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I'm not sure exactly how the tradition began, but I consistently call every one of my Pokemon characters Malfunction.

Be it a main series title or a spinoff such as Pokkén Tournament DX and Pokémon Go — the name never changes. Malfunction alternates between male and female avatars, with black and purple hair. Occasionally their fashion is flawless, like in Pokémon Legends: Z-A, the newest installment in the long-running franchise (and one of the more style-conscious entries). Other times they're confined to the assorted school uniform styles from Pokémon Scarlet & Violet. But they remain Glitch.

The Constantly Changing World of Pokemon Games

Much like my characters, the Pokémon games have evolved across installments, with certain cosmetic, others substantial. However at their core, they remain identical; they're consistently Pokémon to the core. The developers uncovered a nearly perfect mechanics system approximately 30 years ago, and has only truly attempted to evolve upon it with games like Pokémon Legends: Arceus (new era, your character is now in danger). Throughout every iteration, the fundamental gameplay loop of capturing and battling alongside charming creatures has stayed consistent for almost as long as I've been alive.

Breaking Conventions with Pokémon Legends: Z-A

Like Arceus previously, with its lack of arenas and emphasis on compiling a Pokédex, Pokémon Legends: Z-A brings multiple deviations to that framework. It's set entirely in one place, the Paris-inspired Lumiose Metropolis from Pokémon X and Y, abandoning the expansive journeys of previous games. Pokémon are intended to coexist with people, trainers and non-trainers alike, in ways we've only glimpsed before.

Far more drastic is Z-A's live-action combat mechanics. It's here the franchise's almost ideal gameplay loop undergoes its biggest evolution to date, swapping methodical turn-based bouts with something more chaotic. And it's immensely fun, even as I feel ready for a new turn-based entry. Although these alterations to the traditional Pokémon formula sound like they form a completely new adventure, Pokémon Legends: Z-A is as familiar as any other Pokemon game.

The Heart of the Journey: The Z-A Championship

Upon initially reaching in Lumiose City, whatever plans your custom avatar had as a tourist are discarded; you're immediately recruited by the female guide (if playing as a male character; the male guide for female characters) to join her team of battlers. You're gifted a creature from them as your first partner and you're dispatched into the Z-A Royale.

The Royale serves as the centerpiece in Pokémon Legends: Z-A. It's comparable to the classic "gym badges to Elite Four" progression of past games. However here, you battle a handful of opponents to gain the chance to participate in a promotion match. Succeed and you will be promoted to the next rank, with the final objective of achieving rank A.

Live-Action Battles: An Innovative Approach

Character fights occur at night, and navigating stealthily the assigned battle zones is quite entertaining. I'm always attempting to surprise an opponent and unleash an unopposed move, since everything happens in real time. Moves operate on cooldown timers, meaning you and your opponent can sometimes strike simultaneously concurrently (and knock each other out at once). It's a lot to get used to initially. Even after gaming for almost 30 hours, I continue to feel like there's much to master in terms of using my Pokémon's moves in methods that work together synergistically. Placement also factors as a significant part during combat since your creatures will follow you around or go to designated spots to execute moves (some are long-range, while others must be in close proximity).

The real-time action makes battles progress so quickly that I find myself sometimes cycling through moves in the same order, despite this results in a suboptimal strategy. There isn't moment to pause during Z-A, and numerous opportunities to get overwhelmed. Pokémon battles rely on feedback after using an attack, and that data remains visible on screen within Z-A, but flashes past rapidly. Sometimes, you can't even read it because diverting attention from your adversary will spell certain doom.

Exploring Lumiose City

Outside of battle, you will traverse Lumiose City. It's fairly compact, though densely packed. Far into the adventure, I continue to find unseen stores and rooftops to visit. It's also full of charm, and fully realizes the vision of creatures and humans coexisting. Pidgey inhabit its pathways, flying away as you approach similar to actual city birds getting in my way while strolling in New York City. The monkey trio gleefully hang from lampposts, and insect creatures like Kakuna cling to trees.

A focus on urban life is a new direction for the franchise, and a welcome one. Even so, navigating the city becomes rote over time. You may stumble upon a passage you never visited, but you wouldn't know it. The building design is devoid of personality, and many elevated areas and sewer paths provide minimal diversity. While I haven't been to Paris, the model behind Lumiose, I've lived in NYC for nearly a decade. It's a city where every district differs, and all are vibrant with differences that give them soul. Lumiose Metropolis doesn't have that. It features beige structures topped with colored roofs and flatly rendered balconies.

The Areas Where Lumiose City Really Excels

Where the city truly stands out, oddly enough, is indoors. I adored how Pokémon battles within Sword & Shield take place in football-like stadiums, giving them real weight and meaning. On the flipside, battles in Scarlet & Violet take place in a field with two random people watching. It's very disappointing. Z-A strikes a middle ground between the two. You'll battle in eateries with diners observing as they dine. An elite combat club will invite you to a competition, and you will combat in its rooftop arena under a lighting fixture (not Chandelure) hanging above. The most memorable spot is the elegantly decorated base of the Rust Syndicate with atmospheric illumination and magenta walls. Various individual battle locales overflow with personality missing in the overall metropolis in general.

The Comfort of Routine

During the Royale, as well as subduing wild powered-up creatures and filling the Pokédex, there's an inescapable feeling of, {"I