🔗 Share this article

I don't recall precisely when the custom started, but I consistently call all my Pokemon characters Glitch.

Whether it's a main series title or a side project like Pokkén Tournament DX and Pokémon Go — the name always stays the same. Glitch switches from male to female characters, featuring dark and violet locks. Occasionally their fashion is impeccable, like in Pokémon Legends: Z-A, the newest installment in this enduring series (and among the more style-conscious entries). Other times they're confined to the assorted school uniform styles from Pokémon Scarlet and Violet. Yet they remain Malfunction.

The Constantly Changing Realm of Pokémon Titles

Similar to my characters, the Pokémon games have transformed across installments, with certain cosmetic, some significant. But at their heart, they remain identical; they're consistently Pokemon through and through. Game Freak discovered an almost flawless gameplay formula approximately 30 years ago, and has only truly attempted to evolve on it with entries like Pokémon Legends: Arceus (different timeline, your character is now in danger). Across all iteration, the fundamental mechanics cycle of capturing and battling alongside charming creatures has remained steady for almost the same duration as I've been alive.

Shaking the Mold in Pokémon Legends: Z-A

Similar to Arceus previously, with its absence of gyms and emphasis on creating a creature catalog, Pokémon Legends: Z-A brings multiple deviations to that formula. It's set completely in one place, the French capital-inspired Lumiose Metropolis from Pokémon X & Y, ditching the expansive adventures of earlier games. Pokemon are intended to coexist with humans, trainers and non-trainers alike, in ways we've only seen glimpses of previously.

Even more drastic is Z-A's real-time combat mechanics. It's here the franchise's near-perfect core cycle experiences its biggest transformation to date, swapping deliberate sequential fights with something more chaotic. And it is immensely fun, despite I feel ready for a new turn-based entry. Although these changes to the classic Pokemon recipe sound like they create an entirely fresh adventure, Pokémon Legends: Z-A is as familiar as every other Pokémon title.

The Heart of the Journey: The Z-A Royale

Upon initially reaching in Lumiose City, whatever plans your created character planned as a visitor get abandoned; you're promptly enlisted by the female guide (if playing as a male character; Urbain for female characters) to join her team of battlers. You receive one of her Pokémon as your starter and are sent to participate in the Z-A Championship.

The Royale serves as the centerpiece in Pokémon Legends: Z-A. It's comparable to the classic "gym badges to Elite Four" progression from earlier titles. However here, you battle a handful of opponents to gain the chance to compete in a promotion match. Win and you'll be promoted to a higher tier, with the final objective of achieving the top rank.

Real-Time Battles: A New Approach

Character fights take place during nighttime, while sneaking around the assigned battle zones is quite enjoyable. I'm always trying to surprise a rival and launch an unopposed move, since everything happens in real time. Attacks operate on cooldown timers, meaning you and your opponent can sometimes strike simultaneously concurrently (and knock each other out simultaneously). It's much to get used to initially. Despite playing for nearly thirty hours, I still feel like there's plenty to learn in terms of using my Pokémon's moves in methods that complement each other. Positioning also factors as a significant part in battles as your Pokémon will follow you around or go to designated spots to execute moves (certain ones are distant, while others must be in close proximity).

The real-time action makes battles go so fast that I find myself sometimes cycling of attacks in identical patterns, even when this results in a less effective approach. There's no time to breathe in Z-A, and plenty of chances to get overwhelmed. Pokémon battles rely on feedback after using an attack, and that information remains visible on the display in Z-A, but whips by rapidly. Sometimes, you cannot process it because diverting attention from your opponent will result in certain doom.

Navigating Lumiose City

Outside of battle, you will traverse Lumiose Metropolis. It's fairly compact, though tightly filled. Far into the adventure, I'm still discovering unseen stores and rooftops to explore. It's also rich with character, and fully realizes the vision of creatures and humans living together. Pidgey inhabit its pathways, flying away when you get near similar to actual pigeons obstructing my path when walking in New York City. The Pan Trio monkeys gleefully hang on streetlights, and insect creatures such as Kakuna cling to trees.

An emphasis on urban life is a new direction for Pokémon, and a welcome one. Nonetheless, navigating the city becomes rote eventually. You might discover a passage you haven't been to, but you wouldn't know it. The building design is devoid of personality, and most rooftops and underground routes provide minimal diversity. Although I never visited the French capital, the model behind Lumiose, I reside in New York for almost ten years. It's a city where no two blocks are the same, and all are alive with uniqueness that provide character. Lumiose City lacks that quality. It has beige structures with blue or red roofs and simply designed terraces.

Where The Metropolis Really Excels

Where the city really shines, surprisingly, is inside buildings. I adored how Pokémon battles within Sword & Shield occur in football-like stadiums, giving them real weight and meaning. On the flipside, fights within Scarlet & Violet happen on a court with few spectators observing. It's very disappointing. Z-A strikes a middle ground between the two. You will fight in eateries with patrons watching while they eat. A fancy battle society will invite you to a tournament, and you will combat on its penthouse court with a chandelier (not Chandelure) hanging above. My favorite location is the elegantly decorated headquarters of a certain faction with atmospheric illumination and magenta walls. Several distinct combat settings brim with character that's absent from the larger city in general.

The Familiarity of Routine

Throughout the Championship, along with subduing wild powered-up creatures and filling the creature index, there's an inescapable sense that, {"I