Pokémon Presents - Pokémon Day 2025 - Pokemon ZA Info & Pokemon Champions Announced

[Codraroll]

I'm going to give a counter-argument.

You need to think outside of the box.

Legends Arceus isn't an exploration game. It's a collectathon with Mobile Game Quests. The map is there simply to spread out the Pokemon and then you find them and do mobile game quests, usually repetitive, in order to complete goals and Level Up. That is something that could easily be done with levels like these small Wild Areas in Lumiose City.

For instance, the Distortion Rifts in Legends Arceus are some of the tightest bits of gameplay since for a short while you can accomplish basically every major part of the game loop, plenty of rare Pokemon (some of which exclusive here) and constant battling, catching, rare items, etc. From a game design perspective, if you wanted to focus in on that addictive loop rather than exploration (which seems feasible to me), skipping the more open world and just stripping it down into essentially areas where those are constant seems pretty reasonable to me.

Where Legends Arceus was about catching, clearly this game actually is about Battling. Defeating Wild Pokemon doesn't come at the cost of failing to catch them, and we see that battles can go very quickly with short clips of Pokemon being defeated fast. With the camera angle and the speed of this ARPG combat, these small areas could easily become chaotic arenas with the player running around fighting new Pokemon as they spawn and getting items and more.

Legends ZA doesn't need exploration to follow the game design of Legends Arceus. Because all Legends Arceus is is a skinnerbox dressed up in an open zone. And I say that as someone that likes it. The only purpose exploration serves is to find where the Mobile Game Quest NPCs are and repeat the actions on them until you've finished your real goal- crunching numbers and making for a satisfying report sheet with dozens of tasks completed in one session.

Hm, there could definitely be something to this. The prospect of all-out brutal street brawls with dozens of Pokémon coming at you in quick order doesn't quite match the tone of the trailers so far, but then again, we never saw the Noble Electrode fight coming from the first Legends Arceus trailers either.

I was also thinking that the game could be more story-driven as an alternative to exploration. The official site suggests you will be tackling all sorts of incidents, after all. But then I had a hard time fitting in the gameplay loop of catching wild Pokémon, which you will presumably be doing by the dozen at some point. It's not like you could feasibly rush to a crime scene to investigate, only to be met with the task of catching 20 Fletchling, or something like that. A story-driven approach like that would be more at home in the Detective Pikachu games, rather than one where you are explicitly playing as a Pokémon trainer.

 

[ant4456]

Hm, there could definitely be something to this. The prospect of all-out brutal street brawls with dozens of Pokémon coming at you in quick order doesn't quite match the tone of the trailers so far, but then again, we never saw the Noble Electrode fight coming from the first Legends Arceus trailers either.

I was also thinking that the game could be more story-driven as an alternative to exploration. The official site suggests you will be tackling all sorts of incidents, after all. But then I had a hard time fitting in the gameplay loop of catching wild Pokémon, which you will presumably be doing by the dozen at some point. It's not like you could feasibly rush to a crime scene to investigate, only to be met with the task of catching 20 Fletchling, or something like that. A story-driven approach like that would be more at home in the Detective Pikachu games, rather than one where you are explicitly playing as a Pokémon trainer.

I think there'll definitely be a good amount of plot, Legends in the title and all (plus me and the fellow lore nerds pogging out of our gourd at zydog). My theory is as follows:


Lumiose City's Tower Thing whatever it's called will have someone try to turn it into the Ultimate Weapon. On the logo we see it predominantly, and I think that's more than just the setting.

Neatly, the logo also has roots in the tower which is probably showing how while Legends Arceus is about humans colonizing the Earth, Legends ZA is about Pokemon colonizing Lumiose City. We're going Z to A, if Arceus is A to Z.

But yeah I think that the placement matches thing will tie into it, probably be this game's "Nobles". Maybe some underground shady dealings around a competition of sorts? I think it'd be cool if we got to see some classic Paris underground stuff, I think that's pretty realistic, and maybe some bits right outside of the City.

Lastly, I think it's possible this game will have one of those "midstory / plot the entire city changes 'cuz of plot" moments that will make the city more interesting, but obviously that is baseless speculation.

 

[Cuddly]

I’d say the Mainline Pokemon games have next to impossible chances of flopping. Profit is earnings (how many people buy the games + merch) - budget (how much it costs to make). Pokemon is the most profitable franchise because it has a large and loyal fanbase (the type that probably still buy the games if it were just a power point presentation of Charizard + Pikachu made by people who Anthony Ricco wouldn’t legally represent), and well they cut plenty of corners each game.
Spin off games I can see flopping, as they are a lot less popular and plenty have gone under the radar. Mostly due to having less advertisements.
With that said, ZA will absolutely be profitable. Every mainline Pokemon game will be absolutely profitable for the next several decades. Pokemon’s most likely downfall would be legal reasons. Like in the future there are now more laws centered around gaming and force Pokemon to drastically change their model.
I also don’t see Champions technically flopping, but if Champions ends up not being F2P (or is paid for and lacks significant content) and lacks an ingame teambuilder like on Showdown, it’d be one of those games kept alive by a small group of whales.

 

[Karxrida]

We obviously don't have access to the financials, but I also imagine Pokémon games don't have insanely bloated budgets like most titles of the AAA space. (Even outside of cut corners I mean.) Pokémon does not have a chance of failing unless they start being stupid with the budget.

