The absence of any nighttime gameplay in the promotional material released forPokémon Legends: Z-Aso far is a curious omission, but one that I believe serves a deliberate purpose. Of course, with the game still many months away from releasing, it is little surprise that plenty of details are still being kept a mystery. Nevertheless, I believe there is likely a significant aspect of gameplay tied specifically to a day/night cycle, with dramatic implications for nights in Lumiose City.
There was more than onebig reveal forLegends: Z-Acourtesy of the new gameplay trailer and footage presented on Pokémon Day 2025, although on the whole, people were easily left with just as many new questions as answers. On the other hand, it is much easier now to create reasonable theories about the game’s narrative and even some probable new mechanics. But while this new promotional material alone gives plenty to consider, it is also well worth contrasting it withthe features ofPokémon Legends: Arceusto see what else may be planned for the title.
Will Pokémon Legends: Z-A Have Nighttime Gameplay?
Most Core Pokémon Games Do Feature A Nighttime With Specific Mechanics
Various incarnations of a day/night cycle have been a part ofPokémongames since Generation 2, and as such time has long since been an important factor in mechanics like Pokémon spawn rates and evolutions. As a result, it would be very strange forLegends: Z-Ato not follow this pattern. AlthoughPokémon Legendstitles do have clear differencesto other core entries in the franchise, the existence of an in-game nighttime is not one of them, as clearly evidenced byLegends: Arceus.
Naturally, this means thatLegends: Z-Ashould be able to support the same type of changing spawn rates and time-specific evolutions as otherPokémongames, including those of any new species that it may introduce. Combined with the possibilities offered by a similarly likely changing weather system, Lumiose City could play host to an incredibly diverse range of Pokémon depending on the conditions. However, it is worth noting that Pokémon would presumably not be alone in being affected by the changing time.
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AsPokémon Legends: Z-Ais set entirely inside Lumiose City,it would be natural for the time to be a major factor in how some stores and other buildings operate. For example, venues such as restaurants could have both specific opening times and a varying menu depending on the day, while any Battle Facilities could likewise vary their services. This would help to give Lumiose City a far greater diversity in how it operates, just like a real city. Of course, with that being said, core services like Pokémon Centers will undoubtedly remain available regardless of the time.
Lumiose City At Night Is Perfect For Alpha Pokémon
More Dangerous Pokémon Would Give The Night A Greater Significance
Alpha Pokémon were a particularly impressive inclusion inLegends: Arceus, helping to emphasize the vast, untamed nature of Hisui’s landscape. Although these powerful variants were omitted fromPokémon Scarlet and Violet, it would still be simple for them to return in the nextPokémon Legendsgame, despite the vastly differentsetting ofLegends:Z-A. This is because in addition to other, long-established effects of the mechanic in pastPokémongames,a day/night cycle would also provide the perfect justification for the reappearance of Alpha Pokémon, specifically at nighttime.
As real-life urban areas become quieter at night, it is well-established that all kinds of wildlife can emerge in response. Likewise, as the inhabitants of Lumiose City go home,it would make perfect sense for more Pokémon to appear and begin roaming the streets. I believe that this could easily include Alpha Pokémon, which despite being the largest and most aggressive members of their species may still be dissuaded by the sheer number of people present during the day. This would mean that day and night in Lumiose City would be predominantly populated by humans and Pokémon respectively.
A greater concentration of powerful Pokémon at night would give the more concentrated setting ofLegends: Z-Amore variety, putting Lumiose City more on par with the full region of Hisui inLegends: Arceus.
The return of Alpha Pokémon would also help to further distinguishLegendstitles from other corePokémongames. As a subseries,Pokémon Legendsgames deserve their own trends, andthe appearance of Alpha Pokémon would be an excellent tradition for these titles to establish. The combination of this with nighttime spawns would also meld with the story ofLegends: Z-A, again matching the setting while also enhancing the actual gameplay experience. Therefore, the exclusion of promotional nighttime footage forLegends: Z-Afeels entirely deliberate, and I feel an eventual reveal like Alpha Pokémon would perfectly fit what is currently known.
Nighttime Alpha Pokémon Would Add A Fun Mechanic To Z-A
Z-A Could Put A New Twist On The Use Of Alpha Pokémon
The power of Alpha Pokémon effectively makes them minibosses inLegends: Arceus, especially given that they are inherently aggressive when approached. A similar role inLegends: Z-Awould naturally see various parts of Lumiose City become the territory of these Pokémon, making them much more dangerous areas to explore at night. Of course, this is far from being inherently bad; even if they could effectively block off parts of Lumiose City, I ultimately found the existence of Alphas inLegends: Arceusan interesting challenge to overcome, and I am sure thatZ-Awould utilize them in much the same way.
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Naturally, it is also worth noting that Alpha Pokémon can also be incredible assets to a player. InLegends: Z-A, it will be particularly interesting to see how Alpha Pokémon will interact with Mega Evolution. Not only would Alphas be uniquely well-suited to countering Mega Evolved Pokémon, but it is also possible that Mega Evolving Alpha Pokémon will result in new Forms. As a result, not only would Alphas be a fun mechanic in their own right, butthe way they interact withMega Evolution inLegends: Z-Acould easily be even more intriguing.
With a day/night cycle inPokémon Legends: Z-Aall but guaranteed, the lack of any promotional material suggests that a significant detail is currently being kept in reserve regarding nighttime in Lumiose City. Although it is just a theory at present, the emergence of Alpha Pokémon would be a perfect feature for this part of the game, from both a gameplay and story perspective. Because of this, I feel reasonably confident in predicting that exploring Lumiose City at night will be both more challenging and rewarding than doing so during the day, thanks entirely to these unique inhabitants.
