Pokemon Legends: ZA debuted to mixed reviews and reception, with some fans praising the game's approach to exploration and combat, and others upset by the overall quality, lengthy tutorial, or even the map. The game is not without its flaws, but it can be a very enjoyable experience when playing ranked battles online or shiny hunting in Pokemon Legends: ZA. It's also a love letter to the original Gen 6 games, with several returning characters and all the Pokemon from Kalos making a comeback, and some of them also got a new Mega Evolution. It's not all roses for the Gen 6 Pokemon though, as one of them is much worse in the new game, so it could very well be the worst in the entire game.
With the road Pokemon Legends: ZAs Wild Zones work, players can easily get many animals just by exploring, while others are more hidden or less often found. For example, Pokemon Legends: ZA's Wild Zone 4 includes wild Honedge, which only spawn at night. Still, it's an easy find, and many Gen 6 fans were happy to see it this early in the game due to Aegislash's popularity. But as much as Aegislash was good in Gen 6 games and even in VGC over the years, it is far from being good in Pokemon Legends: ZA. There are a few reasons for this:
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Despite being an extremely popular Gen 6 Pokemon, Aegislash doesn't get a well-deserved new form and power with Mega Evolutions.
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Change stance with Aegislash in Pokemon Legends: ZA is very slow, almost 2 seconds for the animation, to the point that the real-time battle can be very unforgiving for the Pokemon's performance.
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Aegislash's signature move, King's Shield, takes a long time to reactivate in Blade Forme, and it also has a 16-second cooldown.
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Aegislash has a BST of 500, with low attack stats in Shield Forme and low defense in Blade Forme. As such, players use Doublelade in Pokemon Legends: ZA with Eviolite equipped to have a better Aegislash that doesn't need to change stance.
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No other Pokémon in the game requires players to wait for animations to finish just to start using a move, making Aegislash the slowest animal overall.
- Pokemon Legends: ZAs best teams for ranked often include Garchomp, Charizard, and/or Gyarados, all of whom can easily KO Aegislash even in Shield Forme.
Eviolite is an item in Pokemon Legends: ZA and other mainline games that increases the holder's defense and Sp. Defense by 50% if not fully developed. With a base defense stat of 150 and Sp. Defense of 49 on Doublade, it can go up to 225 and 73 respectively.
Say goodbye to Aegislash in Pokemon Legends: ZA
Considering how strong a Doublade with Eviolite can be both defensively and offensively, there's no reason to play Aegislash over it, especially with its long stance-changing animations. Doublade misses out on King's Shield, but one could argue that it's a glorified Protect, so finding success isn't mandatory. Instead, Doublade can dispense with defensive moves with Eviolite and do heavy damage with moves like Iron Head, Rock Slide, Shadow Claw, and Close Combat.
Aegislash is one of Gen 6's best Pokemon thanks to its powerful gimmick and BST of 500, but this is true of the series' proven turn-based battle. With Pokemon Legends: ZAs real-time combat, Aegislash's gimmick is far too slow to pull off, and if anything, it can be quite frustrating to play with. There are some not-so-good Pokemon in the game, but none of them feel inherently bad to play, unlike Aegislash.
- Released
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16 October 2025
- ESRB
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All 10+ / Fantasy violence, in-game purchase
