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I don't recall precisely when the custom began, but I always name all my Pokémon trainers Glitch.

Whether it's a core franchise title or a spinoff such as Pokkén Tournament DX and Pokémon Go — the name never changes. Glitch switches between male and female avatars, featuring dark and violet locks. Occasionally their style is impeccable, like in Pokémon Legends: Z-A, the newest installment in the long-running series (and among the more style-conscious releases). Other times they're confined to the various school uniform designs of Pokémon Scarlet & Violet. But they remain Glitch.

The Constantly Changing World of Pokémon Games

Similar to my trainers, the Pokémon games have evolved across installments, some superficial, some substantial. However at their core, they stay the same; they're consistently Pokémon through and through. The developers discovered a nearly perfect mechanics system some three decades back, and has only truly attempted to evolve on it with games such as Pokémon Legends: Arceus (new era, your character is now in danger). Across all version, the fundamental mechanics cycle of capturing and fighting with charming creatures has remained steady for almost the same duration as I've been alive.

Breaking Conventions with Pokémon Legends: Z-A

Similar to Arceus before it, with its lack of arenas and emphasis on creating a creature catalog, Pokémon Legends: Z-A introduces multiple deviations into that formula. It's set completely in one place, the Paris-inspired Lumiose City of Pokémon X & Y, abandoning the region-spanning adventures of earlier titles. Pokémon are intended to coexist with humans, battlers and civilians, in manners we've only glimpsed before.

Far more drastic is Z-A's real-time combat mechanics. This is where the franchise's near-perfect core cycle undergoes its most significant evolution yet, swapping deliberate turn-based fights with something more chaotic. And it is thoroughly enjoyable, despite I feel eager for a new turn-based entry. Although these changes to the traditional Pokémon formula seem like they create an entirely fresh adventure, Pokémon Legends: Z-A is as familiar as every other Pokemon game.

The Heart of the Journey: The Z-A Royale

When initially reaching in Lumiose City, whatever plans your custom avatar planned as a visitor are discarded; you're immediately recruited by the female guide (if playing as a male character; the male guide for female characters) to become part of her team of trainers. You receive a creature from them as your first partner and are sent into the Z-A Championship.

The Royale is the epicenter in Pokémon Legends: Z-A. It's comparable to the classic "gym badges to Elite Four" progression from earlier titles. However here, you battle a handful of trainers to earn the opportunity to participate in an advancement bout. Win and you'll be promoted to a higher tier, with the final objective of reaching the top rank.

Real-Time Battles: A New Frontier

Trainer battles take place at night, while sneaking around the designated battle zones is quite entertaining. I'm constantly attempting to get a jump on a rival and launch an unopposed move, since everything happens instantaneously. Moves function with cooldown timers, meaning you and your opponent can sometimes attack each other at the same time (and defeat each other at once). It's a lot to adjust to initially. Despite gaming for almost thirty hours, I still feel like there's much to master in terms of using my Pokémon's moves in ways that complement each other. Positioning also factors as a significant part in battles as your Pokémon will follow you around or go to specific locations to perform attacks (certain ones are distant, while others must be in close proximity).

The live combat causes fights go so fast that I find myself sometimes cycling of attacks in the same order, even when this amounts to a suboptimal strategy. There's no time to breathe in Z-A, and numerous opportunities to get overwhelmed. Creature fights depend on feedback post-move execution, and that data is still present on the display within Z-A, but whips by quickly. Occasionally, you cannot process it since taking your eyes off your opponent will spell certain doom.

Navigating Lumiose City

Away from combat, you'll explore Lumiose City. It's fairly compact, although tightly filled. Far into the adventure, I'm still discovering unseen stores and elevated areas to explore. It's also rich with character, and perfectly captures the concept of Pokémon and people living together. Common bird Pokemon populate its sidewalks, taking flight when you get near similar to actual city birds obstructing my path when walking in New York City. The monkey trio gleefully hang from lampposts, and bug-Pokémon such as Kakuna attach themselves on branches.

A focus on urban life is a new direction for the franchise, and a welcome one. Even so, exploring Lumiose grows repetitive over time. You may stumble upon an alley you haven't been to, but you wouldn't know it. The architecture is devoid of personality, and many elevated areas and sewer paths offer little variety. While I never visited Paris, the model behind the city, I reside in New York for almost ten years. It's a metropolis where every district are the same, and they're all alive with uniqueness that provide character. Lumiose Metropolis doesn't have that. It has beige structures with blue or red roofs and flatly rendered terraces.

The Areas Where Lumiose City Truly Shines

Where Lumiose City truly stands out, oddly enough, is indoors. I loved the way creature fights within Sword & Shield occur in arena-like venues, giving them genuine significance and importance. Conversely, fights within Scarlet and Violet happen in a field with few spectators watching. It's very disappointing. Z-A finds a balance between the two. You will fight in restaurants with patrons watching while they eat. A fancy battle society will extend an invitation to a competition, and you will combat in its rooftop arena with a chandelier (not the Pokemon) suspended overhead. The most memorable spot is the beautifully designed base of the Rust Syndicate with atmospheric illumination and magenta walls. Several distinct battle locales overflow with personality missing in the larger city in general.

The Comfort of Routine

During the Royale, along with subduing wild powered-up creatures and filling the creature index, there is an unavoidable sense that, {"I