🔗 Share this article

I don't recall precisely when the custom started, but I always name all my Pokémon trainers Glitch.

Be it a main series game or a spinoff such as Pokkén Tournament DX along with Pokémon Go — the moniker never changes. Malfunction alternates from male to female characters, with black and purple locks. Sometimes their style is flawless, like in Pokémon Legends: Z-A, the newest installment in the enduring series (and one of the most style-conscious entries). At other moments they're limited to the assorted school uniform styles from Pokémon Scarlet & Violet. Yet they remain Glitch.

The Constantly Changing Realm of Pokemon Games

Similar to my characters, the Pokémon games have evolved between installments, some superficial, some significant. But at their core, they remain the same; they're consistently Pokemon to the core. The developers uncovered an almost flawless mechanics system some 30 years ago, and has only seriously tried to innovate on it with entries like Pokémon Legends: Arceus (new era, your character faces peril). Throughout every iteration, the core mechanics cycle of catching and battling alongside charming creatures has stayed consistent for almost as long as I've been alive.

Breaking the Mold in Pokémon Legends: Z-A

Similar to Arceus before it, with its lack of arenas and focus on creating a Pokédex, Pokémon Legends: Z-A introduces several deviations to that framework. It takes place entirely in one place, the Paris-inspired Lumiose Metropolis from Pokémon X & Y, ditching the region-spanning adventures of earlier games. Pokemon are meant to coexist alongside people, battlers and civilians, in manners we've only glimpsed before.

Far more drastic is Z-A's real-time battle system. It's here the franchise's near-perfect gameplay loop undergoes its biggest evolution yet, replacing deliberate turn-based bouts for more frenetic action. And it's thoroughly enjoyable, even as I feel ready for a new turn-based entry. Although these changes to the classic Pokémon formula sound like they form a completely new experience, Pokémon Legends: Z-A feels as recognizable as every other Pokemon game.

The Core of the Journey: The Z-A Championship

When initially reaching in Lumiose City, any intentions your custom avatar had as a tourist get abandoned; you're promptly recruited by the female guide (if playing as a male character; the male guide if female) to join their squad of battlers. You receive one of her Pokémon as your starter and are sent into the Z-A Royale.

The Championship is the epicenter in Pokémon Legends: Z-A. It's similar to the classic "arena symbols to final challenge" progression of past games. But here, you battle several trainers to earn the chance to participate in an advancement bout. Win and you will be elevated to a higher tier, with the ultimate goal of achieving rank A.

Live-Action Battles: A New Approach

Trainer battles take place during nighttime, while sneaking around the assigned combat areas is very entertaining. I'm constantly attempting to get a jump on an opponent and unleash an unopposed move, since everything happens instantaneously. Attacks operate on cooldown timers, meaning you and your opponent may occasionally attack each other concurrently (and knock each other out simultaneously). It's much to get used to at first. Despite gaming for almost 30 hours, I continue to feel that there is plenty to learn in terms of using my Pokémon's moves in ways that complement each other. Positioning also factors as a major role during combat since your creatures will follow you around or move to designated spots to perform attacks (some are long-range, whereas others must be in close proximity).

The live combat causes fights go so fast that I often sometimes cycling of attacks in identical patterns, despite this amounts to a less effective approach. There isn't moment to breathe during Z-A, and numerous opportunities to become swamped. Pokémon battles depend on feedback post-move execution, and that information remains visible on screen in Z-A, but flashes past quickly. Sometimes, you can't even read it since diverting attention from your adversary will result in certain doom.

Exploring Lumiose Metropolis

Away from combat, you'll explore Lumiose Metropolis. It's fairly compact, though densely packed. Far into the adventure, I'm still discovering unseen stores and rooftops to visit. It is also rich with character, and perfectly captures the vision of creatures and humans living together. Common bird Pokemon inhabit its pathways, taking flight as you approach similar to actual city birds obstructing my path when walking through NYC. The Pan Trio monkeys gleefully hang from lampposts, and bug-Pokémon such as Kakuna cling to trees.

A focus on city living represents a fresh approach for Pokémon, and a welcome one. Nonetheless, navigating the city grows repetitive eventually. You may stumble upon a passage you never visited, but you wouldn't know it. The architecture lacks character, and most rooftops and sewer paths provide minimal diversity. Although I haven't been to Paris, the model behind the city, 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 doesn't have that. It has tan buildings with blue or red roofs and simply designed terraces.

The Areas Where Lumiose City Really Excels

Where Lumiose City truly stands out, surprisingly, is inside buildings. I adored the way creature fights within Sword and Shield take place in football-like stadiums, giving them genuine significance and importance. On the flipside, battles in Scarlet & Violet take place in a field with two random people observing. It's a total letdown. Z-A finds a balance between both extremes. You'll battle in eateries with patrons watching as they dine. A fancy battle society will invite you to a competition, and you will combat on its penthouse court under a lighting fixture (not the Pokemon) suspended overhead. The most memorable spot is the elegantly decorated base of a certain faction with its moody lighting and magenta walls. Several distinct combat settings overflow with personality that's absent from the larger city as a whole.

The Comfort of Routine

During the Championship, along with subduing wild Mega Evolved Pokémon and filling the creature index, there's an inescapable feeling of, {"I