As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases

Pokémon Legends Z-A Review

Completion Breakdown:

Main Story and Postgame cleared

Pokédex completed

All side missions completed

All research tasks completed

One thousand battles completed

Ninety percent of clothing obtained

Introduction

Pokémon Legends Z-A was not a game I expected to play on release day. After a bit of consideration though, I decided to jump in. 75 hours later I have finally finished the core content and most of everything the game has to offer. So the natural question is this. What did I actually think of the game?

Gameplay

Pokémon has a very well known and very well defined gameplay loop. You catch Pokémon, battle through the gyms, chase the champion title, and get wrapped up in whatever dramatic story the cover Pokémon is involved in. The Legends series, however, is a spin off that steps away from this formula. It reminds me of the difference between (paid link) Shin Megami Tensei and (paid link) Persona. They share monsters and ideas, but the structure is different.

Legends Z-A is a linear and straightforward action focused game with a light touch of open world exploration. You spend most of your time moving around a single city, completing missions, and filling in your Pokédex as you work toward becoming the champion of the Z-A Tournament.

Instead of gym battles and badges, the game revolves around a never ending single battles in a tournament that begins almost immediately. You face challengers in a scripted ranking order and each opponent has a short side story that helps break up repetition. Some of these stories help introduce the characters while others contain meaningful story elements.

However, by the end of the game you usually only know a small amount about each character, usually something like a single personality trait and the kind of Pokémon they prefer.

The game offers more than 100 side missions, but they fall into 3 basic templates.

1. Go to a location,

2. Defeat a trainer,

3. Bring a specific Pokémon.

Toward the end a few missions become frustrating because they require very specific situations. One of the worst examples for me was a Pupitar mission that demanded a level 60 Pupitar. Pupitar evolves at level 55 into the far more useful Tyranitar, so the only way to complete it is to know the mission exists beforehand and avoid evolving it. I did not know. So after leveling another Larvitar all the way up I finally finished only to later find a wild Pupitar spawning at level 40. That was a rough moment to say the least.

The game also includes light exploration through small wild areas that feel more like parks. Most Pokémon do not seem to fit the places they appear in. There are also scaffolding challenges and rooftop parkour sections where you fall and get launched back up by your phone. These features feel out of place but do add variety.

Combat

The battle system is very different from both the main series and the previous Legends title. Z-A feels closer to a (paid link) Xenoblade Chronicles style system. Instead of waiting for moves to recharge with the traditional PP system, you have cooldown based moves. I normally dislike cooldown systems since you spend your time watching your opponent cheek blast you while you’re waiting for that circle to fill. In Z-A the result is a much faster and more dynamic battle flow. However Terrain can get in the way since Pokémon often get stuck behind small obstacles. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had attacks fly into walls, poles and Pokemon walk into walls for dozens of seconds.

The game gives you strong Pokémon very early. Within the first few hours you get your starter, Heracross, a generation one starter, three generation six starters, a Buneary, and even a shiny Mareep. These can easily carry you through most of the game. You can recruit others of course, but the early team is already very strong.

Mega Evolution makes things even more tilted. Stats still follow the usual tiers, so powerful Pokémon with Mega Evolutions like Tyranitar, Dragonite, and Lucario become overpowered very quickly. They are available much earlier than expected and dominate most encounters. It feels like Mega Evolution makes the strong even stronger without offering any real balancing factors.

This is not entirely Z-A’s fault since the same thing has happened in past games, but here it feels more amplified. You will either breeze through the game or occasionally get punished when you play carelessly. I definitely lost a few battles due to overconfidence, usually when I was trying to solo with one Pokémon to power level other members of the team or checklist Pokemon for the Pokédex. Rogue Pokémon are another source of difficulty. They return from Legends Arceus with what feels like triple the health.

If you are not overleveled with a strong super effective move you can spend more than ten minutes on a single fight. My battle with a Rogue Tyranitar was ridiculous. It felt like I was fighting the environment as much as the Pokémon. He got locked onto me the entire time and decided that taking out the trainer was more fun then taking out the Pokemon. I honestly thought I was playing Elden Ring with the pure amount of dodge rolling I was doing.

Characters

The characters are one of the consistent strengths of Pokémon games and that holds true here. Designs are fantastic and personalities are enjoyable. Even characters I do not personally like still have appealing designs. However if I had to narrow down a favorite it was by far Jacinthe. Her role in the story and her overall presentation were some of the highlights for me. Her theme music is also one of the best tracks in the entire franchise.

The deeper arcs are mostly reserved for AZ and Lysandre, and both are worth following. The game also brings back several characters from X and Y. Even though I never finished those older games, I appreciated how Z-A gave some of them better closure.

