It’s been exactly a year since Nintendo and the Pokémon Company revealed the next big game in the venerable series in Legends Z-A, a new continuation of the open-world roaming spinoff that began with Legends Arceus in 2022. Now, just in time for another celebration of Pokémon Day, the companies are ready to really lift the lid.
As part of a special livestream this morning to celebrate Pokémon’s 29th birthday, a huge new trailer for Pokémon Legends Z-A dropped giving us our first proper look at the game in action, and revealing its late 2025 release date–although it was not officially confirmed as to whether or not the game will release for both the Nintendo Switch and its upcoming successor, the Switch 2. But with the latter’s backwards compatibility with Switch titles, it’ll likely be a no-brainer that you’ll be exploring Lumiose City on Nintendo’s new console if you want to even if there isn’t a dedicated release.
The new games will be set in Lumiose City–the massive cityscape first visited in Pokémon X and Y back in 2013–as players visit amidst plans to revolutionize it into a modern haven where both people and Pokémon can co-exist. After picking one of three starter Pokémon to join them on their journey (Johto-region starters Chikorita and Totodile, and Unova’s Tepig), players will encounter a raft of familiar and new characters (including the mysterious AZ from X and Y) as they roam the wild zones dotted throughout the city, as well as explore the urban environments of Lumiose itself.
While still retaining some of the elements introduced in Legends Arceus, like the more casual approach to Pokémon capture without having to rely on a combat encounter, Z-A will also incorporate a more fully-fledged battling mechanic. Pitched as something of a hybrid between classic Pokémon turn-based battling and real-time elements like those initially explored in Legends Arceus, the new system features moves that work on a cooldown system, and incorporates the ability for players and Pokémon alike to move around the battle field and dodge or counter moves in real time. Also returning in Legends Z-A is Mega Evolution, allowing Pokémon to temporarily transformed into a heightened evolutionary form, gaining access to greater strengths and special abilities.
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