Pokémon Legends: Z-A – Review

C’est la Zygarde…

Every year I eagerly await Pokémon Day, because it’s when we get the latest announcements about one of the most famous franchises in the world! The chances of someone, whether from the West or the East, not having heard of the little monsters are minimal, and Pikachu has become so culturally important that it even appeared at Macy’s annual Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York, and in the 90s, Pokémon products even reached Romania!

I still remember the first dubbed episodes broadcast on TV and the Chipicao croissants with stickers, which I collected religiously. Since then, Pokémon has continued to evolve and has remained one of the industry's iconic franchises for almost 30 years. Currently, the main series boasts no less than 23 titles, the most recent being Pokémon Legends: Z-A.

The new adventure brings us back to the Kalos region, where 12 years ago we searched for Yveltal and Xerneas, and this time we're off in search of Zygarde. If I've piqued your curiosity, let's start, as usual, with the story.

Lumiose, mon amour

I'll be completely honest with you: Pokémon Legends: Z-A (which I'll shorten to Legends ZA from now on) is a direct sequel to the famous Generation VI titles, Pokémon X and Pokémon Y. The action takes place a few years after the events of those games, in a period when Lumiose City is undergoing an "eco" reconstruction process, designed to facilitate harmonious coexistence between humans and the famous creatures.

Not that it's impossible for the two species to live together; there are plenty of examples that show it can be done (such as Ryme City in Detective Pikachu). However, untamed Pokémon remain a real danger to those around them. In this context, the Lumiose City General Council has established so-called "wild areas," transformed into natural reserves dedicated to the little creatures.

The reconstruction, however, is not going according to plan, and past events are beginning to impact the present. More and more spontaneous Mega Evolutions are starting to appear among Pokémon in the wild areas, endangering not only the creatures but also the surrounding residents and buildings. The general population is unaware of these incidents, as the crisis is being managed in secret by both the company responsible for the reconstruction and a mysterious team called MZ. This team is made up of guests from Hotel Z, a group of exceptional trainers working non-stop to save the city from destruction.

You might be wondering how the protagonist gets into all this mess. Is he an Ash Ketchum in disguise or a citizen of Kalos willing to sacrifice himself for the well-being of the capital? Well, no. The main character is a simple tourist who has the misfortune of having his luggage stolen as soon as he gets off the train at the North Station… sorry, Gare du Lumiose!

Following this unfortunate incident, our character bumps into Taunie, the leader of the MZ group, who offers to help him recover his belongings stolen by le petit Pancham (good thing it wasn't le petit roumain). After a "fierce" battle with the little thief, Taunie invites us to stay at Hotel Z and join the team.

After hearing all this, you're probably thinking that to understand the story of Legends Z-A, you should quickly search OLX for a Nintendo DS and at least one of the Pokémon X or Y games. Well, that's not the case. It's true that the current title is a direct continuation of the Generation VI ones, but the focus is exclusively on present events, and only a few characters from 2013 make an appearance. Even these have changed radically in the last 12 years, and their involvement in the story is minimal.

Notre feu dans votre Chikorita

The narrative thread is a bit more complex than the description above, but it wouldn't stand out at all if it didn't benefit from solid gameplay. From this point of view, Legends Z-A represents the natural continuation of Legends: Arceus. The first title in this spin-off changed the traditional formula by introducing semi-open world areas and an active catching system, which allowed creatures to be captured without direct confrontations. The goal in Arceus was to create the first Pokédex, which involved completing secondary objectives for each creature – from their evolution to the repeated use of certain attacks.

In Legends Z-A, the stakes change: we have to rebuild the city and solve the Mega Evolution crisis, objectives primarily addressed by participating in the Z-A Tournament, a true battle royale that takes place every night. Due to the chaos that erupts during battles, the Council designates a different area of the city each day for the competition. This area is isolated from the rest of Lumiose, and all battles must be fought strictly within the arena.

The combat system is no longer turn-based, but real-time, similar to that of Final Fantasy VII Remake or Final Fantasy XVI. Consequently, the idea of PP disappears completely, being replaced by cooldowns. The dynamics of battles change radically: the player must now think much more tactically, as it's no longer just about the weakness chart, but also positioning, attack type, and managing downtime between hits. For creatures like Starmie, which have devastating but slow attacks, it's crucial to use abilities that create distance between the opponent and the Pokémon, to give it enough time to "charge" that finishing blow.

