Mega Evolution Vs. Z-Moves

So Pokemon Sun and Moon are pretty good, right? General consensus seems to be that the games were pretty fun at worst, and a fantastic experience at best. But there is one thing in particular that has me giggling with glee, because I, along with a minority of people, totally called one thing years ago.

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Mega Evolution sucked, didn't it?

Ok, ok, I get it, I was far from the only one and really there were quite a few people who didn't like mega evolution when it was first introduced. But I think it was one key element from Sun and Moon to make people really see what was up with mega evolutions. Z-moves. What was it about Z-moves that made them so much better, and why are they getting compared to mega evolution so much?

Z-moves and mega evolution were both what I call "tacked on" additions. Despite that negative connotation, when I say that I mean a new element to the gameplay that has, in a sense, been stapled onto the side of the game. It's a bit tricky to explain, but you get that sense with a lot of sequels. The coin mechanics in New Super Mario Bros. 2, for example, don't change the core mechanics or add a core mechanic. They can still change a game in positive ways and are a useful tool, but as we can see in comparing X/Y to Sun/Moon, they can also go very wrong.

So what's the big deal with mega evolutions anyway? They're flashy, they're cool, and they provide a neat addition to certain Pokemon. What went wrong was in the overrarching implications of Mega Evolution. I could list a lot of things that I take issue with, like how their stats are too much and how it turns into a "win" button as you play the game, but those aren't issues with the core idea.

The core issue with mega evolution is that it's limited to certain Pokemon. This runs in opposition to one of the best parts of Pokemon, which is the Pokemon themselves. Right back to Red and Blue, the coolest part of the games for many was crafting a team that felt your own. You had 150 choices for your 6 team slots, and most players did not have the same teams or even similar ones. Of course there were optimal teams, but with a little elbow grease, grinding, or strategy almost any team could beat the game. It was truly your own adventure and always has been.

Mega Evolution sadly goes back on this feeling. For one, you get the obvious overpowered argument, and yes, it does mess with the balance of the game. However, Pokemon has always really powerful Pokemon, so to be quite honest that's not the issue here. What is the issue is that the defacto new addition to the series is limited to select Pokemon.

It limits team variety, plain and simple. It runs in opposition to what Pokemon is all about, in that it's always enabled more Pokemon to be viable from generation to generation. Through the simple act of making more Pokemon they could expand team variety. Alongside other things such as refining the battle mechanics to be more balanced and introducing alternative ways to use Pokemon besides battles, the series has generally moved in a direction enabling the usage of most Pokemon in one way or another.

Sadly, mega evolution moves backward. The fact that the cool new feature that's hyped up in all the trailers is limited to Pokemon really puts a damper on team quality. There are a few dozen Pokemon that can mega evolve, and that is it. You need one of these few Pokemon on your team in order to experience the feature, and that just means every team, even yours, is likely to have one of this small group forced upon you in this game.

This just kills team creativity in a huge way, and I don't think I need to explain why that's a problem. The core tenant of the series "gotta catch em' all!" has been undermined in the main quest. You cannot use "all" the Pokemon and still get the full experience. A more accurate motto for X and Y would be "Gotta catch em' all but make sure you use one of these few dozen!"

I do see the intent behind this idea, and why in concept I'm not opposed to having some way to power up weaker Pokemon. Sun and Moon definitely proved why it's not a bad idea.

The gimmick in S&M is super powerful moves, otherwise known as Z-moves. It gives you the ability to charge up and superpower any move once per battle, as long as the Pokemon is holding a Z-crystal. And this is miles better than Mega Evolution.

It should be quite obvious based on what I said earlier. Z-moves take what mega evolution was trying to do and finds a way to apply it to every single Pokemon. Your starter, legendary Pokemon, even a Magikarp can use Z-moves. It takes the idea of powering up a Pokemon and spreads it everywhere, rather than limiting it to a handful. It does the exact opposite of Megas and continues the series tradition of expanding who among the roster you can use.

So, why exactly does this matter? One game messes something up and another sequel gets it right, news at 7. What's cool about this is how closely linked these 2 mechanics are, in their implementation and in their effects, and in this we can clearly see how one went right, and one went wrong. Beyond the basic ideas being miles apart in their quality, it's the little details that make the difference here.

How about the frequency of use? You can use Z-moves once per battle, making it a careful puzzle as to when they're most needed. Mega evolution, on the other hand, lasts the entire battle, meaning the purpose it ends up serving is just a strong new Pokemon.

The held item requirement? Z-moves can be used by every Pokemon, some who really benefit by held items, so you need to consider what you're giving up by letting them use Z-moves. Mega Evolution basically results in legendary Pokemon stats, which, I mean... don't really need held items at that point. It's a no-brainer.

So what about giving weak Pokemon a chance to shine? Z-moves do that inherently, on a broad scale. Mega Evolution, while having the potential to fine tune specific Pokemon, wastes it on legendaries and Pokemon that were already plenty powerful. Why did Mewtwo, Salamence, and Rayquazza need more power?

I think you get the point by now. Obviously I'm ranting a bit, but it is so great to see the Pokemon developers realize that Mega Evolution was a bad idea. They took the core benefits it could provide and reworked it into a system that helps every single Pokemon. If that's not game design iteration in action, I don't know what is. I have high hopes for what comes next in the franchise.