🔗 Share this article

I don't recall precisely when the tradition began, however I consistently call all my Pokémon trainers Glitch.

Whether it's a core franchise title or a side project like Pokkén Tournament DX along with Pokémon Go — the moniker never changes. Malfunction switches between male and female characters, with black and purple hair. Sometimes their style is flawless, like in Pokémon Legends: Z-A, the newest addition in this long-running series (and among the more fashion-focused entries). Other times they're confined to the assorted academic attire designs from Pokémon Scarlet & Violet. Yet they're always Glitch.

The Ever-Evolving Realm of Pokemon Games

Similar to my characters, the Pokémon games have evolved between releases, some superficial, others substantial. However at their heart, they stay the same; they're consistently Pokémon to the core. Game Freak discovered an almost flawless mechanics system some 30 years ago, and just recently seriously tried to evolve on it with entries such as Pokémon Legends: Arceus (different timeline, your character faces peril). Throughout every iteration, the core mechanics cycle of capturing and battling alongside adorable monsters has stayed steady for nearly as long as my lifetime.

Shaking Conventions in Pokémon Legends: Z-A

Like Arceus before it, featuring lack of arenas and emphasis on creating a Pokédex, Pokémon Legends: Z-A brings several deviations to that framework. It's set completely in one place, the French capital-inspired Lumiose City of Pokémon X & Y, ditching the expansive journeys of previous games. Pokémon are meant to coexist alongside humans, trainers and civilians, in manners we've only glimpsed before.

Even more radical is Z-A's real-time combat mechanics. It's here the franchise's almost ideal gameplay loop undergoes its biggest evolution to date, replacing deliberate turn-based fights for more frenetic action. And it is immensely fun, even as I find myself ready for a new traditional entry. Though these changes to the traditional Pokemon recipe seem like they form a completely new adventure, Pokémon Legends: Z-A feels as recognizable as every other Pokemon game.

The Core of the Journey: The Z-A Championship

Upon initially reaching in Lumiose City, whatever plans your custom avatar had as a tourist are discarded; you're immediately enlisted by Taunie (if playing as a male character; Urbain if female) to become part of their squad of trainers. You receive one of her Pokémon as your starter and are sent to participate in the Z-A Royale.

The Championship serves as the centerpiece in Pokémon Legends: Z-A. It's comparable to the traditional "gym badges to Elite Four" progression from earlier titles. But here, you battle a handful of opponents to earn the opportunity to compete in a promotion match. Succeed and you will be elevated to a higher tier, with the final objective of achieving rank A.

Live-Action Battles: An Innovative Frontier

Character fights occur at night, while sneaking around the designated combat areas is very enjoyable. I'm constantly trying to get a jump on a rival and unleash a free attack, because everything happens in real time. Attacks function with recharge periods, meaning both combatants can sometimes strike simultaneously concurrently (and knock each other out at once). It's a lot to adjust to at first. Even after playing for nearly thirty hours, I continue to feel like there's much to master in terms of using my Pokémon's moves in ways that complement each other. Positioning also factors as a significant part in battles since your creatures will follow you around or go to specific locations to execute moves (certain ones are distant, while others need to be in close proximity).

The real-time action makes battles progress so quickly that I often sometimes cycling through moves in the same order, even when this results in a less effective approach. There's no time to breathe in Z-A, and plenty of opportunities to get overwhelmed. Creature fights rely on feedback post-move execution, and that data is still present on screen in Z-A, but flashes past rapidly. Occasionally, you cannot process it since diverting attention from your opponent will result in immediate defeat.

Exploring Lumiose Metropolis

Away from combat, you will traverse Lumiose City. It's fairly compact, though tightly filled. Far into the adventure, I continue to find new shops and rooftops to visit. It is also full of charm, and perfectly captures the vision of Pokémon and people living together. Pidgey inhabit its pathways, taking flight when you get near similar to actual city birds obstructing my path when walking through NYC. The monkey trio gleefully hang from lampposts, and bug-Pokémon such as Kakuna cling on branches.

A focus on urban life is a new direction for the franchise, and a welcome one. Even so, navigating the city grows repetitive over time. You might discover a passage you haven't been to, but it feels identical. The architecture lacks character, and many elevated areas and sewer paths provide minimal diversity. While I haven't been to Paris, the model behind Lumiose, I reside in New York for nearly a decade. It's a metropolis where no two blocks differs, and they're all vibrant with differences that provide character. Lumiose City lacks that quality. It has beige structures topped with colored roofs and simply designed terraces.

Where Lumiose City Truly Shines

Where Lumiose City really shines, oddly enough, is indoors. I adored the way creature fights within Sword & Shield take place in football-like stadiums, giving them genuine significance and importance. On the flipside, battles in Scarlet & Violet take place in a field with two random people watching. It's very disappointing. Z-A strikes a middle ground between both extremes. You'll battle in restaurants with patrons watching while they eat. An elite combat club will extend an invitation to a tournament, and you'll battle in its rooftop arena under a lighting fixture (not the Pokemon) suspended overhead. My favorite location is the beautifully designed headquarters of a certain faction with atmospheric illumination and purple partitions. Several distinct battle locales brim with character missing in the overall metropolis as a whole.

The Familiarity of Repetition

Throughout the Championship, along with quelling rogue Mega Evolved Pokémon and filling the Pokédex, there is an unavoidable feeling of, {"I