Pokemon Legends Z-A’s Name Has Always Pointed To Its Legacy As A Sequel

Depite carrying the Legends subtitle, it turns out that Pokemon Legends: Z-A is far more of a sequel to Pokemon X & Y than to its predecessor, Pokemon Legends: Arceus–and the clues have always been right there in the name.

As mentioned in GameSpot’s review of the latest Pokemon title, Legends: Z-A can easily be considered a sequel to generation 6 titles Pokemon X & Y–it’s set in Lumiose City just five years after the events of that game, and brings back many of that game’s characters, Pokemon, and even Mega Evolutions. Looking back, the game’s status as a sequel has always been right there in the name–following on from X and Y, the next letter of the alphabet is Z, then it would cycle all the way back around to A.

The name could also be a reference to Pokemon Z, a rumored Pokemon title that many expected would be released following X & Y. All the signs seemed to be there for a Zygarde-centered gen 6 sequel, following the long tradition of third Pokemon releases like Crystal or Emerald, but Pokemon Z never eventuated. Instead it took over a decade for X & Y to finally get its follow-up, even if the name also bears the Legends subtitle.

The Z-A name has plenty of other significance beyond its link to XY, which has been the subject of plenty of fan speculation since it was announced. Other theories include a link to enigmatic Kalos resident AZ, who appears in both X & Y and Legends: Z-A, or a link between Zygarde and Arceus, positioning the latest game as the urban, futuristic equivalent to Legends: Arceus’s far-past adventure.

GameSpot’s review of Pokemon Legends: Z-A scored the game a 7/10, praising the successful translation of Pokemon’s traditional battle style to real-time combat, but adding that its visuals and presentation sometimes falls flat. Check out the full review of the latest Pokemon title here.