🔗 Share this article

I'm not sure precisely when the custom started, however I consistently call every one of my Pokémon trainers Malfunction.

Whether it's a core franchise game or a spinoff such as Pokkén Tournament DX and Pokémon Go — the name never changes. Malfunction alternates between male and female avatars, featuring black and purple hair. Occasionally their style is flawless, like in Pokémon Legends: Z-A, the latest addition in the enduring franchise (and one of the most fashion-focused releases). Other times they're confined to the assorted school uniform styles from Pokémon Scarlet and Violet. But they're always Malfunction.

The Ever-Evolving World of Pokemon Games

Much like my characters, the Pokémon games have transformed across installments, some cosmetic, others significant. But at their heart, they stay the same; they're always Pokemon to the core. Game Freak discovered a nearly perfect mechanics system approximately three decades back, and just recently truly attempted to innovate upon it with entries like Pokémon Legends: Arceus (new era, your character is now in danger). Throughout all iteration, the fundamental mechanics cycle of catching and battling alongside charming creatures has stayed consistent for almost as long as my lifetime.

Breaking the Mold with Pokémon Legends: Z-A

Like Arceus before it, featuring lack of arenas and focus on creating a creature catalog, Pokémon Legends: Z-A introduces several deviations into that formula. It takes place completely in one place, the French capital-inspired Lumiose Metropolis from Pokémon X & Y, abandoning the region-spanning journeys of earlier games. Pokemon are meant to live together with humans, battlers and non-trainers alike, in ways we've only glimpsed previously.

Even more radical than that Z-A's real-time combat mechanics. This is where the franchise's almost ideal gameplay loop undergoes its biggest evolution yet, replacing deliberate sequential bouts for something more chaotic. And it is thoroughly enjoyable, even as I feel ready for another traditional entry. Though these changes to the traditional Pokémon formula sound like they form a completely new experience, Pokémon Legends: Z-A feels as recognizable as any other Pokemon game.

The Heart of the Journey: The Z-A Championship

Upon initially reaching at Lumiose Metropolis, whatever plans your custom avatar planned as a visitor are discarded; you're immediately enlisted by Taunie (for male avatars; the male guide if female) to become part of her team of battlers. You're gifted a creature from them as your starter and you're dispatched to participate in the Z-A Championship.

The Royale is the epicenter of Pokémon Legends: Z-A. It's comparable to the classic "gym badges to Elite Four" progression of past games. But here, you fight several trainers to earn the opportunity to participate in a promotion match. Win and you'll be elevated to the next rank, with the ultimate goal of reaching the top rank.

Real-Time Battles: A New Approach

Trainer battles occur at night, while navigating stealthily the designated combat areas is very entertaining. I'm constantly attempting to get a jump on a rival and launch an unopposed move, because everything happens instantaneously. Moves function with cooldown timers, indicating both combatants may occasionally attack each other concurrently (and knock each other out simultaneously). It's a lot to get used to initially. Even after playing for nearly 30 hours, I continue to feel like there's much to master in terms of employing my creatures' attacks in ways that complement each other. Placement also factors as a major role in battles since your creatures will follow you around or go to designated spots to perform attacks (some are long-range, whereas others must be in close proximity).

The live combat makes battles progress so quickly that I find myself repeating sequences of attacks in identical patterns, even when this amounts to a less effective approach. There isn't moment to pause during Z-A, and plenty of opportunities to become swamped. Creature fights depend on feedback post-move execution, and that data is still present on screen in Z-A, but flashes past quickly. Occasionally, you cannot process it since taking your eyes off your opponent will result in immediate defeat.

Navigating Lumiose City

Outside of battle, you will traverse Lumiose City. It's relatively small, though densely packed. Far into the adventure, I continue to find unseen stores and rooftops to explore. It's also full of charm, and fully realizes the vision of Pokémon and people coexisting. Pidgey populate its sidewalks, taking flight when you get near like the real-life pigeons obstructing my path when walking through NYC. The Pan Trio monkeys joyfully cling on streetlights, and insect creatures such as Kakuna attach themselves to trees.

An emphasis on urban life is a new direction for the franchise, and a welcome one. Nonetheless, exploring Lumiose becomes rote eventually. You might discover a passage you haven't been to, but it feels identical. The building design is devoid of personality, and many elevated areas and sewer paths offer little variety. Although I haven't been to Paris, the model behind the city, I've lived in NYC for almost ten years. It's a metropolis where every district are the same, and they're all alive with uniqueness that provide character. Lumiose Metropolis doesn't have that. It features tan buildings topped with colored roofs and flatly rendered terraces.

Where The Metropolis Really Excels

In which the city really shines, surprisingly, is inside buildings. I adored how Pokémon battles within Sword and Shield occur in arena-like venues, providing them real weight and meaning. Conversely, battles in Scarlet and Violet happen in a field with few spectators watching. It's a total letdown. Z-A strikes a middle ground between both extremes. You will fight in restaurants with patrons watching as they dine. A fancy battle society will extend an invitation to a competition, and you will combat in its rooftop arena with a chandelier (not Chandelure) suspended overhead. My favorite location is the elegantly decorated base of a certain faction with atmospheric illumination and purple partitions. Several distinct battle locales overflow with personality missing in the larger city in general.

The Familiarity of Repetition

During the Championship, along with quelling rogue powered-up creatures and filling the creature index, there is an unavoidable sense that, {"I