Story

The story of Pokémon Z-A is a mixed experience. You play as a visiting newcomer to Lumiose City. Within minutes you are approached by a character based on your chosen gender who invites you to appear in a commercial. I selected the male archetype so I got the girl Taunie, but because I played during the baseball postseason I could not help but read her name like Ohtani. (Hopefully I don’t miss that in this blog lol)

Almost immediately you are culturally enriched aka robbed by a Pangoro which leads into your starter choice. After you recover your belongings you get drawn into the problems of the failing Hotel Z. You join Team MZ alongside Taunie and help deal with Rogue Pokémon who are Mega evolving while competing in the Z-A Tournament.

The story contains many threads such as Taunie’s personal search, Ivor’s liberation efforts, and the remaining traces of Team Flare. It sounds complex but it is more straightforward than it appears. Sometimes it does feel a bit contrived though.

Ranks Z to V introduce the themes of Mega Evolution and the Legendary Zygarde. After beating a Mega evolved Pokémon you jump fifteen ranks ahead to rank F. From there the focus shifts to confronting each tournament participant in the Royale. Once you prove yourself worthy like your to Zygarde becomes central to the end game story. The conclusion involves a tower linked to a dark secret of Hotel Zs owner AZ unless you have played X and Y and already know part of it.
The story shines when it focuses on characters and their personal arcs. Z-A resolves some lingering issues from X and Y and introduces standout characters like Corbeau.

However some story arcs suffer from poor execution. The best contrast is between the simple and well handled Canari arc and the more complicated Corbeau sequence.
Canari is a public figure who is difficult to meet. Through Naveen, a fashion designer and fan of hers, you learn where she will perform and how to reach her. It is a little convenient that Naveen knows so much but it still feels logically structured.

Corbeau’s story is more tangled and tied to a major issue. Taunie like an idiot took out a loan from the Rust Syndicate without reading the terms. The loan has absurd interest and essentially enslaves Team MZ. Your character goes with Lyda to negotiate and learns the Rust Syndicate is a criminal group that will enforce the contract. Corbeau the head of the group then assigns you tasks which appear to be dangerous hits, but are actually lame community service missions. He ends up feeling more like an ethically direct but not entirely immoral vigilante type. It doesn’t flow as well as I’ve described it, but is the gist of it.

The weak point is how the story handles Taunie. Her decision comes across as careless rather than desperate or naive. The setup makes her look stupid and undermines her character. Later story moments also suffer from poor decisions centered on her role.

Postgame

The postgame drops a heavy grind on you. The fifteen ranks you skipped earlier now must be cleared if you want the bonus story. To challenge each new postgame opponent you need tickets, and each ticket requires ten to twenty Z-A Tournament victories. That means hours of battling before you can finish the postgame story. It is not terrible, but it is definitely tedious.

Technical Side and Presentation

The game looks rough even on (paid link) Switch 2. The art style is very simple and many models lack detail. Interactivity is limited and cutscene animations feel recycled and awkward. Actions like pulling a switch lack unique animations and stand out in a strange way. It looks cheap is probably the best way to say it.
Performance is mostly solid though. Frame rate dips are rare.

Controversy and Expectations

Online discussion has been extremely negative. People complain about the seventy dollar price, the thirty dollar DLC announced before launch, the online required items, and the weak visuals. Some of these concerns are valid but others seem exaggerated. Here’s my response to it.

If the price is too high, wait for a sale. Seventy dollars was acceptable for what I got out of the game, but everyone values their money differently.

Pre release DLC does feel questionable. It gives the impression of cut content being sold separately. However we do not know yet if it is removed content or simply overpriced. Pokémon DLC has been hit or miss so far. I’m leaning toward it to be a hit.

The visuals are undeniably weak and the art direction feels less polished than earlier games. It does not make the game unplayable, but there is plenty of room for improvement.
The online required items are annoying. You only need a few matches to gather the rewards but forcing players into online battles is unnecessary. The lack of a trade substitute item also hurts since (paid link) Legends Arceus already solved that problem, but Z-A brought it back. Hopefully Z-A adds a solution later.

Conclusion

I am not writing this to gush over the game, but I can say confidently that I enjoyed it. There are problems that may push people to wait for a sale, especially the presentation and the balance issues. Still, the good outweighs the bad and the game is worth trying. Whether you play casually or commit to full completion like I did, there is more to enjoy here than you might expect.

My final rating is a solid 7/10. A good game with flaws that keep it from being an easy recommendation, but still absolutely worth a look.

If you would like to read my initial thoughts you can check them out on the blog.