 

[lemonademaker]

I’d say the Mainline Pokemon games have next to impossible chances of flopping. Profit is earnings (how many people buy the games + merch) - budget (how much it costs to make). Pokemon is the most profitable franchise because it has a large and loyal fanbase (the type that probably still buy the games if it were just a power point presentation of Charizard + Pikachu made by people who Anthony Ricco wouldn’t legally represent), and well they cut plenty of corners each game.

well flopping and a popularity decline are two different things. Im sure Pokémon was still plenty profitable in the post poke mania gba era. I'm sure that even the worst selling games (bw2, usum, etc.) were profitable. I don't think anyone beileves pokemon even has a chance of going bankrupt

 

[Coronis]

Chikorita is absolutely not the least popular starter ever, lots of people like it, even before Z-A it got marketed a fair amount and iirc it's even super popular in Korea (it got first place in a favorite pokemon poll they did!). Tepig and Chespin are by far the least popular starters of their respective types (which makes me sad because I love them), being the only two not to make their regions' top 30 in the 2020 Pokemon of the Year poll. Least popular Water starter is more tricky: If you just consider the west it's probably Sobble, but not unlike Chikorita I think Japan likes it a lot. Quaxly or Popplio perhaps if you're looking overall?

Ew, people don’t like Sobble?

Popplio is one ugly thing. Quaxly is meh but at least its evos look better. Popplio stays permanently ugly.

 

[ant4456]

Ew, people don’t like Sobble?

Popplio is one ugly thing. Quaxly is meh but at least its evos look better. Popplio stays permanently ugly.

I don't like a lot of starters tbh.

I don't like/dislike Charmeleon, Charizard, Wartortle, Blastoise, Venusaur, Croconaw, Feraligatr, Typhlosion, Combusken, used to dislike Blaziken, the entire Treecko line outside of Mega Sceptile, I like Mudkip and Marshtomp but dislike Swampert, Prinplup, Empoleon, Grotle, Infernape, Pignite, Emboar, Quilladin, Frogadier, Dartrix, Inteleon, the entire Rillaboom line, the middle evo of the Fuecoco line and Quaquavel.

 

[ScraftyIsTheBest]

I think there'll definitely be a good amount of plot, Legends in the title and all (plus me and the fellow lore nerds pogging out of our gourd at zydog). My theory is as follows:


Lumiose City's Tower Thing whatever it's called will have someone try to turn it into the Ultimate Weapon. On the logo we see it predominantly, and I think that's more than just the setting.

View attachment 718163

Neatly, the logo also has roots in the tower which is probably showing how while Legends Arceus is about humans colonizing the Earth, Legends ZA is about Pokemon colonizing Lumiose City. We're going Z to A, if Arceus is A to Z.

But yeah I think that the placement matches thing will tie into it, probably be this game's "Nobles". Maybe some underground shady dealings around a competition of sorts? I think it'd be cool if we got to see some classic Paris underground stuff, I think that's pretty realistic, and maybe some bits right outside of the City.

Lastly, I think it's possible this game will have one of those "midstory / plot the entire city changes 'cuz of plot" moments that will make the city more interesting, but obviously that is baseless speculation.

In that regard I wonder if the top of Prism Tower is where we might meet Xerneas and Yveltal. If Prism Tower is to be used by some factions as an ultimate weapon-esque device then maybe the two will manifest atop the tower somehow. Unleashing their life/destruction powers and by extension Mega Evolution energy as a whole unto the entire city.

Maybe that's why the trailer ended with seeing Zydog looking at Prism Tower. Seeing as how it's the enforcer of order and in direct relation to Xerneas and Yveltal both protects them and keeps them in check, maybe it senses their powers will be unleashed there, with at least one of them in a berserk state somehow.

 

[War Incarnate]

Ew, people don’t like Sobble?

Popplio is one ugly thing. Quaxly is meh but at least its evos look better. Popplio stays permanently ugly.

Primarina? Ugly? That is certainly a take!

See, when it comes to "least popular Water starter" I've always been inclined to believe that it's (Unovan) Samurott. Maybe I'm biased in this regard because I have a personal hatred towards that pokemon in particular, but it's not a starter people commonly talk about, for better or for worse. I also feel like it doesn't appear on a lot of marketing either, though if I am somehow wrong in this regard, do correct me.

At least Meganium and co. are talked about, even if they're not particularly well liked in certain corners of the interweb. Samurott, on the other hand? I think I wouldn't fault people for forgetting that exists, no one really talks about it these days and it kinda shows - it's kind of an all around forgettable and mediocre pokemon.

 

[DreamPrince]

On the topic of champions, I’m hoping that the VGC matches will have an open team sheet option. One big reason I struggle to touch Doubles at all in SV cartridge is because your not playing the same tourneys as official tournaments-there are no team sheets, so your stuck guessing movesets and types and the fact it’s not best of three. Teams that work on cart ladder do not necessarily thrive in tournament settings.

In other words, you can’t play the actual official format on the game you bought- instead, you have to use a free simulator to practice. Pokémon has always been hard to get into competitively, but this really bakes the cake.

