In 2013, Pokémon X and Y transformed the franchise with a massive visual overhaul as the first 3D entries in the main series. The games also introduced Mega Evolution, a feature that made strong creatures even bigger and badder, from Mega Charizard to Mega Blastoise.
Releasing over a decade later but set in the same region as X and Y, Pokémon Legends: Z-A (PLZA, for short) feels like a mega evolution for the whole franchise — a colossal achievement that runs splendidly on the Nintendo Switch 2 after the buggy disappointments of Pokémon Scarlet and Violet.
Mega changes to a classic formula
The Pokémon Company's strength has always been its willingness to iterate.
While the past Legends game, Arceus, broke the mold by placing all its battles in a seamless open world, PLZA goes further with a new system that grants players more autonomy over their Pokémon's actions.
In a first for the franchise, trainers no longer need to wait their turn to unleash a Thunderbolt or Hurricane from their Pikachu or Pidgeot. PLZA takes Pokémon's core turn-based combat and ramps up the dynamism in real-time.
Power Points originally dictated how many times a trainer could use a Pokémon's move. Once depleted, you'd need to replenish those points or choose a new ability. PLZA flips that system on its head, with a cooldown timer instead of Power Points dictating how and when you can use your move. All the action happens as your trainer scurries around the battlefield, without players taking turns.
While there isn't an explicit dodge button or command, players can help their Pokémon like Ash Ketchum does on the television show — by using a move to evade a move. Abilities like U-Turn and Volt Switch, which used to swap out active Pokémon, now position them closer to the player's location, allowing them to avoid enemy attacks.
Freedom to throw hands with challengers
This fluid combat brings a wild variety that's been missing from previous Pokémon titles. But the novelty's paired with a familiar structure.
In PLZA, you'll have to climb the region's ladder of ranked trainers (from Z to A, naturally) and claim dominance over the Pokémon "royale" scene of Lumiose City, where the game takes place.
The most hilarious moments in my playthrough came when I hid behind garbage cans and bushes in the Battle Zone (which activates during the game's night cycle) to eagerly jump an unaware trainer and their Pokémon. Climbing the ranks is dirty work, but PLZA makes each encounter absolutely worthwhile, especially when your Pokémon knocks out an unsuspecting Beedrill with a Flamethrower attack!
Lumiose City offers plenty of space to explore, a robust collection of clothing items players have been begging for, and new objectives for those trying to fill their Pokédex or complete research tasks (yes, those make a return from Arceus and expedite some of the endgame content in the best way possible).
A story worth telling
The game's characters are also eccentric and lovable, as we've come to expect from the series.
The protagonist's friends — like Naveen, whose blasé and ineffably cool personality is going to take over the internet — are loving, fierce, and at times incredibly self-aware and even a little self-deprecating. Your player character joins their group, Team MZ, and quickly learns about the city's history and their place in it all.
Through PLZA, The Pokémon Company seems to be making subtle meta-commentary too. Subplots involve overly attached "super fans," aggressive culture connoisseurs, and trainers trapped in parasocial relationships they fail to recognize. What's more, the dialogue doesn't drag on as much as Arceus did, which critics felt slowed the game's pace.
Instead, PLZA channels many of the narrative beats of 2019's Pokémon Sword and Shield. Major twists and revelations are grounded and earned. Its tone and style feel like an anime instead of a traditional Pokémon game, with huge cinematic moments that arrive and resolve in the most satisfying ways. I was surprised by how much the story's incredible ending moved me.
After seeing the credits roll, I can say, hands-down, that Pokémon Legends: Z-A is one of the franchise's best games. Not content to simply trot out new and returning Mega Evolutions, it takes some real risks. While it's best experienced on the Switch 2, rather than through the compromised version for the original Switch, the game's nothing short of a triumph: somehow both epic and cozy — and completely unforgettable.
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