On February 27, during the 30th anniversary Pokémon Presents stream, Game Freak revealed a new Mega Evolution for Pokémon Legends: ZA: Mega Garchomp Z. Let this be the definitive one.
Mega Evolutions have been a part of the Pokémon battle dance for a while, having been introduced in 2013 with Pokémon X and AND. The idea is that certain Pokémon can have a corresponding key element (i.e. Venusaur has Venusaurite) to evolve in battle beyond their typical end-stage evolution (i.e. Venusaur becomes Mega Venusaur). The Pokémon will take on a new appearance and see its base stats increase significantly, usually around 100 points across the board.
The Mega Evolution cheat skipped a few games; neither it nor the similarly paradigm-shifting Z-Moves were present in 2019. Sword and Armor or 2022 Scarlet and Violet – but he came back again for Pokémon Legends: ZA. As of this writing, according to Serebii, around 90 Pokémon can Mega Evolve, although some, like Charizard and Tastugiri, have multiple forms.
It’s funny. Sometimes you remember something you hated as a child (olives, for example) and wonder if it really is as offensive as you remember, if you’ve matured, if your memory is clouding something that would otherwise be innocuous. Then reality prevails.
Mega Evolutions were dumb in 2013. They still are now. And the olives are still not good.
For 30 years, Pokémon has built its battles around an advanced version of Rock, Paper, Scissors: 18 different types, each with their own strengths and weaknesses against other types. Although Game Freak has implemented several quality of life changes over the years, that core concept remains the same. You attack the Water-type Pokémon with Electric or Grass-type moves. You switch your Electric-type Pokémon when a Ground-type Pokémon appears. The challenge is knowing the types of Pokémon you’re facing (with over 1,000 today, it’s harder than you think) so you can know whether to attack or escape.
Mega Evolution eliminates all that strategy, reducing single-player Pokémon battles to a simple numbers game. The competitive advantage of Mega Evolution’s stat boosts means that, in most cases, you no longer have to think about the type matching table, as long as both Pokémon are roughly the same levels. I have been playing Legends: ZA on and off since its release in October 2025. Whenever I find myself in a pinch, I just Mega Evolve whatever Pokémon is on the field and boom, we’re safe.
Since Pokémon must have the necessary items for Mega Evolutions, the hack also trivializes another central component of Pokémon battles. Pokémon can only have one item at a time. Give a Pokémon a Coal and it will increase the damage its Fire-type moves do, great for Fire-type Pokémon, which already get the same-type attack bonus for Fire-type moves. Let another Pokémon have Remnants and it will regain some health each turn. There are hundreds of elements retained, allowing trainers countless possibilities to exercise their strategic skills. But what are you going to do, give your Pokémon a marginal advantage that could help you in specific circumstances? Or opt for the item that instantly changes the course? Come on.
The obvious solution seems simple: just…don’t interact with the mechanic. But the problem with Legends: ZA It is that it effectively forces you to do it. For most of the game, you battle opposing trainers or wild Pokémon. However, from time to time you will have to defeat some “Rogue Mega Evolutions”, high-level Pokémon that Mega Evolved without a trainer and pose a threat to nearby citizens in PokéParis. Defeating these Pokémon practically requires you to use your own Mega Evolutions in tedious boss fights where you launch the same attacks repeatedly while running around a bland, round battlefield. That’s why I keep hitting a wall in the game. Every time I face one of these boss fights, I groan and leave the game, letting my attention be captured by a different game for a few weeks.
The arrival of Mega Garchomp Z to Legends: ZA (as one of Pokémon’s big 30th birthday gifts, no less) suggests that The Pokémon Company isn’t shying away from mega evolutions. In any case, given that December 2025 Megadimension The expansion added a bunch of new Mega Evolutions, Mega Garchomp Z is probably far from the last. After all, the trick is the only one that keeps coming up. Much to my chagrin, it’s probably not going anywhere.
But hey, at least we got Mega Dragonite out.
Soruce: polygon.com