 

[Bakugames]

The video felt like pure shill nonsense lol. The only real problem guys is that our tournaments will be MORE popular and Pokemon will be MORE successful than ever.

I don't actually think its shill but a genuine worry: pocket created an intense boom in interest for the physical tcg, which made the scalping issue literally 100x worse. its very clear that if you're able to mobilize the less engaged players into a more niche part of the franchise, they will be able to overwhelm things

granted its not /pockets/ fault, its tpc's inability/uninterest in stopping scalpers beyond barebones measures, but that means that if the vgc itself doesnt get robust support for a new flood of players, things will get complicated. the format is already under heavy strain and not even that well done, imagine if you add a shit ton more people lmfao

 

[Worldie]

In that regard I wonder if the top of Prism Tower is where we might meet Xerneas and Yveltal. If Prism Tower is to be used by some factions as an ultimate weapon-esque device then maybe the two will manifest atop the tower somehow. Unleashing their life/destruction powers and by extension Mega Evolution energy as a whole unto the entire city.

This reminded me something I was thinking during the presentation.

ZA is a mainly single player game. Assuming it follows same patterns as ZA, you'll have some kind of incentive to fill the pokedex, and filling the pokedex has to be done within the cart without needing to trade (as they don't have the usual incentive to sell double versions).

In LA, they got around some of the typical issues by having items that trigger "Trade evolves", and letting you choose which of Palkia/Dialga you'd side with and then catch the other later.

Which makes me wonder, how they will have *both* Xerneas and Yveltal pop in the story this time. Assuming both are part of the game obviously.
Most of the old "double versions legendaries" had mostly no inherent differences in the plot bar maybe a location to visit (Kyogre and Groudon are honestly the only ones where there was at least some plot differences).
Getting to see some kind of interaction between Xerneas and Yveltal is something I am interested of.

 

[AquaticPanic]

This reminded me something I was thinking during the presentation.

ZA is a mainly single player game. Assuming it follows same patterns as ZA, you'll have some kind of incentive to fill the pokedex, and filling the pokedex has to be done within the cart without needing to trade (as they don't have the usual incentive to sell double versions).

In LA, they got around some of the typical issues by having items that trigger "Trade evolves", and letting you choose which of Palkia/Dialga you'd side with and then catch the other later.

Which makes me wonder, how they will have *both* Xerneas and Yveltal pop in the story this time. Assuming both are part of the game obviously.
Most of the old "double versions legendaries" had mostly no inherent differences in the plot bar maybe a location to visit (Kyogre and Groudon are honestly the only ones where there was at least some plot differences).
Getting to see some kind of interaction between Xerneas and Yveltal is something I am interested of.

I think Xerneas and Yveltal are likely not gonna be as integral to this game's plot as Almighty Sinnoh was for PLA. Big part of why there was the conflict betwen Pearl and Diamond clans was because those mons were already culturally significant to the region - I don't think Xerneas and Yveltal are on that level, and mostly I feel like the game will probably focus on Zygarde more (+ whatever the A in the logo might be)

In that sense I think Xerneas and Yveltal might show up during an important plot beat but will probably have dedicated locations to be caught at later (being closer to what the Lake Trio was doing in PLA)

 

[Yung Dramps]

I'm not liking a lot of the talk around Pokemon Champions ngl. From what I can gather people are hoping for/expecting it to mark a decisive split where as Bakugames said it will be the VGC machine, letting Game Freak completely focus on making the mainline games strong single player experiences. Will this actually happen, though? I mean, it's not impossible, potentially not even improbable, but there are hardly any guarantees given just how little we actually know about this project.

Frankly I'm skeptical about how much this arrangement would even benefit the core games. If for Gen 10 they're basically gonna dismantle all the online infrastructure beyond doing casual matches and trades with friends (emphasis on if), will there be serious single player game design improvements to compensate? Like, what's the conversion rate? Are people expecting the internal dev resources that once went to ranked game modes to now go to a new battle facility or postgame dungeons? Suffice it to say, I have my doubts and I think people are setting themselves up for some major disappointment.

Despite the aforementioned doubts, I'm glad this is what ILCA has been put to work on. At least this is a product that could theoretically be good for the brand's health, which is more than you can say for another phoned-in FaithfulTM remake.

 

[Cuddly]

There's actually a subtle hint Xerneas & Yveltal could be getting up to something big: the dash in the Legends Z-A logo has hints of red and blue at the corners
View attachment 718248
It's also worth noting for general plot speculation that Z-A has WAY fewer Legendaries to juggle than Arceus did: The list of "required" ones before new additions is literally just the XYZ trio and Mewtwo. I think they should be more than capable of finding some major design space (i.e. on par with how LA handled Arceus and the creation trio) for all of them.

Well I don’t doubt Xerneas and Yveltal will play a major role in the game’s story, this part of the logo could be referencing Zygarde Complete, which has the XY colors on its chest and wings.

 

[Yung Dramps]

Well I don’t doubt Xerneas and Yveltal will play a major role in the game’s story, this part of the logo could be referencing Zygarde Complete, which has the XY colors on its chest and wings.

Ok yknow what fair point I completely forgot about that detail lmao

 

[Coronis]

Primarina? Ugly? That is certainly a take!

