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This week, the Pokémon World Championships held in Anaheim brought an exciting reveal: the first playable demo of the much-anticipated Pokémon Legends: Z-A. After diving into two distinct ten-minute segments of this demo, I walked away buzzing with questions and initial impressions, especially about the game’s innovative battle system. So, what does this new installment have in store for us?
Gameplay Overview and Initial Impressions
To kick things off, I experienced the Pokémon Legends: Z-A demo on the Nintendo Switch 2. The visuals seem to have taken a step forward compared to the latest Switch 2 editions of Pokémon Scarlet and Pokémon Violet. However, since this was just a demo, I didn’t have the opportunity to assess factors like draw distance or how the game handles when multiple wild Pokémon are on-screen.
In one segment, I found myself in the early stages of the fourth main mission, battling it out in the Z-A Royale battles. Here, I entered a designated Battle Zone marked in red on the map, aiming to rack up enough ticket points through trainer battles to secure a Challenger’s Ticket, which is essential for participating in a Promotion Match. Winning this match would bump my rank from Z to Y. This core gameplay loop looks set to be a recurring element until I finally hit the rank of A, culminating in a rather mysterious reward—a single wish. Can you imagine what that might be?
The experience felt dynamic, allowing players to roam the streets at night, hunting for battles against fellow trainers. True to Pokémon tradition, battles kick off the moment a trainer spots you. But Legends: Z-A throws in a twist; if a trainer manages to sneak up on you, their Pokémon gets a free first strike, which is guaranteed to be a critical hit. While I found this tactic a bit unsportsmanlike, I couldn’t resist giving it a go when my teammate, Lida, egged me on.
The city’s narrow alleys often lead to unexpected run-ins, making for some thrilling sneak attacks. Battles initiate seamlessly, reminiscent of Legends: Arceus, but Z-A veers away from the familiar turn-based mechanics we’ve come to cherish. Instead, it opts for a fully real-time action approach. Exciting, right?
Understanding the Battle System
In this new setup, players employ Z-Targeting by holding the ZL button and pressing face buttons to command their Pokémon’s moves. This control scheme remains consistent whether you’re starting a battle or directing your Pokémon to interact with environmental obstacles, like rocks that might be too tough to break initially.
Each Pokémon can learn four moves at a time, which are mapped to the four face buttons. Interestingly, the moves in this demo don’t seem to have Power Points (PP), allowing for unlimited usage, albeit with cooldowns—a fresh mechanic you’d typically find in skill-based action games. The cooldowns varied among moves, but those available early on had relatively short durations, around six to seven seconds, with equally quick casting times that were not clearly communicated through menus.
Despite the cooldowns, I could execute another move almost immediately after the previous one finished. The interface offered visual feedback, filling moves with color as cooldowns expired, but I found the communication regarding this feedback lacking. I ended up using moves somewhat haphazardly, as my attempts to direct my Pokémon to dodge or perform additional actions beyond the four attack options were met with limitations. Accuracy also became a concern; Pokémon could miss attacks if the target was too far away.
The battle interface displayed crucial information on the right side of the screen, outlining performed attacks, debuffs, and critical hits. However, the lack of feedback for missed attacks made it trickier to learn the optimal timing for strikes. In trainer battles, players cannot take damage on behalf of their Pokémon—a fact I tested when my Mareep fainted despite my best efforts to shield it. However, encounters with wild Pokémon and the formidable Rogue Mega-Evolved Pokémon do allow for player damage. Have you ever faced a challenge like that?
Challenging Encounters and Future Expectations
The second segment of the demo featured a showdown with a Rogue Mega-Evolved Absol, which I stumbled upon after following Zygarde’s dog-like 10% forme as part of a different early-game mission. The small Zygarde conveniently whisked me to the roof where Absol awaited, although the transition felt a bit abrupt.
At this stage in the game, players can’t Mega Evolve a Pokémon on their own. Instead, the enigmatic AZ provided me with a Mega Ring, a Lucario, and the Lucarionite Mega Stone, ensuring I was well-equipped for the showdown with the Rogue Mega Absol.
During this battle, players must dodge incoming attacks, as Absol targets not only the Pokémon but also the player character. I found it a bit cumbersome to juggle attacking while avoiding enemy strikes, given that targeting restricted my ability to dash or dodge. While I expect to develop the necessary muscle memory with practice, my initial experience felt somewhat limiting.
Additionally, a secondary objective emerges when battling Rogue Mega-Evolved Pokémon: players must collect Mega Power orbs to gather enough energy for their Pokémon to Mega Evolve and maintain that form by continually collecting orbs. Attacking the Rogue Mega-Evolved Pokémon forces these orbs to be expelled, necessitating close engagement and effective dodging. Are you ready for this level of challenge?
Overall, this encounter proved significantly more engaging than the trainer battles due to the added complexity and mechanics that extend beyond simple attack commands. I also noticed that while players can’t command Pokémon to dodge, they will instinctively return to your side when you’re not locked onto an enemy—provided you give them enough time to retreat.
In conclusion, Pokémon Legends: Z-A feels less like a traditional action game and more akin to an MMO, blending cooldowns, casting times, and mechanics that influence gameplay. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing; however, I hope that as the game evolves, it offers enough challenge to encourage more strategic commands and timely Pokémon switches. While my brief twenty-minute exploration into the early game has left me intrigued, it remains to be seen whether this real-time battle system can deliver the strategic depth we typically expect from Pokémon titles.
As a final note, I took a quick peek at the menus and discovered that Pokémon retain the standard six-stat distribution without abilities (similar to Legends: Arceus), though they do possess Natures that affect their stats—a noteworthy shift. I even stumbled upon a shop selling Mints to modify these Natures during my playthrough of the ninth story mission.
With so many questions still swirling in my mind, I’m eager to dive deeper into Pokémon Legends: Z-A. But we’ll have to wait until the official release on October 16 to uncover more of its secrets. What do you think awaits us?