Pokemon Legends ZA is the new Pokemon mainline game that came out in 2025, and honestly, it’s quite a disappointment. We all thought that maybe Nintendo would do something different this time and put in some more effort when it came to revolutionizing graphics and gameplay (after all that Switch 2 hype and fancy hardware). But no, they proved us all wrong. Pokemon Legends ZA was quite a step down from iconic titles like Pokemon Scarlet and Violet, and Legends Arceus, and I mean it.
The game started with sensational features, something fans had never seen before. Initially, it seemed like the game was built, with a story that continues from its past mainline games, a new battle system, and a lot of cool features that the previous Pokemon games missed. However, it was at the cost of the game’s poor quality that disappointed a lot of players.
Legends Z-A Added What Pokémon Fans Thought Was Too Much to Ask
When I first started Pokemon Legends ZA, I could feel the air of Lumiose City, as we were back in it after Pokemon X and Y. This time, it was a more detailed, but not so detailed version of the city. I’d have to say that Nintendo and Game Freak had quite an idea about incorporating an entire city as the major environment. This would provide a smaller area and a lot of intrinsic details that players can enjoy, not making the map too big and tiring.
I am really surprised how the absence of Gym Leaders didn’t ruin my battle experience when playing Legends ZA. Gym Leaders are a staple for every Pokemon region and their games, but Legends ZA completely ditches them. Each Gym Leader in the games focuses on certain types, and players can challenge them to earn badges. Legends ZA uses the same concept with a bit of their own spice. Each rank promotion battle is assigned to a special NPC, more powerful than any normal trainer you find in the Battle Zone. They specialized in a particular type and had higher battle intelligence. As Canari specialized in Electric type, Ivory on fighting type, and Grisham had some of the top Pokemon in the game.
Let’s not forget about the new, improved feature. Unlike the older games, items were a lot more accessible. Every corner of Lumiose City had a Red Poke Ball, which provided basic items like Poke Balls, Medicines, Stat-boosting items, and more. Getting TMs was also very accessible; some were lying around the city in Yellow Poke Balls, and you can get the more powerful ones like Blizzard, Earthquake, and Giga Impact from Mable’s Research for free.
However, Shiny Hunting was the part that I enjoyed the most about Pokemon Legends ZA. The odds were higher this time, compared to the previous games, and you could boost them further with the new Shiny charm. There were even some loopholes that I think were intentionally made available for players to figure out how they can maximise the game’s shiny hunting potential. Even though there were some quality changes we got in Legends ZA, Game Freak reduced the other aspects of the game, which has been a major issue for fans.
Nintendo Avoided Risk and Left Legends ZA Short of Its Next-Gen Moment
Pokemon Legends ZA had a bigger release window when the game was first announced for Switch 1, and Nintendo had an ample amount of time to optimise the game for their new Switch 2 console. The game was priced at $70, and Switch 2 was at $449, which didn’t justify the game’s performance and graphics that we expect at this price point. Compared to other Nintendo games, like Donkey Kong Bananza, which won the best family game title at the Game Awards 2025, it was disappointing that a franchise as big as Pokemon didn’t receive a similar effort in its quality.
The controls of Legends ZA felt unstable and clunky when played on Nintendo Switch 2, which was supposed to be the next-gen technology for Nintendo. There isn’t much improvement in the Joystick feature, with a similar padded button. This led to a lot of players sticking to their Switch 1 console due to unnoticeable differences in graphics and controls between the Switch 1 and Switch 2 versions.
As we said earlier, a smaller map makes the game more detailed. However, Legends ZA lacked this aspect when you realize the entire city is made up of just a few buildings and neighborhoods that are copied and pasted repeatedly. You can’t even go inside most buildings.
The doors and windows look like they’re painted onto the building blocks, with no 3D depth or realism. A city doesn’t feel complete if you can’t explore its interiors. Even the few buildings that are accessible are mostly cafes and battle areas, and those spaces still feel empty and lifeless. While some Wild Zones were slightly different and unique, most of them are parks, alleyways, and streets, with the only real exception being Wild Zone 12, which features an icy biome.
