It’s no secret that Pokemon Scarlet and Violet had its fair share of issues, leaving many fans disappointed. In fact, the poor reception of the game may be part of why The Pokemon Company decided to keep its next main series game, Pokemon Legends: Z-A, in the oven a little bit longer. With a greater delay comes greater responsibility, and I’m hopeful we’ll see that delay pay off in the final product – a better game that actually functions from the start.
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However, there are plenty of pitfalls Pokemon Legends: Z-A could fall into no matter how long they take making it. Here’s hoping the game doesn’t repeat these past Pokemon game mistakes.
Glitchy Gameplay and Frame Rate Nightmares – The Scarlet and Violet Mistake
This one is almost a given, but with the year gap between releases giving more time for the developers to work on Pokemon Legends: Z-A, it needs to run well. Pokemon Scarlet and Violet launched with massive glitches such as players falling through the ground and getting stuck. The frame rate also struggled, leading to stuttering and the overall impression that the game launched before it was ready. That means many fans, myself included, are hoping The Pokemon Company learns from its mistakes on this front.
While I mostly enjoyed Scarlet and Violet thanks to the more robust story and ability to work through different areas at your own pace, the glitches certainly took away from what could’ve been a truly great game. Pokemon Legends: Z-A needs to do a lot better to bring Pokemon fans something to make them love the games again.
Lazy Remake Syndrome – The BDSP Mistake
While Legends: Z-A isn’t exactly a remake, it is a return to a familiar region. Set in Pokemon X and Y’s Lumiose City, the game will likely have shades of the never-released Pokemon Z about it. It’s also the second Legends-style game, which means the developers could be hoping to set some patterns for what makes a Legends game different from the mainline Pokemon series, leading to ideas from Pokemon Legends: Arceus being borrowed.
As a result, it’s possible the game could suffer from what made so many people hate Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl. Namely, these remakes didn’t really improve upon the original games, and in many cases, took steps backward. Heading back to Lumiose City could mean a lack of interesting new story and lore, and returning to the Legends: Arceus format might mean leaning too much into similar gameplay to the detriment of the new entry. Here’s hoping Pokemon Legends: Z-A is able to avoid remake syndrome and pave its own path.
Missing Battles – The Legends: Arceus Mistake
Speaking of what makes a Legends-style game, one primary complaint about Legends: Arceus is that you don’t really get to participate in many Pokemon battles. Personally, I find that battling trainers can get a little repetitive after a while, but even I found it odd that you only really battle a handful of times. Sure, there’s the option to battle wild Pokemon, and you’ve got the Noble Pokemon boss battles, but trainer battles are few and far in between.
Given that Legends: Z-A will likely be set entirely in Lumiose City, it’s poised to make this mistake. After all, how many trainers can there be in one city? Hopefully, the developers will find a way to infuse trainer battles throughout the story of Lumiose City, giving trainers a chance to test their teams. We still haven’t seen much of anything in the way of actual gameplay, so it’s highly possible some kind of tournament or other setup will allow for more Pokemon battles… at least, we can hope.
Poor Story Pacing – The Sword and Shield Mistake
I’ll fully admit I’m just now going back to play Pokemon Sword, as I missed it the first time around. Yet even early on, the story problems in this game are pretty obvious. Aside from a few hints at something bigger, the story basically doesn’t exist for much of the early gameplay. One thing I liked about Scarlet and Violet was that it had more than just one “beat Team X” type of storyline. That’s missing in Pokemon Sword as the main conflict doesn’t emerge until later in the game. This leaves the beginning a bit dull and repetitive as you mostly just hear Hop talk about his dreams over and over. With this in mind, I really want to see future main series games like Pokemon Legends: Z-A stick the landing when it comes to having a more robust storyline like Pokemon Scarlet and Violet.
If The Pokemon Company and Game Freak can avoid these past Pokemon game mistakes, there’s a chance that the extra time working on Pokemon Legends: Z-A could deliver something truly exciting for Pokemon fans that will be worth the wait.
