🔗 Share this article

I'm not sure precisely when the custom started, however I always name every one of my Pokémon trainers Glitch.

Whether it's a main series game or a spinoff like Pokkén Tournament DX along with Pokémon Go — the moniker never changes. Glitch switches from male to female characters, featuring dark and violet locks. Occasionally their fashion is flawless, like in Pokémon Legends: Z-A, the newest addition in this enduring series (and among the most fashion-focused entries). Other times they're confined to the assorted academic attire styles of Pokémon Scarlet and Violet. Yet they remain Glitch.

The Ever-Evolving Realm of Pokémon Games

Similar to my characters, the Pokémon games have evolved across installments, with certain superficial, some substantial. But at their core, they stay the same; they're consistently Pokemon to the core. Game Freak discovered a nearly perfect gameplay formula approximately 30 years ago, and just recently seriously tried to innovate on it with entries such as Pokémon Legends: Arceus (different timeline, your avatar faces peril). Throughout all iteration, the fundamental mechanics cycle of catching and fighting alongside charming creatures has stayed steady for almost the same duration as my lifetime.

Shaking Conventions with Pokémon Legends: Z-A

Similar to Arceus previously, featuring lack of arenas and emphasis on creating a Pokédex, Pokémon Legends: Z-A brings several changes into that framework. It's set entirely in one place, the French capital-inspired Lumiose City of Pokémon X and Y, ditching the region-spanning journeys of earlier games. Pokémon are meant to live together alongside people, battlers and civilians, in manners we've only glimpsed previously.

Even more radical than that Z-A's real-time combat mechanics. It's here the franchise's near-perfect gameplay loop undergoes its most significant transformation yet, swapping deliberate turn-based fights with more frenetic action. And it's immensely fun, even as I find myself eager for a new turn-based entry. Though these changes to the classic Pokémon formula sound like they form an entirely fresh experience, Pokémon Legends: Z-A feels as recognizable as any other Pokemon game.

The Heart of the Journey: The Z-A Championship

Upon initially reaching at Lumiose Metropolis, whatever plans your created character planned as a visitor get abandoned; you're immediately enlisted by Taunie (for male avatars; Urbain for female characters) to become part of her team of trainers. You're gifted one of her Pokémon as your first partner and are sent into the Z-A Championship.

The Championship serves as the centerpiece of Pokémon Legends: Z-A. It's comparable to the traditional "gym badges to Elite Four" progression from earlier titles. But here, you fight several trainers to gain the opportunity to compete in an advancement bout. Win and you will be elevated to the next rank, with the ultimate goal of reaching rank A.

Live-Action Combat: A New Frontier

Character fights occur during nighttime, and sneaking around the assigned combat areas is quite enjoyable. I'm constantly attempting to get a jump on an opponent and unleash an unopposed move, since everything happens instantaneously. Attacks operate on recharge periods, indicating both combatants can sometimes attack each other at the same time (and defeat each other simultaneously). It's a lot to get used to at first. Despite playing for nearly 30 hours, I still feel that there is plenty to learn in terms of using my Pokémon's moves in ways that work together synergistically. Positioning also plays a significant part during combat as your Pokémon will follow you around or go to designated spots to execute moves (some are long-range, while others must be in close proximity).

The live combat causes fights go so fast that I find myself sometimes cycling through moves in the same order, even when this amounts to a less effective approach. There's no time to breathe during Z-A, and numerous chances to become swamped. Pokémon battles rely on response after using an attack, and that information is still present on screen in Z-A, but whips by quickly. Occasionally, you cannot process it since diverting attention from your adversary will spell immediate defeat.

Exploring Lumiose City

Away from combat, you'll explore Lumiose City. It's fairly compact, though densely packed. Far into the adventure, I continue to find new shops and elevated areas to explore. It's also rich with character, and perfectly captures the vision of Pokémon and people coexisting. Pidgey inhabit its pathways, taking flight as you approach similar to actual pigeons obstructing my path when walking through NYC. The monkey trio joyfully cling from lampposts, and bug-Pokémon such as Kakuna attach themselves on branches.

An emphasis on city living is a new direction for the franchise, and a welcome one. Nonetheless, exploring Lumiose becomes rote over time. You might discover an alley you haven't been to, but you wouldn't know it. The architecture is devoid of personality, and most rooftops and underground routes offer little variety. Although I haven't been to the French capital, the inspiration for the city, I reside in New York for almost ten years. It's a city where no two blocks are the same, and they're all vibrant with differences that give them soul. Lumiose City lacks that quality. It features beige structures topped with colored roofs and flatly rendered balconies.

Where Lumiose City Truly Shines

Where the city really shines, surprisingly, is inside buildings. I adored how Pokémon battles within Sword and Shield occur in football-like stadiums, giving them genuine significance and meaning. Conversely, battles in Scarlet & Violet happen in a field with few spectators observing. It's very disappointing. Z-A finds a balance between both extremes. You will fight in restaurants with diners observing while they eat. An elite combat club will invite you to a tournament, and you will combat in its rooftop arena with a chandelier (not the Pokemon) hanging above. My favorite location is the elegantly decorated base of a certain faction with atmospheric illumination and magenta walls. Several distinct combat settings brim with character that's absent from the larger city as a whole.

The Comfort of Repetition

Throughout the Championship, as well as subduing wild powered-up creatures and filling the creature index, there is an unavoidable sense that, {"I