🔗 Share this article

I don't recall exactly how the tradition began, however I always name every one of my Pokémon trainers Glitch.

Be it a main series game or a spinoff such as Pokkén Tournament DX along with Pokémon Go — the name never changes. Glitch alternates from male to female characters, with dark and violet locks. Sometimes their fashion is flawless, like in Pokémon Legends: Z-A, the newest installment in the enduring series (and among the most fashion-focused entries). Other times they're limited to the various academic attire styles from Pokémon Scarlet and Violet. Yet they remain Glitch.

The Constantly Changing World of Pokémon Games

Much like my trainers, the Pokémon games have evolved between releases, with certain superficial, others significant. However at their core, they stay the same; they're consistently Pokémon to the core. The developers uncovered a nearly perfect gameplay formula some 30 years ago, and just recently truly attempted to evolve on it with entries like Pokémon Legends: Arceus (new era, your avatar faces peril). Throughout every version, the fundamental gameplay loop of catching and battling alongside adorable monsters has stayed consistent for nearly as long as my lifetime.

Shaking the Mold with Pokémon Legends: Z-A

Similar to Arceus before it, featuring absence of gyms and emphasis on creating a creature catalog, Pokémon Legends: Z-A brings multiple changes into that formula. It takes place completely in a single location, the Paris-inspired Lumiose Metropolis from Pokémon X & Y, abandoning the region-spanning journeys of earlier titles. Pokemon are intended to live together with people, trainers and non-trainers alike, in ways we've only seen glimpses of before.

Even more drastic than that Z-A's real-time combat mechanics. This is where the series' near-perfect core cycle undergoes its most significant transformation yet, replacing methodical sequential bouts with more frenetic action. And it is thoroughly enjoyable, despite I feel ready for another turn-based release. Although these alterations to the classic Pokémon formula sound like they form an entirely fresh adventure, Pokémon Legends: Z-A feels as recognizable as every other Pokémon title.

The Heart of the Adventure: The Z-A Royale

Upon initially reaching in Lumiose City, any intentions your created character planned as a visitor are discarded; you're promptly recruited by the female guide (for male avatars; the male guide if female) to become part of their squad of trainers. You're gifted one of her Pokémon as your first partner and you're dispatched into the Z-A Championship.

The Championship is the epicenter in Pokémon Legends: Z-A. It's comparable to the classic "arena symbols to final challenge" progression from earlier titles. But here, you fight a handful of trainers to gain the opportunity to compete in an advancement bout. Win and you'll be elevated to the next rank, with the ultimate goal of achieving the top rank.

Live-Action Combat: A New Approach

Trainer battles occur at night, while sneaking around the assigned battle zones is very enjoyable. I'm always trying to get a jump on an opponent and launch an unopposed move, because everything happens in real time. Attacks function with recharge periods, meaning both combatants may occasionally strike simultaneously concurrently (and knock each other out simultaneously). It's a lot to get used to initially. Even after gaming for almost thirty hours, I continue to feel like there's much to master regarding employing my creatures' attacks in ways that work together synergistically. Placement also factors as a significant part in battles as your Pokémon will follow you around or go to designated spots to perform attacks (some are long-range, while others need to be up close and personal).

The live combat causes fights go so fast that I often repeating sequences through moves in the same order, even when this amounts to a suboptimal strategy. There isn't moment to breathe during Z-A, and numerous opportunities to become swamped. Creature fights depend on feedback after using an attack, and that information is still present on screen within Z-A, but whips by rapidly. Sometimes, you cannot process it since diverting attention from your opponent will result in immediate defeat.

Navigating Lumiose City

Outside of battle, you will traverse Lumiose Metropolis. It's fairly compact, although tightly filled. Far into the adventure, I continue to find unseen stores and rooftops to visit. It is also full of charm, and perfectly captures the vision of Pokémon and people coexisting. Pidgey inhabit its pathways, taking flight as you approach similar to actual city birds getting in my way while strolling through NYC. The monkey trio gleefully hang from lampposts, and bug-Pokémon like Kakuna cling on branches.

A focus on urban life represents a fresh approach for the franchise, and a welcome one. Nonetheless, navigating the city becomes rote eventually. You may stumble upon an alley you haven't been to, but it feels identical. The architecture is devoid of personality, and most rooftops and underground routes offer little variety. While I never visited Paris, the model behind the city, I've lived in NYC for nearly a decade. It's a metropolis where no two blocks differs, and all are vibrant with differences that give them soul. Lumiose Metropolis lacks that quality. It has beige structures with blue or red roofs and flatly rendered terraces.

Where The Metropolis Truly Shines

In which the city truly stands out, surprisingly, is indoors. I adored the way creature fights in Sword and Shield take place in arena-like venues, giving them real weight and meaning. Conversely, fights within Scarlet and Violet happen in a field with few spectators watching. It's a total letdown. Z-A finds a balance between the two. You will fight in eateries with patrons watching while they eat. A fancy battle society will invite you to a competition, and you'll battle on its penthouse court with a chandelier (not Chandelure) hanging above. 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 larger city as a whole.

The Comfort of Routine

During the Royale, along with subduing wild Mega Evolved Pokémon and completing the Pokédex, there is an unavoidable feeling of, {"I