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I'm not sure exactly how the custom began, but I consistently call all my Pokémon trainers Glitch.

Whether it's a main series game or a side project like Pokkén Tournament DX along with Pokémon Go — the name never changes. Glitch alternates between male and female avatars, with black and purple locks. Sometimes their fashion is flawless, like in Pokémon Legends: Z-A, the newest installment in the long-running series (and one of the more style-conscious releases). Other times they're limited to the various school uniform designs from Pokémon Scarlet and Violet. Yet they remain Glitch.

The Ever-Evolving Realm of Pokemon Titles

Much like my trainers, the Pokémon games have transformed across releases, with certain superficial, others significant. But at their heart, they remain identical; they're consistently Pokémon to the core. Game Freak uncovered a nearly perfect mechanics system some 30 years ago, and just recently truly attempted to evolve on it with entries such as Pokémon Legends: Arceus (different timeline, your avatar faces peril). Throughout every iteration, the core mechanics cycle of catching and fighting with adorable monsters has stayed steady for nearly as long as I've been alive.

Shaking Conventions in Pokémon Legends: Z-A

Like Arceus before it, featuring lack of arenas and emphasis on creating a Pokédex, Pokémon Legends: Z-A brings several changes to that framework. It takes place completely in a single location, the Paris-inspired Lumiose City from Pokémon X and Y, ditching the region-spanning journeys of earlier titles. Pokémon are intended to coexist with people, battlers and civilians, in manners we've only glimpsed before.

Far more radical is Z-A's real-time combat mechanics. This is where the franchise's almost ideal core cycle experiences its most significant transformation to date, swapping methodical sequential bouts with something more chaotic. And it's immensely fun, even as I find myself ready for a new traditional entry. Although these alterations to the traditional Pokémon formula seem like they create an entirely fresh adventure, Pokémon Legends: Z-A feels as recognizable as every other Pokemon game.

The Heart of the Journey: The Z-A Championship

When first arriving at Lumiose Metropolis, any intentions your custom avatar had as a tourist are discarded; you're promptly enlisted by the female guide (for male avatars; Urbain if female) to become part of their squad of trainers. You're gifted a creature from them as your first partner and you're dispatched into the Z-A Championship.

The Championship is the epicenter of Pokémon Legends: Z-A. It's similar to the traditional "gym badges to Elite Four" advancement of past games. But here, you fight several opponents to earn the chance to participate in an advancement bout. Win and you will be elevated to the next rank, with the ultimate goal of achieving rank A.

Real-Time Battles: A New Frontier

Character fights take place during nighttime, and navigating stealthily the designated combat areas is very entertaining. I'm constantly attempting to surprise an opponent and unleash an unopposed move, since everything happens instantaneously. Moves function with cooldown timers, meaning both combatants may occasionally attack each other at the same time (and knock each other out simultaneously). It's a lot to get used to initially. Despite gaming for almost thirty hours, I still feel like there's much to master regarding using my Pokémon's moves in ways that complement each other. Placement also plays a significant part in battles as your Pokémon will trail behind you or move to specific locations to execute moves (some are long-range, whereas others must be up close and personal).

The real-time action makes battles go so fast that I often sometimes cycling through moves in the same order, even when this amounts to a suboptimal strategy. There isn't moment to pause in Z-A, and plenty of chances to get overwhelmed. Creature fights depend on response post-move execution, and that data is still present on the display in Z-A, but flashes past quickly. Occasionally, you can't even read it because diverting attention from your opponent will spell immediate defeat.

Exploring Lumiose Metropolis

Outside of battle, you will traverse Lumiose Metropolis. It's relatively small, although densely packed. Deep into the game, I continue to find new shops and rooftops to visit. It's also rich with character, and perfectly captures the concept of Pokémon and people living together. Common bird Pokemon populate its sidewalks, flying away as you approach like the real-life city birds obstructing my path while strolling in New York City. The monkey trio joyfully cling on streetlights, and insect creatures such as Kakuna cling to trees.

A focus on city living is a new direction for Pokémon, and a welcome one. Nonetheless, exploring Lumiose grows repetitive over time. You might discover an alley you never visited, but it feels identical. The architecture is devoid of personality, and many elevated areas and underground routes offer little variety. While I haven't been to the French capital, the model behind the city, I've lived in NYC for nearly a decade. It's a city where every district are the same, and they're all vibrant with differences that provide character. Lumiose Metropolis doesn't have that. It has tan buildings with blue or red roofs and flatly rendered balconies.

Where The Metropolis Truly Shines

In which the city really shines, surprisingly, is indoors. I loved how Pokémon battles within Sword & Shield take place in football-like stadiums, providing them genuine significance and importance. On the flipside, battles in Scarlet and Violet take place on a court with two random people watching. It's a total letdown. Z-A finds a balance between the two. You'll battle in restaurants with diners observing while they eat. A fancy battle society will extend an invitation to a competition, and you'll battle on its penthouse court under a lighting fixture (not the Pokemon) suspended overhead. My favorite location is the beautifully designed headquarters of the Rust Syndicate with its moody lighting and magenta walls. Several distinct battle locales overflow with personality that's absent from the larger city as a whole.

The Comfort of Routine

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