairy’s hands are painted onto the body, with one hand with a finger pointed upwards like it’s ready to use its well known Metronome attack. Despite all these references to the Pokémon, however, the item itself is based on a real kind of Japanese doll.
The Kokeshi doll is a Japanese doll very similar to the Pokéshi Doll. It is traditionally carved from multiple pieces of wood that are stuck together. The oldest kinds of Kokeshi have a cylindrical body and round head, just like the Pokéshi Doll. They also traditionally used only three colors of paint – red, yellow, and black – when putting the details onto the head and body. Although the craftable Pokémon Legends: Arceus item Pokéshi Doll doesn’t use those colors exactly, its very limited color palette of black, brown, and shades of pink is highly reminiscent of the real deal. Over time, some Kokeshi dolls were made using more wood, including extra pieces for hair and sometimes even arms, and the body shapes have changed, too. Although still mostly cylindrical in nature, Kokeshi doll bodies can now be a lot more varied; some Kokeshi dolls are even made from a single block of wood for an especially unique look.
The Japanese Kokeshi Doll Inspired Legends: Arceus’ Pokéshi Doll (And Nintendo’s Miis)
Pokemon Legends Arceus Pokeshi Doll And Nintendo Mii In Front Of Various Modern Kokeshi Dolls
The Kokeshi doll originated in the Touhoku region of Japan, which encompasses the six northernmost prefectures of Honshu, Japan’s largest island. Just north of Touhoku is the island of Hokkaido, which is the basis for the chilly and mountainous Sinnoh region and Pokémon Legends: Arceus’ Hisui region. The NPC who asks the player to craft a Pokéshi Doll for him already knows the recipe for one, which could be a reference to how the Kokeshi doll made its own way across Japan. Kokeshi dolls were originally made to be used as toys, but they’ve also become collectible works of art, similar to how the Pokéshi Doll can be sold for money. The Pokéshi Doll may have been the in-universe inspiration for the Poké Doll item, however, which is meant to be played with like a regular toy. The Pokéshi Doll likely didn’t keep the Poké Doll’s effect because in Pokémon Legends: Arceus, running away from regular wild Pokémon always succeeds.
Pokémon Legends: Arceus isn’t the first time a Nintendo property has been inspired by the Kokeshi doll, however. With their cylindrical bodies, rounded heads, minimal colors, and simplified facial features that look like they could be painted on with a brush, the iconic Mii characters are also based on the Japanese Kokeshi. Unlike the Pokéshi Doll, however, the Miis have their own distinct limbs that aren’t painted on.