See, when it comes to "least popular Water starter" I've always been inclined to believe that it's (Unovan) Samurott. Maybe I'm biased in this regard because I have a personal hatred towards that pokemon in particular, but it's not a starter people commonly talk about, for better or for worse. I also feel like it doesn't appear on a lot of marketing either, though if I am somehow wrong in this regard, do correct me.

At least Meganium and co. are talked about, even if they're not particularly well liked in certain corners of the interweb. Samurott, on the other hand? I think I wouldn't fault people for forgetting that exists, no one really talks about it these days and it kinda shows - it's kind of an all around forgettable and mediocre pokemon.

Looks like a crossbreed of Dewgong with something. Maybe Milotic

If I had to go my favourite and least favourite starter lines by type…

Sprigatito, Chimchar, Froakie
Chespin, Tepig, Popplio

Honestly would say the rest of the water starters are on average better than the others. Like, don’t have the highs and lows.

 

[ant4456]

I think Xerneas and Yveltal are likely not gonna be as integral to this game's plot as Almighty Sinnoh was for PLA. Big part of why there was the conflict betwen Pearl and Diamond clans was because those mons were already culturally significant to the region - I don't think Xerneas and Yveltal are on that level, and mostly I feel like the game will probably focus on Zygarde more (+ whatever the A in the logo might be)

In that sense I think Xerneas and Yveltal might show up during an important plot beat but will probably have dedicated locations to be caught at later (being closer to what the Lake Trio was doing in PLA)

Gun to my head you could not make me explain how Dialga and Palkia are actually important to PLA as a whole tbh

 

[Pikachu315111]

A few days (and 16 pages) late on this, but I like to get my opinion even if anything I say has been talked to death already. Thus, first I'm just going to try and be quick with my thoughts in this post. Then I'll read through all the pages to see if I want to comment on anything someone else said (or at least give a like).

POKEMON DIRECT THOUGHTS:
But before we can get to the "major" topic, let's get through the announcements (or at least the ones I have anything to say about):

• Pokemon Concierge: I think a new season was already announced so nothing new there. Though what many may not have known was them putting the first season (4 episodes, about an hour altogether) up on their Youtube until March 9th. So if you haven't watched it already, go do so. I gave my thoughts on and I concluded it's a charming series with a likable & relatable protagonist and unique & fun visual style.
  
  
• Pokemon Masters EX: Huh, so just May & Brendan getting the Neo Champion treatment. I know Wally wasn't necessarily aiming to become a Champion, but he did get all the Badges and ORAS moved his final main story battle deep into Victory Road (and then he went on to become a competitive player stand-in in the Battle Resort); I feel he could have been made a Neo Champion. If they didn't want to give him Rayquaza they could have given him Shiny Jirachi (or Shiny Deoxys, though I feel Jirachi fits Wally better). That all said, I do hope at some point they pair Wally with an Iron Valiant (maybe they can do an event with Ultra Beast vs Paradox like they did with Ultra Beast vs Mythical, or maybe Past Paradox vs Future Paradox).
  
  Pokemon Sleep: Yeah, I guess the only way to have Darkrai in Pokemon Sleep without causing a calamity is to also have Cresselia to nullify it.
  
  
• Pokemon Unite:
  : Of f***ing course its ALOLAN that's in...
  There's still hope Normal Raichu, there's multiple Eeveelutions (actually all but the original trio, strange) and Mewtwo has two slots for its different Mega Evolutions. You could be the first Pokemon to have both its Normal and Regional Form in the game.
  Though I could have sworn Suicune was already in the game, guess I got my wires crossed with Pokken. Let's see, from Pokken there's still Weavile, Sceptile, Croagunk/Toxicroak, & Empoleon (and Pikachu Libre, but its more likely to be a Holowear for Pikachu). All popular so I can see them added to Unite with time. And if they ever make another Pokken then they could return the favor and use their roster for inspiration (Tinkaton and Urshifu I feel would be definite picks; Would also say Zeraora though it had a chance in the first).
  Going to assume for Alcremie the base costume will be Vanilla/Strawberry and each of its Holowear will feature a different flavor/candy combo (and whatever clothes its given).
  
  
• Pokemon TCG: Now don't you go confusing these "Mega Pokemon ex" with the previous time Mega Pokemon were given those letters in the TCG. Those were "M Pokemon EX", the "M" being a stylized symbol meaning "Mega" and "EX" were capitalized. "Mega Pokemon ex" have the word "Mega" written out and part of the Pokemon's name and "ex" are lowercase. There, I bet you now feel silly confusing the two before.

MAIN SERIES NEWS:

• Rotom Phone Case: Oh right, you're still making those? Alright, I'll get it, though don't know about anyone else but once I changed my Rotom Phone Case I never changed it again (I use the "Arc Phone" expy unlocked having "Legends: Arceus" save data). Give me a Legends: Z-A case and MAYBE I'll consider changing one last time.
  
  
• Mass Outbreak of Red-, Green-, and Blue-Colored Pokemon: : "HEY!"
  
  
• Paldea Starter Mighty Raids: Oh neat, should of figured they'd do the Paldea Starters to cap off the Starter-based Mighty Raids. Though really, they're just their Primary Types? I feel Meowscarada could've been Poison (lure Psychic & Ground), Skeledirge been Psychic (lure Bug & Ghost), and Quaquaval been Flying (lure Rock & Ice) or Electric (lure Ground). Would it make them any more harder? Maybe, maybe not, just would like something unique as it feels these three are always given their Primary Type for Tera (heck, even their Secondary Types would be a welcome change).
  
