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

Be it a core franchise title or a side project such as Pokkén Tournament DX and Pokémon Go — the name never changes. Glitch alternates from male to female characters, featuring dark and violet locks. Sometimes their style is flawless, like in Pokémon Legends: Z-A, the latest installment in this enduring series (and among the most fashion-focused entries). At other moments they're confined to the assorted academic attire designs from Pokémon Scarlet and Violet. Yet they remain Glitch.

The Constantly Changing Realm of Pokemon Titles

Similar to my trainers, the Pokemon titles have evolved across installments, some cosmetic, some significant. But at their core, they stay the same; they're always Pokemon through and through. Game Freak discovered an almost flawless mechanics system approximately three decades back, and just recently truly attempted to innovate upon it with games like Pokémon Legends: Arceus (different timeline, your avatar is now in danger). Across all iteration, the core mechanics cycle of capturing and battling with adorable monsters has remained consistent for nearly the same duration as I've been alive.

Breaking the Mold with Pokémon Legends: Z-A

Like Arceus before it, featuring lack of arenas and focus on creating a creature catalog, Pokémon Legends: Z-A brings several deviations to that framework. It takes place entirely in a single location, the Paris-inspired Lumiose Metropolis of Pokémon X & Y, ditching the expansive journeys of earlier titles. Pokémon are intended to coexist with humans, battlers and civilians, in manners we have merely seen glimpses of before.

Far more drastic than that Z-A's real-time combat mechanics. This is where the series' almost ideal core cycle undergoes its most significant evolution yet, replacing deliberate sequential fights for more frenetic action. And it is thoroughly enjoyable, even as I feel eager for another traditional release. Though these changes to the traditional Pokémon formula sound like they create a completely new adventure, Pokémon Legends: Z-A feels as recognizable as any other Pokémon title.

The Heart of the Adventure: The Z-A Royale

Upon first arriving in Lumiose City, any intentions your created character had as a tourist are discarded; you're promptly recruited by the female guide (if playing as a male character; Urbain for female characters) to join her team of trainers. You're gifted a creature from them as your first partner and you're dispatched into the Z-A Royale.

The Championship serves as the centerpiece of Pokémon Legends: Z-A. It's comparable to the traditional "arena symbols to final challenge" advancement from earlier titles. However here, you battle a handful of trainers to earn the chance to participate in an advancement bout. Win and you will be promoted to the next rank, with the ultimate goal of reaching rank A.

Real-Time Combat: A New Approach

Trainer battles take place during nighttime, while sneaking around the designated combat areas is quite entertaining. I'm always trying to surprise a rival and launch a free attack, because all actions occur instantaneously. Attacks operate on recharge periods, meaning you and your opponent may occasionally strike simultaneously at the same time (and defeat each other simultaneously). It's much to adjust to initially. Despite playing for nearly 30 hours, I continue to feel that there is much to master in terms of employing my creatures' attacks in methods that work together synergistically. Positioning also plays a major role in battles since your creatures will follow you around or move to specific locations to execute moves (certain ones are distant, whereas others must be in close proximity).

The real-time action makes battles go so fast that I often repeating sequences through moves in the same order, even when this amounts to a less effective approach. There isn't moment to pause in Z-A, and plenty of opportunities to get overwhelmed. Creature fights depend on feedback after using an attack, and that information remains visible on screen within Z-A, but flashes past rapidly. Sometimes, you can't even read it since diverting attention from your adversary will spell certain doom.

Navigating Lumiose Metropolis

Outside of battle, you will traverse Lumiose City. It's fairly compact, although densely packed. Deep into the game, I'm still discovering unseen stores and elevated areas to explore. It's also rich with character, and fully realizes the concept of creatures and humans living together. Pidgey inhabit its pathways, taking flight as you approach like the real-life pigeons getting in my way when walking through NYC. The monkey trio joyfully cling from lampposts, and bug-Pokémon such as Kakuna cling to trees.

An emphasis on urban life represents a fresh approach for Pokémon, and a positive change. Nonetheless, exploring Lumiose grows repetitive eventually. You might discover an alley you never visited, but it feels identical. The building design lacks character, and many elevated areas and underground routes provide minimal diversity. Although I never visited Paris, the model behind Lumiose, I've lived in NYC for almost ten years. It's a metropolis where no two blocks are the same, and all are alive with uniqueness that provide character. Lumiose Metropolis doesn't have that. It has beige structures with blue or red roofs and flatly rendered balconies.

The Areas Where Lumiose City Truly Shines

Where Lumiose City truly stands out, surprisingly, is inside buildings. I adored the way creature fights within Sword & Shield occur in arena-like venues, providing them genuine significance and meaning. On the flipside, battles in Scarlet and Violet happen in a field with few spectators observing. It's very disappointing. Z-A strikes a middle ground between the two. You'll battle in eateries with patrons watching while they eat. An elite combat club will invite you to a competition, and you'll battle in its rooftop arena under a lighting fixture (not the Pokemon) suspended overhead. The most memorable spot is the elegantly decorated base of the Rust Syndicate with its moody lighting and magenta walls. Several distinct combat settings overflow with personality missing in the overall metropolis as a whole.

The Comfort of Repetition

During the Championship, as well as quelling rogue powered-up creatures and filling the creature index, there is an unavoidable feeling of, {"I