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I don't recall precisely when the custom started, but I always name every one of my Pokemon characters Malfunction.

Be it a main series game or a spinoff like Pokkén Tournament DX along with Pokémon Go — the moniker never changes. Malfunction switches from male to female avatars, featuring black and purple locks. Occasionally their style is flawless, as seen in Pokémon Legends: Z-A, the newest installment in this long-running series (and among the more fashion-focused releases). At other moments they're confined to the various academic attire styles of Pokémon Scarlet & Violet. Yet they remain Malfunction.

The Constantly Changing World of Pokémon Games

Similar to my trainers, the Pokémon games have transformed across releases, with certain superficial, some substantial. But at their heart, they remain the same; they're always Pokemon through and through. The developers discovered an almost flawless gameplay formula some 30 years ago, and has only truly attempted to evolve upon it with games like Pokémon Legends: Arceus (different timeline, your character is now in danger). Across every iteration, the core gameplay loop of capturing and battling alongside adorable monsters has stayed consistent for almost the same duration as my lifetime.

Breaking Conventions in Pokémon Legends: Z-A

Similar to Arceus before it, featuring lack of arenas and emphasis on creating a Pokédex, Pokémon Legends: Z-A brings several deviations to that formula. It takes place entirely in one place, the Paris-inspired Lumiose Metropolis from Pokémon X & Y, ditching the expansive journeys of previous games. Pokemon are intended to live together with people, trainers and non-trainers alike, in ways we have merely glimpsed previously.

Far more radical than that Z-A's live-action combat mechanics. It's here the franchise's almost ideal core cycle undergoes its biggest evolution to date, replacing methodical sequential fights for something more chaotic. And it's immensely fun, despite I feel eager for a new traditional entry. Although these alterations to the traditional Pokémon formula seem like they create a completely new experience, Pokémon Legends: Z-A feels as recognizable as every other Pokemon game.

The Core of the Journey: The Z-A Championship

Upon first arriving in Lumiose City, any intentions your custom avatar planned as a visitor are discarded; you're immediately recruited by Taunie (for male avatars; Urbain if female) to join her team of battlers. You're gifted a creature from them as your starter and are sent into the Z-A Royale.

The Royale is the epicenter in Pokémon Legends: Z-A. It's similar to the traditional "arena symbols to final challenge" advancement from earlier titles. However here, you battle several trainers to earn the opportunity to compete in a promotion match. Succeed and you'll be promoted to the next rank, with the final objective of reaching the top rank.

Live-Action Battles: A New Frontier

Character fights take place at night, and navigating stealthily the assigned combat areas is very enjoyable. I'm always trying to get a jump on a rival and unleash an unopposed move, since everything happens instantaneously. Attacks function with cooldown timers, meaning you and your opponent can sometimes strike simultaneously concurrently (and knock each other out at once). It's much to get used to initially. Even after gaming for almost thirty hours, I still feel like there's plenty to learn in terms of employing my creatures' attacks in ways that complement each other. Positioning also plays a significant part during combat as your Pokémon will follow you around or move to designated spots to perform attacks (some are long-range, whereas others need to be in close proximity).

The live combat makes battles progress so quickly that I find myself repeating sequences through moves in the same order, despite this results in a less effective approach. There's no time to pause in Z-A, and plenty of opportunities to become swamped. Pokémon battles rely on feedback post-move execution, and that data remains visible on the display within Z-A, but whips by rapidly. Sometimes, you can't even read it because diverting attention from your opponent will result in immediate defeat.

Exploring Lumiose Metropolis

Outside of battle, you'll explore Lumiose Metropolis. It's fairly compact, although tightly filled. Far into the adventure, I continue to find new shops and rooftops to visit. It is also rich with character, and fully realizes the vision of creatures and humans living together. Common bird Pokemon populate its sidewalks, flying away when you get near similar to actual city birds obstructing my path while strolling through NYC. The Pan Trio monkeys gleefully hang on streetlights, and insect creatures like Kakuna cling to trees.

An emphasis on urban life represents a fresh approach for Pokémon, and a welcome one. Nonetheless, exploring Lumiose becomes rote over time. You may stumble upon a passage you never visited, but it feels identical. The architecture is devoid of personality, and many elevated areas and sewer paths offer little variety. Although I haven't been to the French capital, the inspiration for the city, I reside in New York for almost ten years. It's a metropolis where no two blocks differs, and they're all vibrant with differences that give them soul. Lumiose City lacks that quality. It features tan buildings topped with colored roofs and flatly rendered terraces.

Where Lumiose City Really Excels

Where Lumiose City really shines, oddly enough, is indoors. I loved the way creature fights within Sword & Shield occur in arena-like venues, giving them real weight and meaning. Conversely, battles in Scarlet & Violet happen on a court with two random people watching. It's very disappointing. Z-A strikes a middle ground between the two. You will fight in eateries with diners observing as they dine. A fancy battle society will extend an invitation to a competition, and you'll battle in its rooftop arena with a chandelier (not the Pokemon) hanging above. My favorite location is the elegantly decorated base of the Rust Syndicate with atmospheric illumination and purple partitions. Various individual battle locales overflow with personality that's absent from the overall metropolis in general.

The Familiarity of Routine

During the Championship, along with quelling rogue Mega Evolved Pokémon and filling the Pokédex, there's an inescapable sense that, {"I