  
• Pseudo Mighty Raids: And the next themed batch is the Pseudo Legendaries (aside from Dragonite who was already done), makes sense. Tyranitar is confirmed Ghost (to lure Ghost-types, alright). Prediction for others: Salamence Dark (lure Fighting & Bug; Also fitting for personality and referencing Roarng Moon), Metagross Dragon (lure Ice & Fairy; bit of an ironic pick considering its fellow members), Garchomp Flying (lure Rock & Electric; fitting cause it can fly at high speeds), Hydreigon Poison (lure Psychic & Ground (cause Levitate); fitting as both orochi and hydra were poisonous), Goodra Rock (lure Ground (learns a lot of Water move) & Grass (cause Sap Sipper); a stretched reference to Hisuian Goodra), Kommo-o Fairy (lure Steel) or Psychic (lure Dark; eitherway Kommo-o can be seen as a spiritual Pokemon), Dragapult Fighting (lure Psychic; also partially based on fighter planes), & Baxcalibur Steel (lure Ground & Fire (cause Thermal Exchange); also its ice features look like metal blades). And, to cover all bases, Hisuian Goodra Bug (lure Rock & Fire (learns lots of Water Moves); sometimes gastropod Pokemon are treated as Bug-types).
  
  
• Pokemon Champions: Now all over the web people are saying this is "Official Pokemon Showdown" (sometimes followed by a joke of Pokemon Company sending Smogon a cease & desist), but let me point out something about the trailer: For Gen II and IV it didn't show the handheld games but rather Stadium 2 and Battle Revolution (they likely skipped Colosseum for Gen III as most people see that as an RPG before a battling sim). And I think that was a message from Pokemon Company that, at least to them, they see Champions as part of the Stadium & Battle Revolution series of games; it's just that this time they're going to allow people to play on a non-Nintendo device. They also made sure to mention HOME connectivity so you don't just need to use the Pokemon in Champions, aka Rentals. Which is of course different from Showdown which lets you just create whatever team you want. Infact I could see Champions being used for late gen official Pokemon Tournaments where they start loosening up on restrictions they like to enforce during a gen's early years.
  Though, if its being compared to Stadium and Battle Revolution, would that mean it'll have some of the features from those games or something similar? Is it just a dedicated battling sim or could we see some Stadium-like mini-games? Are we only battling against other players or is there a single-player mode where we battle a league of NPCs and boss NPCs like in Battle Revolution? And will there be "stadiums/colosseums" with rules that change how battles play out? Guess we'll have to see.
  
  
• Latin American Spanish Added As 10th "Language Of Origin": Congrats Latin American players! Hmm, now was this done because Pokemon Company realized Spain Spanish isn't the same as Latin American Spanish so did this as a good gesture... OR could this be a hint for Gen 10's region basis? Well, that will probably be an announcement for next year, you know, Pokemon's 30th Anniversary...

POKEMON LEGENDS: Z-A:
Now once again, going to try and be quick with my thoughts as I'm sure whatever I'd want to say/do has already been done by someone else. I'll be using both the trailer and info from the website (plus parroting opinions of the few Youtubers I watch who also watched the Direct).

• Graphics: Pretty much the same as Scarlet & Violet, so nothing impressive. But, I don't know, I feel its at least passable? Would I like a Pokemon game that looks like Zelda BotW & TotK? Sure, but I'm more expecting that from the next gen games and not a main series spinoff. While the Legends games do feel like GF experimenting, the experimenting is with the Pokemon formula and mechanics and not the graphics; they're going to use the current gen graphics as it allows them to develop these side games quicker (and give the core series more time to develop their graphics, at least in theory that's how it should go).
  
  
• Lumiose City: Looking good, at least as much as the SV engine allowed them. It it is much bigger now, question is big enough for a whole game? Now, we did see that we can travel the rooftops, even using the Rotom phone to float us above the street to another building's roof (jeez, Pokemon trainers have balls of steel and a grip to match). Youtuber RadicalSoda joked about how strong and multiuse the Rotom Phones are and then suggested that could maybe be one of the traversing "upgrades" for this game, and I can see it. If we're stuck in just Lumiose City for the entire game, I think a way to "increase" the size of it is by adding these "layers" we gain access to via Rotom Phone upgrades. Like here we see the rooftops that Rotom Phone let us hop between, no doubt there has to be a sewer level, and in one scene was saw a digital NPC so maybe there's also a digital Lumiose City.
  
  
• Wild Zones & Catching: So, a big question I at least asked is how are we going to catch Pokemon if we're just in the city. GF answered: Wild Zones. Parts of the city, be it a park, rooftops, or even the street, have been renovated in a way that certain Pokemon like and now inhabit (where did the Pokemon come from and how do they keep a steady population? Ugh, let's just say Quasartico Inc. has a Hoopa on its payroll and move on). Alright then, its a bit strange and feels like they're already stretching my disbelief but do you want a Pokemon game or not?
  But, what is this? It looks like when catching Pokemon you can finally KO them... AND THEN THROW A POKE BALL TO CATCH THEM! Mentioning RadicalSoda again, they said that you likely have a second or two timeframe to throw your Pokeball before the Pokemon vanishes, and I agree with that assumption. They also noted that next to a wild Pokemon there were these yellow triangles next to it. Fletchling has three of them from the start, and Flaaffy had two but when it was attacked & KOed it went up to three. They think this shows how "catachable" the Pokemon (so both a weak Pokemon and KOed Pokemon would have all three triangles), but I'm not sure. For one thing, its odd they would even show something like that. Two, there's a few later battles in the trailer against a Pyroar and Talonflame and even when KOed they remained at one triangle. I don't know, nothing I can think of at the moment would explain all of it.
  