The Legends ZA DLC was supposed to add more content, but instead, it forces you to explore the same park, the same buildings, and the same rooftops over and over again. With no new areas introduced, you’re left with new quests that simply reuse the same map.
New Battle System Felt Clunkier Than Ever
Battles in most Pokemon games take place in open arenas and are turn-based, which makes sense since you need space to move around, dodge attacks, and land hits. Nintendo and Game Freak tried to break this norm by introducing a new real-time battle system, centered around real-time battle. While the concept itself was interesting, they completely ignored the limitations of their cramped open-world environment. This wasn’t an issue in Legends Arceus or Scarlet and Violet because those games offered much more open space.
ZA Battle Royale, which takes place at night, features multiple trainers you can battle. But, as I said, the game was not optimised enough. For example, if your Pokemon uses Surf and moves far ahead, and after using another move, the Pokemon has to awkwardly run back to you like a toddler just to perform the attack. Another major issue is that the Pokemon often get stuck in corners or against buildings, and their attacks get blocked by objects.
Yes, they tried to introduce a new battle mechanic, but a little more effort would have gone a long way. Pokemon were never meant to fight in small, cluttered areas full of obstacles — unless you’re playing as the villain who’s destroying the city.
While we saw plenty of new features being added to the game, some of the most enjoyable ones, like Surfing and Flying, were missing. Instead, they added a weird semi-dash glide mechanic where you turn Rotom into a parachute and call it Roto-Glide. On top of that, the game also removed the breeding and hatching system entirely.
Legends ZA’s Story Feels Like Community Service
Pokemon Legends ZA characters are well-developed, but the excessive number of cutscenes and unskippable dialogue make the experience frustrating. The story could have been better, if it weren’t filled with Mega Evolutions. For most of the game, you’re just defeating Alpha Pokemon and Rogue Mega Evolutions to help the city, its residents, and a few organizations. That’s basically it.
Where are the villains like Team Rocket, Team Magma, Team Flare, and so on? Older Pokemon games had strong narratives because villains played a crucial role. Remember how N was central to Pokemon Black and White, and how he was manipulated by his father? Those games rewarded players with hidden lore through side quests and environmental storytelling. Modern Pokemon games seem to remove villains entirely, turning the story into nothing more than a community service simulator.
When a ‘Ripoff’ Exposes How Safe Nintendo Has Been Playing It
Palworld was labeled as a Pokemon clone, yet it delivers more polished graphics and a much better overworld experience. Its open world isn’t restricted, and it features dungeons, underground locations, mountains, towns, and many interactive elements.
Pokemon Legends ZA doesn’t even include bait mechanics or alternate ways to deal damage, such as throwing stones or using items — features that existed in older Pokemon games. Palworld not only includes these mechanics but also introduces guns and weapons. You can capture Pals using special spheres that display capture rates, and those Pals can fight, mine, craft, and assist you. This variety keeps the gameplay fresh and engaging.
The story of Palword doesn’t even come close to the entire lore of Pokemon, yet it does a better job than Legends ZA. You explore ancient ruins, uncover lost technology, learn about various factions, and discover darker themes, including forced labor, poaching, and moral ambiguity. This kind of environmental storytelling and layered narrative is what makes AAA games memorable. Sadly, Pokemon games are slowly moving away from this depth.
No, I don’t hate Pokemon games. In fact, I love them more than any other genre. However, with the new games like Pokemon Legends ZA, they feel repetitive and rushed. Nintendo’s lack of effort is evident everywhere, not just in the graphics, but in the game’s optimization with the new consoles they are releasing. Games like Palworld are taking on the leap, whereas Nintendo is still playing it safe. I enjoyed Pokemon Legends ZA, but wished it had ticked all the boxes that we Pokemon fans always wanted.
Rishabh Sabarwal
Ishan Adhikary
