Summary
Excitement forPokemon Legends Z-Ais still fairly high, and will likely see a boost in the coming months. More information on this mysterious 2025 sequel toPokemon Legends: Arceusis expected to drop over the summer, whether as part of the June Nintendo Direct or a separate Pokemon Presents. Not much will be known about it until then, butPokemon Legends Z-Ais confirmed to bring players back to the Kalos region for another chance to explore the sprawling Lumiose City. With an urban redevelopment plan involved to allow Pokemon and humans to better coexist, the game has a lot of potential.
There’s a lot of good that thisPokemonproject could do, especially if it continues refining the open-world gameplay from the originalPokemon LegendsandPokemon ScarletandViolet. Complete with thereturn ofPokemon XandY’s Mega Evolution mechanic,Pokemon Legends Z-Ashould have a lot to offer players once it’s ready. When that would be was a topic of debate, as there were conflicting opinions regarding when its proposed release date in 2025 would fall. Fortunately, a new and fairly credible leak has narrowed that window down, and while fans may be waiting longer than they expect, the results should be worthwhile.
Pokemon Legends Z-A Might Not Be Out For A While
Prominent longtimePokemonleaker Riddler Khu surprised fans recently with a detailed look at the next couple of years of majorPokemonreleases, with the focus put onPokemon Legends Z-Aand the Generation 10 titles. UnlikeLegends: Arceus,Legends Z-Awill not be reprising its January time slot, and Khu predicts that the later 2025 months are more likely. Meanwhile,Pokemon’s 10th Generation isn’t expected until 2026, which lines up withPokemon’s 30th anniversary. That meansPokemon Legends Z-Acould be 2025’s mainlinePokemontitle, while 2024, currently, will be the first year without a core game, upgraded version, DLC launch, or remake since 2015.
A Later Pokemon Legends Z-A Launch Marks A New Strategy For Pokemon
Even though this information has yet to be confirmed, it paints a surprising picture of the normally consistentPokemonrelease schedule. Despite not being directly operated by Nintendo, Game Freak and The Pokemon Company may be following the larger publisher’s example and sacrificing their 2024 lineup for a better 2025, most likely on the Nintendo Switch’s successor.Rumors about the still-unnamed Switch 2were initially considered evidence in favor ofPokemon Legends Z-Acoming out earlier in the year, either as the first Switch’s last hurrah, or in the new Switch’s presumed launch period, but now it sounds likeLegends Z-Ahas something else in mind.
Launching On The Switch 2 Gives Pokemon Legends Z-A A Huge Opportunity
Potentially being designed to launch on the Nintendo Switch 2, with or without a cross-gen Switch 1 skew, paints a very different picture ofPokemon Legends Z-Athan fans once held. Throughout the Nintendo Switch generation,Pokemonfans have been consistently disappointedwith the fidelity, art assets, and performance of each mainlinePokemontitle lagging behind those of other Nintendo franchises.Pokemon ScarletandVioletadding a heap of glitches on top of all that was the tipping point for many, and understandably so, butPokemon Legends Z-Acould be trying to write its predecessors’ wrongs.
The Switch 2 Can Help Pokemon Legends Z-A Avoid Scarlet and Violet’s Mistakes
By targeting the Nintendo Switch 2,Pokemon Legends Z-Awill likely look more ambitiousthanPokemon ScarletandVioletdid, and that’s not all. Having a native Switch 2 port means that even if it’s cross-gen, there should be a version of the game with better performance, higher resolution, and potentially other extra visual flourishes. If nothing else, then the rumored late 2025 release date should givePokemon Legends Z-Atime to be polished and accomplish whatPokemon ScarletandVioletcould not.
