Pokémon Legends Z-A release date for Switch and Switch 2 confirmed
Both versions will release on the same day, The Pokémon Company says
The release date for Pokémon Legends Z-A has been confirmed.
According to a new post on X by the official Pokémon account, the game will be released on October 16.
Both the Switch version and the Nintendo Switch 2 Edition of the game will release on the same date, and digital pre-orders for both versions of the game will start on June 5 on the Nintendo eShop.
Players who buy the Switch edition in either physical or digital form will have the option to upgrade to the Switch 2 Edition of the game by buying an upgrade pack.
According to Nintendo, the Switch 2 Edition of Pokémon Legends Z-A has an improved frame rate and “higher resolution for sharper graphics”.
The Pokémon Company also released the cover art for the game, which shows the main protagonists and their partner Pokémon fighting a Mega-Evolved Pokémon in Lumoise City.
More information on the game, as well as other Pokémon products, will be revealed during a Pokémon Presents presentation on July 22.
Pokémon Legends Z-A will see players revisit the Kalos region and Lumoise City. Lumiose is undergoing a high-tech redevelopment plan.
Players will meet a new companion, Urbain or Taunie, the trailer notes that the companion that the player meets will be dependent on the appearance of the player character, which is chosen at the start of the game.
Chikorita, Tepig, and Totodile will serve as the starter Pokémon in the game.
A gameplay trailer released in March highlighted the game’s battle system, which differs from previous Pokémon games. While battles will still occur between trainers, in Pokémon Legends Z-A, players will control their Pokémon in real time, rather than turn-based.
Battles in the game will have a ranking system, which will see the player begin at rank Z and battle all the way to rank A. This is known in the game as the Z-A Royale.
“Pokémon Legends: Z-A is a new frontier for the Pokémon video game series, blending an RPG story unfolding in a single city with action elements and a real-time battle system unlike anything seen before in the franchise,” The Pokémon Company said in a statement.
“Trainers can look forward to the beginning of a new adventure in Lumiose City – one woven by people and Pokémon together.”
