Why Pokémon Legends: Z-A Makes More Sense Than Black and White Remakes

Despite some lore and geography linking Pokémon Scarlet and Violet’s Paldea to Pokémon X and Y’s Kalos, no one – including myself – expected Game Freak to leap Froakie over Pokémon Black and White when it came to spinoffs and remakes to announce Pokémon Legends: Z-A.

It seemed all but certain that an adventure revisiting Unova was next up with all the connections in the recent DLC, and even more so after the treatment that Sinnoh’s Pokémon Diamond and Pearl got with both remakes and the first Legends title.

Pokémon Legends: Z-A’s reveal doesn’t mean Pokémon Black and White isn’t getting the remake treatment. Still, it’s clear Game Freak no longer follows a set pattern, and the more I think about it, returning to Kalos in some form makes far more sense at the moment than revisiting Unova.

We know little about Pokémon Legends: Z-A thus far. It’s set entirely within the Paris-inspired Lumiose City during a period of renovation set sometime in the past. This renovation may have drawn inspiration from a similar renovation Paris underwent near the end of the 1800s, which matches the time period seen in Pokémon Legends: Arceus. Zygarde will likely play a pivotal role, and given how the seemingly immortal AZ is central to the Pokémon X and Y plot (and that Z-A backward is AZ), we’re likely to see him again, too.

Related: 10 Pokémon Likely To Receive Mega Evolutions in Pokémon Legends: Z-A

That’s about it. However, as Pokémon X and Y is like the forgotten stepchild of the mainline Pokémon games, it makes far more sense for Game Freak to revisit Kalos than any other region. Sure, the alphabetical pair gave us Fairy type and Mega Evolutions, but other than that, X and Y isn’t remembered for much else. Both its predecessor and successor received sequels or alternate storylines, which also leaves X and Y as the only generation not to have some sort of follow-up, including in the form of DLC. For years, a Pokémon Z was rumored but never materialized; now, we’re finally getting another game set in Kalos.

More than any other, the underbaked storyline in X and Y needs an update. It pretty much goes from 0 to 100 when you first meet AZ, imprisoned by the villainous Team Flare boss Lysandre, having him spout off a bunch of stuff about a war 3000 years prior. It gave me whiplash way back in 2013, spawned a few memes from the absurdity, and provided absolutely no motivation to ever play it again – until now. This could’ve been done in a remaster that gives a bit more time for Lysandre’s plot to cook; however, it’s the only Pokémon game where a mysterious character from the distant past has a prominent role in the narrative, therefore making for a more logical choice than a Pokémon Legends: Victini set in an ancient Unova. 

Pokémon Black and White, on the other hand, deserves the remake treatment more than any other Pokémon game – not a Legends game. I would argue (and Pokémon battle against anyone who disagrees) that Black and White and its sequel are the pinnacle of Pokémon games, as they’re far more complete with a full set of 155 unique Pokémon and a comprehensive, engaging narrative starring Reshiram, Zekrom, and N. Throw a well-developed remake onto the more powerful hardware of a Nintendo Switch successor, and you’ll make me the happiest PokéFan in the world; do the same for Pokémon X and Y, and I’d be much less enthused.

I’ve spent a lot of time criticizing Pokémon Scarlet and Violet. The shoddy release made me lose interest in the Pokémon series for the first time in three decades. However, returning to Kalos with a Legends game, with more time left to do a Pokémon Black and White remake properly, has reignited my interest like a Charizard using Blast Burn. I never thought I’d say it after the deluge of technically unsound Pokémon games we got between 2019 and 2022, but I can’t wait to see more of Pokémon Legends: Z-A.