  
• Real Time Action Battles: Seemingly starting a new series tradition of having different battling mechancis, Legends: Z-A completely ditches the core series turn-based battles for a more action-based one. You can sort of say it's anime-esque, but still has rigid movements and mechanics to keep things under the player's control. But I'm not arguing, I'm excited to see what they do with this. It's the battling shake-up many have been wanting to see done... so we'll see if they got what they wished for or was a finger curl of a monkey's paw. I also have to wonder if this is something you have to use or there's a way to have turn-based battles like normal; like if you battle head-on will your opponent do the same?
  Also there may be one negative to this new battling style: Did anyone notice the tiny Onix in the trailer? I have a feeling giant Pokemon may be shrinking down a bit in order to help them dodge better.
  
  
• Pokemon & Characters:
  
  * Starters: Chikorita, Tepig, and Totodile; no one guessed them doubling up! And I have to wonder if that was partially intentional. Like, I'm sure they did pick these three because they did have an idea for whatever their new evolution will be (some are saying they may not have a new evolution but rather they're getting a Mega Evolution, I'm not quite sure on that). But with them picking two Starters from the same region I feel this is yet another way of them showing Legends is a series where they're going to experiment and not let past traditions limit what they do. Yes, we're still getting the three Starters, but as long as the Starters follow the Grass-Fire-Water triangle (for now) they can be from any gen, even two from the same.
  I don't really have anything else to say about the Starters, though I do wonder WHO is giving them to us. The protag is a sightseer so would be strange for the Professor to give us one, and we're probably not involved with Quasartico Inc. until after getting our Starter. However, since it looks like we get our Starter along with our Rival, I'm thinking maybe it's AZ who gives them to us. So the question now becomes why would AZ have these Starter Pokemon; is there something special about them?
  
  * Protags: Ah yes, Kalos, the fashionable region. Both are dressed a bit same-y, then again so did the ones in L:A, though at least they look nice; I like the Zygarde-colored jackets. The girls bell bottom jeans are notable, though in the game they don't look quite as open so could just be the stock art. Now I'm curious if they'll have customization, that was one of Gen 6's biggest introduced features and would feel odd to exclude it in this case. Also some say they look older than previous protags, and I say that's based on who you're talking about. Scarlet & Violet protags? Yes. But XY? They look to be about the same age as Serena & Calem (and if they are older it can't be more than a year). And, since this game is taking place in what I'm assume is the present, we already have a Serena & Calem so these two are all new. Though now I'm thinking it would have been funny if they designed them to resemble Adaman and Irida.
  
  
  
  * Urbain / Taunie (Rivals): "The appearance you choose at the beginning of the game will determine whether Urbain or Taunie will appear"... GF, just say if you play as the boy you get Taunie and if you play as the girl you get Urbain. Why are you acting as if there's some hidden appearance value. Though I also have another question for GF about this: Why? Especially with how similar they are. Like, it made some sense in SwSh's Isle of Armor DLC to have different new rivals; though they filled the same role, Klara and Avery were distinct characters (helps they were different Type Gym Leaders) and version exclusive. But I'm not seeing that for Urbain and Taunie, they're gender swaps of each other and I'm going to guess have nearly the same personality. Like, the player is like that because we'd want to play as a character of our gender (or maybe the opposite gender, I don't judge). It feels like they only did this because they didn't want to repeat having the opposite gender character be the rival. I'm hoping there's more to these two than what we're going to be shown, but if they're just as generic as they seem to be than they should have just had the opposite gender character be the rival; just have them wearing the clothes Urbain/Taunie are wearing if that at all matters.
  
  
  
  * AZ (& Eternal Flower Floette): I was not expecting to see what AZ has been up to this quickly! He has opened up a hotel, Hotel Z (I'm sure we'll explain why it's named that, like you're only missing one letter to that name for it to make sense), which is going to be your "home base". I'm guessing since they're going with this "sightseer" angle for the protag, the usual Pokemon Professor doesn't make sense but we need some mentor figure, why not our hotel manager and make it AZ cause his story was essentially done in XY thus now is sharing his wisdom and hospitality with young trainers (and with Zygarde taking an interest in the player, AZ's role may not be done just yet). Anyway he's looking good, or at least happier. Poor guy has to cut and sew two pants and shirts together to get a uniform that fits him (so he gained ownership of a hotel but that didn't come with a custom tailored suit?). Also you're no longer a nomad, you can cut your hair, at least get it neaten up. Come on Floette, I'm sure you're the one that made him get a job in the first place, but you also got to get AZ to take care of himself; immortality can only take you so far.
  Though speaking of Eternal Flower Floette, are we finally going to get one? I bet AZ has a small secret garden where he has grown more eternal flowers and post game he'll offer us a Floette (or maybe even a Flabebe) that he got to bond with the flower.
  
