🔗 Share this article

I'm not sure exactly how the custom began, but I consistently call all my Pokémon trainers Glitch.

Whether it's a main series title or a spinoff such as Pokkén Tournament DX along with Pokémon Go — the name always stays the same. Malfunction alternates from male to female avatars, featuring dark and violet locks. Occasionally their style is impeccable, like in Pokémon Legends: Z-A, the latest installment in the enduring series (and among the more fashion-focused releases). Other times they're confined to the assorted academic attire styles of Pokémon Scarlet & Violet. But they remain Malfunction.

The Ever-Evolving World of Pokémon Games

Much like my trainers, the Pokémon games have transformed between installments, some cosmetic, some significant. However at their core, they remain identical; they're consistently Pokémon through and through. Game Freak discovered a nearly perfect mechanics system approximately 30 years ago, and has only truly attempted to innovate on it with entries like Pokémon Legends: Arceus (new era, your avatar faces peril). Throughout every version, the core mechanics cycle of catching and battling with adorable monsters has remained consistent for almost the same duration as my lifetime.

Shaking the Mold with Pokémon Legends: Z-A

Similar to Arceus previously, featuring absence of gyms and focus on creating a creature catalog, Pokémon Legends: Z-A brings multiple changes to that framework. It takes place completely in one place, the Paris-inspired Lumiose Metropolis of Pokémon X & Y, abandoning the region-spanning journeys of earlier titles. Pokémon are intended to coexist with humans, battlers and non-trainers alike, in ways we have merely seen glimpses of before.

Even more radical is Z-A's live-action battle system. It's here the franchise's almost ideal gameplay loop experiences its biggest transformation yet, swapping deliberate sequential fights with something more chaotic. And it's thoroughly enjoyable, even as I find myself eager for a new traditional release. Although these changes to the classic Pokemon recipe sound like they form a completely new experience, Pokémon Legends: Z-A feels as recognizable as any other Pokémon title.

The Heart of the Adventure: The Z-A Royale

When first arriving in Lumiose City, whatever plans your custom avatar planned as a visitor are discarded; you're promptly enlisted by the female guide (if playing as a male character; the male guide if female) to join their squad of trainers. You're gifted one of her Pokémon as your starter and you're dispatched to participate in the Z-A Royale.

The Championship is the epicenter of Pokémon Legends: Z-A. It's comparable to the classic "arena symbols to final challenge" advancement from earlier titles. But here, you battle a handful of trainers to earn the chance to participate in an advancement bout. Succeed and you will be promoted to a higher tier, with the final objective of reaching rank A.

Live-Action Battles: An Innovative Approach

Character fights occur at night, while sneaking around the assigned combat areas is very enjoyable. I'm constantly trying to surprise a rival and unleash an unopposed move, since everything happens in real time. Moves 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. Even after playing for nearly thirty hours, I continue to feel that there is plenty to learn regarding using my Pokémon's moves in ways that work together synergistically. Positioning also factors as a significant part in battles since your creatures will follow you around or move to designated spots to execute moves (some are long-range, while others must be up close and personal).

The real-time action makes battles progress so quickly that I find myself sometimes cycling of attacks in the same order, even when this amounts to a suboptimal strategy. There isn't moment to breathe during Z-A, and numerous chances to become swamped. Creature fights depend on feedback post-move execution, and that data is still present on screen within Z-A, but flashes past quickly. Occasionally, you cannot process it because diverting attention from your adversary will spell certain doom.

Exploring Lumiose City

Outside of battle, you'll explore Lumiose Metropolis. It's relatively small, though tightly filled. Deep into the game, I continue to find new shops and elevated areas to explore. It is also full of charm, and fully realizes the concept of Pokémon and people coexisting. Pidgey populate its sidewalks, flying away as you approach like the real-life pigeons obstructing my path while strolling in New York City. The Pan Trio monkeys gleefully hang from lampposts, and bug-Pokémon like Kakuna cling to trees.

An emphasis on city living is a new direction for the franchise, and a welcome one. Even so, exploring Lumiose grows repetitive eventually. You might discover an alley you never visited, but you wouldn't know it. The architecture lacks character, and most rooftops and underground routes offer little variety. Although I never visited Paris, the model behind the city, I reside in New York for almost ten years. It's a city where no two blocks differs, and all are alive with uniqueness that provide character. Lumiose Metropolis lacks that quality. It has tan buildings topped with colored roofs and simply designed terraces.

The Areas Where Lumiose City Truly Shines

In which the city really shines, oddly enough, is indoors. I loved the way creature fights within Sword & Shield occur in arena-like venues, giving them genuine significance and importance. On the flipside, fights within Scarlet and Violet take place in a field with two random people watching. It's a total letdown. Z-A finds a balance between the two. You will fight in eateries with diners observing while they eat. A fancy battle society will extend an invitation to a competition, and you'll battle in its rooftop arena with a chandelier (not the Pokemon) hanging above. The most memorable spot is the elegantly decorated base of a certain faction with its moody lighting and purple partitions. Various individual combat settings overflow with personality missing in the overall metropolis as a whole.

The Comfort of Repetition

During the Royale, along with quelling rogue Mega Evolved Pokémon and filling the Pokédex, there is an unavoidable sense that, {"I