Among the big reveals for Pokémon Day 2025, many fans hoped to see more information about Pokémon Legends Z-A—like a release date and, of course, the starter trio.
Following the pattern set by Arceus with Cyndaquil, Oshawott, and Rowlet, the starter trio in Legends games consists of starters from past main game generations. Cyndaquil is the Fire-type starter from Gen. 2, Oshawott is the Water-type starter from Gen. 5, and Rowlet is the Grass-type starter from Gen. 7.
This time, though, the developers picked an odd combo: the other two starters from Gen. 2 and another one from Gen. 5.
That’s right: Chikorita, Tepig, and Totodile are the Pokémon Legends Z-A starters, and fans are not happy. Despite them generally being popular among fans, people have obvious favorites among them—and the lazy choice of putting two Pokémon from the same generation is not helpful, either.
Earlier leaks suggested that Snivy and Piplup would join Tepig instead. The Gen. 5 Grass type and Gen. 4 Water-type are also popular among fans, though perhaps not as familiar for those who only know the older species. Plus, there would still be two Pokémon from the same repeated generation either way.
Is this a strategy from developers to try and bring old-time fans back for Pokémon Legends Z-A when it releases for Switch and Switch 2 in late 2025? The nostalgic appeal might work its charm. But there was probably a more creative way to bring back mixed-generation starters than this, we’re sure.
Published: Feb 27, 2025 2:55 PM UTC