The most intense and fun battles aren't those in the tournament, but those against wild Mega Evolutions. These confrontations are reminiscent of the battles with Gigantamax creatures in Sword/Shield or the raids with Terastallized Pokémon in Scarlet/Violet. Here, the Mega Evolution mechanic and "plus" attacks become the main actors. Although we can deal damage to these titans, ordinary attacks are mere scratches for them. To cope, we must master this essential mechanic ourselves.

What will impress, or frustrate, in equal measure, is that each of these battles quickly turns into a full-blown bullet-hell, similar to the boss battles in NieR: Automata. Therefore, the positioning of the protagonist and the Pokémon becomes crucial, as the enemy will do everything possible to "send us to sleep" with a spectacular K.O.

In case I've worried you, rest assured: Legends Z-A isn't just non-stop action. Besides battles, we also get a consistent exploration component, which manifests both in the classic form, allowing us to roam the city and its various arrondissements, and through platforming puzzles, where we have to navigate routes made of suspended scaffolding to obtain various useful rewards for the adventure, such as coloured screws!

Like any self-respecting RPG, Game Freak's creation also includes secondary objectives, presented as missions received from the residents of Lumiose. Most are classic fetch quests, based on finding a certain Pokémon. For example, one request comes from a café owner who wants to create a new type of tea: the leaves come from a Pansage, infused in the pure water of a Panpour, then heated with the fire of a Pansear, which is why he asks us to find the three monkeys.

While these missions don't add much to the narrative, they do manage to bring the city to life and better outline the routine and small challenges of the citizens of the Kalos capital.

The big downside of the game, from a gameplay perspective, is the lack of a complete Pokédex. This means there's a high chance your favourite little monster won't be found in Legends Z-A. Even if some of the absent ones will be added later in the Mega Dimensions expansion, the final list still won't include all 1025 Pokémon.

Mon Arceus, le jour de gloire n’est pas encore arrivé

Since I brought it up earlier, we need to discuss the Phanpy in the room: the visual aspect. I have no complaints about the character or creature design, but I do have a few observations regarding Lumiose. While its size pleasantly surprised me, I was disappointed that most buildings have flat textures, as the windows, balconies, and architectural details seem to be just images applied to the facades, a simple visual filler done by some Dorel.

I understand the emphasis on the new combat system, but, given Game Freak's resources and talent, I expected more, because Lumiose is, practically, a character in itself.

I admit, however, that aesthetically the game looks ten times better than Legends: Arceus and a hundred times better than Violet/Scarlet, an aspect that clearly indicates the studio's progress towards a true next-gen Pokémon. Still, shadows sometimes look like smudges, and characters and Pokémon seem to float slightly above the ground. I mention these details because Game Freak is a second-party Nintendo developer, benefiting from direct technical support and development kits for Switch 2.

And yet, Bloober Team or Ubisoft Massive, studios without the same proximity to the "big N," have managed to deliver superb ports on the small console, such as Cronos: The New Dawn and Star Wars: Outlaws. So, I'm not saying that Legends Z-A looks bad; on the contrary, it's probably the most beautiful 3D Pokémon game to date. But I can't help but wonder how it is that other developers have achieved true miracles on the same console, without the direct support of the famous developer and publisher from Kyoto.

Die-hard fans of the franchise won't be bothered by these graphical imperfections, because the game runs excellently. Legends Z-A is rendered at 4K (upscaled) and runs natively at 60 frames per second, and I didn't encounter any performance issues, not even in the last section, which is graphically intensive.

What did affect my experience, however, was the lack of voice-acting. Don't get me wrong: I'm a huge fan of the series and have religiously played all the main releases since 2018 when I got my hands on a 3DS. As such, I'm used to reading mountains of text, but the classic formula no longer works in a modern 3D environment with a real-time combat system. Emotionally charged moments simply don't have the same impact without authentic vocal performance.

C’est fini la comedie?

Despite the above, I don't consider Pokémon Legends: Z-A a weak game. On the contrary, it's a solid title and a step in the right direction for the franchise. Although it doesn't impress visually, the atmosphere is exceptional, and the new combat system brings a tactical depth I never imagined in a Pokémon game.

The lack of voice acting affects the experience to some extent, but overall, the game remains solid, captivating, and charming. I confidently recommend it to all who own, or plan to acquire in the near future, a Nintendo Switch 2.

Thanks to CD Media S.E. for the review code and the opportunity to play Pokémon Legends: Z-A.

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Available on: Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch 2
Played on: Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch 2
Release date: 16 October 2025
Developer: Game Freak
Publisher: Nintendo