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When Game Freak decided to branch out and create Pokemon Legends: Arceus, they effectively broke the mold for what we had become so accustomed to for a Pokemon game. Long gone were the story-driven roadblocks and power scaling held back by Gym Badges; this was a world as wild and untamed as the eponymous creatures themselves. This diversion from the mainstream Pokemon games created the perfect storm for Game Freak; it gave players something fresh and different to what fans had been used to, and added some amazing world-building in for good measure.
One of the biggest concerns about Pokemon Legends: Z-A (pronounced ‘zee’, sorry Aussies) was that being confined to Lumiose City from the Kalos region would stunt the game’s ability to grow. Of course the last time we saw Lumiose City was in Pokemon X and Y, which launched nearly 12 years ago – and a lot has changed since then. Stepping into the city, it is in the middle of a redevelopment; ‘wild zones’ are being added to allow better coexistence between humans and Pokemon, opening up more thriving areas and places where Pokemon can be found. Fully embracing the 3D environment that Pokemon games give to us now, the city can be traversed in almost all directions, with ladders and scaffolding taking you up to new heights where you can challenge new opponents and find Pokemon you haven’t yet seen.
So where are you supposed to find Pokemon if you’re not out in the wilderness, travelling a route between towns and cities? Thankfully, Pokemon Legends: Z-A has you covered. The company Quasartico Inc. is helping Lumiose City undergo an urban redevelopment, and with it comes Wild Zones to help Pokemon and humans coexist in such a busy city. These aren’t just areas you can stumble into – they’re headed by bright gates you wander through with the intention of catching Pokemon. Just like in Legends: Arceus, the ability to catch Pokemon without needing to battle them is still part of the gameplay, but some monsters need to be weakened first, so it was here we got a taste of how battling works this time around. Sending in your Pokemon to battle, you’re able to freely roam around the battlefield shouting instructions to your partner, and all attacks take place in real-time – so there’s no more turn-based combat.
At first it is quite overwhelming – you need to keep an eye on your Pokemon’s health while choosing which attacks to use (and having to remember your type matchups) and making sure you don’t accidentally knock the opposing Pokemon out before you have a chance to catch it. The Wild Zones also bring back ‘Alpha Pokemon’, monsters with glowing red eyes that are particularly strong and tough to catch – a Houndoom that didn’t seem that particularly high-level managed to wipe my team three times before I had an opportunity to throw a Poke Ball!
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The Wild Zones don’t just stop at ground level either – they’re still part of a functional city, so climbing ladders or taking an elevator to a top floor reveals even more Pokemon to find, and sometimes even some extra secret areas – so make sure you put your explorer’s hat on and find every spot.
One of the first things we were able to do was to customise our character with a wide variety of outfits. After playing around for a few minutes I turned the stock character into a very goth-alternative styled Trainer with bright and sparkly accessories, but I was astounded at the amount of customisation available for the characters. I can only guess that as the game goes on, more accessories will be able to be unlocked and purchased, so you can make your character unique and exciting.
Once the sun goes down, the Pokemon Trainers come out to play, and Battle Zones appear around the city! These areas are filled with Trainers itching for a battle to test their skills, and they give you the opportunity to grow your team and complete quests to earn points and extra money along the way. As you wander through the Battle Zone you can pick up bonus cards to complete to earn Ticket Points, allowing you to collect a Challenge Ticket to enter a promotion match; battling your way up from Z-A (ha ha, get it?). Some of these bonuses involve using select Pokemon moves, or sneaking up on an opponent and launching a surprise attack. Once you collect enough Ticket Points, your Challenge Ticket becomes available, allowing you to enter the Z-A Royale, where you’ll move up the ranks through Promotion Matches.
Once you succeed in collecting a Challenge Ticket, you can proceed to enter the Z-A Royale, where you’ll test your mettle against some of the toughest trainers as you move from Z-rank to A-rank, culminating in not just bragging rights for the best trainer around, but also being granted one wish. Again, diving into the existing type matchup knowledge I have, this was relatively easy (although I did lose a few partner Pokemon along the way) but I defeated my opponent with ease and progressed my rank to the next level. It was really cool to hear the Kalos battle theme from Pokemon X and Y be reworked for this game too – there are a lot of amazing little Easter eggs to find.
The biggest thing that Pokemon X and Y brought to the fold was the introduction of Mega Evolutions; allowing Pokemon to go one step further during battle and boost your Pokemon’s attributes. Similar to previous games with raid battles, rogue Mega Evolved Pokemon can be found in Lumiose City, and it’s up to you and your team to stop them and find out why they are going rogue.
For this battle we encountered Mega Victreebel – a huge engorged version of the grass-type Pokemon whose form was recently announced. It is here where the real-time elements of battle really shine – not only do you have the ability to roam around on the battlefield and plan your next attack, your Mega Evolved opponent will drop Mega Energy which you can use to power up your Pokemon and Mega Evolve them in battle. You can keep the Mega Evolution going by attacking and getting the enemy to drop even more energy, using Plus Moves on them to reduce their health until you’re able to defeat them and capture them. A handy Mega meter in the corner shows how much power you have left, so don’t let it drain to the bottom before you’ve finished your attack!
Of course the short amount of time we got to spend with Pokemon Legends: Z-A definitely leaves us wanting more, and we can’t wait to return to Kalos and explore everything that Lumiose City has to offer. In such a small amount of time I was able to get myself lost, capture over 20 new Pokemon, and beat 10 trainers in battle before levelling myself up to the next rank. With a huge sprawling city to explore, many mysteries to uncover, and a new take on the classic Pokemon battle style, I am definitely looking forward to seeing what Pokemon Legends: Z-A has to offer.
Pokemon Legends Z-A launches on Nintendo Switch 1/2 on October 16th for $99 with free shipping.
