🔗 Share this article

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

Whether it's a core franchise title or a spinoff like Pokkén Tournament DX along with Pokémon Go — the name never changes. Glitch switches between male and female avatars, with dark and violet hair. Sometimes their style is impeccable, like in Pokémon Legends: Z-A, the latest addition in the enduring series (and among the more style-conscious entries). At other moments they're confined to the various academic attire designs from Pokémon Scarlet & Violet. Yet they're always Malfunction.

The Constantly Changing Realm of Pokémon Games

Similar to my trainers, the Pokemon titles have transformed between installments, some superficial, some substantial. But at their heart, they remain the same; they're always Pokemon through and through. Game Freak uncovered an almost flawless mechanics system approximately three decades back, and just recently seriously tried to evolve upon it with games such as Pokémon Legends: Arceus (new era, your avatar faces peril). Throughout all iteration, the core gameplay loop of capturing and battling with charming creatures has stayed consistent for nearly the same duration as my lifetime.

Breaking Conventions with Pokémon Legends: Z-A

Like Arceus previously, with its lack of arenas and focus on creating a Pokédex, Pokémon Legends: Z-A introduces several changes into that framework. It's set completely in a single location, the French capital-inspired Lumiose City of Pokémon X and Y, abandoning the expansive journeys of earlier titles. Pokémon are intended to live together alongside people, battlers and non-trainers alike, in ways we have merely glimpsed before.

Even more radical than that Z-A's live-action combat mechanics. This is where the series' near-perfect core cycle undergoes its biggest transformation to date, replacing deliberate sequential fights with something more chaotic. And it's thoroughly enjoyable, even as I find myself ready for a new turn-based release. Though these changes to the traditional Pokemon recipe sound like they create an entirely fresh experience, Pokémon Legends: Z-A is as familiar as every other Pokémon title.

The Core of the Journey: The Z-A Championship

Upon first arriving at Lumiose Metropolis, whatever plans your created character planned as a visitor are discarded; you're immediately enlisted by the female guide (if playing as a male character; the male guide if female) to join her team of battlers. You receive a creature from them as your starter 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 "gym badges to Elite Four" advancement from earlier titles. However here, you fight several trainers to gain the opportunity to participate in an advancement bout. Win and you'll be elevated to a higher tier, with the ultimate goal of achieving the top rank.

Live-Action Combat: An Innovative Frontier

Character fights occur during nighttime, and navigating stealthily the assigned battle zones is very entertaining. I'm always attempting to get a jump on an opponent and unleash an unopposed move, because everything happens instantaneously. Moves function with cooldown timers, meaning both combatants may occasionally attack each other concurrently (and knock each other out simultaneously). It's a lot to adjust to at first. Despite playing for nearly thirty hours, I continue to feel that there is plenty to learn regarding using my Pokémon's moves in methods that complement each other. Placement also plays a significant part in battles since your creatures will follow you around or move to specific locations to perform attacks (some are long-range, whereas others need to be in close proximity).

The live combat causes fights go so fast that I find myself repeating sequences of attacks in the same order, even when this amounts to a less effective approach. There's no time to breathe in Z-A, and numerous chances to become swamped. Creature fights depend on feedback post-move execution, and that information remains visible on screen within Z-A, but whips by quickly. Occasionally, you can't even read it since diverting attention from your adversary will result in immediate defeat.

Navigating Lumiose Metropolis

Outside of battle, you'll explore Lumiose Metropolis. It's relatively small, although densely packed. Far into the adventure, I continue to find new shops and rooftops to explore. It is also rich with character, and fully realizes the vision of creatures and humans living together. Pidgey populate its sidewalks, flying away when you get near similar to actual city birds getting in my way while strolling through NYC. The Pan Trio monkeys gleefully hang on streetlights, and insect creatures such as Kakuna cling on branches.

An emphasis on city living is a new direction for the franchise, and a welcome one. Even so, navigating the city grows repetitive eventually. You might discover a passage you never visited, but you wouldn't know it. The building design is devoid of personality, and most rooftops and underground routes offer little variety. While I never visited Paris, the inspiration for the city, I reside in New York for almost ten years. It's a metropolis where no two blocks differs, and all are alive with uniqueness that give them soul. Lumiose City doesn't have that. It features beige structures topped with colored roofs and simply designed balconies.

Where The Metropolis Really Excels

Where Lumiose City truly stands out, oddly enough, is inside buildings. I loved how Pokémon battles within Sword and Shield occur in football-like stadiums, giving them genuine significance and meaning. Conversely, battles in Scarlet and Violet happen on a court with few spectators watching. It's very disappointing. Z-A finds a balance between both extremes. You will fight in eateries with patrons watching while they eat. An elite combat club will extend an invitation to a competition, and you will combat in its rooftop arena with a chandelier (not the Pokemon) hanging above. The most memorable spot is the beautifully designed base of a certain faction with atmospheric illumination and magenta walls. Various individual combat settings overflow with personality missing in the overall metropolis as a whole.

The Comfort of Repetition

Throughout the Royale, along with subduing wild powered-up creatures and completing the creature index, there is an unavoidable feeling of, {"I