  
  
  * Jett (Quasartico Inc. CEO) & Vinnie (Jett's Secretary): EVIL!
  ... Sorry, force of habit. Anyway, I guess Quasartico Inc. moved in when Lysandre Labs was likely shut down when it's owner was revealed to be a mad man who was going to raze the world with a weapon of mass destruction. Jett sounds like a good person (but so did Lusamine) though Vinnie just looks like he's hiding something (anyone else he slightly resembles Lysandre? It's not him as the nose is different (unless he got plastic surgery), and if he is related than why is he working as an underling for another company?... And what is with the Buneary & Pancham hair buns?). Quasartico Inc. itself looks to be just as much of a high tech place as Aether Paradise; it's the Pokemon world presented to you by Apple.
  
  
  
  
  
  * Mega Pokemon: Move on folks, there's nothing to see here... OR IS THERE? Well, nothing NEW, but we do see ORAS Mega Pokemon here so it at least confirms they are in this Kalos game (hey, don't give me that look, with GF's recent track record this was a genuine concern). Anyway I'm going to assume all current com mon Mega Pokemon are in the game. If there's any I question are the Legendaries (Mewtwo, Eon Duo, Rayquaza) and Primal Reversions; Only exception would be Diancie for obvious reasons.
  
  * Zygarde: Though in the Direct we got a glimpse of 10% and a Cell, the website has given Zygarde and all its forms a complete bio. And it's on the website where it mentions that Zygarde has taken a special interest in the the protag (... It's the jacket, isn't it? There's something about the jacket like it's made of Zygarde Cells or something). Well eitherway, I hoped you liked the Zygarde Cell collecting in Sun & Moon, cause I have a feeling it's coming back!
  
  
• The Missing:
  Finally, I'd like mention some missing characters who we know are in Lumiose City or at least has a connection to it:
  
  * Professor Sycamore. Even if his lab wasn't in Lumiose City I think the region's Pokemon Professor would want to be involved in a major Pokemon-related undertaking. I mean there's Mega Evolution going on and that's his specialty.
  
  * Clemont (& Bonnie): So, at the end of the in-depth trailer, we got a "sneak peek" with Rotom showing a message saying "This is a promotion match announcement" and a logo based on the Prism Tower. In XY, the Prism Tower was where the Lumiose Gym was, it pretty much took the entire tower. Obviously there's not going to be a Pokemon League story in this game, and just like with the Professor I imagine the Gym Leader would want to be involved with the redevelopment (especially if it involves high tech, Clemont's bread and butter). So, if this announcement has something to do with Prism Tower and Clemont, maybe he's expanding the use of its battling facility (maybe into a "Battle Facility"). Also, I'm going to assume this game takes place at least after Sun & Moon, so if they appear Clemont would be a young adult and Bonnie an older teen (I'm assuming Clemont was around the same age as Dexio & Sina).
  
  * Alexa: Remember Alexa? Appeared in the anime as a Kalos teaser with Helioptile and Noivern (and essentially to make Ash aware of Kalos)? Gym Leader Viola's older sister whose a reporter for the Lumiose Press. And while you do have a scripted encounter with her early in the games... she then stays in the Lumiose Press building having no more involvement with the story *Sigh*. But hey, new game means new opportunity, and surely as a Lumiose reporter she'd want to document and report on the redevelopment of her home city (and of any incidents which happen within it, like the ones the player is said to get involved in). Right GF, RIGHT?
  
  * Trevor (& family): Your tech savvy, Dex completing friend in XY and his parents & older sister live in Lumiose City. While in XY post game you can find Trevor in Geosenge Town, well a few years would have passed. Considering his goal was completing the Pokedex I could see him becoming a lab assistant for Professor Sycamore (makes more sense than Hop becoming one...). Not only would he be a familiar face, he could provide a unique viewpoint in how the redevelopment plan are affecting the people who live in Lumiose City, both the pros and cons.
  
  * Dexio & Sina: Speaking of lab assistants, I'm assuming this game takes place after at least Sun & Moon because it would just feel odd if Dexio & Sina are in the game and they aren't the young adults we saw in those games. Granted, Dexio & Sina could just not be in the game, though conisdering its them who gives the Gen VII players the Zygarde Cube would just seem fitting for them to be involved in a Zygarde story.
  
  * Emma: Yeah, you were waiting for this one. As Yung Dramps excitedly pointed out, the Looker Bureau was briefly shown in the trailer. Emma essentially became Lumiose City Batman by the end of post game, so it would be interesting to know what's been happening with her (luckily the Expansion Suit can change size so the now young adult Emma wouldn't need to worry about outgrowing it).
  
  * Oh, speaking of missing, did anyone else notice there was no Pokemon from Gen VII to IX? "Well that's because they're working off Gen XI's Dex; Legends: Arceus did the same thing with the only exceptions being given new Regional Forms". Well it makes sense in Legends: Arceus because it was taking place in the past. But Z-A is taking place in the present, there's no reason why Pokemon from Alola, Galar, or Paldea (or Kitakami) couldn't have migrated especially with Lumiose City making an enviroment they're adapted to. Of course, it could be early days and they're just hiding them to create a more genuine Kalos feel for right now. Like if we're getting new Mega Pokemon, I would like all Gens to have an opportunity (though Kalos Pokemon should get a bulk of new Mega).
  
