The long-debated question of which critters will be featured as starters inPokemon Legends: Z-Ahas been answered in the Pokemon Day trailer for the upcoming game.Pokemon Legends: Z-Aplayers can look forward to choosing between Chikorita, Tepig, and Totodile as starters when the game launches later this year. However, these starters follow an increasingly odd trend afterLegends: Arceusthat not many fans could have predicted.
Prior to this latest trailer, one of the hottest topics surroundingPokemon Legends: Z-Awas speculating which mons would be chosen for the starter trio. While various rumors pointed toward all sorts of different starter combinations, including the originalPokemon X and Ytrio, the reveal of these mons as thetrueLegends: Z-Astartersbreaks the mold players expected afterLegends: Arceus. To make this starter situation even more strange, there appears to be a clear bias towards starters from two particular generations in thePokemon Legendsseries.
Pokemon Gen 2 and Gen 5 Have Seen a Lot of Love in the Pokemon Legends Series
Pokemon Legends: Arceus and Pokemon Legends: Z-A’s Starters Have Been Mostly Made Up of Gen 2 and 5 Mons
Pokemon Legends: Z-Aand its predecessor have put a lot of emphasis on starters from Gen 2 and Gen 5, withPokemon Legends: Arceusfeaturing Gen 2’s Fire-type Cyndaquil and Gen 5’s Water-type Oshawott. While some fans expectedPokemon Legends: Z-Ato follow a similar pattern, rather than featuring a Gen 7 mon as the third of the trio like Rowlet was inLegends: Arceus,Pokemon Legends: Z-Adoubles down on Gen 2 starters and featuresboth Chikorita and Totodile.
Water
Gen 2
Although the starters forPokemon Legends: Z-Athrow a wrench in the pattern fans were predicting for the game, fans of the Gen 2 and Gen 5 starters have been treated quite well, with the starters forLegends: Arceusreceiving regional evolutions, and it is likely that the starters forLegends: Z-Awill receive new forms as well. Fans have also been hoping to see remakes of Gen 5’sPokemon Black and Whiteor newLet’s Gogames in the Johto Region, so these generations getting their starters represented in theLegendsseries may be the next best thing.
Gen 2 and 5 Starters May Be Getting the Spotlight to Make Up for Past Snubs
It may seem odd forPokemon Legends: Arceusand nowPokemon Legends: Z-Ato focus so heavily on Gen 2 and Gen 5 when it comes to the starters of these games, but there could be a logical reason for this emphasis. All of the creatures featured as starters in theLegendsseries so far had yet to receive any sort of alternate form prior to their appearance in these games. While it’s unconfirmed if the starters forLegends: Z-Awill receive new forms, it seems likely that they could seenew Mega Evolutionsor regional evolutions.
Despite an emphasis on Gen 2 and Gen 5 starters in thePokemon Legendsseries, Snivy has yet to be represented.
Since these generations of starters haven’t seen the same attention that other gens likeGen 1 and Gen 3’s startershave, it makes sense thatPokemon Legends: Z-Awould give them their due. However, the downside of this pattern forPokemon Legendsstarters means that if there is a third game in this style, it will be much harder to predict which starters will be chosen now that all Gen 2 starters have been represented, and all but Snivy have been represented for Gen 5.
