Pokémon Legends: Z-A shows real-time battles in first gameplay trailer

Today’s new trailer for Pokémon Legends: Z-A has revealed the first proper gameplay details, but there’s no mention of Nintendo Switch 2.

Considering it’s meant to be out this year, it was a given that the focus of the Pokémon Presents showcase would be a new trailer for Pokémon Legends Z-A.

However, The Pokémon Company is still remaining coy about an exact release date, with the game only said to be arriving in ‘late 2025’. So don’t expect it to launch until the autumn.

You did get a good look at the game though, with the initial gameplay footage confirming similar mechanics to Pokémon Legends: Arceus, but also what look like real-time battles.

The Pokémon games have traditionally stuck to turn-based combat since the very beginning, and that didn’t change for Pokémon Legends: Arceus, despite how much it otherwise diverted from the usual formula.

In Pokémon Legends: Z-A you can see the player character and the pokémon moving mid-battle, allowing them to avoid attacks and get into better positions.

There are also what appear to be cooldown timers for your pokémon’s attacks and you can instantly swap out to a different pokémon. All in all, battles appear to be far more dynamic and reactionary.

How much control you’ll have over your pokémon’s movement isn’t entirely clear, but the trailer mentions a dodge for your human character and the fact that attacks now have different ranges.

Otherwise, Legends: Z-A still follows a similar structure to Legends: Arceus. You’ll be able to catch pokémon by just throwing pokéballs at the them – without the need to battle – by exploring dedicated areas call wild zones.

It seems these wild zones will be confined to the setting of Lumiose City, so no exploring dangerous, untamed wildernesses. In fact, the whole game has a more relaxing vibe than Legends: Arceus, which portrayed pokémon as dangerous, as yet untamed animals.

That’s perhaps because Legends: Arceus was set in the past but Legends: Z-A appears to take place in the present day, or maybe even near future.

Mega evolution is also explicitly confirmed to return, which was something the initial announcement teased. There are no signs of any new mega evolutions, but it seems likely considering this is the first time the mechanic’s appeared in the video games since 2014’s Pokémon Omega Ruby & Alpha Sapphire.

There’s been no mention of whether Pokémon Legends: Z-A will launch for Nintendo Switch 2 though. While the new console doesn’t have an official release date, Pokémon Legends: Z-A being a late 2025 title means it’ll most assuredly be out after the Switch 2 has hit the market.

It’s probably safe to assume Legends: Z-A will only launch for Switch (something insider Jeff Grubb claimed would be the case), but be playable on Switch 2 through its backwards compatibility.

Maybe there’ll be some benefits to running it on the newer hardware, but there’s little reason for Nintendo or The Pokémon Company to be coy about that at this point.

While Legends: Z-A was the highlight, it obviously wasn’t the only thing announced during the showcase. Various updates for all the mobile Pokémon games were shared as well as a wholly new game titled Pokémon Champions.

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