  * Also would there be any new Regional Variants? Hisui wasn't technically Sinnoh so was allowed to have Hisuian Pokemon, but this would be the first region re-visited to get Regional Variants. Would they be Kalosian? OR, since it would be just in the city, would they be Lumiosian? OR, maybe it'll have something to do with Quasartico Inc., so they'll be called Quasartican? And let's not even get into Evologically Similar Pokemon (ugh, that name...).

 

[Yung Dramps]

One thing I wanna quickly comment on that I don't think anyone else has brought up here so far is the website having these new 3D renders based on the Sugimori stock art

On the one hand: Why? All the character art is 2D illustrated as per usual and LA re-used the OG Arceus drawing while making new ones for the starters
On the other hand: These look infinitely better than the Home renders why the hell couldn't they look like this

 

[R_N]

One thing I wanna quickly comment on that I don't think anyone else has brought up here so far is the website having these new 3D renders based on the Sugimori stock art
View attachment 718293View attachment 718294View attachment 718295
On the one hand: Why? All the character art is 2D illustrated as per usual and LA re-used the OG Arceus drawing while making new ones for the starters
On the other hand: These look infinitely better than the Home renders why the hell couldn't they look like this

On the former: probably to give it a little extra identity rather than just reusing the sugimori art for the millionth time. BDSP was in a kind of similar boat, where it had both actual artwork for "scenes" but all the Pokemon & Characters used 3D renders. If it had original characters they'd probably have had a similar split. L:A probably didn't do something similar since they were still experimenting in general.
On the latter: Home wanted to go for a different style. One more neutral, even if sterile, that goes with the rest of the (also sterile) Home aesthetic and provides contrast to the other renders for the Pokedex (though it does remind me of Let's Go). These ones also probably want to look "fancy" since it's tied to a new game so they have more distinct lighting, shading and so forth; kind of pairs with Pokemon Champions so wouldn't surprise me if we see similar renders for that game.

 

[Coronis]

I did say a minority, but there are interesting things to observe there. The reason people widely prefer Emerald to Ruby and Sapphire isn’t because Wallace is a better champion, it’s the battle facilities. There have always been a portion of the fanbase who looks further than the base game and doesn’t like shiny hunting.

I mean, I always preferred the 3rd versions due to storytelling reasons and availability of version exclusives.

 

[Jadis]

It's nice to finally see Legends Z-A after all this time! The game looks pleasant enough from my one viewing of the trailer, I myself am grabbing Chikorita for this excursion, just like always. It's not a Pokemon that ever seemed weak to me, I guess I'm just built different...

I've quickly skimmed the thread, so sorry if it was already mentioned, but... Regarding seemingly limited Pokemon habitats; with major theme of Z-A being "construction", I wonder if we'll be able to swap Wild Zones for different biomes, a la Johto Safari Zone? You could decorate the place to attract a variety of Pokemon, it fits the theme as well! Is anyone excited to wait months to finally get Mega Salamence?

 

[Ironmage]

It occurred to me that edge case: the mon puts Champions in something of a catch-22 if they're attempting to stick with only one prominent format for each of singles/doubles.

• If customization within Champions isn't available, there's going to be complaints about inablility to change Tera type for mons not in SV.
• If shedinja isn't present, that's a pretty big blow against the appeal of a wide mon selection since there's no potential substitute for its gimmick
• If shedinja is present and Champions allows customization within itself, Tera Electric Balloon and variants completely dominate the meta.

Multiple formats with different banlists seems the only way to harmonize this.

 

[ant4456]

just the one pokemon unite player giving my thoughts here

: Of f***ing course its ALOLAN that's in..

Yeah it's the superior and good one /j

Going to assume for Alcremie the base costume will be Vanilla/Strawberry and each of its Holowear will feature a different flavor/candy combo (and whatever clothes its given).

This isn't likely, no Pokemon's base model is changed with Holowear.

Though I could have sworn Suicune was already in the game, guess I got my wires crossed with Pokken.

Suicune has been announced for a long time. All this trailer did for it was show its launch skin, and that's why everyone seems to have this reaction

Let's see, from Pokken there's still Weavile, Sceptile, Croagunk/Toxicroak, & Empoleon (and Pikachu Libre, but its more likely to be a Holowear for Pikachu). All popular so I can see them added to Unite with time. And if they ever make another Pokken then they could return the favor and use their roster for inspiration (Tinkaton and Urshifu I feel would be definite picks; Would also say Zeraora though it had a chance in the first).

I don't know if Unite and Pokken actually have that much overlap, Unite's roster like 80% appeals to the Furry Cabal of Whales that fund this game rather than anything else. Even here, all of Suicune, Alolan Raichu and Alcremie range all in positive popularity with furries.

Ironically, the last few picks before this string of mons hasn't been like that, after a previous string of Mewtwo, Inteleon, Leafeon, Umbreon, Goodra and Lapras only interspersed by Chandelure, but this batch seems to return to that form lol

Unite isn't likely to ever have Pikachu Libre because this game never actually references that kind of stuff unfortunately.