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I'm not sure exactly how the tradition started, but I consistently call every one of my Pokémon trainers Glitch.

Be it a main series game or a spinoff like Pokkén Tournament DX along with Pokémon Go — the moniker never changes. Malfunction alternates between male and female avatars, featuring dark and violet hair. Occasionally their fashion is impeccable, as seen in Pokémon Legends: Z-A, the newest addition in the long-running series (and one of the most fashion-focused entries). At other moments they're limited to the various academic attire styles of Pokémon Scarlet & Violet. But they're always Malfunction.

The Ever-Evolving World of Pokémon Games

Similar to my characters, the Pokémon games have evolved across releases, with certain cosmetic, some significant. But at their core, they remain identical; they're consistently Pokemon through and through. The developers discovered an almost flawless gameplay formula approximately 30 years ago, and has only seriously tried to innovate on it with games like Pokémon Legends: Arceus (new era, your character faces peril). Across all iteration, the fundamental mechanics cycle of capturing and fighting with adorable monsters has stayed consistent for nearly the same duration as my lifetime.

Breaking the Mold with Pokémon Legends: Z-A

Like Arceus before it, with its absence of gyms and emphasis on compiling a Pokédex, Pokémon Legends: Z-A introduces several changes into that formula. It takes place completely in a single location, the French capital-inspired Lumiose Metropolis of Pokémon X & Y, abandoning the region-spanning journeys of previous games. Pokémon are meant to coexist with people, trainers and non-trainers alike, in ways we've only seen glimpses of before.

Far more drastic than that Z-A's live-action battle system. This is where the series' near-perfect gameplay loop undergoes its most significant transformation to date, replacing methodical turn-based bouts with more frenetic action. And it's thoroughly enjoyable, despite I feel eager for another turn-based entry. Though these alterations to the traditional Pokémon formula seem like they create an entirely fresh adventure, Pokémon Legends: Z-A is as familiar as every other Pokémon title.

The Heart of the Adventure: The Z-A Royale

Upon first arriving at Lumiose Metropolis, whatever plans your custom avatar planned as a visitor get abandoned; you're promptly recruited by the female guide (if playing as a male character; Urbain if female) to join her team of battlers. You're gifted a creature from them as your first partner and are sent to participate in the Z-A Championship.

The Championship is the epicenter of Pokémon Legends: Z-A. It's similar to the traditional "gym badges to Elite Four" advancement of past games. But here, you battle several trainers to gain the opportunity to participate in a promotion match. Succeed and you'll be elevated to the next rank, with the final objective of reaching the top rank.

Live-Action Battles: An Innovative Approach

Trainer battles occur during nighttime, and sneaking around the designated combat areas is very entertaining. I'm always attempting to get a jump on an opponent and launch a free attack, because everything happens in real time. Moves function with cooldown timers, indicating both combatants can sometimes attack each other concurrently (and defeat each other simultaneously). It's a lot to adjust to initially. Despite playing for nearly thirty hours, I continue to feel that there is plenty to learn in terms of using my Pokémon's moves in methods that work together synergistically. Placement also plays a major role during combat since your creatures will follow you around or move to specific locations to perform attacks (some are long-range, whereas others must be up close and personal).

The real-time action causes fights progress so quickly 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 pause during Z-A, and plenty of opportunities to get overwhelmed. Creature fights rely on feedback after using an attack, and that information is still present on the display within Z-A, but flashes past quickly. Sometimes, you cannot process it because diverting attention from your adversary will spell certain doom.

Navigating Lumiose City

Away from combat, you will traverse Lumiose City. It's relatively small, although densely packed. Far into the adventure, I'm still discovering new shops and rooftops to explore. It is also full of charm, and fully realizes the vision of Pokémon and people coexisting. Pidgey populate its sidewalks, taking flight when you get near similar to actual city birds obstructing my path while strolling through NYC. The monkey trio gleefully hang from lampposts, and insect creatures like Kakuna cling to trees.

An emphasis on city living represents a fresh approach for the franchise, and a positive change. Nonetheless, navigating the city becomes rote eventually. You may stumble upon an alley you haven't been to, but you wouldn't know it. The architecture is devoid of personality, and most rooftops and underground routes provide minimal diversity. While I never visited Paris, the inspiration for Lumiose, I reside in New York for almost ten years. It's a metropolis where every district differs, and they're all vibrant with differences that provide character. Lumiose City lacks that quality. It features beige structures topped with colored roofs and flatly rendered terraces.

Where The Metropolis Truly Shines

In which Lumiose City really shines, surprisingly, is inside buildings. I adored the way creature fights within Sword and Shield take place in football-like stadiums, giving them real weight and meaning. On the flipside, fights within Scarlet & Violet happen in a field with few spectators observing. It's very disappointing. Z-A finds a balance between the two. You'll battle in restaurants with diners observing as they dine. A fancy battle society will extend an invitation to a tournament, and you'll battle on its penthouse court with a chandelier (not Chandelure) hanging above. My favorite location is the elegantly decorated base of the Rust Syndicate with its moody lighting and magenta walls. Various individual combat settings overflow with personality that's absent from the larger city as a whole.

The Familiarity of Routine

Throughout the Championship, along with quelling rogue powered-up creatures and filling the creature index, there is an unavoidable feeling of, {"I